Joint access network and sidelink scheduling
By jointly scheduling user equipment by base stations, the inefficiency caused by the separation of access links and side links in traditional wireless communication systems is solved, achieving more efficient resource utilization and power saving.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202080061589.X
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Patents(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Priority Date
- 2019-09-10
- Filing Date
- 2020-09-10
- Publication Date
- 2026-02-06
- Estimated Expiration
- 2040-09-10
AI Technical Summary
Traditional wireless communication systems have separate configurations for access links and side links, resulting in low communication efficiency and insufficient resource utilization.
By jointly scheduling user equipment through base stations, and using control signaling to collaboratively configure access network and side link resources, joint scheduling of access network and side links can be achieved.
It improves communication efficiency, reduces waiting time, and achieves more efficient resource utilization and power saving under joint scheduling.
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Figure CN114342525B_ABST
Abstract
Description
[0001] Cross-references
[0002] This patent application claims the benefit of international patent application No. PCT / CN2019 / 105051 entitled “ACCESS NETWORK AND SIDELINK JOINT SCHEDULING” filed by Cao et al. on September 10, 2019, which has been assigned to the assignee of this application. Technical Field
[0003] The following text generally refers to wireless communication, and in particular to the joint scheduling of access networks and sidelinks.
[0004] background
[0005] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content, such as voice, video, packet data, message sending and receiving, broadcasting, and so on. These systems can support communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of such multiple access systems include fourth-generation (4G) systems (such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, LTE-A Advanced (LTE-A) systems, or LTE-A Pro systems) and fifth-generation (5G) systems, which may be referred to as New Radio (NR) systems. These systems can employ various technologies, such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), or Discrete Fourier Transform Extended Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (DFT-S-OFDM). A wireless multiple access communication system may include one or more base stations or one or more network access nodes, each of which simultaneously supports communication with multiple communication devices, which may also be referred to as User Equipment (UE).
[0006] Some wireless communication systems can support access links or sidelinks. An access link is the communication link between a UE and a base station. In some examples, an access link may be referred to as a Uu interface. Specifically, a Uu interface can refer to an air interface used for downlink transmission, uplink transmission, or both. A sidelink is a communication link between similar devices. For example, a sidelink can support communication between multiple UEs (e.g., multiple devices in a device-to-device (D2D) system, multiple devices and / or vehicles in a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) system or a vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) system, and other examples of systems that can support sidelink communication). However, traditional wireless communication systems may have separate configurations for access links and sidelinks, which can lead to inefficient communication.
[0007] Overview
[0008] The described techniques relate to improved methods, systems, devices, and apparatuses that support access network and sidelink joint scheduling. Generally, the described techniques can enable a base station to jointly configure a user equipment (UE) or a group of UEs to communicate on both an access network and a sidelink network, which can result in more efficient communications, improved latency, and power saving enhancements, among other advantages. For example, a base station can use control signaling to jointly schedule a UE for resources of both an access link and a sidelink. The control signaling can include one or more messages to schedule and / or configure the UE for both access network communications and sidelink communications. In some examples, the one or more messages can include a sidelink grant and / or an indication of a sidelink grant, a downlink or uplink grant, or any combination thereof. For example, the one or more messages can include a downlink control information (DCI) message corresponding to a downlink grant and a sidelink grant, an uplink grant and a sidelink grant, a downlink grant and an indication of a sidelink grant, and / or the like. Additionally, or alternatively, the one or more messages can include a radio resource control (RRC) message corresponding to a sidelink grant (e.g., indicated by a DCI message).
[0009] A method of wireless communication is described at a first UE. The method can include receiving, from a base station, at least one control message jointly scheduling the first UE for access network communications between the first UE and the base station and for sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE, determining network control information associated with the access network communications based on the at least one control message, determining sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communications based on the at least one control message, and communicating with the base station and the second UE in accordance with the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively.
[0010] An apparatus for wireless communication at a first UE is described. The apparatus can include a processor, memory coupled with the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions can be executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to receive, from a base station, at least one control message jointly scheduling the first UE for access network communications between the first UE and the base station and for sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE, determine network control information associated with the access network communications based on the at least one control message, determine sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communications based on the at least one control message, and communicate with the base station and the second UE in accordance with the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively.
[0011] Another apparatus for wireless communication at a first UE is described. The apparatus can include means for receiving, from a base station, at least one control message jointly scheduling the first UE for an access network communication between the first UE and the base station and for a sidelink communication between the first UE and at least a second UE, determining network control information associated with the access network communication based on the at least one control message, determining sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communication based on the at least one control message, and communicating with the base station and the second UE in accordance with the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively.
[0012] A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication at a first UE is described. The code can include instructions executable by a processor to receive, from a base station, at least one control message jointly scheduling the first UE for an access network communication between the first UE and the base station and for a sidelink communication between the first UE and at least a second UE, determine network control information associated with the access network communication based on the at least one control message, determine sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communication based on the at least one control message, and communicate with the base station and the second UE in accordance with the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively.
[0013] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, determining the sidelink control information can include operations, features, means, or instructions for receiving the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages.
[0014] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, determining the sidelink control information can include operations, features, means, or instructions for receiving the sidelink control information and the network control information in the same control message.
[0015] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, receiving the at least one control message further can include operations, features, means, or instructions for receiving, from the base station, a first control message including the network control information and an indication that the sidelink control information is receivable via a second message, and receiving, from the base station, the second message including the sidelink control information.
[0016] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, the first control message includes DCI associated with a downlink grant for the first UE, and the second message includes an RRC message associated with a sidelink grant for the first UE piggybacked on a data message scheduled by the DCI.
[0017] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, receiving the second message from the base station can include operations, features, means, or instructions for receiving an indication of one or more resources associated with the sidelink communication, the one or more resources including a sidelink control channel, a sidelink shared channel, a feedback channel, or any combination thereof.
[0018] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, the feedback channel can be associated with uplink feedback including an automatic repeat request (ARQ) communication with the base station, a channel state indicator (CSI) report transmission to the base station, or a combination thereof, where the uplink feedback can be encoded based on uplink control information received from the base station.
[0019] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, a first resource of the one or more resources includes resources for both the sidelink control channel and the sidelink shared channel.
[0020] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, a first resource of the one or more resources includes resources for the sidelink control channel, and a second resource of the one or more resources includes resources for the sidelink shared channel.
[0021] Some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein can further include operations, features, means, or instructions for receiving an indication of resources assigned to the feedback channel, a resource pool configured for the feedback channel, or a combination thereof.
[0022] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, receiving the at least one control message can further include operations, features, means, or instructions for receiving, from the base station, a first control message including network control information and sidelink control information.
[0023] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, the first control message includes DCI associated with an integrated grant for the first UE, the integrated grant including one or more fields corresponding to a sidelink grant and a downlink grant or an uplink grant.
[0024] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, the first control message includes an indication that the integrated grant can be included in DCI.
[0025] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, the first control message includes an indication of one or more bandwidth parts (BWPs) for access network communications, sidelink communications, or both.
[0026] Some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein can further include operations, features, means, or instructions for determining one or more sidelink resources for sidelink communications based on the received sidelink control information, the one or more sidelink resources including transmission resources, reception resources, or both.
[0027] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, the one or more sidelink resources include a resource pool for sidelink communications.
[0028] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, the one or more sidelink resources can be assigned to the first UE for sidelink communications.
[0029] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, the sidelink control information includes one or more sidelink parameters for sidelink communications between the first UE and the second UE, the one or more sidelink parameters including a transmit power parameter, a modulation coding scheme (MCS), a new data indicator (NDI), a hybrid-ARQ (HARQ) parameter, a downlink assignment indicator (DAI), a resource assignment expiration timer, or a combination thereof.
[0030] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer- readable medium described herein, the sidelink control information includes a group identifier of a group of UEs including the first UE and the second UE, a sidelink radio network temporary identifier (RNTI) for groupcast communications within the group of UEs, or a combination thereof.
[0031] Some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein can further include operations, features, means, or instructions for identifying a RNTI corresponding to a first control message of the at least one control message, where the first control message includes DCI and the RNTI can be associated with joint scheduling of access network communications and sidelink communications, and descrambling a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) code of the first control message based on the identified RNTI.
[0032] A method of wireless communication is described at a base station. The method can include identifying network control information associated with access network communications between the base station and a first UE, identifying sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE, and transmitting at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for the access network communications and the sidelink communications, where the at least one control message includes the network control information and the sidelink control information.
[0033] An apparatus for wireless communication at a base station is described. The apparatus can include a processor, memory coupled with the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions can be executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to identify network control information associated with access network communications between the base station and a first UE, identify sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE, and transmit at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for the access network communications and the sidelink communications, where the at least one control message includes the network control information and the sidelink control information.
[0034] Another apparatus for wireless communication at a base station is described. The apparatus can include means for identifying network control information associated with access network communications between the base station and a first UE, identifying sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE, and transmitting at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for the access network communications and the sidelink communications, where the at least one control message includes the network control information and the sidelink control information.
[0035] A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication at a base station is described. The code can include instructions executable by a processor to identify network control information associated with access network communications between the base station and a first UE, identify sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE, and transmit at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for the access network communications and the sidelink communications, where the at least one control message includes the network control information and the sidelink control information.
[0036] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, transmitting the at least one control message can include operations, features, means, or instructions for transmitting the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages.
[0037] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, transmitting the at least one control message can include operations, features, means, or instructions for transmitting the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages.
[0038] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, transmitting the at least one control message can include operations, features, means, or instructions for transmitting the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages.
[0039] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, the first control message includes DCI associated with a downlink grant for the first UE, and the second message includes an RRC message associated with a sidelink grant for the first UE, the second UE, or both, the RRC message piggybacked on a data message scheduled by the DCI.
[0040] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, transmitting the second message can include operations, features, means, or instructions for transmitting an indication of one or more resources associated with the sidelink communication, the one or more resources including a sidelink control channel, a sidelink shared channel, a feedback channel, or any combination thereof.
[0041] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, the feedback channel can be associated with uplink feedback including an ARQ communication with the first UE, a CSI report transmission from the first UE, or a combination thereof, where the uplink feedback can be decoded based on uplink control information.
[0042] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, a first resource of the one or more resources includes a resource for both the sidelink control channel and the sidelink shared channel.
[0043] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, a first resource of the one or more resources includes a resource for a sidelink control channel and a second resource of the one or more resources includes a resource for a sidelink shared channel.
[0044] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, the sidelink control channel indication indicates resources assigned to a feedback channel, the feedback channel can be configured with a feedback resource pool, or a combination thereof.
[0045] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, transmitting the at least one control message can further include operations, features, means, or instructions for transmitting, to the first UE, a first control message that includes network control information and sidelink control information.
[0046] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, the first control message includes DCI associated with an integrated grant for the first UE, the integrated grant including one or more fields corresponding to a sidelink grant and a downlink grant or an uplink grant.
[0047] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, the first control message includes an indication that the integrated grant can be included in DCI.
[0048] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, the first control message includes an indication of one or more BWPs for access network communications, sidelink communications, or both.
[0049] Some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein can further include operations, features, means, or instructions for determining one or more sidelink resources for the first UE, the second UE, or both, the one or more sidelink resources including transmission resources, reception resources, or both, where the sidelink control information includes an indication of the one or more sidelink resources.
[0050] In some examples of the method, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, the one or more sidelink resources include a resource pool for sidelink communications.
[0051] Some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein can further include operations, features, means for, or instructions for scheduling the one or more sidelink resources for the first UE, where the at least one control message indicates the one or more sidelink resources.
[0052] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, the sidelink control information includes one or more sidelink parameters for sidelink communications between the first UE and the second UE, the one or more sidelink parameters including a transmit power parameter, a MCS, an NDI, a HARQ parameter, a DAI, a resource assignment expiration timer, or a combination thereof.
[0053] In some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein, the sidelink control information includes a group identifier for a group of UEs including the first UE and the second UE, a sidelink RNTI for groupcast communications within the group of UEs, or a combination thereof.
[0054] Some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein can further include operations, features, means for, or instructions for assigning resources or a resource pool for sidelink communications to each UE in a group of UEs, the group of UEs including the first UE and the second UE.
[0055] Some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein can further include operations, features, means for, or instructions for identifying a RNTI corresponding to a first control message of the at least one control message, where the first control message includes DCI and the RNTI can be associated with joint scheduling of access network communications and sidelink communications, and scrambling a CRC code of the first control message based on the identified RNTI.
