Technology for sidelink relay

Abstract

In one aspect, the present disclosure includes a method, apparatus, and computer-readable medium for wireless communication, for: receiving, by a relay node, one or more first transport block portions of a first transport block via a first link; attempting to decode each of the first transport block portions; encoding each successfully decoded first transport block portion to define one or more second transport block portions; and sending the one or more second transport block portions via a second link.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62 / 882,305, filed on August 2, 2019, entitled “CBG-BASED SIDELINK RELAY,” and U.S. Patent Application No. 16 / 942,399, filed on July 29, 2020, entitled “TECHNIQUES FOR SIDELINK RELAY,” which are assigned to the assignee of this patent application and are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. Technical Field

[0003] The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communication systems and, more particularly, to techniques for sidelink relaying. Background Art

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

[0005] These multiple access technologies have been adopted in various telecommunication standards to provide a common protocol that enables different wireless devices to communicate at a municipal, national, regional, and even global level. An example of a telecommunication standard is 5G New Radio (NR). 5G NR is part of the continued mobile broadband evolution promulgated by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) to meet new requirements associated with latency, reliability, security, scalability (e.g., Internet of Things (IoT)), and other requirements. 5G NR includes services associated with enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), massive machine type communications (mMTC), and ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC). Certain aspects of 5G NR may be based on the 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard. Further improvements to 5G NR technology are needed. These improvements may also be applied to other multiple access technologies and telecommunication standards that adopt these technologies.

[0006] Some wireless communication networks include device-to-device (D2D) communications, such as, but not limited to, vehicle-based communication devices, which may communicate from vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) (e.g., from a vehicle-based communication device to a road infrastructure node), vehicle-to-network (V2N) (e.g., from a vehicle-based communication device to one or more network nodes, such as a base station), combinations thereof, and / or with other devices, which may be collectively referred to as vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communications. In such a system, a synchronization mechanism (e.g., timing and / or frequency synchronization) for a user equipment (UE) may be based on a connection to a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) or a cellular base station. Alternatively, in the absence of a connection to a GNSS or base station, synchronization of the UE may require sidelink synchronization with another UE that is synchronized to the GNSS or base station. Summary of the invention

[0007] A simplified summary of one or more aspects is presented below in order to provide a basic understanding of such aspects. This summary is not an extensive overview of all intended aspects, and is neither intended to identify key or important elements of all aspects, nor to delineate the scope of any or all aspects. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects in a simplified form as a prelude to a more detailed description that is presented later.

[0008] According to an example, a method for wireless communication by a relay node is provided. The method may include receiving one or more first transport block parts of a first transport block via a first link. The method may also include attempting to decode each of the first transport block parts. The method may also include encoding each successfully decoded first transport block part to define one or more second transport block parts. The method may also include sending the one or more second transport block parts via a second link.

[0009] According to another example, a device (e.g., a relay node) for wireless communication is provided. The device may include a memory and at least one processor coupled to the memory. The at least one processor may be configured to receive one or more first transmission block parts of a first transmission block via a first link. The at least one processor may also be configured to attempt to decode each of the first transmission block parts. The at least one processor may also be configured to encode each successfully decoded first transmission block part to define one or more second transmission block parts. The at least one processor may also be configured to send one or more second transmission block parts via a second link.

[0010] According to another example, an apparatus (e.g., a relay node) for wireless communication is provided. The apparatus may include a component for receiving one or more first transport block parts of a first transport block via a first link. The apparatus may also include a component for attempting to decode each of the first transport block parts. The apparatus may also include a component for encoding each successfully decoded first transport block part to define one or more second transport block parts. The apparatus may also include a component for sending one or more second transport block parts via a second link.

[0011] According to another example, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer executable code is provided. When executed by a processor, the code causes the processor to receive one or more first transport block portions of a first transport block via a first link. When executed by the processor, the code also causes the processor to attempt to decode each of the first transport block portions. When executed by the processor, the code also causes the processor to encode each successfully decoded first transport block portion to define one or more second transport block portions. When executed by the processor, the code also causes the processor to send one or more second transport block portions via a second link.

[0012] According to another example, a method for wireless communication by a user equipment (UE) is provided. The method may include receiving one or more first transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block from a base station via an access link. The method may also include receiving one or more second transmission block parts of the first downlink transmission block from a relay node from another link. The one or more second transmission block parts received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block parts that the relay node successfully decodes.

[0013] According to another example, a device (e.g., UE) for wireless communication is provided. The device may include a memory and at least one processor coupled to the memory. The at least one processor may be configured to receive one or more first transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block from a base station via an access link. The at least one processor may also be configured to receive one or more second transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block from a relay node from another link. The one or more second transmission block parts received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block parts that the relay node successfully decodes.

[0014] According to another example, an apparatus (e.g., UE) for wireless communication is provided. The apparatus may include a component for receiving one or more first transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block from a base station via an access link. The apparatus may include a component for receiving one or more second transmission block parts of the first downlink transmission block from a relay node from another link. The one or more second transmission block parts received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block parts that the relay node successfully decodes.

[0015] According to another example, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer executable code is provided. When executed by a processor, the code causes the processor to receive one or more first transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block from a base station via an access link. When executed by the processor, the code also causes the processor to receive one or more second transmission block parts of the first downlink transmission block from a relay node from another link. The one or more second transmission block parts received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block parts that the relay node successfully decodes.

[0016] According to another example, a method for wireless communication by a user equipment (UE) is provided. The method may include sending one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block to a base station via an access link. The method may also include sending one or more second transmission block parts of the first uplink transmission block to a relay node via another link.

[0017] According to another example, a device (e.g., UE) for wireless communication is provided. The device may include a memory and at least one processor coupled to the memory. The at least one processor may be configured to send one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block to a base station via an access link. The at least one processor may also be configured to send one or more second transmission block parts of the first uplink transmission block to a relay node via another link.

[0018] According to another example, an apparatus (e.g., UE) for wireless communication is provided. The apparatus may include a component for sending one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block to a base station via an access link. The apparatus may also include a component for sending one or more second transmission block parts of the first uplink transmission block to a relay node via another link.

[0019] According to another example, a non-transitory computer readable medium storing computer executable code is provided. When executed by a processor, the code causes the processor to send one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block to a base station via an access link. When executed by the processor, the code also causes the processor to send one or more second transmission block parts of the first uplink transmission block to a relay node via another link.

[0020] According to another example, a method for wireless communication by a base station is provided. The method may include receiving one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block from a user equipment (UE) via an access link. The method may also include receiving one or more second transmission block parts of the first uplink transmission block from a relay node from another link. The one or more second transmission block parts received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block parts that the relay node successfully decodes.

[0021] According to another example, an apparatus (e.g., a base station) for wireless communication is provided. The apparatus may include a memory and at least one processor coupled to the memory. The at least one processor may be configured to receive one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block from a user equipment (UE) via an access link. The at least one processor may also be configured to receive one or more second transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block from a relay node from another link. The one or more second transmission block parts received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block parts that the relay node successfully decodes.

[0022] According to another example, an apparatus (e.g., a base station) for wireless communication is provided. The apparatus may include a component for receiving one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block from a user equipment (UE) via an access link. The apparatus may also include a component for receiving one or more second transmission block parts of the first uplink transmission block from a relay node from another link. The one or more second transmission block parts received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block parts that the relay node successfully decodes.

[0023] According to another example, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer executable code is provided. When executed by a processor, the code causes the processor to receive one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block from a user equipment (UE) via an access link. When executed by the processor, the code also causes the processor to receive one or more second transmission block parts of the first uplink transmission block from a relay node from another link. The one or more second transmission block parts received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block parts that the relay node successfully decodes.

[0024] According to another example, a method for wireless communication by a base station is provided. The method may include sending one or more first transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block to a user equipment (UE) via an access link. The method may also include sending one or more second transmission block parts of the first downlink transmission block to a relay node via another link.

[0025] According to another example, an apparatus (e.g., a base station) for wireless communication is provided. The apparatus may include a memory and at least one processor coupled to the memory. The at least one processor may be configured to send one or more first transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block to a user equipment (UE) via an access link. The at least one processor may also be configured to send one or more second transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block to a relay node via another link.

[0026] According to another example, an apparatus (e.g., a base station) for wireless communication is provided. The apparatus may include a component for sending one or more first transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block to a user equipment (UE) via an access link. The apparatus may also include a component for sending one or more second transmission block parts of the first downlink transmission block to a relay node via another link.

[0027] According to another example, a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer executable code is provided. When executed by a processor, the code causes the processor to send one or more first transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block to a user equipment (UE) via an access link. When executed by the processor, the code also causes the processor to send one or more second transmission block parts of the first downlink transmission block to a relay node via another link.

[0028] To accomplish the foregoing and related ends, one or more aspects described above include the features fully described below and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the accompanying drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative features of one or more aspects described above. However, these features are indicative of only some of the various ways in which the principles of the various aspects may be employed, and this description is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication system and access network in accordance with certain aspects of the present specification.

[0030] Figure 2A is a diagram illustrating an example of a first 5G NR frame in accordance with certain aspects of the present specification.

[0031] Figure 2Bis a diagram illustrating an example of DL channels in a 5G NR subframe in accordance with certain aspects of the present specification.

[0032] Figure 2C is a diagram illustrating an example of a second 5G NR frame in accordance with certain aspects of the present specification.

[0033] Figure 2D is a diagram illustrating an example of UL channels in a 5G NR subframe in accordance with certain aspects of the present specification.

[0034] Figure 3 is used according to various aspects of this specification Figure 1 A diagram of an example frame structure and resources for sidelink communication between two communication nodes in a system.

[0035] Figure 4 According to all aspects of this specification Figure 1 Schematic diagram of an example of hardware components of two communicating nodes in a system.

