Method and apparatus for wireless communication

Abstract

Techniques for wireless communications are described. A method for wireless communications at a base station includes identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communications in a plurality of subframes, identifying a plurality of user equipment (UE) devices, allocating the time resources and a first portion of the frequency resources to an uplink (UL) channel to carry UL control information, and allocating resources of the UL channel to the identified UE devices. A method for wireless communications at a UE device includes identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communications in a plurality of subframes, receiving an indication of at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources allocated to a UL channel to carry UL control information for the UE device, and transmitting one or both of a downlink acknowledgment (ACK) and a downlink negative acknowledgment (NAK) on the UL channel.

Description

[0001] This invention patent application is a divisional application of the invention patent application with international application number PCT / US2016 / 048546, international application date August 25, 2016, application number 201680050707.0 entering the Chinese national phase, and name “Technology for allocating time and frequency resources to an uplink channel to carry uplink control information for narrowband communications”.

[0002] Cross-references

[0003] This patent application claims priority to U.S. patent application No. 15 / 245,640, entitled “Techniques For Allocating Time And Frequency Resources To An Uplink Channel To Carry Uplink Control Information Used For Narrowband Communication,” filed by Wang et al. on August 24, 2016; and U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62 / 213,553, entitled “Techniques For Allocating Time And Frequency Resources To ADedicated Physical Uplink Control Channel Used For Narrowband Communication,” filed by Wang et al. on September 2, 2015, each of which is assigned to the assignee of this application. Technical Field

[0004] The present disclosure relates, for example, to wireless communication systems, and more particularly to allocating time and frequency resources to a UL channel to carry uplink control information for narrowband communications. Background Art

[0005] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content such as voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, etc. These systems may be able to support communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of such multiple access systems include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, and orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems (e.g., long term evolution (LTE) systems or advanced LTE (LTE-A) systems). A wireless multiple access communication system may include several base stations, each of which simultaneously supports communication with multiple communication devices, which may be further referred to as user equipment (UE) devices. A base station may communicate with a UE device on a downlink channel (e.g., for transmission from a base station to a UE device) and an uplink channel (e.g., for transmission from a UE device to a base station).

[0006] Some types of UE devices may communicate with base stations or other UE devices using narrowband communications. Narrowband communications may include, for example, narrowband LTE (NB-LTE) communications, M2M communications (of which machine type communications (MTC) may be considered a part for purposes of this disclosure), NB-Internet of Things (NB-IoT) communications, and the like. Given the narrow bandwidth of narrowband communications, choices may need to be made regarding the types of channels and signals to which narrowband resources are allocated, the manner in which narrowband resources are allocated to such channels and signals, and the configuration of such channels and signals. Summary of the invention

[0007] The present disclosure relates, for example, to a technique for allocating time and frequency resources to an uplink (UL) channel for narrowband communication. Resources may be allocated to a UL channel for the purpose of transmitting or receiving information (such as a downlink acknowledgment (ACK), a downlink negative acknowledgment (NAK), or a channel quality information (CQI)). In some cases, the UL channel may be a UL control channel such as a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH). In some examples, the CQI may not be transmitted on the UL channel, but may instead be transmitted or not transmitted on a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). When the CQI is not transmitted from a UE device to a base station, the base station may estimate channel state information (CSI) in several ways. In some examples, resources may be allocated to a UL channel in a manner that optimizes (e.g., maximizes) the UE device transmission capacity of the UL channel and / or optimizes (e.g., minimizes) the transmission time of the UE device, and the resources of the UL channel may be allocated to multiple UE devices.

[0008] A wireless communication method is described. The method may include identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in a plurality of subframes, identifying a plurality of UE devices, allocating at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources to an UL channel to carry UL control information, and allocating resources of the UL channel to the identified plurality of UE devices.

[0009] An apparatus for wireless communication is described. The apparatus may include means for identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in a plurality of subframes, means for identifying a plurality of UE devices, means for allocating at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources to an UL channel to carry UL control information, and means for allocating resources of the UL channel to the identified plurality of UE devices.

[0010] Another apparatus for wireless communication is described. The apparatus may include a processor, a memory in electronic communication with the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions are operable to cause the processor to identify time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in a plurality of subframes, identify a plurality of UE devices, allocate at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources to a UL channel to carry UL control information, and allocate resources of the UL channel to the identified plurality of UE devices.