[0056] Some examples of the method, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable medium described herein can further include operations, features, means for, or instructions for performing dynamic scheduling, SPS, one-shot scheduling, or a combination thereof for access network communications, sidelink communications, or both. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0058] Figure 1 and Figure 2 An example of a wireless communications system that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.
[0059] Figure 3 An example of a process flow that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.
[0060] Figure 4 and Figure 5 A block diagram of a device that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling is shown, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.
[0061] Figure 6 A block diagram of a communications manager that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling is shown, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.
[0062] Figure 7 A diagram of a system including a device that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling is shown, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.
[0063] Figure 8 and Figure 9 A block diagram of a device that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling is shown, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.
[0064] Figure 10 A block diagram of a communications manager that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling is shown, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.
[0065] Figure 11 A diagram of a system including a device that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling is shown, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.
[0066] Figures 12 to 17 A flow diagram illustrating a method that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling is shown, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.
[0067] DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0068] A wireless communications system can support access links and sidelinks for communication between wireless devices. An access link can refer to a communication link between a user equipment (UE) and a base station. For example, an access link can support access network communications between a UE and a base station, such as uplink signaling, downlink signaling, connection procedures, and the like. A sidelink can refer to any communication link between like wireless devices (e.g., a communication link between UEs in a group of UEs, or a backhaul communication link between base stations). It should be noted that while various examples provided herein are discussed with respect to UE sidelink devices, such sidelink techniques can be used for any type of wireless device that uses sidelink communications. For example, a sidelink can support one or more of device-to-device (D2D) communications, vehicle-to-anything (V2X) and / or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, message relaying, discovery signaling, beacon signaling, or other signals communicated over the air from one UE to one or more other UEs.
[0069] According to some aspects, wireless devices (e.g., base stations and / or UEs) can implement techniques for jointly configuring access network communications and sidelink communications, which can result in reduced latency (e.g., for transmissions of relatively high priority) and more efficient communications. For example, a group of UEs can be engaged in an interactive gaming activity. In such an example, each UE can operate an application (e.g., an interactive game), and the UEs can have traffic associated with the application. Joint configuration of access network communications and sidelink communications can enable the UEs to communicate such traffic with a base station (e.g., via an access link) and with other UEs (e.g., via a sidelink). For example, portions of the traffic can be split into different packet data units (PDUs) based on latency thresholds (e.g., quality of service (QoS) thresholds). PDUs with relatively low latency thresholds (e.g., relatively high priority thresholds) can be configured to be transmitted to another UE via a sidelink. Additionally or alternatively, PDUs with relatively high latency thresholds (e.g., relatively low priority thresholds) can be configured to be transmitted to a base station via an access link. As an example, traffic associated with an interactive game can be split into sidelink traffic to other UEs (e.g., interactive messages between one or more users, which can correspond to low latency thresholds and / or a relatively large amount of bandwidth) and access link traffic to a base station (e.g., game map data, background update data, user profile data, score update data, etc., which can correspond to normal or high latency thresholds and / or relatively infrequent transmissions). Additionally or alternatively, such joint configuration can apply to other wireless communication systems, such as V2X systems that implement joint configuration of sidelink communications and access network communications, which can result in power savings due to reduced processing complexity from jointly configuring sidelink communications and access network communications as compared to separately configuring these communications.
[0070] In some examples, a base station can jointly schedule sidelink resources and access network resources for one or more UEs. For example, the base station can determine resources for uplink and / or downlink transmissions for a UE in a group of UEs. Additionally or alternatively, the base station can determine resources for sidelink transmissions (e.g., PC5 transmissions) for a UE in a group of UEs, such as a resource pool shared among UEs, resources assigned to the UE for communicating with the group of UEs (e.g., groupcast transmissions, unicast transmissions, and other sidelink communications). The base station can jointly schedule the UE with sidelink resources and access network resources via control signaling. For example, the base station can transmit one or more messages to the UE indicating the sidelink resources and the access network resources.
[0071] In some examples, the one or more messages can include a first message (e.g., a control message) and a second message. The first message can include control information (e.g., downlink control information (DCI)) associated with a downlink grant. For example, the control information can include information for a downlink transmission from the base station to the UE, such as scheduled resources for the downlink transmission. The control message can also include an indication of a sidelink grant. The indication can be a field (e.g., a bit field) of the first message that indicates that control information associated with the sidelink grant can be included in the second message. For example, the control information for the sidelink transmission can be included in a radio resource control (RRC) message indicated by the first message. In other words, the sidelink grant can be “piggybacked” on the second message (e.g., the RRC message).
[0072] In some other examples, the first message can include control information associated with an integrated grant (e.g., a sidelink grant and an access link grant (such as a downlink grant or an uplink grant)). For example, the first message can include a DCI format that includes a field for sidelink communications (e.g., a field that includes control information for a sidelink grant) and a field for access network communications (e.g., a field that includes control information associated with an access link grant). In some examples, the first message can also include an indication that the first message includes control information for an integrated grant, such as a bit indicator and / or a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI) associated with a joint configuration message.
[0073] Aspects of the disclosure are initially described in the context of wireless communication systems. Aspects of the disclosure are further illustrated by and described in connection with flow and apparatus diagrams and system diagrams related to joint scheduling of access networks and sidelinks.
[0074] Figure 1 An example of a wireless communication system 100 that supports joint scheduling of access networks and sidelinks is illustrated in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The wireless communication system 100 can include one or more base stations 105, one or more UEs 115, and a core network 130. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 can be a Long Term Evolution (LTE) network, an LTE- Advanced (LTE-A) network, an LTE-A Pro network, or a New Radio (NR) network. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 can support enhanced broadband communications, ultra-reliable (e.g., mission critical) communications, low latency communications, communications with low-cost and low-complexity devices, or any combination thereof.
[0075] The base stations 105 can be dispersed throughout the geographic region 100 and can be geographic ly distributed in accordance with a particular design or arrangement. For example, the base stations 105 can be arranged to form a grid structure, a clustered structure, or any other type of arrangement. In some aspects, the base stations 105 can be macro cells, micro cells, small cells, or the like, or any combination thereof.
[0076] The UEs 115 can be dispersed throughout the coverage areas 110 of the wireless communications system 100, and each UE 115 can be stationary, or mobile, or both at different times. The UEs 115 can be devices in different forms or have different capabilities. In examples described in this document, UEs 115 can include a number of different devices, such as mobile phones, tablets, head-mounted displays, personal computers, web appliances, wearable devices, or the like. Figure 1 Some example UEs 115 are illustrated in FIG. 1. The UEs 115 described herein can be able to communicate with various types of devices, such as other UEs 115, base stations 105, or network equipment (e.g., core network nodes, relay devices, integrated access and backhaul (IAB) nodes, or other network equipment), as shown in FIG. 1. Figure 1
[0077] The base stations 105 can communicate with the core network 130, or with one another, or both. For example, the base stations 105 can interface with the core network 130 through one or more backhaul links 120 (e.g., via an SI, N2, N3, or other interface). The base stations 105 can communicate with one another over the backhaul links 120 (e.g., via an X2, Xn, or other interface) directly (e.g., directly between base stations 105), or indirectly (e.g., via the core network 130), or both. In some examples, the backhaul links 120 can be or include one or more wireless links.
[0078] One or more of the base stations 105 described herein can include or can be referred to as a base transceiver station, a radio base station, an access point, a radio transceiver, a NodeB, an eNodeB (eNB), a next-generation NodeB or giga-NodeB (either of which can be referred to as a gNB), a Home NodeB, a Home eNodeB, or other suitable terminology.
[0079] A UE 115 can include or can be referred to as a mobile device, a wireless device, a remote device, a handheld device, or a subscriber device, or some other suitable terminology, where the “device” can also be referred to as a unit, a station, a terminal, or a client, among other examples. A UE 115 can also include or can be referred to as a personal electronic device such as a cellular phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a tablet computer, a laptop computer, or a personal computer. In some examples, a UE 115 can include or be referred to as a wireless local loop (WLL) station, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, an Internet of Everything (IoE) device, or a machine type communications (MTC) device, among other examples, which can be implemented in various objects such as appliances or vehicles, meters or instruments, among other examples.
[0080] The UEs 115 described herein can be able to communicate with various types of devices, such as other UEs 115 that can sometimes act as relays or Figure 1 as shown in FIG. 1.
[0081] The UEs 115 and the base stations 105 can wirelessly communicate with one another via one or more communication links 125 over one or more carriers. The
[0082] Signal waveforms transmitted over a carrier can be composed of multiple subcarriers (e.g., using multi-carrier modulation (MCM) techniques such as orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) or discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM)). In a system employing MCM techniques, a resource element can consist of one symbol period (e.g., a duration of one modulation symbol) and one subcarrier, where the symbol period and subcarrier spacing are inversely related. The number of bits carried by each resource element can depend on the modulation scheme (e.g., the order of the modulation scheme, the coding rate of the modulation scheme, or both). Thus, the more resource elements that a UE 115 receives and the higher the order of the modulation scheme, the higher the data rates for the UE 115. A wireless communications resource can refer to a combination of a radio frequency spectrum resource, a time resource, and a spatial resource (e.g., spatial layers or beams), and the use of multiple spatial layers can further increase the data rate for communications with a UE 115.
[0083] Time intervals for a base station 105 or UE 115 can be expressed in multiples of a basic time unit, which may, for example, be a sampling period of Ts= 1 / (Δfmax·Nf) seconds, where Δfmax can represent the maximum supported subcarrier spacing, and Nf can represent the maximum supported discrete Fourier transform (DFT) size. Time intervals of a base station 105 can also be expressed in multiples of a basic time unit s = 1 / (Δf max · N f seconds, where Δf max may represent the maximum supported subcarrier spacing, and N f may represent the maximum supported discrete Fourier transform (DFT) size. Time intervals of a base station 105 can also be expressed in multiples of a basic time unit
[0084] Each frame can include a plurality of consecutive numbered subframes or slots, and each subframe or slot can have the same duration. In some examples, a frame can be divided (e.g., in the time domain) into subframes, and each subframe can be further divided into a number of slots. Alternatively, each frame can include a variable number of slots, and the number of slots can depend on the subcarrier spacing. Each slot can include a number of symbol periods (e.g., depending on the length of the cyclic prefix prepended to each symbol period). In some wireless communications systems 100, a slot can be further divided into multiple mini-slots containing one or more symbols. Excluding the cyclic prefix, each symbol period can contain one or more (e.g., N f sample periods. The duration of a symbol period can depend on the subcarrier spacing or the operating band.
[0085] A subframe, a slot, a mini-slot, or a symbol can be the smallest scheduling unit (e.g., in the time domain) of the wireless communications system 100 and can be referred to as a transmission time interval (TTI). In some examples, the TTI duration (e.g., the number of symbol periods in a TTI) can be variable. Additionally or alternatively, the smallest scheduling unit of the wireless communications system 100 can be dynamically selected (e.g., in bursts of shortened TTIs (sTTIs)).
[0086] Physical channels can be multiplexed on a carrier according to various techniques. A physical control channel and a physical data channel can be multiplexed on a downlink carrier, for example, using one or more of time division multiplexing (TDM) techniques, frequency division multiplexing (FDM) techniques, or hybrid TDM-FDM techniques. A control region (e.g., a control resource set (CORESET)) for a physical control channel can be defined in terms of number of symbol periods and can extend across the system bandwidth or a subset of the system bandwidth of the carrier. One or more control regions (e.g., CORESETs) can be configured for a set of UEs 115. For example, one or more of the UEs 115 can monitor or search control regions according to one or more search space sets for control information, and each search space set can include one or more control channel candidates in one or more aggregation levels arranged in a cascaded manner. An aggregation level for a control channel candidate can refer to a number of control channel resources (e.g., control channel elements (CCEs)) associated with encoded information for a control information format having a given payload size. A search space set can include common search space sets configured for sending control information to multiple UEs 115 and UE-specific search space sets configured for sending control information to a specific UE 115.
[0087] In some examples, base stations 105 can be movable and therefore provide communication coverage for a moving geographic coverage area 110. In some examples, different geographic coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies can overlap, and overlapping geographic coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies can be supported by the same base station 105. In other examples, overlapping geographic coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies can be supported by different base stations 105. The wireless communications system 100 can include, for example, a heterogeneous network in which different types of base stations 105 provide coverage for various geographic coverage areas 110 using the same or different radio access technologies.