[0036] Figure 5 is available in accordance with various aspects of this specification Figure 1 Schematic diagram of an example of a side link relay communication configuration operating in a system.

[0037] Figure 6 is available in accordance with various aspects of this specification Figure 1 Schematic diagrams of two different examples of side link relay communication configurations operating in a system.

[0038] Figure 7 is available in accordance with various aspects of this specification Figure 1 A flowchart of an example method of relaying wireless communications of a UE operating in a system.

[0039] Figure 8 is available in accordance with various aspects of this specification Figure 1 A flowchart of an example method of receiving wireless communications of a UE operating in a system.

[0040] Fig. 9 is available in accordance with various aspects of this specification Figure 1 A flowchart of an example method of sending wireless communications of a UE operating in a system.

[0041] Fig.10 is available in accordance with various aspects of this specification Figure 1 A flow chart of an example method of wireless communications for a base station operating in a system.

[0042] Fig.11 is available in accordance with various aspects of this specification Figure 1A flow chart of another example method of wireless communications for a base station operating in a system.

[0043] Fig.12 is a block diagram of an example UE in accordance with various aspects of the present specification.

[0044] Fig.13 is a block diagram of an example base station in accordance with various aspects of the present specification. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0045] The detailed description set forth below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings is intended as a description of various configurations, and is not intended to represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein may be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details in order to provide a thorough understanding of the various concepts. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring these concepts.

[0046] The present aspect generally relates to techniques for sidelink relay communications, for example, the techniques may be used by a relay UE to relay communications from a base station to a multilink UE via a sidelink, or to relay communications from a multilink UE to a base station via a relay UE. In certain example implementations, a multilink UE having a direct access link to a base station may be referred to as a sidelink-assisted multilink UE. For example, a sidelink-assisted multilink UE may establish multilink communications with one or more base stations via two or more communication links, which may include at least one direct link and at least one indirect link via a sidelink with the relay UE. Such multilink communication techniques may be beneficial, for example, by increasing diversity and / or throughput in certain circumstances.

[0047] The present disclosure relates to techniques for sidelink relay communications, among other things. As described in more detail herein, in certain example aspects, techniques for transport block portion-based (or code block group (CBG)-based) sidelink relay communications are provided. For example, the present disclosure provides techniques that can be implemented at least in part in a device and / or method, wherein a relay node (e.g., a relay UE) can receive one or more first transport block portions of a first transport block, attempt to decode each of the first transport block portions, encode each successfully decoded first transport block portion to define one or more second transport block portions, and send one or more second transport block portions. The second transport block portions can, for example, be sent to a base station, a receiving UE, and / or other similar wireless communication devices. In certain implementations, such a receiving wireless communication device can, for example, combine two or more received second transport block portions before or after decoding the received transport block portions. Reference is made below to Figure 1-13 These example techniques and others are discussed in detail.

[0048] Several aspects of telecommunication systems will now be described with reference to various apparatus and methods. These apparatus and methods will be described in the following detailed description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively referred to as "elements"). These elements may be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether these elements are implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0049] For example, any part of an element or any combination of elements can be implemented as a "processing system" comprising one or more processors. Examples of processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, graphics processing units (GPUs), central processing units (CPUs), application processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processors, systems on chip (SoCs), baseband processors, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gated logic, discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware that are configured to perform various functions described throughout the present disclosure. One or more processors in a processing system can execute software. Software can be broadly interpreted as instructions, instruction sets, codes, code segments, program codes, programs, subroutines, software components, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, execution threads, processes, functions, etc., whether or not referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or other.

[0050] Therefore, in one or more example embodiments, the described functions can be implemented in hardware, software or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the function can be stored on a computer-readable medium or encoded as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media. Storage media can be any available media that a computer can access. By way of example and not limitation, such computer-readable media can include random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storage devices, a combination of computer-readable media of the above types, or any other medium that can be used to store computer executable code in the form of instructions or data structures that can be accessed by a computer.

[0051] Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example of a wireless communication system and access network 100. The wireless communication system (also referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) includes a base station 102, a UE 104, an evolved packet core (EPC) 160, and another core network 190 (e.g., a 5G core (5GC)).

[0052] In certain aspects, the relay UE 104b may include a relay multi-link communication component 121 for assisting sidelink relay communications between the base station 102a and the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a. The sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a may have a first access link 120a directly with the base station 102a, and a second communication link with the base station 102a via a side link 158a with the relay UE 104b, which has a second access link 120b to the base station 102a.

[0053] Accordingly, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a may include a UE multi-link communication component 125 configured to manage communications with the relay UE 104b via the side link 158a and with the base station 102a via the access link 120a.

[0054] Similarly, the base station 102a may include a base station multi-link communication component 127 configured to manage communications with the relay UE 104b via the access link 120b and with the sidelink assist multi-link UE 104a via the access link 120a.

[0055] Further details of these sidelink relay operating modes and operations performed by the relay UE 104b, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a, and the base station 102a are discussed in greater detail below.

[0056] Base stations 102 may include macro cells (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cells (low-power cellular base stations). Macro cells include base stations. Small cells include femto cells, pico cells, and micro cells.

[0057] Base stations 102 configured for 4G LTE (collectively referred to as Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN)) can interface with EPC 160 via a backhaul link 132 (e.g., an S1 interface). Base stations 102 configured for 5G NR (collectively referred to as Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN)) can interface with core network 190 via a backhaul link 184. Among other functions, base stations 102 can perform one or more of the following functions: transmission of user data, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection establishment and release, load balancing, distribution of non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, radio access network (RAN) sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), subscriber and device tracking, RAN information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and transmission of warning messages. The base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (eg, through the EPC 160 or the core network 190) via a backhaul link 134 (eg, an X2 interface). The backhaul link 134 may be wired or wireless.

[0058] Base station 102 can communicate wirelessly with UE 104. Each base station 102 can provide communication coverage for its own geographic coverage area 110. There may be overlapping geographic coverage areas 110. For example, a small cell 102' may have a coverage area 110' that overlaps with the coverage area 110 of one or more macro base stations 102. A network including both small cells and macro cells may be referred to as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include a home evolution node base station (eNB) (HeNB), which may provide services to a restricted group referred to as a closed subscriber group (CSG). A communication link 120 between base station 102 and UE 104 may include an uplink (UL) (also referred to as a reverse link) transmission from UE 104 to base station 102 and / or a downlink (DL) (also referred to as a forward link) transmission from base station 102 to UE 104. The communication link 120 may use multiple input multiple output (MIMO) antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming and / or transmit diversity. The communication link may be through one or more carriers. The base station 102 / UE 104 may use a spectrum bandwidth of up to Y MHz (e.g., 5, 10, 15, 20, 100, 400, etc. MHz) per carrier, which is allocated in a carrier aggregation for transmission in each direction totaling up to Yx MHz (x component carriers). The carriers may or may not be adjacent to each other. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to DL and UL (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated for DL ​​than for UL). The component carrier may include a primary component carrier and one or more secondary component carriers. The primary component carrier may be referred to as a primary cell (PCell) and the secondary component carrier may be referred to as a secondary cell (SCell).

[0059] Some UEs 104 may communicate with each other using a device-to-device (D2D) communication link 158. The D2D communication link 158 may use DL / UL WWAN spectrum. The D2D communication link 158 may use one or more sidelink channels, such as a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), a physical sidelink discovery channel (PSDCH), a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH). The D2D communication may be through various wireless D2D communication systems, such as FlashLinQ, WiMedia, Bluetooth, ZigBee, Wi-Fi based on IEEE 802.11 standards, LTE, or NR.

[0060] The wireless communication system may also include a Wi-Fi access point (AP) 150 that communicates with a Wi-Fi station (STA) 152 in the 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum via a communication link 154. When communicating in the unlicensed spectrum, the STA 152 / AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) prior to communication to determine whether the channel is available.

[0061] Whether a small cell 102' or a large cell (e.g., a macro base station), the base station 102 may include an eNB, a gNodeB (gNB), or other types of base stations. Some base stations, such as gNB 180, may operate in one or more frequency bands within the electromagnetic spectrum.

[0062] The electromagnetic spectrum is typically subdivided into different categories, bands, channels, etc. based on frequency / wavelength. In 5G NR, the two initial operating frequency bands are identified as frequency range names FR1 (410MHz-7.125GHz) and FR2 (24.25GHz-52.6GHz). The frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are typically referred to as mid-band frequencies. Although a portion of FR1 is greater than 6GHz, FR1 is typically (interchangeably) referred to as the "Sub-6 GHz" band in various documents and articles. Similar naming issues sometimes arise with respect to FR2, which is typically (interchangeably) referred to as the "millimeter wave" (mmW) band in documents and articles, although it is different from the extremely high frequency (EHF) band (30GHz-300GHz), which is identified as the "millimeter wave" band by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

[0063] In view of the above, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that the term "sub-6 GHz" and the like, if used herein, can broadly represent frequencies that can be less than 6 GHz, can be within FR1, or can include mid-band frequencies. Further, unless otherwise specifically stated, it should be understood that the term "millimeter wave" and the like, if used herein, can broadly represent frequencies that can include mid-band frequencies, can be within FR2, or can be within the EHF band. Communications using mmW radio bands have extremely high path loss and short range. The mmW base station 180 can utilize beamforming 182 with the UE 104 to compensate for the path loss and short range.