[0011] A non-transitory computer-readable medium for wireless communication is described. The non-transitory computer-readable medium may include instructions operable to cause the processor to identify time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in a plurality of subframes, identify a plurality of UE devices, allocate at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources to a UL channel to carry UL control information, and allocate resources of the UL channel to the identified plurality of UE devices.

[0012] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above may further include processes, features, apparatus, or instructions for receiving one or both of a downlink ACK and a downlink NAK from one or more of the multiple UE devices on the UL channel.

[0013] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above may further include processes, features, apparatus, or instructions for multiplexing the UL channel with one or more of a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), a physical random access channel (PRACH), a sounding reference signal (SRS), or a combination thereof in one or both of the time domain and the frequency domain.

[0014] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above, the UL channel includes a dedicated PUCCH.

[0015] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above may further include a process, feature, apparatus, or instruction for allocating the same number of resources of the UL channel to reference symbol transmission and data symbol transmission.

[0016] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above, allocating resources of the UL channel to the multiple UE devices includes: allocating resources of the UL channel to the multiple UE devices using cross-slot code division multiplexing (CDM) in the time domain, CDM in the frequency domain, frequency domain multiplexing (FDM), or a combination thereof.

[0017] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above may further include processes, features, apparatus, or instructions for receiving multi-tone transmissions from the plurality of UE devices on the UL channel.

[0018] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above may further include processes, features, apparatus, or instructions for concurrently receiving single-tone transmissions from the multiple UE devices on the UL channel.

[0019] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above may further include processes, features, apparatus, or instructions for receiving multiple single-tone transmissions in parallel from a UE device in the multiple UE devices on the UL channel.

[0020] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above, allocating the time resources and at least a first portion of the frequency resources to the UL channel includes allocating the same set of frequency resources or different sets of frequency resources to the UL channel from one subframe to another in the multiple subframes.

[0021] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above, allocating resources of the UL channel to the multiple UE devices includes: allocating resources of the UL channel to the multiple UE devices using intra-resource block frequency hopping.

[0022] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above, the time resources and the frequency resources of the UL channel allocated to the multiple UE devices include bundled transmission time intervals (TTIs).

[0023] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above may further include processes, features, apparatus, or instructions for estimating CSI of at least one downlink of the narrowband communication based at least in part on measurements of the SRS, the CQI of the uplink of the narrowband communication, the CQI received on the PUSCH, or a combination thereof.

[0024] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above, allocating resources of the UL channel to the multiple UE devices includes: allocating resources of the UL channel to UE devices among the multiple UE devices based at least in part on a coverage enhancement (CE) level associated with the UE device.

[0025] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, or non-transitory computer-readable media described above may further include processes, features, apparatus, or instructions for transmitting the SRS during each symbol period of each subframe in the plurality of subframes.

[0026] A wireless communication method is described. The method may include identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in a plurality of subframes, receiving an indication of at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources allocated to an UL channel to carry UL control information for a UE device, and transmitting one or both of a downlink ACK and a downlink NAK on the UL channel.

[0027] An apparatus for wireless communication is described. The apparatus may include means for identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in a plurality of subframes, means for receiving an indication of at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources allocated to an UL channel to carry UL control information for the UE device, and means for transmitting one or both of a downlink ACK and a downlink NAK on the UL channel.

[0028] Another apparatus for wireless communication is described. The apparatus may include a processor, a memory in electronic communication with the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions are operable to cause the processor to identify time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in a plurality of subframes, receive an indication of at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources allocated to an UL channel to carry UL control information for the UE device, and transmit one or both of a downlink ACK and a downlink NAK on the UL channel.

[0029] A non-transitory computer-readable medium for wireless communication is described. The non-transitory computer-readable medium may include instructions operable to cause the processor to identify time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in a plurality of subframes, receive an indication of at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources allocated to an UL channel to carry UL control information for the UE device, and transmit one or both of a downlink ACK and a downlink NAK on the UL channel.

[0030] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above may further include processes, features, apparatus, or instructions for transmitting a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), wherein the UL channel may be multiplexed with the PUSCH.

[0031] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above, the UL channel includes a dedicated PUCCH.

[0032] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above may further include processes, features, apparatus, or instructions for transmitting the same number of reference symbols and data symbols on the UL channel.