[0088] The wireless communications system 100 can be configured to support ultra-reliable communications or low-latency communications, or various combinations thereof. For example, the wireless communications system 100 can be configured to support ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC) or mission critical communications. UEs 115 can be designed to support ultra-reliable, low-latency, or mission critical functions (e.g., mission critical function). Ultra-reliable communications can include private communication or group communication, and can be supported by one or more mission critical services such as mission critical push-to-talk (MCPTT), mission critical video (MCVideo), or mission critical data (MCData). Support for mission critical functions can include prioritization of services, and mission critical services can be used for public safety or general commercial applications. The terms ultra-reliable, low-latency, mission critical, and ultra-reliable low- latency can be used interchangeably herein.
[0089] In some examples, UEs 115 can also be able to communicate directly with other UEs 115 over a device-to-device (D2D) communication link 135 (e.g., using a peer-to-peer (P2P) or D2D protocol). One or more UEs 115 utilizing D2D communications can be within the geographic coverage area 110 of a base station 105. Other UEs 115 in such a group can be outside the geographic coverage area 110 of a base station 105, or be otherwise unable to receive transmissions from a base station 105. In some examples, groups of UEs 115 communicating via D2D communications can utilize a one-to-many (1 :M) system in which each UE 115 transmits to every other UE 115 in the group. In some examples, a base station 105 facilitates the scheduling of resources for D2D communications. In other cases, D2D communications are carried out between UEs 115 without the involvement of a base station 105.
[0090] In some systems, the D2D communication link 135 can be an example of a communication channel, such as a sidelink communication channel, between vehicles (e.g., UEs 115). In some examples, vehicles can communicate using vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communications, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, or some combination of these. A vehicle can signal information related to traffic conditions, signal scheduling, weather, safety, emergencies, or any other information relevant to a V2X system. In some examples, a vehicle in a V2X system can communicate with road-side infrastructure, such as road-side units, or with a network, or with both, via one or more network nodes (e.g., base stations 105) using vehicle-to-network (V2N) communications.
[0091] The core network 130 can provide user authentication, access authorization, tracking, Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity, and other access, routing, or mobility functions. The core network 130 can be an evolved packet core (EPC) or 5G core (5GC), which can include at least one control plane entity that manages access and mobility (e.g., a mobility management entity (MME), an access and mobility management function (AMF)) and at least one user plane entity that routes packets or interconnects to external networks (e.g., a serving gateway (S-GW), a Packet Data Network (PDN) gateway (P-GW), or a user plane function (UPF)). The control plane entity can manage non-access stratum (NAS) functions such as mobility, authentication, and bearer management for UEs 115 served by base stations 105 associated with the core network 130. User IP packets can be transferred through the user plane entity, which can provide IP address allocation as well as other functions. The user plane entity can be connected to the network operators IP services 150. The operators IP services 150 can include access to the Internet, Intranet, IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), or a Packet-Switched Streaming Service.
[0092] Some of the network devices, such as a base station 105, can include subcomponents such as an access network entity 140, which can be an example of an access node controller (ANC). Each access network entity 140 can communicate with UEs 115 through one or more other access network transmission entities 145, which can be referred to as radio heads, smart radio heads, or transmission / reception points (TRPs). Each access network transmission entity 145 can include one or more antenna panels. In some configurations, various functions of each access network entity 140 or base station 105 can be distributed across various network devices (e.g., radio heads and ANCs) or consolidated into a single network device (e.g., a base station 105).
[0093] The wireless communications system 100 can operate using one or more frequency bands, often in the range of 300 megahertz (MHz) to 300 gigahertz (GHz). Generally, the region from 300 MHz to 3 GHz is known as the ultra-high frequency (UHF) region or decimeter band, since the wavelengths range from approximately one decimeter to one meter in length. The UHF region includes bands such as the 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1.4 GHz, 1.9 GHz, and 2.1 GHz bands. The region from 3 GHz to 30 GHz is known as the super-high frequency (SHF) region or centimeter band, since the wavelengths range from approximately one centimeter to one meter in length. The SHF region includes bands such as the 5 GHz band. The region from 30 GHz to 300 GHz is known as the extremely high frequency (EHF) region or millimeter band, since the wavelengths range from approximately one millimeter to one centimeter in length. The EHF region includes bands such as the 38 GHz and 60 GHz bands. The wireless communications system 100 can support millimeter wave (mmW) communications between UEs 115 and base stations 105, and EHF antenna
[0094] The wireless communications system 100 can utilize both licensed and unlicensed radio frequency spectrum bands. For example, the wireless communications system 100 can employ License Assisted Access (LAA), LTE-Unlicensed (LTE-U) radio access technology, or NR technology in an unlicensed frequency band such as the 5 GHz industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) band. When operating in unlicensed frequency
[0095] Base stations 105 or UEs 115 can be equipped with multiple antennas, which can be used to employ techniques such as transmit diversity, receive diversity, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communications, or beamforming. The antennas of a base station 105 or a UE 115 can be co-located within one or more antenna arrays or antenna panels, which can support MIMO operations or transmit or receive beamforming, for example. In some examples, one or more base station antennas or antenna arrays can be co-located at an antenna assembly, such as an antenna tower. In some examples, the antennas of a base station 105 can be located in different geographic locations, according to an antenna architecture. A base station 105 can have an antenna array with a number of rows and columns of antenna ports that the base station 105 can use for beamforming with a UE 115. Similarly, a UE 115 can have one or more antenna arrays that can support various MIMO or beamforming operations. Additionally or alternatively, antenna panels can support radio frequency beamforming for signals transmitted via antenna ports.
[0096] Beamforming, which can also be referred to as spatial filtering, directional transmission, or directional reception, is a signal processing technique that can be used at a transmitting device or a receiving device (e.g., a base station 105, a UE 115) to shape or steer a beam of energy in the manner of fan or lobe in a specific spatial direction. Beamforming can be achieved by combining the signals communicated by antennas of an antenna array in a way that causes signals to add constructively and causes other signals to add destructively. This can be achieved by the transmitting device or the receiving device applying amplitude and phase offsets to signals carried on each of the antennas. The amplitude and phase offsets applied to each of the antennas can be determined based on a beamforming weight set associated with a particular spatial direction. The beamforming weight set can be derived from a direction (or directions) of arrival of received signals, from a direction (or directions) of transmission, or from other considerations.
[0097] The UEs 115 and the base stations 105 can support retransmissions of data to increase the likelihood that data is received successfully. HARQ feedback is a technique
[0098] According to some aspects, the base stations 105 and UEs 115 (e.g., in a group of UEs 115) can implement various techniques that support joint scheduling of access network communications and sidelink communications, which can result in more efficient communications, improved latency, and power saving enhancements, among other advantages. For example, a base station 105 can use control signaling to jointly schedule UEs 115 for resources for both access network links and sidelinks. The control signaling can include one or more messages to schedule and / or configure UEs 115 for both access network communications and sidelink communications. In some examples, the one or more messages can include a sidelink grant and / or an indication of a sidelink grant, a downlink or uplink grant, or any combination thereof. For example, the one or more messages can include DCI corresponding to an access link grant (e.g., an uplink grant or a downlink grant) and a sidelink grant and / or an indication of a sidelink grant. Additionally or alternatively, the one or more messages can include a radio resource control (RRC) message corresponding to a sidelink grant (e.g., indicated by a DCI message).
[0099] Figure 2 An example of a wireless communications system 200 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling is illustrated in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. In some examples, wireless communications system 200 can implement aspects of wireless communications system 100, and can include a group of UEs 115 (e.g., UE 115-a, UE 115-b, and UE 115-c) and a base station 105-a, which can be examples of the UEs 115 and base stations 105 described with reference to FIG. 1, respectively. Figure 1Examples of UEs 115 and base stations 105 are described. In some cases, the group of UEs 115 can communicate with one another (e.g., via sidelink communications) and / or with base station 105-b (e.g., via access link communications). The UEs 115 and base station 105-b can employ techniques for jointly configured access network communications and sidelink communications to enable more efficient communications and other advantages, such as reliable communications for traffic with low latency thresholds.
[0100] The group of UEs 115 can communicate with one another (or with another group of UEs 115) through sidelink communications 205 (e.g., using a peer-to-peer (P2P) or D2D protocol). For example, UE 115-a can monitor a resource pool for sidelink communications 205 from or indications of sidelink communications 205 from UEs 115-b and 115-c (e.g., resource reservations, control channel transmissions, etc.). Additionally or alternatively, UE 115-a can have data to transmit to one or more of UEs 115-b or 115-c and can transmit the data using sidelink communications 205.
[0101] In addition to sidelinks (e.g., sidelink communications 205), the group of UEs 115 can also utilize access links with base station 105-a (e.g., access network communications 210). For example, one or more of the UEs 115 can be located in a coverage area of base station 105-a (e.g., coverage area 110, with reference to FIG. 1). In such examples, the UEs 115 can communicate with base station 105-a via a Uu interface. For example, base station 105-a can transmit downlink communications to one or more of the UEs 115, or the UEs 115 can transmit uplink communications to base station 105-a. In some cases, the access network communications 210 and the sidelink communications 205 can be separately configured, which can result in inefficient communications. Figure 1
[0102] According to some aspects, the access network communications 210 and the sidelink communications 205 can be jointly configured as described herein. For example, base station 105-a can schedule resources for access network communications 210 for one or more of the UEs 115. Base station 105-a can also schedule resources for sidelink communications 205 for the group of UEs 115. Base station 105-a can indicate the resources to the UEs 115, e.g., via control signaling. Thus, base station 105-a can jointly schedule access link resources and sidelink resources for one or more UEs 115, which can result in more efficient communications.
[0103] For example, the UEs 115-a, 115-b, and 115-c can be participating in an interactive gaming activity, and joint scheduling of access link resources and sidelink resources can enable reduced latency for transmissions of relatively high priority. In such examples, each UE 115 can operate an application (e.g., an interactive game), and UE 115-a can have traffic associated with the application. UE 115-a can communicate a portion of the traffic with a base station (e.g., via an access link). For example, UE 115-a can split the traffic into different packet data units (PDUs) based on latency thresholds, such as QoS thresholds. UE 115-a can transmit and / or receive PDUs of relatively low priority (e.g., PDUs corresponding to high latency thresholds, such as game map data, background update data, user profile data for a user associated with UE 115-a, score data, etc.) via an access link. Additionally or alternatively, UE 115-a can transmit and / or receive PDUs of relatively high priority (such as PDUs corresponding to low latency thresholds, such as interactive messages between one or more users of UEs 115) via a sidelink with UE 115-b and / or UE 115-c. Accordingly, base station 105-a can jointly schedule resources for sidelink communications 205 and access network communications 210 to enable such traffic communications.
[0104] Base station 105-a can jointly configure sidelink communications 205 and access network communications 210 for UE 115-a. For example, base station 105-a can determine control information associated with access network communications 210 (e.g., network control information corresponding to uplink transmissions, such as uplink control information (UCI), or network control information corresponding to downlink transmissions, such as DCI). Additionally or alternatively, base station 105-a can determine control information associated with sidelink communications 205, such as sidelink control information corresponding to sidelink transmissions (e.g., PC5 transmissions) within a group of UEs 115. Base station 105-a can transmit control information to UEs 115 via control signaling, such as a message including an access link grant (e.g., an uplink grant or a downlink grant), a sidelink grant, or an integrated grant (e.g., both an access link grant and a sidelink grant).
[0105] In some examples, the base station 105-a can jointly configure the UE 115-a using a downlink grant included in a first message (e.g., a control message) and a sidelink grant included in a second message. For example, the one or more resources for the access network communications 210 can be configured by the DCI of the first message, and the one or more sidelink resources (e.g., PC5 resources) can be configured by the second message, which can be an RRC message (i.e., the sidelink grant can be included in an RRC message “piggybacked” on a data message scheduled by the DCI). The base station 105-a can transmit the first message including the downlink grant to the UE 115-a. The first message can include determined control information associated with the access network communications 210, such as a DCI for a downlink transmission. The DCI can include resources for the UE 115-a to monitor for a downlink data transmission from the base station 105-a. For example, the base station 105-a can transmit the DCI via a PDCCH, and the DCI can indicate resources of a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) for the UE 115-a to monitor for a subsequent data transmission. Additionally, the DCI can include other information related to the downlink grant, such as downlink transmission parameters (e.g., MCS, decoding parameters, etc.).