[0064] The EPC 160 may include a mobility management entity (MME) 162, other MMEs 164, a serving gateway 166, a multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS) gateway 168, a broadcast multicast service center (BM-SC) 170, and a packet data network (PDN) gateway 172. The MME 162 may communicate with a home subscriber server (HSS) 174. The MME 162 is a control node that handles signaling between the UE 104 and the EPC 160. Typically, the MME 162 provides bearer and connection management. All user Internet Protocol (IP) packets are transmitted through the serving gateway 166, which itself is connected to the PDN gateway 172. The PDN gateway 172 provides IP address allocation and other functions for the UE. The PDN gateway 172 and the BM-SC 170 are connected to the IP service 176. The IP service 176 may include the Internet, the intranet, the IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), the PS streaming service, and / or other IP services. The BM-SC 170 may provide service provisioning and delivery functions for MBMS users. The BM-SC 170 may serve as an entry point for content provider MBMS transmissions, may be used to authorize and initiate MBMS bearer services within a public land mobile network (PLMN), and may be used to schedule MBMS transmissions. The MBMS Gateway 168 may be used to distribute MBMS services to base stations 102 belonging to a multicast broadcast single frequency network (MBSFN) area that broadcasts a specific service, and may be responsible for session management (start / stop) and collecting eMBMS-related billing information.

[0065] The core network 190 may include an access and mobility management function (AMF) 192, other AMFs 193, a session management function (SMF) 194, and a user plane function (UPF) 195. The AMF 192 may communicate with a unified data management (UDM) 196. The AMF 192 is a control node that handles signaling between the UE 104 and the core network 190. Typically, the AMF 192 provides QoS flow and session management. All user Internet Protocol (IP) packets are transmitted through the UPF 195. The UPF 195 provides UE IP address allocation and other functions. The UPF 195 is connected to an IP service 197. The IP service 197 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), a PS streaming service, and / or other IP services.

[0066] A base station may also be referred to as a gNB, a Node B, an evolved Node B (eNB), an access point, a base transceiver station, a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a transceiver function, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), a transmit receive point (TRP), or some other suitable term. Base station 102 provides an access point to EPC 160 or core network 190 for UE 104. Examples of UE 104 include a cellular phone, a smart phone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a satellite radio, a global positioning system, a multimedia device, a video device, a digital audio player (e.g., an MP3 player), a camera, a game console, a tablet, a smart device, a wearable device, a vehicle, an electric meter, a gas pump, a large or small kitchen appliance, a healthcare device, an implant, a sensor / actuator, a display, or any other similar functional device. Some UEs 104 may be referred to as IoT devices (e.g., a parking meter, a gas pump, a toaster, a vehicle, a heart monitor, etc.). UE 104 may also be referred to as a station, a mobile station, a subscriber station, a mobile unit, a subscriber unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communication device, a remote device, a mobile subscriber station, an access terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a handset, a user agent, a mobile client, a client, or some other suitable terminology.

[0067] Figures 2A-2D A diagram of example frame structures and resources that may be utilized in communications between base stations 102, UEs 104 as described in the present disclosure is included. Figure 2A FIG200 is a diagram showing an example of a first subframe within a 5G / NR frame structure. Figure 2B FIG230 is a diagram showing an example of DL channels within a 5G / NR subframe. Figure 2C Figure 250 shows an example of a second subframe within a 5G / NR frame structure. Figure 2D 280 is a diagram showing an example of UL channels within a 5G / NR subframe. The 5G / NR frame structure can be FDD, where for a particular set of subcarriers (carrier system bandwidth), subframes within a subcarrier set can be dedicated to DL or UL, or can be TDD, where for a particular set of subcarriers (carrier system bandwidth), subframes within a subcarrier set are dedicated to DL and UL. Figure 2A , 2CIn the example provided, it is assumed that the 5G / NR frame structure is TDD, where subframe 4 is configured with slot format 28 (mostly DL), where D is DL, U is UL, and X is flexibly used between DL / UL, and subframe 3 is configured with slot format 34 (mostly UL). Although subframes 3 and 4 are shown with slot formats 34 and 28, respectively, any particular subframe can be configured with any of the various available slot formats 0-61. Slot formats 0 and 1 are DL and UL, respectively. Other slot formats 2-61 include a mix of DL, UL and flexible codewords. The UE is configured with the slot format (dynamically through DL control information (DCI), or semi-statically / statically through radio resource control signaling (RRC)) through the received slot format indicator (SFI). Note that the following description also applies to the 5G / NR frame structure as TDD.

[0068] Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels. A frame (10ms) may be divided into 10 equally sized subframes (1ms). Each subframe may include one or more time slots. A subframe may also include small slots, which may include 7, 4, or 2 symbols. Depending on the slot configuration, each time slot may contain 7 or 14 symbols. For slot configuration 0, each time slot may include 14 symbols; for slot configuration 1, each time slot may include 7 symbols. The symbols on the DL may be cyclic prefix (CP) OFDM (CP-OFDM) symbols. The symbols on the UL may be CP-OFDM symbols (for high throughput scenarios) or discrete Fourier transform (DFT) spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) symbols (also called single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) symbols) (for power-limited scenarios; limited to single stream transmission). The number of slots within a subframe is based on the slot configuration and parameter set. For slot configuration 0, different parameter sets μ0 to 5 allow 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, and 32 slots per subframe, respectively. For slot configuration 1, different parameter sets 0 to 2 allow 2, 4, and 8 slots per subframe, respectively. Thus, for slot configuration 0 and parameter set μ, there are 14 symbols / slot and 2 μ time slots / subframes. The subcarrier spacing and symbol length / duration are functions of the parameter set. The subcarrier spacing can be equal to 2 μ *15kHz, where μ is parameter set 0 to 5. Thus, parameter set μ=0 has a subcarrier spacing of 15kHz and subcarrier μ=5 has a subcarrier spacing of 480kHz. The symbol length / duration is inversely proportional to the subcarrier spacing. Figures 2A-2D An example of slot configuration 0 is provided, with 14 symbols per slot, parameter set μ = 0, and 1 slot per subframe. The subcarrier spacing is 15 kHz and the symbol duration is approximately 66.7 μs.

[0069] A resource grid can be used to represent the frame structure. Each slot includes a resource block (RB) (also called a physical RB (PRB)) extending over 12 consecutive subcarriers. The resource grid is divided into multiple resource elements (REs). The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0070] like Figure 2A As shown in , a portion of the REs carry reference (pilot) signals (RS) for the UE. The RS may include a demodulation RS (DM-RS) (indicated as Rx for a particular configuration, where 100x is the port number, but other DM-RS configurations are also possible) and a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) for channel estimation at the UE. The RS may also include a beam measurement RS (BRS), a beam refinement RS (BRRS), and a phase tracking RS (PT-RS).

[0071] Figure 2B Examples of various DL channels within a subframe of a frame are shown. The physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) carries DCI in one or more control channel elements (CCEs), each CCE includes nine RE groups (REGs), and each REG includes four consecutive REs in an OFDM symbol. The primary synchronization signal (PSS) can be within symbol 2 of a specific subframe of a frame. The PSS is used by UE 104 to determine subframe / symbol timing and physical layer identity. The secondary synchronization signal (SSS) can be within symbol 4 of a specific subframe of a frame. The SSS is used by the UE to determine the physical layer cell identity group number and radio frame timing. Based on the physical layer identity and the physical layer cell identity group number, the UE can determine the physical cell identifier (PCI). Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the location of the aforementioned DM-RS. The physical broadcast channel (PBCH) carrying the master information block (MIB) can be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form a synchronization signal (SS) / PBCH block. The MIB provides multiple RBs in the system bandwidth and a system frame number (SFN). The Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) carries user data, broadcast system information such as System Information Blocks (SIBs) that are not transmitted through the PBCH, and paging messages.

[0072] like Figure 2CAs shown, some of these REs carry DM-RS for channel estimation at the base station (indicated as R for one particular configuration, but other DM-RS configurations are also possible). The UE can send DM-RS for the physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) and DM-RS for the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). The PUSCH DM-RS can be sent in the first one or two codewords in the PUSCH. Depending on whether a short or long PUCCH is sent and depending on the specific PUCCH format used, the PUCCH DM-RS can be sent in different configurations. Although not shown, the UE can send a sounding reference signal (SRS). The base station can use the SRS for channel quality estimation to achieve frequency-dependent scheduling on the UL.

[0073] Figure 2D An example of various UL channels within a subframe of a frame is shown. The PUCCH may be located as indicated in one configuration. The PUCCH carries uplink control information (UCI), such as scheduling requests, channel quality indicator (CQI), precoding matrix indicator (PMI), rank indicator (RI), and hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) acknowledgement / non-acknowledgement (ACK / NACK) feedback. The PUSCH carries data and may additionally be used to carry a buffer status report (BSR), a power headroom report (PHR), and / or UCI.

[0074] Figure 3 FIG300 is an example of a time slot structure that can be used in a 5G / NR frame structure, for example, for sidelink communications. This is just an example, and other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels. A frame (10ms) can be divided into 10 equally sized subframes (1ms). Each subframe may include one or more time slots. A subframe may also include small slots, which may include 7, 4, or 2 symbols. Depending on the time slot configuration, each time slot may contain 7 or 14 symbols. For time slot configuration 0, each time slot may include 14 symbols; for time slot configuration 1, each time slot may include 7 symbols.

[0075] A resource grid may be used to represent a frame structure. Each time slot may include a resource block (RB) (also referred to as a physical RB (PRB)) extending over 12 consecutive subcarriers. The resource grid is divided into a plurality of resource elements (REs). The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme. Some REs may include control information, for example together with a demodulation RS (DM-RS). The control information may include sidelink control information (SCI). In some implementations, a transmitting device may use at least one symbol at the beginning of a time slot to perform a listen-before-talk (LBT) operation before transmitting. In some implementations, at least one symbol may be used for feedback, as described herein. In some implementations, another symbol, for example at the end of a time slot, may be used as a gap. The gap enables the device to switch from operating as a transmitting device to preparing to operate as a receiving device, for example, in a subsequent time slot. As shown, data may be sent in the remaining REs. The data may include the data messages described herein. The location of any SCI, feedback, and LBT symbols may be different from Figure 3 In some implementations, multiple time slots may be aggregated together, and Figure 3 The example aggregation of two time slots in should not be considered limiting, as the aggregated number of time slots may also be greater than two. When time slots are aggregated, the symbols and / or gap symbols used for feedback may differ from a single time slot.