[0033] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described above may further include processes, features, apparatus, or instructions for transmitting on the UL channel using cross-slot CDM in the time domain, CDM in the frequency domain, FDM, or a combination thereof. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0034] A further understanding of the nature and advantages of the present disclosure may be obtained by reference to the following drawings. In the drawings, similar components or features may have the same reference numeral. In addition, identical individual components may be distinguished by following the reference numeral with a dash and a second reference numeral that distinguishes between similar components. If only the first reference numeral is used in the specification, the description may apply to any of the similar components having the same first reference numeral regardless of the second reference numeral.

[0035] Figure 1 An example of a wireless communication system according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown;

[0036] Figure 2 An example of a wireless communication system according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown;

[0037] Figure 3 illustrates time and frequency resource allocations that provide coexistence between LTE and NB-LTE communications in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

[0038] Figure 4 illustrates time and frequency resource allocations for UL channels that may be used for narrowband communications (e.g., NB-LTE communications) in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

[0039] Figure 5 illustrates time and frequency resource allocations for UL channels that may be used for narrowband communications (e.g., NB-LTE communications) in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

[0040] Figure 6 illustrates time and frequency resource allocations for UL channels that may be used for narrowband communications (e.g., NB-LTE communications) in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

[0041] Figure 7 A single tone resource of a UL channel that may be used for narrowband communication (e.g., NB-LTE communication) according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown, wherein the single tone resource may be allocated to a narrowband UE device;

[0042] Figure 8 illustrates time and frequency resource allocations for UL channels that may be used for narrowband communications (e.g., NB-LTE communications) in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

[0043] Fig. 9 illustrates time and frequency resource allocation within a superframe that may be used for narrowband communications (e.g., NB-LTE communications) according to aspects of the present disclosure;

[0044] Fig.10 A diagram showing a device for use in wireless communications according to aspects of the present disclosure;

[0045] Fig.11 A diagram showing a wireless communication manager according to aspects of the present disclosure;

[0046] Fig.12 A diagram showing a device for use in wireless communications according to aspects of the present disclosure;

[0047] Fig.13 A diagram showing a wireless communication manager according to aspects of the present disclosure;

[0048] Fig.14 A diagram showing a base station (e.g., a base station forming part or all of an eNB) for use in wireless communications according to aspects of the present disclosure;

[0049] Fig.15 A diagram showing a UE device for use in wireless communications according to aspects of the present disclosure;

[0050] Fig.16is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for wireless communication at a base station according to aspects of the present disclosure;

[0051] Fig.17 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for wireless communication at a base station according to aspects of the present disclosure;

[0052] Fig.18 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for wireless communication at a base station according to aspects of the present disclosure;

[0053] Fig.19 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for wireless communication at a base station according to aspects of the present disclosure;

[0054] Fig. 20 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for wireless communication at a UE device according to aspects of the present disclosure; and

[0055] Fig.21 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a method for wireless communications at a UE device according to aspects of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0056] The described features generally relate to improved systems, methods, and apparatus for allocating time and frequency resources to UL channels to carry uplink control information for narrowband communications. In some examples, narrowband UE devices can support very low throughput communications, can be power efficient, can be deployed indoors or outdoors in sometimes challenging environments, can be relatively low-cost, or can have reduced complexity (e.g., narrowband UE devices may not support circuit-switched services or inter-radio access technology (RAT) mobility). In some examples, the density of narrowband UE devices in a wireless communication system can be on the order of hundreds or thousands per base station or access point, while the density of broadband UE devices can be much lower.

[0057] In the case of the above differences between narrowband UE devices and broadband UE devices, it may be desirable for the UL channel to carry uplink control information specifically designed for narrowband communications. In some cases, the UL channel may be a UL control channel or a dedicated UL control channel, such as a dedicated PUCCH. In some examples, it may be desirable to retain the LTE / LTE-A resource allocation framework when allocating resources to such UL channels to avoid resource fragmentation. In some examples, the UL channel used to carry uplink control information may be designed to optimize UL device transmission capacity and / or UE device transmission time.

[0058] The following description provides examples and does not limit the scope, applicability, or examples set forth in the claims. Changes may be made to the functions and arrangements of the elements discussed without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Various examples may appropriately omit, substitute, or add various procedures or components. For example, the described methods may be performed in an order different from that described, and various steps may be added, omitted, or combined. In addition, features described with reference to some examples may be combined in other examples.