[0106] The first message can also include additional information associated with the sidelink grant. For example, the first message can include an indication (e.g., a 1-bit on / off indicator) that the sidelink grant is included in the second message. The first message can also include an identifier (ID) or RNTI for the UE 115-a to use for the sidelink communications 205 (e.g., a sidelink transmission corresponding to the sidelink grant). The first message can also include a timing offset / timing advance to be used for the sidelink communications 205 (e.g., a sidelink transmission and a sidelink reception). In some cases, the DCI of the first message can also be scrambled with an RNTI associated with the first message (e.g., to distinguish the first message from a DCI that does not include an indication of a sidelink grant).
[0107] The base station 105-a can transmit the second message (e.g., an RRC message including the sidelink grant) to the UE 115-a. For example, the first message can indicate that the second message includes a sidelink grant and resources (e.g., resources of a PDSCH) for the UE 115-a to monitor to receive the second message. In some examples, the sidelink grant can be referred to as a PC5 grant or a PC5 resource grant. The sidelink grant can include determined control information associated with the sidelink communications 205 (i.e., sidelink control information). The sidelink control information can indicate sidelink resources for communications between UEs 115 (e.g., the sidelink communications 205).
[0108] In some examples, the sidelink resources can include a resource pool shared between UEs 115 (e.g., a resource pool for transmissions between UEs 115), and the sidelink control information can include sidelink transmission parameters for the resource pool (e.g., power parameters such as transmit power control (TPC), MCS, etc.). UE 115-a can utilize the resource pool to transmit transmissions to UEs 115-b and 115-c, and / or reserve resources in the resource pool for transmissions to another UE 115 (e.g., groupcast transmissions to UEs 115-b and 115-c, unicast transmissions to UE 115-b, and other sidelink communications). The second message can also include a resource assignment expiration timer associated with the resource pool (e.g., a time period in which the resource pool is configured for use with sidelink communications 205, such that when the time period elapses, UE 115 can refrain from utilizing the resource pool, or use a resource pool indicated by the updated sidelink grant).
[0109] The resource pool can include various channels, such as a sidelink control channel (e.g., a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH)), a feedback channel, a sidelink data channel (e.g., a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH)), or a combination and / or other examples of communication channels. In some examples, the sidelink control channel and the sidelink data channel can correspond to the same resource pool (e.g., one resource pool includes both channels). In some other examples, the sidelink control channel and the sidelink data channel can correspond to different resource pools (e.g., two resource pools can be configured for inclusion of each channel). The feedback channel can be scheduled through communications from other UEs 115 via the sidelink control channel or through communications with base station 105-a. For example, UE 115-a can be assigned resources for the feedback channel, or the feedback channel can be configured to have a feedback resource pool (e.g., included in the resource pool or a different resource pool from other channels). In some examples, the feedback channel can be used for feedback communications (e.g., HARQ and / or ARQ transmissions), channel state indicator (CSI) reports, and other examples of feedback (e.g., uplink feedback transmissions to base station 105-a, uplink feedback encoded according to a UCI encoding method).
[0110] In some examples, the sidelink resources can include resources assigned to UE 115-a for communicating with a group of UEs 115 (e.g., groupcast transmissions, unicast transmissions, and other sidelink communications). The second message (e.g., sidelink control information) can indicate the assigned resources for sidelink control transmissions, sidelink data transmissions, and other examples of sidelink communications. Base station 105-a can use the indication of the assigned resources to schedule UEs 115 (e.g., via one-shot scheduling, semi-persistent scheduling (SPS), and the like). For example, the sidelink control information can include an indication of time and frequency associated with the resources, spatial information associated with the resources (e.g., spatial multiplexing), ARQ and / or HARQ parameters (e.g., HARQ redundancy version (RV)), MCS, new data indicator (NDI), downlink assignment indicator (DAI), and other examples of information associated with sidelink transmissions of the sidelink grant.
[0111] The sidelink resources can also include a reception resource pool for sidelink transmissions (e.g., including assigned resources for sidelink transmissions and / or a resource pool for sidelink transmissions). UE 115-a can utilize the resource pool to monitor for and receive transmissions from UEs 115-b and 115-c. Base station 105-a can include resources associated with the reception resource pool (e.g., a time and frequency indication of the resources), an assignment expiration timer associated with the reception resource pool (e.g., a time period for UE 115 to monitor the reception resource pool for any transmissions from other UEs 115), and the like. In some examples, the reception resource pool can be the same as the resource pool used for transmissions between UEs 115. For example, base station 105-a can implicitly configure UEs 115 with a resource pool for both transmissions and receptions (e.g., for groupcast transmissions in a group of UEs 115). Additionally, or alternatively, the reception resource pool can be different from the resource pool used for transmissions. For example, base station 105-a can explicitly assign resources for sidelink transmissions, and UEs 115 can monitor a reception resource pool using an ID and / or RNTI (e.g., included in the first message or the second message), for example, scrambling and / or descrambling unicast communications with another UE 115 using the ID and / or RNTI.
[0112] In some examples, base station 105-a can jointly configure UE 115-a using an integrated grant message. The integrated grant message can include grants for both an access link (e.g., a downlink grant or an uplink grant) and a sidelink (e.g., a sidelink grant). For example, the integrated grant message can include a grant DCI (e.g., an integrated grant DCI format) with two fields for a Uu interface and a PC5 interface. Base station 105-a can transmit the integrated grant message to UE 115-a to jointly schedule access resources (e.g., for access network communications 210) and sidelink resources (e.g., for sidelink communications 205).
[0113] The integrated grant message can include a bandwidth part (BWP) for the access link and the sidelink. For example, the BWP for the sidelink can be the same as the BWP for the access link, or the BWP for the sidelink can be different than the BWP for the access link. The integrated grant message can also include control information corresponding to the access link grant and the sidelink grant. For example, the integrated grant message can include control information for the access link (e.g., DCI format 1 for a downlink grant or DCI format 0 for an uplink grant), such as time and frequency associated with the access resources, spatial information (e.g., spatial multiplexing) associated with the access resources, HARQ parameters (e.g., HARQ RV), MCS, new data indicator (NDI), downlink assignment indicator (DAI), and the like. The integrated grant message can also include a joint DCI indicator (e.g., a 1-bit indicator indicating that the DCI includes both an access link grant and a sidelink grant). The integrated grant message can also include control information for the sidelink, such as sidelink resources, sidelink communication parameters (e.g., TPC, MCS, NDI for an assigned resource configuration for UE 115-a), and the like. For example, as described herein, the control information can indicate a sidelink resource pool for sidelink transmission and / or reception or an assigned transmission resource for UE 115-a.
[0114] In some cases, the joint scheduling (e.g., resource assignment) described herein can be associated with an RNTI. The RNTI can be used by the base station 105-a and / or the UE 115 to scramble / descramble a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) code of a control message (e.g., a DCI message (such as an integrated grant message)), for example, to distinguish a joint scheduling grant from an access scheduling grant or a separately scheduled sidelink scheduling grant. In some cases, the access network (e.g., Uu) scheduling or the sidelink network (e.g., PC5) scheduling can be dynamic scheduling, SPS, or one-shot scheduling.
[0115] Figure 3An example of a process flow 300 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling according to aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. In some examples, process flow 300 can implement aspects of wireless communication system 100 or 200. Process flow 300 can include UE 115-d and UE 115-e, which can be examples of UEs 115 (e.g., UEs 115-a, 115-b, and 115-c) as described with reference to Figure 1 and Figure 2 Process flow 300 can include base station 105-b, which can be an example of a base station 105 (e.g., base station 105-a) as described with reference to Figure 1 and Figure 2
[0116] In the following description of process flow 300, the operations between base station 105-b and UEs 115 can be transmitted in a different order than the order shown, or the operations performed by base station 105-b and UEs 115 can be performed in different orders or at different times. Certain operations can also be left out of process flow 300, or other operations can be added to process flow 300. It is understood that while base station 105-b, UE 115-d, and UE 115-e are shown as performing several of the operations of process flow 300, any wireless device can perform the operations shown.
[0117] At 305, base station 105-b can identify control information. For example, base station 105-b can identify network control information for access network communications with UE 115-d and sidelink control information for sidelink communications between UE 115-d and UE 115-e. The control information can be an example of control information described with reference to Figure 2 such as resource assignments / configurations (e.g., sidelink resource pools or assigned resources for sidelink transmissions, resources for downlink and / or uplink transmissions from UE 115-d to base station 105-b, etc.).
[0118] At 310-a, base station 105-b can transmit a first message to UE 115-d. For example, base station 105-b can transmit a message as described herein with reference to Figure 2 The described control message (e.g., including DCI). In some examples, the first message can include an integrated grant (e.g., having an access grant (such as an uplink grant or a downlink grant) in addition to a sidelink grant) as described herein. In some other examples, the first message can include an access grant and an indication of a sidelink grant. For example, the first message can include an indication that a sidelink grant can be transmitted to UE 115-d in a second message (e.g., an RRC message piggybacked on a data message scheduled by the DCI message). In such examples, base station 105-b can transmit the second message at 310-b.
[0119] At 315, UE 115-d can determine control information based on the received message (e.g., the first message at 310-a and / or the second message at 310-b). For example, UE 115-d can be configured for access network communications based on network control information (e.g., UE 115-d can determine resources and / or communication parameters to use for downlink or uplink communications with base station 105-b as described with reference to Figure 2 Additionally, UE 115-d can be configured for sidelink communications based on sidelink control information (e.g., UE 115-d can determine resources and / or communication parameters to use for sidelink communications with UE 115-e as described with reference to Figure 2
[0120] At 320, UE 115-d can perform sidelink communications with UE 115-e based on the determined control information. For example, based on the received sidelink control information, UE 115-d can monitor a resource pool for transmissions from UE 115-e, use the resource pool and / or assigned resources for transmissions to UE 115-e, and other examples as described with reference to Figure 2 Additionally or alternatively, at 325, UE 115-d can perform access network communications based on the determined control information. For example, UE 115-d can communicate with base station 105-b utilizing resources (e.g., indicated by an uplink or downlink grant) as described herein with reference to Figure 1 and Figure 2
[0121] Figure 4 FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of a device 405 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The device 405 can be an example of aspects of a UE 115 as described herein. The device 405 can include a receiver 410, a communications manager 415, and a transmitter 420. The device 405 can also include a processor. Each of these components can be in communication with one another (e.g., via one or more buses).
[0122] The receiver 410 can receive information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to joint scheduling for access network and sidelink, etc.). Information can be passed on to other components of the device 405. The receiver 410 can be an example of aspects of the transceiver 720 described with reference to FIG. 7. The receiver 410 can utilize a single antenna or a set of antennas. Figure 7
[0123] The communications manager 415 can receive, from a base station, at least one control message jointly scheduling a first UE for an access network communication between the first UE and the base station and for a sidelink communication between the first UE and at least a second UE, determine network control information associated with the access network communication based on the at least one control message, determine sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communication based on the at least one control message, and communicate with the base station and the second UE in accordance with the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively. The communications manager 415 can be an example of aspects of the communications manager 710 described herein.
[0124] The communications manager 415, or its sub-components, can be implemented in hardware, code (for example, software or firmware) executed by a processor, or any combination thereof. If implemented in code executed by a processor, the functions of the communications manager 415, or its sub-components can be executed by a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field- programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described in the present disclosure.
[0125] The communications manager 415, or its sub-components, can be physically located in various places in the apparatus, including but not limited to with the processor, memory, or any combination thereof. In some examples, according to various aspects of the present disclosure, the communications manager 415, or its sub-components, can be a separate and distinct component in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. In some examples, according to various aspects of the present disclosure, the communications manager 415, or its sub-components, can be combined with one or more other hardware components, including but not limited to an input / output (I / O) component, a transceiver, a network server, another computing device, one or more other components described in the present disclosure, or a combination thereof.
[0126] Actions performed by the communication manager 415 as described herein can be implemented to realize one or more potential advantages. One implementation can enable a wireless device, such as a UE 115, to be jointly configured with access network communications and sidelink communications. For example, as described herein, a UE 115 can be jointly scheduled with access resources and sidelink resources. Such an implementation can enable a wireless device to utilize reduced processing complexity and / or power consumption, among other advantages, due to less signaling overhead for the joint configuration procedure as compared to separate configuration procedures for access network communications and sidelink communications.