[0076] Figure 41 is a block diagram of hardware components of example transmit and / or receive (tx / rx) nodes 410 and 450, which may be any combination of base station 102-UE 104 communication and / or UE 104-UE 104 communication in system 100. For example, such communication may include, but is not limited to, communication such as a base station transmitting to a relay UE, a relay UE transmitting to a multi-link UE, a multi-link UE transmitting to a relay UE, or a relay UE transmitting to a base station in an access network. In a specific example, tx / rx node 410 may be an example implementation of base station 102, and tx / rx node 450 may be an example implementation of UE 104. In the DL, IP packets from EPC 160 may be provided to controller / processor 475. Controller / processor 475 implements layer 4 and layer 2 functions. Layer 4 includes a radio resource control (RRC) layer, while layer 2 includes a service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer, a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a medium access control (MAC) layer. The controller / processor 475 provides RRC layer functions associated with broadcasting of system information (e.g., MIB, SIB), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-radio access technology (RAT) mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reports; PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and switching support functions; RLC layer functions associated with upper layer packet data unit (PDU) transmission, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functions associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs to transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through HARQ, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0077] The transmit (TX) processor 416 and the receive (RX) processor 470 implement layer 1 functions associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1 (which includes the physical (PHY) layer) may include: error detection on the transmission channel, forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding of the transmission channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. The TX processor 416 handles the mapping to the signal constellation diagram based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-order quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). Then, the coded and modulated codewords can be divided into parallel streams. Then, each stream can be mapped to an OFDM subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., a pilot) in the time domain and / or frequency domain, and then combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to generate a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM codeword stream. The OFDM stream is spatially precoded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator 474 may be used to determine coding and modulation schemes and for spatial processing. Channel estimates may be obtained from reference signals and / or channel condition feedback sent by the UE 450. Each spatial stream may then be provided to a different antenna 420 via a respective transmitter 418TX. Each transmitter 418TX may modulate an RF carrier using a respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0078] At the UE 450, each receiver 454RX receives a signal through its respective antenna 452. Each receiver 454RX recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to the receive (RX) processor 456. The TX processor 468 and the RX processor 456 implement layer 1 functions associated with various signal processing functions. The RX processor 456 can perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial stream destined for the UE 450. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 450, then the RX processor 456 can combine them into a single OFDM symbol stream. The RX processor 456 then transforms the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbol on each subcarrier and the reference signal are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation point sent by the base station 410. These soft decisions can be based on the channel estimates calculated by the channel estimator 458. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally sent on the physical channel by base station 410. The data and control signals are then provided to controller / processor 459, which implements layer 4 and layer 2 functionality.

[0079] The controller / processor 459 may be associated with a memory 460 that stores program codes and data. The memory 460 may be referred to as a computer readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 459 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the EPC 160. The controller / processor 459 is also responsible for error detection using ACK and / or NACK protocols to support HARQ operations.

[0080] Similar to the functions described in conjunction with DL transmission performed by the base station 410, the controller / processor 459 provides: RRC layer functions associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression, and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functions associated with upper layer PDU transmission, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs, re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functions associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs to TBs, demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through HARQ, priority handling, and logical channel priority determination.

[0081] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator 458 from a reference signal or feedback sent by the base station 410 may be used by the TX processor 468 to select the appropriate coding and modulation schemes and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the TX processor 468 may be provided to different antennas 452 via separate transmitters 454TX. Each transmitter 454TX may modulate an RF carrier using a respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0082] At the base station 410, the UL transmission is processed in a manner similar to that described in conjunction with the receiver functionality at the UE 450. Each receiver 418RX receives a signal through its respective antenna 420. Each receiver 418RX recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to the RX processor 470.

[0083] The controller / processor 475 may be associated with a memory 476 that stores program codes and data. The memory 476 may be referred to as a computer readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 475 provides demultiplexing between transport channels and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packets from the UE 450. The IP packets from the controller / processor 475 may be provided to the EPC 160. The controller / processor 475 is also responsible for error detection using ACK and / or NACK protocols to support HARQ operations.

[0084] In an implementation, at least one of the TX processor 468, the RX processor 456, and the controller / processor 459 may be configured to combine Figure 1 Components 121, 125 and / or 127 are used to perform various aspects.

[0085] In an implementation, at least one of the TX processor 416, the RX processor 470, and the controller / processor 475 may be configured to combine Figure 1 Components 121, 125 and / or 127 are used to perform various aspects.

[0086] refer to Figure 5 and 6 , the present aspect generally relates to sidelink relay communication scenarios 500, 602, and / or 604 that include relaying communications via a sidelink. As described above, the sidelink communication generally includes any type of device-to-device (D2D) communication. D2D communication can be used for various applications, such as, but not limited to, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) or vehicle-to-any other device type communication, sensor networks, public safety-related communication services with limited infrastructure availability, or any other such type of application.

[0087] In the sidelink relay communication scenarios 500, 602 and / or 604, the sidelink-assisted multilink UE 104a can establish multilink communication with one or more base stations 102a and / or 102b via two or more communication links, the communication links including at least one direct link and at least one indirect link via a sidelink with the relay UE 104b. In the first case, such as in the sidelink relay communication scenarios 500 and 602, the sidelink-assisted multilink UE 104a directly communicates with the base station 102a via a first access link (AL) 120a, and indirectly communicates with the base station 102a via a sidelink 158a with the relay UE 104b, and the relay UE 104b has a second access link 120b with the base station 102a. In general, an access link such as access link 120a or 120b is a communication link between a corresponding UE and a corresponding base station (or gNB), which may also be referred to as a Uu interface in 4G LTE and / or 5G NR technology. In general, the sidelink 158a is a communication link between UEs, which may be referred to as a PC5 interface in 4G LTE and / or 5G NR technologies. The exemplary sidelink relay communication scenarios 500, 602, and / or 604 may potentially increase diversity (e.g., sending the same data over two links (access link and sidelink)) and / or throughput (e.g., sending different independent data over multiple links) in some cases. In one implementation, in a mmW system, this type of multi-link communication may be achieved by using multiple transmit / receive beams and multiple antenna panels (subarrays) between UEs and / or between respective UEs and respective base stations / gNBs.

[0088] In addition, in a second case, such as in a sidelink relay communication scenario 604, a sidelink-assisted multilink UE 104a can establish multiple links with multiple base stations 102a and 102b, which can be referred to as a multi-transmission-reception point (multi-TRP) architecture. In this case, the sidelink-assisted multilink UE 104a communicates directly with the base station 102a via a first access link (AL) 120a, and communicates indirectly with the base station 102b via a sidelink 158a with the relay UE 104b, and the relay UE 104b has a second access link 120b with the base station 102b. In addition, in this case, the base stations 102a and 102b can exchange communications via a backhaul link 134a.

[0089] In addition, in the sidelink relay communication scenarios 500, 602 and / or 604, the communications exchanged between the base station 102a / 102b, the relay UE 104b and the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a may be uplink (UL) communications 502 and / or downlink (DL) communications 504 (see Figure 5 ).

[0090] As a further example, the present disclosure includes sidelink relay communication scenarios 500, 602, and / or 604 ( Figure 5 and 6 ) techniques, in particular, transport block portion-based (or code block group (CBG)-based) sidelink relay. In a specific example, the relay UE 104b can be configured to send only successfully decoded transport block portions (or CBGs), such as in DL communication 504, to the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a, or, for example, in UL communication 502, to the base station 102a or 102b.

[0091] In some example downlink communications, the relay UE 104b may be configured to forward only the successfully decoded transport block portion (or CBG) to the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a. The relay UE 104b may, for example, transmit a sidelink control message including an index indicating the successfully decoded transport block portion via a code block group transmission index (CBGTI) bitmap. For example, the sidelink control message may be transmitted via a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH). After combining the transport block portion (or CBG) received via the access link 120a and the transport block portion (or CBG) received via the side link 158a, the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a may decode the transport block portion (or CBG). The sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a may send HARQ-ACK feedback on one or both of the access link 120a and / or the side link 158a. One or both of the base station 102a or 102b and / or the relay UE 104b may retransmit the NACK-processed (NACK-ed) transport block portion (or CBG) to the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a. In one aspect, the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a may issue a retransmission grant on one or both of the access link 120a and / or the side link 158a. One or both of the base station 102a or 102b and / or the relay UE 104b may retransmit the transport block portion (or CBG) indicated in the retransmission grant to the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a.

[0092] In certain example uplink communications, the relay UE 104b may be configured to forward only successfully decoded transport block parts (or CBGs) to the base station 102a or 102b. The relay UE 104b may send an uplink control message including information about an index (e.g., which transport block parts (or CBGs) were sent). For example, the uplink control message may be uplink control information (UCI). After combining a transport block part (or CBG) received via access link 120a and a transport block part (or CBG) received via another access link 120b, the base station 102a or 102b may decode the transport block part (or CBG). The base station 102a or 102b may send HARQ-ACK feedback on one or both of the access link 120a and / or the access link 120b. One or both of the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a and / or the relay UE 104b may retransmit the NACK-processed (NACK-ed) transport block portion (or CBG) to the base station 102a or 102b. In one aspect, the base station 102a or 102b may send a retransmission grant on one or both of the access link 120a and / or the access link 120b. One or both of the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a and / or the relay UE 104b may retransmit the transport block portion (or CBG) indicated in the retransmission grant to the base station 102a or 102b.