[0059] Figure 1 An example of a wireless communication system 100 according to various aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The wireless communication system 100 may include a base station 105, a UE device 115, and a core network 130. The core network 130 may provide user authentication, access authorization, tracking, Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity, and other access, routing, or mobility functions. The base station 105 may interface with the core network 130 via a backhaul link 132 (e.g., S1, etc.) and may perform radio configuration and scheduling for communications with the UE device 115, or may operate under the control of a base station controller (not shown). In various examples, the base stations 105 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., through the core network 130) on a backhaul link 134 (e.g., X2, etc.), which may be a wired or wireless communication link.

[0060] The base station 105 may communicate wirelessly with the UE device 115 via one or more base station antennas. Each of these base station 105 sites may provide communication coverage for a respective geographic coverage area 110. In some examples, the base station 105 may be referred to as a base transceiver station, a radio base station, an access point, a radio transceiver, a B node, an evolved B node (eNB), a home B node, a home evolved B node, or some other suitable term. The geographic coverage area 110 of the base station 105 may be divided into sectors (not shown) that constitute a portion of the coverage area. The wireless communication system 100 may include different types of base stations 105 (e.g., macro base stations or small cell base stations). There may be overlapping geographic coverage areas 110 of different technologies.

[0061] In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may include an LTE / LTE-A network and may employ narrowband communication technology, as described below. In an LTE / LTE-A network, the term evolved Node B (eNB) may be used to describe the base station 105. The wireless communication system 100 may be a heterogeneous LTE / LTE-A network in which different types of eNBs provide coverage for various geographic regions. For example, each eNB or base station 105 may provide communication coverage for a macro cell, a small cell, or other types of cells. Depending on the context, the term "cell" is a 3GPP term that may be used to describe a base station, a carrier or component carrier associated with a base station, or a coverage area (e.g., a sector, etc.) of a carrier or base station.

[0062] A macro cell may cover a relatively large geographic area (e.g., an area with a radius of several kilometers) and may allow unrestricted access by UE devices with service subscriptions to a network provider. Compared to a macro cell, a small cell may be a low-power base station that may operate in the same or different (e.g., licensed, shared, etc.) radio frequency spectrum band as a macro cell. According to various examples, a small cell may include a pico cell, a femto cell, and a micro cell. A pico cell may cover a relatively smaller geographic area and may allow unrestricted access by UE devices with service subscriptions to a network provider. A femto cell may also cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a residence) and may provide access by UE devices associated with the femto cell (e.g., UE devices in a closed subscriber group (CSG), UE devices of users in the residence, etc.) with restrictions. An eNB for a macro cell may be referred to as a macro eNB. An eNB for a small cell may be referred to as a small cell eNB, a pico eNB, a femto eNB, or a home eNB. An eNB may support one or more (eg, two, three, four, etc.) cells (eg, component carriers).

[0063] The wireless communication system 100 may support synchronous or asynchronous operation. For synchronous operation, each base station may have similar frame timing, and transmissions from different base stations may be approximately aligned in time. For asynchronous operation, each base station may have different frame timing, and transmissions from different base stations may not be aligned in time. The techniques described herein may be used for synchronous or asynchronous operation.

[0064] A communication network that can accommodate some of the various disclosed examples can be a packet-based network that operates according to a layered protocol stack. In the user plane, the communication of the bearer or packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer can be IP-based. The radio link control (RLC) layer can perform packet segmentation and reassembly to communicate on a logical channel. The media access control (MAC) layer can perform priority handling and multiplex logical channels into transport channels. The MAC layer can also use hybrid ARQ (HARQ) to provide retransmission of the MAC layer, thereby improving link efficiency. In the control plane, the radio resource control (RRC) protocol layer can provide the establishment, configuration and maintenance of the RRC connection of the radio bearer supporting user plane data between the UE device 115 and the base station 105 or the core network 130. In the physical (PHY) layer, the transport channel can be mapped to the physical channel.

[0065] UE devices 115 may be dispersed throughout the wireless communication system 100, and each UE device 115 may be stationary or mobile. UE devices 115 may also include or be referred to by those skilled in the art as mobile stations, subscriber stations, mobile units, subscriber units, wireless units, remote units, mobile devices, wireless devices, wireless communication devices, remote devices, mobile subscriber stations, access terminals, mobile terminals, wireless terminals, remote terminals, handsets, user agents, mobile clients, clients, or other appropriate terms. UE devices 115 may be cellular phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), wireless modems, wireless communication devices, handheld devices, tablet computers, laptop computers, cordless phones, wireless local loop (WLL) stations, NB-LTE devices, M2M devices, MTC devices, NB-IoT devices, or similar devices. UE devices 115 may be able to communicate with various types of base stations 105 and network equipment (including macro eNBs, small cell eNBs, relay base stations, etc.).