[0127] Based on implementations of techniques as described herein, a processor of a UE 115 (e.g., a processor controlling the receiver 410, the communication manager 415, and the transmitter 420, among other components) can utilize a reduced latency scheme (e.g., communicating some traffic on a sidelink and some traffic on an access link based on a QoS threshold), which can result in more reliable communications. Thus, the UE 115 can achieve increased reliability and efficiency of communications at the processor of the UE 115.
[0128] The transmitter 420 can transmit signals generated by other components of the device 405. In some examples, the transmitter 420 can be collocated with a receiver 410 in a transceiver module. For example, the transmitter 420 can be an example of aspects of the transmitter 720 described with reference to FIG. 7. The transmitter 420 can utilize a single antenna or a set of antennas. Figure 7
[0129] Figure 5 A block diagram 500 of a device 505 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The device 505 can be an example of aspects of a device 405 or a UE 115 as described herein. The device 505 can include a receiver 510, a communication manager 515, and a transmitter 535. The device 505 can also include a processor. Each of these components can be in communication with one another (e.g., via one or more buses).
[0130] The receiver 510 can receive information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to access network and sidelink joint scheduling, etc.). Information can be passed on to other components of the device 505. The receiver 510 can be an example of aspects of the transceiver 720 described with reference to FIG. 7. The receiver 510 can utilize a single antenna or a set of antennas. Figure 7
[0131] The communications manager 515 can be an example of aspects of the communications manager 415 as described herein. The communications manager 515 can include a message component 520, a control information component 525, and a communication component 530. The communications manager 515 can be an example of aspects of the communications manager 710 described herein.
[0132] The message component 520 can receive, from a base station, at least one control message jointly scheduling a first UE for an access network communication between the first UE and the base station and for a sidelink communication between the first UE and at least a second UE.
[0133] The control information component 525 can determine network control information associated with the access network communication based on the at least one control message and determine sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communication based on the at least one control message.
[0134] The communication component 530 can communicate with the base station and the second UE in accordance with the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively.
[0135] The transmitter 535 can transmit signals generated by other components of the device 505. In some examples, the transmitter 535 can be co-located with a receiver 510 in a transceiver module. For example, the transmitter 535 can be an example of aspects of the transmitter 720 described with reference to FIG. 7. The transmitter 535 can utilize a single antenna or a set of antennas. Figure 7
[0136] Figure 6 A block diagram 600 of a communications manager 605 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The communications manager 605 can be an example of aspects of a communications manager 415, a communications manager 515, or a communications manager 710 described herein. The communications manager 605 can include a message component 610, a control information component 615, a communication component 620, a resource indication component 625, a sidelink resource component 630, an RNTI identifier 635, and a descrambling component 640. Each of these modules can communicate, directly or indirectly, with one another (e.g., via one or more buses).
[0137] The message component 610 can receive, from a base station, at least one control message jointly scheduling a first UE for access network communications between the first UE and the base station and for sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE. In some examples, the message component 610 can receive, from the base station, a first control message including network control information and an indication that sidelink control information is to be received via a second message. In some examples, the message component 610 can receive, from the base station, a second message including the sidelink control information. In some examples, the message component 610 can receive an indication of one or more resources associated with the sidelink communications, the one or more resources including a sidelink control channel, a sidelink shared channel, a feedback channel, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the message component 610 can receive, from the base station, a first control message including network control information and sidelink control information. In some cases, the first control message includes DCI associated with a downlink grant for the first UE, and the second message includes an RRC message associated with a sidelink grant for the first UE piggybacked on a data message scheduled by the DCI. In some cases, the feedback channel is associated with uplink feedback including HARQ communications with the base station, channel state indicator, CSI, report transmissions to the base station, or a combination thereof, where the uplink feedback is encoded based on uplink control information received from the base station. In some cases, a first resource of the one or more resources includes resources for both the sidelink control channel and the sidelink shared channel. In some cases, a first resource of the one or more resources includes resources for the sidelink control channel, and a second resource of the one or more resources includes resources for the sidelink shared channel. In some cases, the first control message includes DCI associated with an integrated grant for the first UE, the integrated grant including one or more fields corresponding to the sidelink grant and a downlink grant or an uplink grant. In some cases, the first control message includes an indication that the integrated grant is included in the DCI. In some cases, the first control message includes an indication of one or more BWPs for access network communications, sidelink communications, or both.
[0138] The control information component 615 can determine network control information associated with access network communications based on the at least one control message. In some examples, the control information component 615 can determine sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications based on the at least one control message. In some examples, the control information component 615 can receive the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages. In some examples, the control information component 615 can receive the sidelink control information and the network control information in a same control message. In some cases, the sidelink control information includes one or more sidelink parameters for sidelink communications between the first UE and the second UE, the one or more sidelink parameters including a transmit power parameter, a MCS, an NDI, a HARQ parameter, a DAI, a resource assignment expiration timer, or a combination thereof. In some cases, the sidelink control information includes a group identifier for a group of UEs including the first UE and the second UE, a sidelink RNTI for groupcast communications within the group of UEs, or a combination thereof.
[0139] The communication component 620 can communicate with the base station and the second UE in accordance with the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively.
[0140] The resource indication component 625 can receive an indication of resources assigned to the feedback channel, a resource pool configured for the feedback channel, or a combination thereof.
[0141] The sidelink resource component 630 can determine one or more sidelink resources for the sidelink communications based on the received sidelink control information, the one or more sidelink resources including transmission resources, reception resources, or both. In some cases, the one or more sidelink resources include a resource pool for the sidelink communications. In some cases, the one or more sidelink resources are assigned to the first UE for the sidelink communications.
[0142] The RNTI identifier 635 can identify a RNTI corresponding to a first control message of the at least one control message, where the first control message includes DCI and the RNTI is associated with joint scheduling of the access network communications and the sidelink communications.
[0143] The descrambling component 640 can descramble a CRC code of the first control message based on the identified RNTI.
[0144] Figure 7A diagram illustrating a system 700 including a device 705 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The device 705 can be an example of or include the components of device 405, device 505, or a UE 115 as described herein. The device 705 can include components for bi-directional voice and data communications including components for transmitting and receiving communications, including a communications manager 710, an I / O controller 715, a transceiver 720, an antenna 725, memory 730, and a processor 740. These components can be in electronic communication via one or more buses (e.g., bus 745).
[0145] The communications manager 710 can receive, from a base station, at least one control message jointly scheduling a first UE for an access network communication between the first UE and the base station and for a sidelink communication between the first UE and at least a second UE, determine network control information associated with the access network communication based on the at least one control message, determine sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communication based on the at least one control message, and communicate with the base station and the second UE in accordance with the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively.
[0146] The I / O controller 715 can manage input and output signals for the device 705. The I / O controller 715 can also manage peripherals not integrated into the device 705. In some cases, the I / O controller 715 can represent a physical connection or port to an external peripheral. In some cases, the I / O controller 715 can utilize an operating system such as or another known operating system. In other cases, the I / O controller 715 can represent or interact with a modem, a keyboard, a mouse, a touchscreen, or similar devices. In some cases, the I / O controller 715 can be implemented as part of a processor. In some cases, a user can interact with the device 705 via the I / O controller 715 or via hardware components controlled by the I / O controller 715.
[0147] The transceiver 720 can communicate bi-directionally, via one or more antennas, wired, or wireless links as described above. For example, the transceiver 720 can represent a wireless transceiver and can communicate bi-directionally with another wireless transceiver. The transceiver 720 can also include a modem to modulate the packets and to provide the modulated packets to the antennas for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the antennas.
[0148] In some cases, the wireless device can include a single antenna 725. However, in some cases the device can have more than one antenna 725, which can be capable of concurrently transmitting or receiving multiple wireless transmissions.
[0149] Memory 730 can include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). The memory 730 can store computer-readable, computer-executable code 735 including instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to perform various functions described herein. In some cases, the memory 730 can contain, among other things, a basic input / output system (BIOS), which can
[0150] The processor 740 can include an intelligent hardware device, (e.g., a general- purpose processor, a DSP, a CPU, a microcontroller, an ASIC, an FPGA, a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof). In some cases, the processor 740 can be configured to operate a memory array using a memory controller. In other cases, a memory controller can be integrated into the processor 740. The processor 740 can be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory (e.g., the memory 730) to cause the device 705 to perform various functions (e.g., functions or tasks for supporting access network and sidelink joint scheduling).
[0151] The code 735 can include instructions for implementing aspects of the present disclosure including instructions for support wireless communications. The code 735 can be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or other type of memory. In some cases, the code 735 can not be directly executable by the processor 740 but can cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein.
[0152] Figure 8 A block diagram 800 of a device 805 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The device 805 can be an example of aspects of a base station 105 as described herein. The device 805 can include a receiver 810, a communications manager 815, and a transmitter 820. The device 805 can also include a processor. Each of these components can be in communication with one another (e.g., via one or more buses).
[0153] The receiver 810 can receive information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to access network and sidelink joint scheduling, etc.). Information can be passed on to other components of the device 805. The receiver 810 can be an example of aspects of the transceiver 1120 described with reference to FIG. 11. The receiver 810 can utilize a single antenna or a set of antennas. Figure 11 The transmitter 820 can transmit signals generated by other components of the device 805. For example, the transmitter 820 can transmit information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to access network and sidelink joint scheduling, etc.). The
[0154] The communications manager 815 can identify network control information associated with access network communications between a base station and a first UE, identify sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE, and transmit at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for the access network communications and the sidelink communications, where the at least one control message includes the network control information and the sidelink control information. The communications manager 815 can be an example of aspects of the communications manager 1110 described herein.
[0155] The communications manager 815, or its sub-components, can be implemented in hardware, code (e.g., software or firmware) executed by a processor, or any combination thereof. If implemented in code executed by a processor, the functions of the communications manager 815, or its sub-components can be executed by a general-purpose processor, a DSP, an ASIC, an FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described in the present disclosure.
[0156] The communications manager 815, or its sub-components, can be physically located in various places in the apparatus including but not limited to centralized computing devices, decentralized computing devices, a server bank, a client bank, a mobile device, a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, etc. In some examples, the communications manager 815, or its sub-components, can be a separate and distinct component in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. In some examples, the communications manager 815, or its sub-components, can be combined with one or more other hardware components, including but not limited to an input / output (I / O) component, a transceiver, a network server, another computing device, one or more other components described in the present disclosure, or a combination thereof in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.
[0157] The transmitter 820 can transmit signals generated by other components of the device 805. In some examples, the transmitter 820 can be collocated with a receiver 810 in a transceiver module. For example, the transmitter 820 can be an example of aspects of the transceiver 1120 described with reference to FIG. 11. The transmitter 820 can utilize a single antenna or a set of antennas. Figure 11
[0158] Figure 9 FIG. 9 shows a block diagram of a device 905 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The device 905 can be an example of aspects of a device 805 or a base station 105 as described herein. The device 905 can include a receiver 910, a communications manager 915, and a transmitter 935. The device 905 can also include a processor. Each of these components can be in communication with one another (e.g., via one or more buses).
[0159] The receiver 910 can receive information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and information related to access network and sidelink joint scheduling, etc.). Information can be passed on to other components of the device 905. The receiver 910 can utilize a single antenna or a set of antennas. Figure 11 The transceiver 1120 as described with reference to FIG. 11 can be an example of a receiver 910 and a transmitter 935. The transceiver 1120 can be capable of
[0160] The communications manager 915 can be an example of aspects of the communications manager 815 as described herein. The communications manager 915 can include a network control component 920, a sidelink control component 925, and a joint scheduling component 930. The communications manager 915 can be an example of aspects of the communications manager 1110 described herein.
[0161] The network control component 920 can identify network control information associated with access network communications between a base station and a first UE.
[0162] The sidelink control component 925 can identify sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE.
[0163] The joint scheduling component 930 can transmit at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for the access network communications and the sidelink communications, where the at least one control message includes the network control information and the sidelink control information.
[0164] The transmitter 935 can transmit signals generated by other components of the device 905. In some examples, the transmitter 935 can be collocated with a receiver 910 in a transceiver module. For example, the transmitter 935 can be an example of aspects of the transceiver 1120 described with reference to FIG. 11. The transmitter 935 can utilize a single antenna or a set of antennas. Figure 11 The transmitter 935 can transmit signals generated by other components of the device 905. In some examples, the transmitter 935 can be collocated with a receiver 910 in a transceiver module. For example, the transmitter 935 can be an example of aspects of the transceiver 1120 described with reference to FIG. 11. The transmitter 935 can utilize a single antenna or a set of antennas.