[0093] refer to Figure 7 , the example method 700 of wireless communication may be performed by a relay UE 104b.

[0094] At 702, the method 700 includes receiving one or more first transport block portions of a first transport block via a first link. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the repeater multi-link communication component 121 may receive one or more first transport block portions (or CBGs) transmitted by the base station 102a or 102b via the access link 120b (e.g., the first link) or by the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a (e.g., the transmitting UE 104a) via the side link 158a (e.g., the first link). Thus, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the repeater multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for receiving one or more first transport block portions of a first transport block.

[0095] The one or more first transmission block parts (or CBGs) received by the relay node 104b may be a copy of at least one transmission block part (or CBG) sent by the base station 102a or by the sidelink multilink UE 104a (e.g., the transmitting UE 104a) on the access link 120a. For example, for reliability, the base station 102a or 102b may send CBG1 to the relay node 104b (e.g., another network entity), and the base station 102a may send CBG1 to the sidelink auxiliary multilink 104a. The one or more first transmission block parts (or CBGs) received by the relay node 104b may be different from at least one transmission block part (or CBG) sent by the base station 102a or by the sidelink multilink UE 104a (e.g., the transmitting UE 104a) on the access link 120a. For example, for efficiency, base station 102a or 102b may send CBG1 and CBG3 to relay node 104b (eg, another network entity), and base station 102 may send CBG2 and CBG4 to sidelink auxiliary multilink 104a.

[0096] At 704, the method 700 includes attempting to decode each of the one or more first transport block parts. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the repeater multi-link communication component 121 may attempt to decode each of the one or more first transport block parts (or CBGs). Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the repeater multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for attempting to decode each of the one or more first transport block parts (or CBGs).

[0097] At 706, the method 700 includes encoding each successfully decoded first transmission block portion to define one or more second transmission block portions. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the repeater multi-link communication component 121 may encode each successfully decoded first transmission block portion (or CBG) to define one or more second transmission block portions (or CBGs). Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the repeater multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for encoding each successfully decoded first transmission block portion (or CBG) to define one or more second transmission block portions (or CBGs).

[0098] At 708, the method 700 includes sending one or more second transmission block parts via the second link. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the repeater multi-link communication component 121 may send one or more second transmission block parts (or CBGs) to the base station 102a or 102b via the access link 120b (e.g., the second link) or to the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a (e.g., the transmitting UE 104a) via the side link 158a (e.g., the second link). Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the repeater multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for sending one or more second transmission block parts (or CBGs).

[0099] In some implementations, the method 700 may further include omitting unsuccessfully decoded portions of the plurality of first transport block portions from the one or more second transport block portions.

[0100] In some implementations, the method 700 may also include sending a sidelink control message including an index of one or more second transport block parts to the receiving UE, the index indicating which of the first transport block parts was successfully decoded. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212 and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may send a sidelink control message including an index of one or more second transport block parts (or CBGs) to the sidelink auxiliary multi-link user equipment 104a (e.g., the receiving UE 104a) (via the PSSCH), the index indicating which of the first transport block parts (or CBGs) was successfully decoded. Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212 and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for sending a sidelink control message including an index of one or more second transport block parts to the receiving UE, the index indicating which of the first transport block parts (or CBGs) was successfully decoded.

[0101] In some implementations, the method 700 may also include receiving HARQ-ACK feedback of the second transmission block portion received by the receiving UE from the receiving UE. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may receive HARQ-ACK feedback of the second transmission block portion (or CBG) received by the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a (e.g., the receiving UE) from the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a. Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for receiving HARQ-ACK feedback of the second transmission block portion received by the receiving UE 104a.

[0102] In some implementations, the method 700 may also include retransmitting each of the second transmission block parts corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback to the receiving UE. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may retransmit each of the second transmission block parts (or CBGs) corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback to the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a (e.g., the receiving UE 104a). Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for retransmitting each of the second transmission block parts (or CBGs) corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback. For example, if the relay node 104a sends CBG1 and CBG3 to the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a, but the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a cannot correctly decode CBG1, the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a can notify the relay node 104b of the decoding failure. In response, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212 and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 can retransmit CBG1 to the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a.

[0103] In some implementations, method 700 may also include sending HARQ-ACK feedback to a base station that sends one or more first transmission block parts. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may send HARQ-ACK feedback to a base station 102a or 102b that sends one or more first transmission block parts (or CBGs). Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for sending HARQ-ACK feedback. In this implementation, the relay node 104b relays the HARQ-ACK feedback to the base station 102a or 102b. The relay may be used as a replacement for retransmitting one or more second transmission block parts (or CBGs) with corresponding NACKs or as a supplement to the retransmission.

[0104] In some implementations, the method 700 may also include sending an uplink control message to the base station including an index to one or more second transport block parts, the index indicating which of the first transport block parts was successfully decoded. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may send an uplink control message including an index to one or more second transport block parts (or CBGs) to the base station 102a or 102b via the access link 120b (e.g., PUCCH or PUSCH), the index indicating which of the first transport block parts (or CBGs) the relay node 104b was able to successfully decode. Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for sending an uplink control message including an index to one or more second transport block parts, the index indicating which of the first transport block parts was successfully decoded.

[0105] In some implementations, the method 700 may also include receiving HARQ-ACK feedback for the second transmission block portion received by the base station from the base station, and retransmitting each of the second transmission block portions corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback to the base station. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may receive HARQ-ACK feedback for the second transmission block portion (CBG) received by the base station 102a or 102b from the base station 102a or 102b. Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for receiving HARQ-ACK feedback for the second transmission block portion received by the base station. The relay node 104b may retransmit each of the second transmission block portions (or CBGs) corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback to the base station 102a or 102b. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may retransmit to the base station 102a each of the second transmission block portions corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback. Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for retransmitting each of the second transmission block portions corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback.

[0106] In some implementations, the method 700 may also include receiving a retransmission grant for the second transmission block portion received by the base station from the base station, and retransmitting to the base station each of the second transmission block portions corresponding to the one or more transmission block portions (or CBGs) indicated in the retransmission grant. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the repeater multi-link communication component 121 may receive a retransmission grant for the second transmission block portion (or CBG) received by the base station 102a or 102b from the base station 102a or 102b. Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the repeater multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for receiving a retransmission grant for the second transmission block portion (or CBG) received by the base station. The relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the repeater multi-link communication component 121 may retransmit to the base station 102a or 102b each of the second transmission block portions (or CBGs) corresponding to the one or more transmission block portions (or CBGs) indicated in the retransmission grant. Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212 and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may provide components for retransmitting each of the second transmission block parts (or CBGs) corresponding to one or more transmission block parts (or CBGs) indicated in the retransmission grant.

[0107] In some implementations, the method 700 may further include sending HARQ-ACK feedback to the receiving UE. For example, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may send HARQ-ACK feedback to the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a (e.g., the receiving UE). Accordingly, the relay node 104b, the processor 1212, and / or the relay multi-link communication component 121 may provide a component for sending HARQ-ACK feedback.

[0108] In some implementations of the method 700, the plurality of first transport block portions and the one or more second transport block portions are code block groups.

[0109] refer to Figure 8 , the example method 800 of wireless communication may be performed by a receiving UE (eg, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a).

[0110] At 802, method 800 includes receiving one or more first transport block portions of a first downlink transport block from a base station via an access link. For example, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212, and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may receive one or more first transport block portions (or CBGs) of a first downlink transport block from a base station 102a via the access link 120a. Accordingly, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212, and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may provide a component for receiving one or more first transport block portions (or CBGs) of a first downlink transport block from the base station 102a.

[0111] At 804, method 800 includes receiving one or more second transport block portions of a first downlink transport block from a relay node via another link, wherein the one or more second transport block portions received from the relay node include one or more second transport block portions successfully decoded by the relay node. For example, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a, processor 1212, and / or UE multi-link communication component 125 may receive one or more second transport block portions (or CBGs) of a first downlink transport block from a relay node 104b via another link (e.g., 158a), wherein the one or more second transport block portions (or CBGs) received from the relay node 104b include one or more second transport block portions (or CBGs) successfully decoded by the relay node 104b. Accordingly, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a, processor 1212, and / or UE multi-link communication component 125 may provide a component for receiving one or more second transport block portions (or CBGs) of a first downlink transport block from the relay node 104b.

[0112] In some implementations of the method 800, the method 800 may also include: decoding one or more first transport block parts, decoding one or more second transport block parts, and soft combining the decoded one or more first transport block parts with the second decoded one or more second transport block parts to define a soft combined transport block part. For example, the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212 and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may: decode one or more first transport block parts (or CBGs), decode one or more second transport block parts (or CBGs), and soft combine the decoded one or more first transport block parts (or CBGs) with the second decoded one or more second transport block parts (or CBGs) to define a soft combined transport block part (or CBG). Accordingly, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212 and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may provide: a component for decoding one or more first transmission block parts (or CBGs), a component for decoding one or more second transmission block parts (or CBGs), and a component for soft-combining the decoded one or more first transmission block parts (or CBGs) and the second decoded one or more second transmission block parts (or CBGs) to define a soft-combined transmission block part (or CBG).

[0113] In some implementations of method 800, method 800 may also include soft combining one or more first transport block portions and one or more second transport block portions, and decoding the soft combined transport block portions. For example, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212, and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may soft combine one or more first transport block portions (or CBGs) and the second one or more second transport block portions (or CBGs) and decode the soft combined transport block portions (or CBGs). Accordingly, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212, and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may provide a component for soft combining one or more first transport block portions (or CBGs) and the second one or more second transport block portions (or CBGs), and a component for decoding the soft combined transport block portions (or CBGs).