[0066] The communication link 125 shown in the wireless communication system 100 may include a downlink (DL) transmission from the base station 105 to the UE device 115, or a UL transmission from the UE device 115 to the base station 105. Downlink transmissions may also be referred to as forward link transmissions, while uplink transmissions may also be referred to as reverse link transmissions. The communication link 125 may include UL channel resources for narrowband communication, as described in the present disclosure.

[0067] In some examples, each communication link 125 may include one or more carriers, where each carrier may be a signal (e.g., a waveform signal of different frequencies) composed of multiple subcarriers modulated according to the various radio technologies described above. Each modulated signal may be sent on a different subcarrier and may carry control information (e.g., reference signals, control channels, etc.), overhead information, user data, etc. The communication link 125 may use frequency division duplex (FDD) operation (e.g., using paired spectrum resources) or time division duplex (TDD) operation (e.g., using unpaired spectrum resources) to transmit bidirectional communications. A frame structure for FDD operation (e.g., frame structure type 1) and a frame structure for TDD operation (e.g., frame structure type 2) may be defined.

[0068] Figure 2 An example of a wireless communication system 200 according to various aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The wireless communication system 200 may be an example of a portion of the wireless communication system 100 and may include a first base station 105-a, a second base station 105-b, a first UE device 115-a, and a second UE device 115-b.

[0069] In some examples, the first base station 105-a may communicate with the first UE device 115-a using broadband communications, while the second base station 105-b may communicate with the second UE device 115-b using narrowband communications. The broadband communications and narrowband communications may occur within the same radio spectrum, and thus, it may be desirable to allocate resources for the broadband communications and the narrowband communications in a manner that enables devices using broadband communications and devices using narrowband communications to coexist.

[0070] In some examples of the wireless communication system 200, the first base station 105-a may additionally be capable of narrowband communications, or the second base station 105-b may additionally be capable of broadband communications. Similarly, the first UE device 115-a may additionally be capable of narrowband communications, or the second UE device 115-b may additionally be capable of broadband communications.

[0071] Figure 3 A time and frequency resource allocation 300 is shown to provide coexistence between LTE and NB-LTE communications in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. LTE communications may occur between a first base station and a set of UE devices with LTE capabilities. NB-LTE communications may occur between a first base station (or a second base station) and a set of UE devices with NB-LTE capabilities. A particular UE device may be included in a set of UE devices with LTE capabilities, a set of UE devices with NB-LTE capabilities, or a set of UE devices with LTE capabilities and a set of UE devices with NB-LTE capabilities. In some examples, the first base station and the second base station may be referenced to Figure 1 and 2 The example of the base station 105 described above, and the UE device with LTE capability and the UE device with NB-LTE capability can be referred to as Figure 1 and 2 An example of a UE device 115 is described.

[0072] In order to provide coexistence between LTE and NB-LTE communications, time and frequency resources may be allocated for NB-LTE within a resource allocation framework based at least in part on LTE OFDM parameter design (numerology) and LTE resource blocks. In a first example of NB-LTE resource allocation, out-of-band LTE resources (e.g., resources located outside the LTE system bandwidth 305) may be allocated for NB-LTE communications. In some examples, the out-of-band LTE resources allocated for NB-LTE communications may be located in a guard band 310 adjacent to the LTE system bandwidth 305. In the second and third examples of NB-LTE resource allocation, in-band LTE resources (e.g., resources located within the LTE system bandwidth 305) may be allocated for NB-LTE communications. In the second example, the in-band LTE resources allocated for NB-LTE communications may be located in a resource block set 315 that spans the same subset of frequency resources in each subframe. In a third example, in-band LTE resources allocated for NB-LTE communication may be located in different resource blocks in different subframes (e.g., a first set of resource blocks 320 spanning a first frequency resource subset during each subframe of a first subframe set (e.g., during subframes SF0, SF1, and SF2) may be determined not to be used for LTE communication and thus may be used for NB-LTE communication), and a second set of resource blocks 325 spanning a second frequency resource subset may be determined not to be used for LTE communication and thus may be used for NB-LTE communication during each subframe of a second subframe set (e.g., during subframes SF2, SF3, and SF4).