[0165] Figure 10 A block diagram 1000 illustrating a communications manager 1005 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The communications manager 1005 can be an example of aspects of a communications manager 815, a communications manager 915, or a communications manager 1110 described herein. The communications manager 1005 can include a network control component 1010, a sidelink control component 1015, a joint scheduling component 1020, a resource component 1025, a resource scheduling component 1030, an assignment component 1035, an RNTI component 1040, and a scrambling component 1045. Each of these modules can communicate, directly or indirectly, with one another (e.g., via one or more buses).
[0166] The network control component 1010 can identify network control information associated with access network communications between a base station and a first UE.
[0167] The sidelink control component 1015 can identify sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE. In some cases, the sidelink control information includes one or more sidelink parameters for sidelink communications between the first UE and the second UE, including a transmit power parameter, a MCS, an NDI, a HARQ parameter, a DAI, a resource assignment expiration timer, or a combination thereof. In some cases, the sidelink control information includes a group identifier for a group of UEs including the first UE and the second UE, a sidelink RNTI for groupcast communications within the group of UEs, or a combination thereof.
[0168] The joint scheduling component 1020 can transmit at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for the access network communications and the sidelink communications, where the at least one control message includes network control information and sidelink control information. In some examples, the joint scheduling component 1020 can transmit the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages. In some examples, the joint scheduling component 1020 can transmit the sidelink control information and the network control information in a same control message. In some examples, the joint scheduling component 1020 can transmit, to the first UE, a first control message that includes the network control information and an indication that sidelink control information is to be transmitted via a second message. In some examples, the joint scheduling component 1020 can transmit, to the first UE, the second message that includes the sidelink control information. In some examples, the joint scheduling component 1020 can transmit an indication of one or more resources associated with the sidelink communications, the one or more resources including a sidelink control channel, a sidelink shared channel, a feedback channel, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the joint scheduling component 1020 can transmit, to the first UE, a first control message that includes the network control information and the sidelink control information. In some examples, the joint scheduling component 1020 can perform dynamic scheduling, SPS, one-time scheduling, or a combination thereof, for the access network communications, the sidelink communications, or both. In some cases, the first control message includes DCI associated with a downlink grant for the first UE, and the second message includes an RRC message associated with a sidelink grant for the first UE, the second UE, or both, the RRC message piggybacked on a data message scheduled by the DCI. In some cases, the feedback channel is associated with uplink feedback including HARQ communications with the first UE, CSI report transmissions from the first UE, or a combination thereof, where the uplink feedback is decoded based on uplink control information. In some cases, a first resource of the one or more resources includes resources for both the sidelink control channel and the sidelink shared channel. In some cases, a first resource of the one or more resources includes resources for the sidelink control channel, and a second resource of the one or more resources includes resources for the sidelink shared channel. In some cases, the sidelink control channel indicates resources assigned to the feedback channel, the feedback channel is configured with a feedback resource pool, or a combination thereof. In some cases, the first control message includes DCI associated with an integrated grant for the first UE, the integrated grant including one or more fields corresponding to a sidelink grant and a downlink grant or an uplink grant. In some cases, the first control message includes an indication that the integrated grant is included in the DCI. In some cases, the first control message includes an indication of one or more BWPs for the access network communications, the sidelink communications, or both.
[0169] The resource component 1025 can determine one or more sidelink resources for the first UE, the second UE, or both, the one or more sidelink resources including transmission resources, reception resources, or both, where the sidelink control information includes an indication of the one or more sidelink resources. In some cases, the one or more sidelink resources include a resource pool for sidelink communications.
[0170] The resource scheduling component 1030 can schedule the one or more sidelink resources for the first UE, where the at least one control message indicates the one or more sidelink resources.
[0171] The assignment component 1035 can assign a resource or resource pool for sidelink communications to each UE in a group of UEs, the group of UEs including the first UE and the second UE.
[0172] The RNTI component 1040 can identify a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI) corresponding to a first control message of the at least one control message, where the first control message includes DCI and the RNTI is associated with joint scheduling of access network communications and sidelink communications.
[0173] The scrambling component 1045 can scramble a CRC code of the first control message based on the identified RNTI.
[0174] Figure 11 A diagram illustrating a system 1100 including a device 1105 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The device 1105 can be an example of or include the components of device 805, device 905, or a base station 105 as described herein. The device 1105 can include components for bi-directional voice and data communications including components for transmitting and receiving communications, including a communications manager 1110, a network communications manager 1115, a transceiver 1120, an antenna 1125, memory 1130, a processor 1140, and an inter-station communications manager 1145. These components can be in electronic communication via one or more buses (e.g., bus 1150).
[0175] The communications manager 1110 can identify network control information associated with access network communications between a base station and a first UE, identify sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE, and transmit at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for the access network communications and the sidelink communications, where the at least one control message includes the network control information and the sidelink control information.
[0176] The network communications manager 1115 can manage communications with the core network (e.g., via one or more wired backhaul links). For example, the network communications manager 1115 can manage the transfer of data communications for client devices, such as one or more UEs 115.
[0177] The transceiver 1120 can communicate bi-directionally, via one or more antennas, wired, or wireless links as described above. For example, the transceiver 1120 can represent a wireless transceiver and can communicate bi-directionally with another wireless transceiver. The transceiver 1120 can also include a modem to modulate the packets and provide the modulated packets to the antennas for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the antennas.
[0178] In some cases, the wireless device can include a single antenna 1125. However, in some cases the device can have more than one antenna 1125, which can be capable of concurrently transmitting or receiving multiple wireless transmissions.
[0179] The memory 1130 can include RAM, ROM, or a combination thereof. The memory 1130 can store computer-readable code 1135 including instructions that, when executed by a processor (for example, the processor 1140), cause the device to perform various functions described herein. In some cases, the memory 1130 can include, for example, a BIOS, which can control basic hardware or software operation such as the interaction with peripheral components or devices.
[0180] The processor 1140 can include an intelligent hardware device, (for example, a general- purpose processor, a DSP, a CPU, a microcontroller, an ASIC, an FPGA, a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof). In some cases, the processor 1140 can be configured to operate a memory array. In some cases, a memory controller can be included in the processor 1140. The processor 1140 can be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory (for example, the memory 1130) to cause the device 1105 to perform various functions (for example, functions or tasks supporting access network and sidelink joint scheduling).
[0181] The inter-station communications manager 1145 can manage communications with other base station 105, and can include a controller or scheduler for controlling
[0182] The code 1135 can include instructions to implement aspects of the present disclosure, including instructions to support wireless communications. The code 1135 can be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or other type of memory. In some examples, the code 1135 can not be directly executable by the processor 1140 but can cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein.
[0183] Figure 12 A method 1200 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling is described. The operations of method 1200 can be implemented by a UE 115 or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of method 1200 can be performed by a communications manager as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 The code 1135 can include instructions to implement aspects of the present disclosure, including instructions to support wireless communications. The code 1135 can be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or other type of memory. In some examples, the code 1135 can not be directly executable by the processor 1140 but can cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein.
[0184] At 1205, the UE can receive, from a base station, at least one control message jointly scheduling a first UE for access network communications between the first UE and the base station and for sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE. The operations of 1205 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1205 can be performed by a message component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 The code 1135 can include instructions to implement aspects of the present disclosure, including instructions to support wireless communications. The code 1135 can be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or other type of memory. In some examples, the code 1135 can not be directly executable by the processor 1140 but can cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein.
[0185] At 1210, the UE can determine network control information associated with the access network communications based on the at least one control message. The operations of 1210 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1210 can be performed by a control information component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 The code 1135 can include instructions to implement aspects of the present disclosure, including instructions to support wireless communications. The code 1135 can be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or other type of memory. In some examples, the code 1135 can not be directly executable by the processor 1140 but can cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein.
[0186] At 1215, the UE can determine sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communications based on the at least one control message. The operations of 1215 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1215 can be performed by a control information component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 The code 1135 can include instructions to implement aspects of the present disclosure, including instructions to support wireless communications. The code 1135 can be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or other type of memory. In some examples, the code 1135 can not be directly executable by the processor 1140 but can cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein.
[0187] At 1220, the UE can communicate with the base station and the second UE according to the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively. The operations of 1220 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1220 can be performed by a communications component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 The code 1135 can include instructions to implement aspects of the present disclosure, including instructions to support wireless communications. The code 1135 can be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or other type of memory. In some examples, the code 1135 can not be directly executable by the processor 1140 but can cause a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform functions described herein.
[0188] Figure 13A flow diagram illustrating a method 1300 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of method 1300 can be implemented by a UE 115 or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of method 1300 can be performed by a communications manager as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 The described operations can be implemented as software modules being executed by the UE 115 or hardware modules, for example, as circuitry configured to carry out the described functions.
[0189] At 1305, the UE can receive, from a base station, at least one control message jointly scheduling a first UE for access network communications between the first UE and the base station and for sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE. The operations of 1305 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1305 can be performed by a message component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 FIG. 13.
[0190] At 1310, the UE can determine network control information associated with the access network communications based on the at least one control message. The operations of 1310 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1310 can be performed by a control information component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 FIG. 13.
[0191] At 1315, the UE can determine sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communications based on the at least one control message. The operations of 1315 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1315 can be performed by a control information component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 FIG. 13.
[0192] At 1320, the UE can receive the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages (e.g., the at least one control message can include separate but linked messages). The operations of 1320 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1320 can be performed by a control information component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 FIG. 13.
[0193] At 1325, the UE can communicate with the base station and the second UE according to the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively. The operations of 1325 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1325 can be performed by a communications component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 FIG. 13.
[0194] Figure 14A flow diagram illustrating a method 1400 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of method 1400 can be implemented by a UE 115 or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of method 1400 can be performed by a communications manager as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 The described operations can be implemented as software modules being executed by the UE 115 or hardware modules, for example, as circuitry configured to carry out the described functions.
[0195] At 1405, the UE can receive, from a base station, at least one control message jointly scheduling a first UE for access network communications between the first UE and the base station and for sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE. The operations of 1405 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1405 can be performed by a message component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 FIG. 13.
[0196] At 1410, the UE can determine network control information associated with the access network communications based on the at least one control message. The operations of 1410 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1410 can be performed by a control information component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 FIG. 13.
[0197] At 1415, the UE can determine sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communications based on the at least one control message. The operations of 1415 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1415 can be performed by a control information component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 FIG. 13.
[0198] At 1420, the UE can receive the sidelink control information and the network control information in a same control message (e.g., the at least one control message can include the same control message). The operations of 1420 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1420 can be performed by a control information component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 FIG. 13.
[0199] At 1425, the UE can communicate with the base station and the second UE according to the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively. The operations of 1425 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1425 can be performed by a communications component as described with reference to Figures 4 to 7 FIG. 13.
[0200] Figure 15A flow diagram illustrating a method 1500 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of method 1500 can be implemented by a base station 105 or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of method 1500 can be performed by a communications manager as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 The described communications manager can execute a set of instructions to control the functional elements of the base station to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the base station can perform aspects of the functions described below using special-purpose hardware.
[0201] At 1505, the base station can identify network control information associated with an access network communication between the base station and a first UE. The operations of 1505 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1505 can be performed by a network control component as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 FIG. 13.
[0202] At 1510, the base station can identify sidelink control information associated with a sidelink communication between the first UE and at least a second UE. The operations of 1510 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1510 can be performed by a sidelink control component as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 FIG. 13.
[0203] At 1515, the base station can transmit at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for the access network communication and the sidelink communication, where the at least one control message includes the network control information and the sidelink control information. The operations of 1515 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1515 can be performed by a joint scheduling component as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 FIG. 13.
[0204] Figure 16 A flow diagram illustrating a method 1600 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of method 1600 can be implemented by a base station 105 or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of method 1600 can be performed by a communications manager as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 The described communications manager can execute a set of instructions to control the functional elements of the base station to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the base station can perform aspects of the functions described below using special-purpose hardware.
[0205] At 1605, the base station can identify network control information associated with an access network communication between the base station and a first UE. The operations of 1605 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1605 can be performed by a network control component as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 FIG. 13.
[0206] At 1610, the base station can identify sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE. The operations of 1610 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1610 can be performed by a sidelink control component as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 FIG. 15.