[0114] In some implementations of the method 800, the method 800 may also include decoding at least one of the first transmission block portion or the one or more second transmission block portions, and sending HARQ-ACK feedback to at least one of the base station or the relay node. For example, the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212 and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may decode the first transmission block portion (or CBG) or one or more second transmission block portions (or CBG) or both, and send HARQ-ACK feedback to the base station 102a or the relay node 104b or both. Accordingly, the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212 and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may provide a component for decoding the first transmission block portion (or CBG) or one or more second transmission block portions (or CBG) or both, and a component for sending HARQ-ACK feedback to the base station 102a or the relay node 104b or both.

[0115] In some implementations of method 800, method 800 may also include receiving a retransmission of each of the transport block portions corresponding to each NACK in the HARQ-ACK feedback from at least one of the base station or the relay node. For example, the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212, and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may receive a retransmission of each of the transport block portions (or CBGs) corresponding to each NACK in the HARQ-ACK feedback from one or both of the base station 102a or the relay node 104b. Accordingly, the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212, and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may provide a component for receiving a retransmission of each of the transport block portions (or CBGs) corresponding to each NACK in the HARQ-ACK feedback.

[0116] refer to Fig. 9 The example method 900 of wireless communication may be performed by a transmitting UE, such as a sideline-assisted multi-link UE 104 .

[0117] At 902, method 900 includes sending one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block to a base station via an access link. For example, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212, and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may send one or more first transmission block parts (or CBGs) to the base station 102a via the access link 120a. Accordingly, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212, and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may provide a component for sending one or more first transmission block parts (or CBGs) to the base station 102a.

[0118] At 904, the method 900 includes sending one or more second transport block portions of the first uplink transport block to the relay node via another link. For example, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212, and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may send one or more second transport block portions (or CBGs) to the relay node 104b via another link 158a. Accordingly, the sidelink assisted multi-link UE 104a, the processor 1212, and / or the UE multi-link communication component 125 may provide a component for sending one or more second transport block portions (or CBGs) to the relay node 104b.

[0119] For example, the sideline assisted multi-link UE 104a sends CBG1 and CBG3 to the base station 102a, and sends CBG2 and CBG4 to the relay node 104b, where CBG 1-4 In another example, the sideline assisted multi-link UE 104a sends CBG1 and CBG3 to the base station 102a and sends CBG1 and CBG3 to the relay node 104b, where CBG1 and CBG3 are part of the uplink transport block.

[0120] refer to Fig.10 , the example method 1000 of wireless communication can be performed by the base station 102a.

[0121] At 1002, method 1000 includes receiving one or more first transmission block portions of a first uplink transmission block from a user equipment (UE) via an access link. For example, base station 102a, processor 1312, and / or base station multi-link communication component 127 may receive one or more first transmission block portions (or CBGs) of a first uplink transmission block from sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a via access link 120a. Accordingly, base station 102a, processor 1312, and / or base station multi-link communication component 127 may provide a component for receiving one or more first transmission block portions (or CBGs) of a first uplink transmission block from sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a.

[0122] At 1004, method 1000 includes receiving one or more second transmission block portions of a first uplink transmission block from a relay node from another link, wherein the one or more second transmission block portions received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block portions successfully decoded by the relay node. For example, base station 102a, processor 1312, and / or base station multi-link communication component 127 may receive one or more second transmission block portions (or CBGs) of a first uplink transmission block from relay node 104b from another link 120b, wherein the one or more second transmission block portions (or CBGs) received from relay node 104b include one or more second transmission block portions (or CBGs) successfully decoded by relay node 104b. Accordingly, base station 102a, processor 1312, and / or base station multi-link communication component 127 may provide a component for receiving one or more second transmission block portions (or CBGs) of a first uplink transmission block from relay node 104b.

[0123] In some implementations of method 1000, method 1000 may also include: decoding one or more first transport block portions, decoding one or more second transport block portions, and soft combining the decoded one or more first transport block portions and the second decoded one or more second transport block portions to define a soft combined transport block portion. For example, base station 102a, processor 1312, and / or base station multi-link communication component 127 may: decode one or more first transport block portions (or CBGs), decode one or more second transport block portions (or CBGs), and soft combine the decoded one or more first transport block portions (or CBGs) and the second decoded one or more second transport block portions (or CBGs) to define a soft combined transport block portion (or CBG). Accordingly, the base station 102a, the processor 1312 and / or the base station multi-link communication component 127 may provide: a component for decoding one or more first transmission block parts (or CBGs), a component for decoding one or more second transmission block parts (or CBGs), and a component for soft-combining the decoded one or more first transmission block parts (or CBGs) and the second decoded one or more second transmission block parts (or CBGs) to define a soft-combined transmission block part (or CBG).

[0124] In some implementations of method 1000, method 1000 may also include soft combining one or more first transport block portions and one or more second transport block portions, and decoding the soft combined transport block portions. For example, base station 102a, processor 1312, and / or base station multi-link communication component 127 may soft combine one or more first transport block portions (or CBGs) and second one or more second transport block portions (or CBGs) and decode the soft combined transport block portions (or CBGs). Accordingly, base station 102a, processor 1312, and / or base station multi-link communication component 127 may provide a component for soft combining one or more first transport block portions (or CBGs) and second one or more second transport block portions (or CBGs), and a component for decoding the soft combined transport block portions (or CBGs).

[0125] In some implementations of method 1000, method 1000 may also include decoding at least one of the first transmission block portion or the one or more second transmission block portions, and issuing a retransmission grant to at least one of the UE or the relay node. For example, the base station 102a, the processor 1312, and / or the base station multi-link communication component 127 may decode the first transmission block portion (or CBG) or one or more second transmission block portions (or CBGs) or both, and issue a retransmission grant to one or both of the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a or the relay node 104b. Accordingly, the base station 102a, the processor 1312, and / or the base station multi-link communication component 127 may provide a component for decoding the first transmission block portion (or CBG) or one or more second transmission block portions (or CBGs), and a component for issuing a retransmission grant to one or both of the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a or the relay node 104b.

[0126] In some implementations of method 1000, method 1000 may further include receiving a retransmission of each of the transport block portions corresponding to the one or more transport block portions indicated in the retransmission grant from at least one of the UE or the relay node. For example, the base station 102a, the processor 1312, and / or the base station multi-link communication component 127 may receive a retransmission of each of the transport block portions (or CBGs) corresponding to the one or more transport block portions indicated in the retransmission grant from one or both of the sidelink auxiliary multi-link UE 104a or the relay node 104b. Accordingly, the base station 102a, the processor 1312, and / or the base station multi-link communication component 127 may provide a component for receiving a retransmission of each of the transport block portions (or CBGs) corresponding to the one or more transport block portions indicated in the retransmission grant.

[0127] refer to Fig.11, the example method 1100 of wireless communication can be performed by the base station 102a.

[0128] At 1102, method 1100 includes sending one or more first transmission block portions of a first downlink transmission block to a user equipment (UE) via an access link. For example, base station 102a, processor 1312, and / or base station multi-link communication component 127 may send one or more first transmission block portions (or CBGs) of a first downlink transmission block to sideline assisted multi-link UE 104a via access link 120a. Accordingly, base station 102a, processor 1312, and / or base station multi-link communication component 127 may provide a component for sending one or more first transmission block portions (or CBGs) of a first downlink transmission block to sideline assisted multi-link UE 104a.

[0129] At 1104, method 1100 includes sending one or more second transmission block portions of the first downlink transmission block to the relay node via another link. For example, base station 102a, processor 1312, and / or base station multi-link communication component 127 may send one or more second transmission block portions (or CBGs) of the first downlink transmission block to relay node 104b via another link 120b. Accordingly, base station 102a, processor 1312, and / or base station multi-link communication component 127 may provide a component for sending one or more second transmission block portions (or CBGs) of the first downlink transmission block to relay node 104b.

[0130] For example, the base station 102a sends CBG1 and CBG3 to the sideline assisted multi-link UE 104a, and sends CBG2 and CBG4 to the relay node 104b, where CBG 1-4 In another example, the base station 102a sends CBG1 and CBG2 to the sideline-assisted multi-link UE 104a, and sends CBG1 and CBG2 to the relay node 104b, where CBG1 is part of the downlink transport block.

[0131] refer to Fig.12 , an example of an implementation of UE 104 may include various components, some of which have been described above and are further described herein, including components such as one or more processors 1212 and memory 1216 communicating via one or more buses 1244 and a transceiver 1202, which may operate in conjunction with a modem 1240 and / or a configuration component 198 for transmitting sidelink capability information.

[0132] In one aspect, the one or more processors 1212 may include the modem 1240 and / or may be part of the modem 1240 using one or more modem processors. Thus, various functions associated with the configuration component 198 may be included in the modem 1240 and / or the processor 1212, and in one aspect, may be performed by a single processor, while in other aspects, different functions may be performed by a combination of two or more different processors. For example, in one aspect, the one or more processors 1212 may include any one or any combination of a modem processor, or a baseband processor, or a digital signal processor, or a transmit processor, or a receiver processor, or a transceiver processor associated with the transceiver 1202. In other aspects, some features of the one or more processors 1212 and / or the modem 1240 associated with the configuration component 198 may be performed by the transceiver 1202.

[0133] In addition, the memory 1216 can be configured to store local versions of data and / or applications 1275 used herein or one or more of the communication components 1242 and / or its subcomponents executed by the at least one processor 1212. The memory 1216 may include any type of computer-readable medium usable by a computer or the at least one processor 1212, such as random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), tape, disk, optical disk, volatile memory, non-volatile memory, and any combination thereof. In one aspect, for example, the memory 1216 can be a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium that stores one or more computer-executable codes and / or data associated with the configuration component 198 and / or one or more subcomponents thereof when the UE 104 operates the at least one processor 1212 to execute the configuration component 198 and / or one or more subcomponents thereof.