[0207] At 1615, the base station can transmit at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for access network communications and sidelink communications, where the at least one control message includes network control information and sidelink control information. The operations of 1615 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1615 can be performed by a joint scheduling component as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 FIG. 15.
[0208] At 1620, the base station can transmit the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages. The operations of 1620 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1620 can be performed by a joint scheduling component as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 FIG. 15.
[0209] Figure 17 A method 1700 that supports access network and sidelink joint scheduling is shown and described in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The operations of method 1700 can be implemented by a base station 105 or its components as described herein. For example, the operations of method 1700 can be performed by a communications manager as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 FIG. 15. In some examples, a base station can execute a set of instructions to control the functional elements of the base station to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the base station can perform aspects of the functions described below using special-purpose hardware.
[0210] At 1705, the base station can identify network control information associated with access network communications between the base station and a first UE. The operations of 1705 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1705 can be performed by a network control component as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 FIG. 15.
[0211] At 1710, the base station can identify sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE. The operations of 1710 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1710 can be performed by a sidelink control component as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 FIG. 15.
[0212] At 1715, the base station can transmit at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for access network communications and sidelink communications, where the at least one control message includes network control information and sidelink control information. The operations at 1715 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1715 can be performed by a joint scheduling component as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 FIG. 19.
[0213] At 1720, the base station can transmit the sidelink control information and the network control information in the same control message. The operations of 1720 can be performed according to the methods described herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1720 can be performed by a joint scheduling component as described with reference to Figures 8 to 11 FIG. 19.
[0214] implementations, and that the operations and steps can be rearranged or otherwise modified and that other implementations are possible. Further, aspects from two or more of the methods can be combined.
[0215] Example 1: A method for wireless communication at a first UE, comprising: receiving, from a base station, at least one control message that jointly schedules the first UE for access network communications between the first UE and the base station and for sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE; determining network control information associated with the access network communications based on the at least one control message; determining sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communications based on the at least one control message; and communicating with the base station and the second UE according to the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively.
[0216] Example 2: The method of example 1, wherein determining the sidelink control information comprises: receiving the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages.
[0217] Example 3: The method of example 1, wherein determining the sidelink control information comprises: receiving the sidelink control information and the network control information in the same control message.
[0218] Example 4: The method of any one of examples 1-3, wherein receiving the at least one control message further comprises: receiving, from the base station, a first control message that includes the network control information and an indication that the sidelink control information is to be received via a second message; and receiving, from the base station, the second message that includes the sidelink control information.
[0219] Example 5: The method of any of Examples 1-4, wherein the first control message comprises DCI associated with a downlink grant for the first UE, and the second message comprises an RRC message associated with a sidelink grant for the first UE piggybacked on a data message scheduled by the DCI.
[0220] Example 6: The method of any of Examples 1-5, wherein receiving the second message from the base station comprises: receiving an indication of one or more resources associated with the sidelink communication, the one or more resources comprising a sidelink control channel, a sidelink shared channel, a feedback channel, or any combination thereof.
[0221] Example 7: The method of any of Examples 1-6, wherein the feedback channel is associated with uplink feedback comprising an ARQ communication with the base station, a CSI report transmission to the base station, or a combination thereof, wherein the uplink feedback is encoded based at least in part on uplink control information received from the base station.
[0222] Example 8: The method of any of Examples 1-7, wherein a first resource of the one or more resources comprises resources for both the sidelink control channel and the sidelink shared channel.
[0223] Example 9: The method of any of Examples 1-8, wherein a first resource of the one or more resources comprises resources for the sidelink control channel, and a second resource of the one or more resources comprises resources for the sidelink shared channel.
[0224] Example 10: The method of any of Examples 1-9, further comprising: receiving an indication of resources assigned to the feedback channel, a resource pool configured for the feedback channel, or a combination thereof.
[0225] Example 11: The method of any of Examples 1-10, wherein receiving the at least one control message further comprises: receiving a first control message from the base station, the first control message comprising network control information and sidelink control information.
[0226] Example 12: The method of any of Examples 1-11, wherein the first control message comprises DCI associated with an integrated grant for the first UE, the integrated grant comprising one or more fields corresponding to a sidelink grant and a downlink grant or an uplink grant.
[0227] Example 13: The method of any of Examples 1-12, wherein the first control message comprises an indication that the integrated grant is included in the DCI.
[0228] Example 14: A method as in any of Examples 1 to 13, wherein the first control message includes an indication for one or more BWPs for access network communication, sidelink communication, or both.
[0229] Example 15: The method of any of Examples 1 to 14 further includes: determining one or more sidelink resources for sidelink communication based at least in part on received sidelink control information, the one or more sidelink resources including transmission resources, reception resources, or both.
[0230] Example 16: A method as in any of Examples 1 to 15, wherein the one or more sidelink resources include a resource pool for sidelink communication.
[0231] Example 17: The method of any of Examples 1 to 16, wherein the one or more sidelink resources are assigned to a first UE for sidelink communication.
[0232] Example 18: The method of any of Examples 1 to 17, wherein the sidelink control information includes one or more sidelink parameters for sidelink communication between the first UE and the second UE, the one or more sidelink parameters including transmit power parameters, MCS, NDI, HARQ parameters, DAI, resource assignment expiration timer or a combination thereof.
[0233] Example 19: The method of any of Examples 1 to 18, wherein the sidelink control information includes a group identifier of a group of UEs (including a first UE and a second UE), a sidelink RNTI for multicast communication within the group of UEs, or a combination thereof.
[0234] Example 20: The method of any of Examples 1 to 19 further includes: identifying an RNTI corresponding to a first control message in the at least one control message, wherein the first control message includes a DCI and the RNTI is associated with joint scheduling of access network communications and sidelink communications; and descrambling the CRC code of the first control message based at least in part on the identified RNTI.
[0235] Example 21: An apparatus comprising: at least one means for performing a method as described in any of Examples 1 to 20.
[0236] Example 22: An apparatus for wireless communication includes: a processor; a memory coupled to the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to perform a method as described in any of Examples 1 to 20.
[0237] Example 23: A non-transient computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication, the code including instructions executable by a processor to perform methods such as any of Examples 1 to 20.
[0238] Example 24: A method for wireless communication at a base station, comprising: identifying network control information associated with access network communications between the base station and a first UE; identifying sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE; and transmitting at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for the access network communications and the sidelink communications, wherein the at least one control message includes the network control information and the sidelink control information.
[0239] Example 25: The method of example 24, wherein transmitting the at least one control message comprises: transmitting the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages.
[0240] Example 26: The method of example 24, wherein transmitting the at least one control message comprises: transmitting the sidelink control information and the network control information in the same control message.
[0241] Example 27: The method of any one of examples 24 to 26, wherein transmitting the at least one control message further comprises: transmitting a first control message to the first UE, the first control message including the network control information and an indication that the sidelink control information will be transmitted via a second message; and transmitting a second message to the first UE, the second message including the sidelink control information.
[0242] Example 28: The method of any one of examples 24 to 27, wherein the first control message includes DCI associated with a downlink grant for the first UE, and the second message includes an RRC message associated with a sidelink grant for the first UE piggybacked on a data message scheduled by the DCI.
[0243] Example 29: The method of any one of examples 24 to 28, wherein transmitting the second message comprises: transmitting an indication of one or more resources associated with the sidelink communications, the one or more resources including a sidelink control channel, a sidelink shared channel, a feedback channel, or any combination thereof.
[0244] Example 30: The method of any one of examples 24 to 29, wherein the feedback channel is associated with uplink feedback including ARQ communications with the first UE, CSI report transmissions from the first UE, or a combination thereof, wherein the uplink feedback is decoded based at least in part on uplink control information.
[0245] Example 31: The method of any one of examples 24 to 30, wherein a first resource of the one or more resources includes resources for both the sidelink control channel and the sidelink shared channel.
[0246] Example 32: The method of any of Examples 24 to 31, wherein a first resource of the one or more resources comprises a resource for a sidelink control channel and a second resource of the one or more resources comprises a resource for a sidelink shared channel; and / or wherein the sidelink control channel indication indicates a resource assigned to the feedback channel, the feedback channel is configured with a feedback resource pool, or a combination thereof.
[0247] Example 33: The method of any of Examples 24 to 32, wherein transmitting the at least one control message further comprises transmitting, to the first UE, a first control message comprising network control information and sidelink control information.
[0248] Example 34: The method of any of Examples 24 to 33, wherein the first control message comprises DCI associated with an integrated grant for the first UE, the integrated grant comprising one or more fields corresponding to a sidelink grant and a downlink grant or an uplink grant.
[0249] Example 35: The method of any of Examples 24 to 34, wherein the first control message comprises an indication that the integrated grant is included in a DCI.
[0250] Example 36: The method of any of Examples 24 to 35, wherein the first control message comprises an indication of one or more BWPs for access network communications, sidelink communications, or both.
[0251] Example 37: The method of any of Examples 24 to 36, further comprising determining one or more sidelink resources for the first UE, the second UE, or both, the one or more sidelink resources comprising transmission resources, reception resources, or both, wherein the sidelink control information comprises an indication of the one or more sidelink resources.
[0252] Example 38: The method of any of Examples 24 to 37, wherein the one or more sidelink resources comprise a resource pool for sidelink communications.
[0253] Example 39: The method of any of Examples 24 to 38, further comprising scheduling the one or more sidelink resources for the first UE, wherein the at least one control message indicates the one or more sidelink resources.
[0254] Example 40: The method of any of Examples 24 to 39, wherein the sidelink control information comprises one or more sidelink parameters for sidelink communications between the first UE and the second UE, the one or more sidelink parameters comprising a transmit power parameter, a MCS, an NDI, a HARQ parameter, a DAI, a resource assignment expiration timer, or a combination thereof.
[0255] Example 41: The method of any of examples 24 to 40, wherein the sidelink control information comprises a group identifier of a group of UEs including the first UE and the second UE, an RNTI for groupcast communications within the group of UEs, or a combination thereof.
[0256] Example 42: The method of any of examples 24 to 41, further comprising: assigning resources or a resource pool for sidelink communications to each UE in a group of UEs including the first UE and the second UE.
[0257] Example 43: The method of any of examples 24 to 42, further comprising: identifying an RNTI corresponding to a first control message of the at least one control message, wherein the first control message comprises DCI and the RNTI is associated with joint scheduling of access network communications and sidelink communications; and scrambling a CRC code of the first control message based at least in part on the identified RNTI.
[0258] Example 44: The method of any of examples 24 to 43, further comprising: performing dynamic scheduling, SPS, one-shot scheduling, or a combination thereof, for access network communications, sidelink communications, or both.
[0259] Example 45: An apparatus comprising at least one means for performing a method of any of examples 24 to 44.
[0260] Example 46: An apparatus for wireless communication comprising a processor; memory coupled with the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to perform a method of any of examples 24 to 44.
[0261] Example 47: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication, the code comprising instructions executable by a processor to perform a method of any of examples 24 to 44.
[0262] Although aspects of an LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR system can be described for purposes of example, and LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR terminology can be used in much of the description, aspects of the described techniques can be applied to networks other than LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR networks. For example, the described techniques can be applied to various other wireless communication systems such as Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDM, and others.
[0263] The information and signals described herein can be represented using any of a wide variety of different techniques and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referred to throughout this description can be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, light fields or light particles, or any combination thereof.
[0264] The various illustrative boxes and components described herein can be implemented or executed using a general-purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, CPU, FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in alternatives, the processor may be any processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices (e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors working in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration).
[0265] The functions described herein can be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions can be stored or transmitted as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Other examples and implementations fall within the scope of this disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, the functions described herein can be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hardwired, or any combination thereof. Features implementing the functions can also be physically located in various locations, including being distributed such that different parts of the function are implemented at different physical locations.
[0266] Computer-readable media includes both non-transitory computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A non-transitory storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer. By way of example, and not limitation, non-transitory computer-readable media can include RAM, ROM, electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, compact disk (CD) ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other non-transitory medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code means in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer, or a general-purpose or special-purpose processor. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in the definition of computer-readable medium. Disk and disc, as used herein, include CD, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Blu-ray disc where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above are also included within the scope of computer-readable media.
[0267] As used herein, including in the claims “or” as used in a list of items (for example, a list of items prefaced by a phrase such as “at least one of’ or “one or more of’) indicates an inclusive list such that, for example, a list of at least one of A, B, or C means A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C). Also, as used herein, the phrase “based on” shall not be construed as a reference to a closed set of conditions. For example, an example step that is described as “based on condition A” can be based on both a condition A and a condition B without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In other words, as used herein, the phrase “based on” shall be construed in the same manner as the phrase “based at least in part on.”
[0268] In the drawings, like reference numerals refer to items of like functionality. Furthermore, reference numerals are often repeated showing different instances of an item as occurs in a real device design. Differences between like items are often indicated by follow on reference numerals, followed by a dashed line and a second reference numeral identifying the like item. If only the first reference numeral is used in the specification, the description can apply to any one, or combination, of the like items having the same first reference numeral regardless of the second reference numeral, or subsequent reference numerals.
[0269] The description set forth herein, in connection with the appended drawings, describes example configurations and does not represent all the examples that can be implemented or that are within the scope of the claims. The term “example” used herein means “serving as an example, instance, or illustration,” and not “preferred” over other examples. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing an understanding of the described techniques. These techniques, however, can be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring the concepts of the described examples.
[0270] The description herein is presented to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the disclosure. Various modifications to the disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein can be applied to other variations without departing from the scope of the disclosure. Thus, the disclosure is not to be limited to the examples and designs described herein but is to be accorded the broadest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.
Claims
1. A method for wireless communication at a first user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving at least one control message from a network node, the at least one control message jointly scheduling the first UE for an access network communication between the first UE and the network node and for a sidelink communication between the first UE and at least a second UE; determining network control information associated with the access network communication based at least in part on the at least one control message; determining sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communication based at least in part on the at least one control message; and communicating with the network node and the second UE according to the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively and independently. determining the sidelink control information comprises:
2. The method of claim 1, wherein, receiving the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages. determining the sidelink control information comprises:
3. The method of claim 1, wherein, receiving the sidelink control information and the network control information in a same control message. receiving the at least one control message further comprises:
4. The method of claim 1, wherein, receiving a first control message from the network node, the first control message including the network control information and an indication that the sidelink control information is to be received via a second message; and receiving the second message from the network node, the second message including the sidelink control information. the first control message includes downlink control information (DCI) associated with a downlink grant for the first UE, and the second message includes a radio resource control (RRC) message associated with a sidelink grant for the first UE piggybacked on a data message scheduled by the DCI.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein, receiving the second message from the network node comprises:
6. The method of claim 4, wherein, receiving an indication of one or more resources associated with the sidelink communication, the one or more resources including a sidelink control channel, a sidelink shared channel, a feedback channel, or any combination thereof. the feedback channel is associated with uplink feedback including an automatic repeat request (ARQ) communication with the network node, a channel state indicator (CSI) report transmission to the network node, or a combination thereof, wherein the uplink feedback is encoded based at least in part on uplink control information received from the network node.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein, a first resource of the one or more resources includes resources for both the sidelink control channel and the sidelink shared channel.
8. The method of claim 6, wherein, a first resource of the one or more resources includes resources for the sidelink control channel, and a second resource of the one or more resources includes resources for the sidelink shared channel.
9. The method of claim 6, wherein, 10. The method of claim 6, further comprising: receiving an indication of resources assigned to the feedback channel, a resource pool configured for the feedback channel, or a combination thereof. receiving the at least one control message further comprises:
11. The method of claim 1, wherein, receiving a first control message from the network node, the first control message including the network control information and the sidelink control information. 12. The method of claim 11, wherein, The first control message includes downlink control information (DCI) associated with an integrated grant for the first UE, the integrated grant including one or more fields corresponding to a sidelink grant and a downlink grant or an uplink grant.
13. The method of claim 12, wherein, The first control message includes an indication that the integrated grant is included in the DCI.
14. The method of claim 12, wherein, The first control message includes an indication of one or more bandwidth parts (BWPs) for the access network communications, the sidelink communications, or both.
15. The method of claim 1, further comprising: determining one or more sidelink resources for the sidelink communications based at least in part on the received sidelink control information, the one or more sidelink resources including transmission resources, reception resources, or both.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein, The one or more sidelink resources include a resource pool for the sidelink communications.
17. The method of claim 15, wherein, The one or more sidelink resources are assigned to the first UE for the sidelink communications.
18. The method of claim 1, wherein, The sidelink control information includes one or more sidelink parameters for the sidelink communications between the first UE and the second UE, the one or more sidelink parameters including a transmit power parameter, a modulation coding scheme (MCS), a new data indicator (NDI), a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) parameter, a downlink assignment indicator (DAI), a resource assignment expiration timer, or a combination thereof.
19. The method of claim 1, wherein, The sidelink control information includes a group identifier of a group of UEs, a sidelink radio network temporary identifier (RNTI) for groupcast communications within the group of UEs, or a combination thereof, the group of UEs including the first UE and the second UE.
20. The method of claim 1, further comprising: identifying a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI) corresponding to a first control message of the at least one control message, wherein the first control message includes downlink control information (DCI) and the RNTI is associated with joint scheduling of access network communications and sidelink communications; and descrambling a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) code of the first control message based at least in part on the identified RNTI.
21. A method for wireless communication at a network node, comprising: identifying network control information associated with access network communications between the network node and a first user equipment (UE); identifying sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE, the sidelink communications being independent of the access network communications; and transmitting at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for the access network communications and the sidelink communications, wherein the at least one control message includes the network control information and the sidelink control information.
22. The method of claim 21, wherein, Transmitting the at least one control message includes: transmitting the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages.
23. The method of claim 21, wherein, Transmitting the at least one control message includes: transmitting the sidelink control information and the network control information in a same control message.
24. The method of claim 21, wherein, Transmitting the at least one control message further includes: transmitting a first control message to the first UE, the first control message including the network control information and an indication that the sidelink control information is to be transmitted via a second message; and transmitting the second message to the first UE, the second message including the sidelink control information.
25. The method of claim 21, wherein, transmitting the at least one control message further includes: transmitting a first control message to the first UE, the first control message including the network control information and the sidelink control information.
26. The method of claim 25, wherein, the first control message includes downlink control information (DCI) associated with an integrated grant for the first UE, the integrated grant including one or more fields corresponding to a sidelink grant and a downlink grant or an uplink grant.
27. The method of claim 21, further comprising: assigning resources or a pool of resources for the sidelink communication to each UE in a group of UEs, the group of UEs including the first UE and the second UE.
28. The method of claim 21, further comprising: performing dynamic scheduling, semi-persistent scheduling (SPS), one-shot scheduling, or a combination thereof, for the access network communication, the sidelink communication, or both.
29. An apparatus for wireless communication at a first user equipment (UE), comprising: a processor; memory coupled with the processor; and instructions stored in the memory, the instructions being executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: receive at least one control message from a network node, the at least one control message jointly scheduling the first UE for an access network communication between the first UE and the network node and for a sidelink communication between the first UE and at least a second UE; determine network control information associated with the access network communication based at least in part on the at least one control message; determine sidelink control information associated with the sidelink communication based at least in part on the at least one control message; and communicate with the network node and the second UE according to the network control information and the sidelink control information, respectively and independently. the instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to determine the sidelink control information include the instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to:
30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein, receive the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages. the instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to determine the sidelink control information include the instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to:
31. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein, receive the sidelink control information and the network control information in a same control message. the instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to receive the at least one control message further include the instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to:
32. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein, receive a first control message from the network node, the first control message including the network control information and an indication that the sidelink control information is to be received via a second message; and receive the second message from the network node, the second message including the sidelink control information. 33. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein, The first control message includes downlink control information (DCI) associated with a downlink grant for the first UE, and the second message includes a radio resource control (RRC) message associated with a sidelink grant for the first UE piggybacked on a data message scheduled by the DCI.
34. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein, The instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to receive the second message from the network node include instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: receive an indication of one or more resources associated with the sidelink communication, the one or more resources including a sidelink control channel, a sidelink shared channel, a feedback channel, or any combination thereof.
35. The apparatus of claim 34, wherein, The feedback channel is associated with uplink feedback including an automatic repeat request (ARQ) communication with the network node, a channel state indicator (CSI) report transmission to the network node, or a combination thereof, wherein the uplink feedback is encoded based at least in part on uplink control information received from the network node.
36. The apparatus of claim 34, wherein, A first resource of the one or more resources includes resources for both the sidelink control channel and the sidelink shared channel.
37. The apparatus of claim 34, wherein, A first resource of the one or more resources includes resources for the sidelink control channel, and a second resource of the one or more resources includes resources for the sidelink shared channel.
38. The apparatus of claim 34, the instructions executable by the processor to further cause the apparatus to: receive an indication of resources assigned to the feedback channel, a resource pool configured for the feedback channel, or a combination thereof.
39. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein, The instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to receive the at least one control message further include instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: receive a first control message from the network node, the first control message including the network control information and the sidelink control information.
40. The apparatus of claim 39, wherein, The first control message includes downlink control information (DCI) associated with an integrated grant for the first UE, the integrated grant including one or more fields corresponding to a sidelink grant and a downlink grant or an uplink grant.
41. The apparatus of claim 40, wherein, The first control message includes an indication that the integrated grant is included in the DCI.
42. The apparatus of claim 40, wherein, The first control message includes an indication of one or more bandwidth parts (BWPs) for the access network communication, the sidelink communication, or both.
43. The apparatus of claim 29, the instructions executable by the processor to further cause the apparatus to: determine one or more sidelink resources for the sidelink communication based at least in part on the received sidelink control information, the one or more sidelink resources including transmission resources, reception resources, or both.
44. The apparatus of claim 43, wherein, The one or more sidelink resources include a resource pool for the sidelink communication.
45. The apparatus of claim 43, wherein, The one or more sidelink resources are assigned to the first UE for the sidelink communication.
46. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein, The sidelink control information includes one or more sidelink parameters for the sidelink communication between the first UE and the second UE, the one or more sidelink parameters including a transmit power parameter, a modulation coding scheme (MCS), a new data indicator (NDI), a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) parameter, a downlink assignment indicator (DAI), a resource assignment expiration timer, or a combination thereof.
47. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein, The sidelink control information includes a group identifier of a UE group, a sidelink radio network temporary identifier (RNTI) for groupcast communications within the UE group, or a combination thereof, the UE group including the first UE and the second UE.
48. The apparatus of claim 29, the instructions executable by the processor to further cause the apparatus to: identify a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI) corresponding to a first control message of the at least one control message, wherein the first control message includes downlink control information (DCI) and the RNTI is associated with joint scheduling of access network communications and sidelink communications; and descramble a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) code of the first control message based at least in part on the identified RNTI.
49. An apparatus for wireless communication at a network node, comprising: a processor; memory coupled with the processor; and instructions stored in the memory, the instructions being executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: identify network control information associated with access network communications between the network node and a first user equipment (UE); identify sidelink control information associated with sidelink communications between the first UE and at least a second UE, the sidelink communications being independent of the access network communications; and transmit at least one control message to jointly schedule the first UE for the access network communications and the sidelink communications, wherein the at least one control message includes the network control information and the sidelink control information.
50. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein, the instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to transmit the at least one control message including the instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: transmit the sidelink control information and the network control information in separate but linked messages.
51. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein, the instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to transmit the at least one control message including the instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: transmit the sidelink control information and the network control information in a same control message.
52. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein, the instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to transmit the at least one control message further including the instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: transmit, to the first UE, a first control message including the network control information and an indication that the sidelink control information is to be transmitted via a second message; and transmit, to the first UE, the second message including the sidelink control information.
53. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein, The instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to transmit the at least one control message further include instructions executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: transmit, to the first UE, a first control message, the first control message including the network control information and the sidelink control information.
54. The apparatus of claim 53, wherein, The first control message includes downlink control information (DCI) associated with an integrated grant for the first UE, the integrated grant including one or more fields corresponding to a sidelink grant and a downlink grant or an uplink grant.
55. The apparatus of claim 49, the instructions executable by the processor to further cause the apparatus to: assign resources or a resource pool for the sidelink communication to each UE in a group of UEs, the group of UEs including the first UE and the second UE.
56. The apparatus of claim 49, the instructions executable by the processor to further cause the apparatus to: perform dynamic scheduling, semi-persistent scheduling (SPS), one-shot scheduling, or a combination thereof, for the access network communication, the sidelink communication, or both.
Citation Information
Patent Citations
Relay signaling between UE and network
US20160234754A1