[0134] The transceiver 1202 may include at least one receiver 1206 and at least one transmitter 1208. The receiver 1206 may include hardware and / or software executable by a processor for receiving data, the code including instructions and stored in a memory (e.g., a computer-readable medium). The receiver 1206 may be, for example, a radio frequency (RF) receiver. In one aspect, the receiver 1206 may receive a signal transmitted by at least one base station 102. In addition, the receiver 1206 may process such received signals and may also obtain measurements of the signal, such as, but not limited to, Ec / Io, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), reference signal received power (RSRP), received signal strength indicator (RSSI), etc. The transmitter 1208 may include hardware and / or software executable by a processor for transmitting data, the code including instructions and stored in a memory (e.g., a computer-readable medium). Suitable examples of the transmitter 1208 may include, but are not limited to, an RF transmitter.

[0135] In addition, in one aspect, the UE 104 may include an RF front end 1288 that may operate in communication with the one or more antennas 1265 and the transceiver 1202 for receiving and sending radio transmissions, such as wireless communications sent by at least one base station 102 or wireless transmissions sent by the UE 104. The RF front end 1288 may be connected to the one or more antennas 1265 and may include one or more low noise amplifiers (LNAs) 1290, one or more switches 1292, one or more power amplifiers (PAs) 1298, and one or more filters 1296 for sending and receiving RF signals. The one or more antennas 1265 may include one or more antennas, antenna elements, and / or antenna arrays.

[0136] In one aspect, the LNA 1290 can amplify the received signal at a desired output level. In one aspect, each LNA 1290 can have a specified minimum and maximum gain value. In one aspect, the RF front end 1288 can use one or more switches 1292 to select a particular LNA 1290 and its specified gain value based on the desired gain value for a particular application.

[0137] In addition, for example, the RF front end 1288 can use one or more PAs 1298 to amplify the signal of the RF output at a desired output power level. In one aspect, each PA 1298 can have a specified minimum and maximum gain value. In one aspect, the RF front end 1288 can use one or more switches 1292 to select a specific PA 1298 and its specified gain value based on the desired gain value of a particular application.

[0138] In addition, for example, the RF front end 1288 can use one or more filters 1296 to filter the received signal to obtain an input RF signal. Similarly, in one aspect, for example, a corresponding filter 1296 can be used to filter the output from the corresponding PA 1298 to produce an output signal for transmission. In one aspect, each filter 1296 can be connected to a specific LNA 1290 and / or PA 1298. In one aspect, the RF front end 1288 can use one or more switches 1292 to select a transmit or receive path using a specified filter 1296, LNA 1290, and / or PA 1298 based on the configuration specified by the transceiver 1202 and / or the processor 1212.

[0139] Thus, the transceiver 1202 may be configured to transmit and receive wireless signals through one or more antennas 1265 via the RF front end 1288. In one aspect, the transceiver may be tuned to operate at a specified frequency so that the UE 104 may communicate with, for example, one or more base stations 102 or one or more cells associated with the one or more base stations 102. In one aspect, for example, the modem 1240 may configure the transceiver 1202 to operate at a specified frequency and power level based on a UE configuration of the UE 104 and a communication protocol used by the modem 1240.

[0140] In one aspect, modem 1240 can be a multi-band multi-mode modem that can process digital data and communicate with transceiver 1202 so that digital data is sent and received using transceiver 1202. In one aspect, modem 1240 can be multi-band and configured to support multiple frequency bands of a specific communication protocol. In one aspect, modem 1240 can be multi-mode and configured to support multiple operating networks and communication protocols. In one aspect, modem 1240 can control one or more components (e.g., RF front end 1288, transceiver 1202) of UE 104 to implement sending and / or receiving signals from the network based on a specified modem configuration. In one aspect, the modem configuration can be based on the mode of the modem and the frequency band used. On the other hand, the modem configuration can be based on UE configuration information associated with UE 104 provided by the network during cell selection and / or cell reselection.

[0141] In one aspect, processor(s) 1212 may correspond to a processor that is coupled to Figure 3 Similarly, the memory 1216 may correspond to the one or more processors described in conjunction with the UE. Figure 3 The memory described by the UE in .

[0142] refer to Fig.13, an example of an implementation of a base station 102 (e.g., base station 102 as described above) may include various components, some of which have been described above, but include components such as one or more processors 1312 and memory 1316 that communicate via one or more buses 1344 and a transceiver 1302, which may operate in conjunction with a modem 1340 and a base station multi-link communication component 127.

[0143] The transceiver 1302, receiver 1306, transmitter 1308, one or more processors 1312, memory 1316, applications 1375, bus 1344, RF front end 1388, LNA 1390, switch 1392, filter 1396, PA 1398 and one or more antennas 1365 can be the same as or similar to the corresponding components of UE 104 described above, but are configured or otherwise programmed for base station operation, as opposed to UE operation.

[0144] In one aspect, processor(s) 1312 may correspond to a processor that is coupled to Figure 3 Similarly, the memory 1316 may correspond to the one or more processors described in the base station in the embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 The memory described by the base station in.

[0145] Some further example implementations

[0146] An example method for wireless communication by a relay node includes receiving one or more first transport block portions of a first transport block via a first link; attempting to decode each of the first transport block portions; encoding each successfully decoded first transport block portion to define one or more second transport block portions; and sending the one or more second transport block portions via a second link.

[0147] The above method for wireless communication by a relay node, wherein the one or more received first transmission block parts are sent by a base station or a sending user equipment (UE) and are copies of at least one transmission block part sent by the base station or the sending UE to another network entity.

[0148] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a relay node, wherein one or more received first transmission block parts are sent by a base station or a sending user equipment (UE) and are different from at least one transmission block part sent by the base station or the sending UE to another network entity.

[0149] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a relay node further includes sending a sidelink control message to a receiving user equipment (UE) including an index of one or more second transport block parts, the index indicating which of the first transport block parts was successfully decoded.

[0150] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a relay node further includes receiving a HARQ-ACK feedback from a receiving user equipment (UE) for the second transport block portion received by the receiving UE.

[0151] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a relay node, further comprising retransmitting each of the second transport block parts corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback to the receiving UE.

[0152] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a relay node further includes sending HARQ-ACK feedback to the base station that sends the one or more first transmission block parts.

[0153] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a relay node, further comprising sending an uplink control message to a base station including an index of one or more second transport block parts, the index indicating which of the first transport block parts was successfully decoded.

[0154] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a relay node also includes receiving HARQ-ACK feedback from a base station for a second transmission block part received by the base station, and retransmitting to the base station each of the second transmission block parts corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback.

[0155] Any of the above-mentioned methods for wireless communication by a relay node also includes receiving a retransmission grant for a second transmission block part received by the base station from a base station, and retransmitting to the base station each of the second transmission block parts corresponding to one or more transmission block parts indicated in the retransmission grant.

[0156] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a relay node further includes sending HARQ-ACK feedback to a receiving user equipment (UE).

[0157] A relay node for wireless communication comprises a memory configured to store instructions; and one or more processors communicatively coupled to the memory, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the instructions to perform the operations of any of the above wireless communication methods for the relay node.

[0158] A relay node for wireless communication comprises means for performing the operations of any of the above wireless communication methods for a relay node.

[0159] A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions executable by one or more processors to perform the operations of any of the above wireless communication methods for a relay node.

[0160] An example method for wireless communication by a user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving one or more first transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block from a base station via an access link; and receiving one or more second transmission block parts of the first downlink transmission block from a relay node via another link; wherein the one or more second transmission block parts received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block parts successfully decoded by the relay node.

[0161] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a UE further includes: decoding one or more first transmission block parts; decoding one or more second transmission block parts; and soft combining the decoded one or more first transmission block parts and the second decoded one or more second transmission block parts to define a soft combined transmission block part.

[0162] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a UE further includes: soft combining one or more first transmission block parts and one or more second transmission block parts to define a soft combined transmission block part; and decoding the soft combined transmission block part.

[0163] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by the UE also includes: decoding the first transmission block part or at least one of the one or more second transmission block parts; and sending HARQ-ACK feedback to at least one of the base station or the relay node.

[0164] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a UE, further comprising: receiving a retransmission of each of the transport block parts corresponding to each NACK in the HARQ-ACK feedback from at least one of the base station or the relay node.

[0165] An example method for wireless communication by a user equipment (UE), comprising: sending one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block to a base station via an access link; and sending one or more second transmission block parts of the first uplink transmission block to a relay node via another link.

[0166] A user equipment (UE) for wireless communication comprises a memory configured to store instructions; and one or more processors communicatively coupled to the memory, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the instructions to perform the operations of any of the above-mentioned wireless communication methods for the UE.

[0167] A user equipment (UE) for wireless communication includes components for performing the operations of any of the above wireless communication methods for UE.

[0168] A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions executable by one or more processors to perform the operations of any of the above wireless communication methods for a UE.

[0169] An example method for wireless communication by a base station, comprising: receiving one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block from a user equipment (UE) via an access link; and receiving one or more second transmission block parts of the first uplink transmission block from a relay node via another link; wherein the one or more second transmission block parts received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block parts successfully decoded by the relay node.

[0170] The above method for wireless communication by a base station also includes: decoding one or more first transmission block parts; decoding one or more second transmission block parts; and soft combining the decoded one or more first transmission block parts and the second decoded one or more second transmission block parts to define a soft-combined transmission block part.

[0171] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a base station further includes: soft combining one or more first transmission block parts and one or more second transmission block parts to define a soft-combined transmission block part; and decoding the soft-combined transmission block part.

[0172] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a base station further includes: decoding at least one of the first transmission block part or one or more second transmission block parts; and sending a retransmission to at least one of the UE or the relay node.

[0173] Any of the above methods for wireless communication by a base station, further comprising receiving, from at least one of a UE or a relay node, a retransmission of each of the transport block parts corresponding to the one or more transport block parts indicated in the retransmission grant.

[0174] An example method for wireless communication by a base station includes: sending one or more first transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block to a user equipment (UE) via an access link; and sending one or more second transmission block parts of the first downlink transmission block to a relay node via another link.

[0175] A base station for wireless communication comprises a memory configured to store instructions; and one or more processors communicatively coupled to the memory, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute the instructions to perform one or more operations of any of the above-mentioned wireless communication methods for the base station.

[0176] A base station for wireless communication comprises means for performing the operations of any of the above wireless communication methods for a base station.

[0177] A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions executable by one or more processors to perform the operations of any of the above wireless communication methods for a base station.

[0178] According to an example, a method for wireless communication by a relay node is provided. The method may include receiving one or more first transport block parts of a first transport block via a first link. The method may also include attempting to decode each of the first transport block parts. The method may also include encoding each successfully decoded first transport block part to define one or more second transport block parts. The method may also include sending one or more second transport block parts via a second link.

[0179] According to another example, a method for wireless communication by a user equipment (UE) is provided. The method may include receiving one or more first transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block from a base station via an access link. The method may also include receiving one or more second transmission block parts of the first downlink transmission block from a relay node from another link. The one or more second transmission block parts received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block parts that the relay node successfully decodes.

[0180] According to another example, a method for wireless communication by a user equipment (UE) is provided. The method may include sending one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block to a base station via an access link. The method may also include sending one or more second transmission block parts of the first uplink transmission block to a relay node via another link.

[0181] According to another example, a method for wireless communication by a base station is provided. The method may include receiving one or more first transmission block parts of a first uplink transmission block from a user equipment (UE) via an access link. The method may also include receiving one or more second transmission block parts of the first uplink transmission block from a relay node from another link. The one or more second transmission block parts received from the relay node include one or more second transmission block parts that the relay node successfully decodes.

[0182] According to another example, a method for wireless communication by a base station is provided. The method may include sending one or more first transmission block parts of a first downlink transmission block to a user equipment (UE) via an access link. The method may also include sending one or more second transmission block parts of the first downlink transmission block to a relay node via another link.

[0183] It should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the disclosed process / flowchart is an illustration of an exemplary method. Based on design preferences, it should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the process / flowchart can be rearranged. In addition, some blocks can be combined or omitted. The attached method claims present the elements of the various blocks in an example order and are not meant to be limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

[0184] The previous description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. For those skilled in the art, various modifications to these aspects will be apparent, and the general principles defined herein can be applied to other aspects. Therefore, the present claim is not intended to be limited to the various aspects shown herein, but to conform to the full scope consistent with the language claim, wherein, unless otherwise specified, the singular reference element is not intended to represent "one and only one", but to represent "one or more". The word "exemplary" is used here to represent "used as an example, instance or illustration". Any aspect described as "exemplary" herein is not necessarily interpreted as being superior to or superior to other aspects. Unless otherwise specified, the term "some" refers to one or more. Combinations such as "at least one of A, B or C", "one or more of A, B or C", "at least one of A, B and C", "one or more of A, B and C" and "A, B, C or any combination thereof" include any combination of A, B and / or C, and may include multiple A, multiple B, or multiple C. Specifically, combinations such as "at least one of A, B, or C," "one or more of A, B, or C," "at least one of A, B and C," "one or more of A, B, and C," and "A, B, C, or any combination thereof" may be A only, B only, C only, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A and B and C, wherein any such combination may contain one or more members of A, B, or C. All structural and functional equivalents of the elements throughout the various aspects described in this disclosure that are known or later become known to one of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be covered by the claims. In addition, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public, regardless of whether such disclosure is expressly recited in the claims. The words "module," "mechanism," "element," "device," and the like are not intended to replace the word "component." Therefore, any claim element shall not be interpreted as a component plus function unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase "component for..."

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication by a relay node, comprising: receiving one or more first transport block parts of a first transport block via a first link; attempting to decode each of the first transport block parts; encoding each successfully decoded first transport block part to define one or more second transport block parts; transmitting the one or more second transport block parts via a second link; as well as In response to the encoding, a sidelink control message is sent to a receiving user equipment (UE) including an index of the one or more second transport block parts, the index indicating which of the first transport block parts was successfully decoded.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more received first transport block parts are sent by a base station or a sending user equipment (UE) and are copies of at least one transport block part sent by the base station or the sending UE to another network entity.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more received first transport block parts are sent by a base station or a sending user equipment (UE) and are different from at least one transport block part sent by the base station or the sending UE to another network entity.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: A HARQ-ACK feedback is received from a receiving user equipment (UE) for the second transport block portion received by the receiving UE.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising: Each of the second transport block parts corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback is retransmitted to the receiving UE.

6. The method according to claim 4, further comprising: The HARQ-ACK feedback is sent to a base station that sent the one or more first transport block parts.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: An uplink control message including an index of the one or more second transport block parts is sent to a base station, the index indicating which one of the first transport block parts was successfully decoded.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising: receiving, from the base station, HARQ-ACK feedback for the second transport block portion received by the base station; as well as Each of the second transport block parts corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback is retransmitted to the base station.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising: receiving, from the base station, a retransmission grant for the second transport block portion received by the base station; as well as Each of the second transport block parts corresponding to the one or more transport block parts indicated in the retransmission grant is retransmitted to the base station.

10. The method according to claim 8, further comprising: The HARQ-ACK feedback is sent to a receiving user equipment (UE).

11. A relay node for wireless communication, comprising: a memory configured to store instructions; as well as one or more processors communicatively coupled to the memory, wherein the one or more processors are configured to execute instructions to: receiving one or more first transport block parts of a first transport block via a first link; attempting to decode each of the first transport block parts; encoding each successfully decoded first transport block part to define one or more second transport block parts; transmitting the one or more second transport block parts via a second link; as well as In response to the encoding, a sidelink control message is sent to a receiving user equipment (UE) including an index of the one or more second transport block parts, the index indicating which of the first transport block parts was successfully decoded.

12. The relay node of claim 11, wherein the one or more received first transport block parts are sent by a base station or a sending user equipment (UE) and are copies of at least one transport block part sent by the base station or the sending UE to another network entity.

13. The relay node of claim 11, wherein the one or more received first transport block parts are sent by a base station or a sending user equipment (UE) and are different from at least one transport block part sent by the base station or the sending UE to another network entity.

14. The relay node of claim 11, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: A HARQ-ACK feedback is received from a receiving user equipment (UE) for the second transport block portion received by the receiving UE.

15. The relay node of claim 14, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: Each of the second transport block parts corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback is retransmitted to the receiving UE.

16. The relay node of claim 14, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: The HARQ-ACK feedback is sent to a base station that sent the one or more first transport block parts.

17. The relay node of claim 11, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: An uplink control message including an index of the one or more second transport block parts is sent to a base station, the index indicating which one of the first transport block parts was successfully decoded.

18. The relay node of claim 17, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: receiving, from the base station, HARQ-ACK feedback for the second transport block portion received by the base station; and Each of the second transport block parts corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback is retransmitted to the base station.

19. The relay node of claim 18, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: receiving, from the base station, a retransmission grant for the second transport block portion received by the base station; and Each of the second transport block parts corresponding to the one or more transport block parts indicated in the retransmission grant is retransmitted to the base station.

20. The relay node of claim 18, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: The HARQ-ACK feedback is sent to a receiving user equipment (UE).

21. A relay node for wireless communication, comprising: means for receiving one or more first transport block parts of a first transport block via a first link; means for attempting to decode each of said first transport block parts; means for encoding each successfully decoded first transport block part to define one or more second transport block parts; means for transmitting the one or more second transport block parts via a second link; as well as Means for sending a sidelink control message to a receiving user equipment (UE) in response to the encoding, including an index of the one or more second transport block parts, the index indicating which of the first transport block parts was successfully decoded.

22. The relay node of claim 21 , wherein the one or more received first transport block parts are sent by a base station or a sending user equipment (UE) and are copies of at least one transport block part sent by the base station or the sending UE to another network entity.

23. The relay node of claim 21, wherein the one or more received first transport block parts are sent by a base station or a sending user equipment (UE) and are different from at least one transport block part sent by the base station or the sending UE to another network entity.

24. The relay node according to claim 21, further comprising: means for receiving, from a receiving user equipment (UE), HARQ-ACK feedback for the second transport block portion received by the receiving UE; and means for retransmitting each of the second transport block parts corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback to the receiving UE.

25. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions executable by one or more processors to: receiving one or more first transport block parts of a first transport block via a first link; attempting to decode each of the first transport block parts; encoding each successfully decoded first transport block part to define one or more second transport block parts; transmitting the one or more second transport block parts via a second link; as well as In response to the encoding, a sidelink control message is sent to a receiving user equipment (UE) including an index of the one or more second transport block parts, the index indicating which of the first transport block parts was successfully decoded.

26. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, wherein the one or more received first transmission block portions are sent by a base station or a sending user equipment (UE) and are copies of at least one transmission block portion sent by the base station or the sending UE to another network entity.

27. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, wherein the one or more received first transmission block portions are sent by a base station or a sending user equipment (UE) and are different from at least one transmission block portion sent by the base station or the sending UE to another network entity.

28. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 25, further comprising instructions executable by the one or more processors to: A HARQ-ACK feedback is received from a receiving user equipment (UE) for the second transport block portion received by the receiving UE.

29. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 28, further comprising instructions executable by the one or more processors to: Each of the second transport block parts corresponding to each NACK in the received HARQ-ACK feedback is retransmitted to the receiving UE.

30. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 28, further comprising instructions executable by the one or more processors to: The HARQ-ACK feedback is sent to a base station that sent the one or more first transport block parts.

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