[0073] When configuring the NB-LTE uplink, resources may need to be allocated to multiple different channels or signals, such as PRACH, PUCCH, PUSCH, or SRS (e.g., PRACH, PUCCH, PUSCH, and SRS may need to be multiplexed on the NB-LTE uplink). Resources may also need to be allocated to multiple UE devices (e.g., resource allocations for different UE devices may need to be multiplexed on the NB-LTE uplink). In some examples, the resources of the NB-LTE uplink may be allocated to different channels / signals or UE devices using LTE frequency modulation intervals, where 12 frequency modulations are defined within the bandwidth of a single resource block. In other examples, the number, granularity, or dimension of NB-LTE uplink resources may be increased by using a NB-LTE frequency modulation interval that is finer than the LTE frequency modulation interval. For example, 72 frequency modulations (e.g., equivalent to 6 LTE resource blocks) may be defined within the bandwidth of a single LTE resource block, and these 72 frequency modulations are allocated to different channels / signals or UE devices in the NB-LTE uplink.

[0074] In some examples, a base station may communicate with one or more UE devices using CE levels, where greater transmit power or TTI bundling may be used to improve reception at a receiving device (e.g., a base station or UE device). TTI bundling may enable repetition of transmissions, which may improve detection or decoding of transmissions. In some examples, multiple CE levels (e.g., 4 CE levels) may be defined, which are associated with different transmit powers or combinations of transmit power and TTI bundling.

[0075] The present disclosure describes NB-LTE uplink resource allocation that takes into account factors such as multiplexing of multiple channels / signals within a narrowband, multiplexing of multiple UE devices, or the use of one or more CE levels. Resource allocation can, for example, use TDM, FDM, or a combination thereof to allocate NB-LTE resources (e.g., NB-LTE resources of a superframe) to multiple channels or signals (e.g., PRACH, PUCCH, PUSCH, and SRS), and use TDM, FDM, CDM in the time domain, CDM in the frequency domain, or a combination thereof to allocate NB-LTE resources to multiple UE devices. CDM in the time domain can include, for example, cross-symbol CDM, cross-slot CDM, or cross-subframe CDM.

[0076] In some examples, NB-LTE resources may be allocated to a UL channel. In some examples, the NB-LTE frequency resources may be allocated to the UL channel by allocating the same set of frequency resources to the UL channel for the first time slot and the second time slot of each subframe in a plurality of subframes (e.g., the frequency resources allocated to the UL channel may not hop from one resource block to another resource block within a subframe). In some examples, the NB-LTE frequency resources may be allocated to the UL channel by allocating the same set of frequency resources or different sets of frequency resources to the UL channel from one subframe to another subframe in a plurality of subframes. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH.

[0077] In some examples, CDM in the time domain can be used to allocate resources of the UL channel to multiple UE devices. In these examples, CDM or FDM in the frequency domain can also be used to allocate resources of the UL channel to multiple UE devices. When the UE device is associated with a lower CE level, CDM in the frequency domain can provide more frequency diversity for each UE device, and when the UE device is associated with a higher CE level, FDM can provide transmission capacity for more UE devices. In some examples, FDM can be used to allocate resources of the UL channel to multiple UE devices, but CDM may not be used.

[0078] In some examples, with or without intra-resource block frequency hopping, the frequency resources of the UL channel can be allocated to multiple UE devices. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel can be allocated to multiple UE devices using bundled TTI. In some examples, the same number of resources of the UL channel can be allocated to reference symbols and data symbols.

[0079] In some examples, resources of the UL channel may be allocated to multiple UE devices for transmitting downlink ACK, downlink NAK, CQI, or a combination thereof, and the base station receiving the CQI may determine the CSI of the NB-LTE downlink based at least in part on the received CQI. In other examples, resources of the UL channel may be allocated to multiple UE devices for transmitting downlink ACK, downlink NAK, or a combination thereof, and the base station receiving the downlink ACK or downlink NAK may estimate the CSI of the NB-LTE downlink based at least in part on the measurement of the SRS, the CQI of the NB-LTE uplink, the CQI received on the PUSCH, or a combination thereof. The estimation of the CSI of the NB-LTE downlink may be sufficient, for example, for UE devices operating deep in the coverage area of ​​the base station, because the CQI reported by the deep coverage UE device may be prone to inaccuracy, and given the long distance between the base station and the deep coverage UE device, the CQI of the NB-LTE uplink and the NB-LTE downlink may be approximately the same.

[0080] In some examples, resources of a UL channel may be allocated to a UE device among a plurality of UE devices based at least in part on a CE level associated with the UE device.

[0081] According to one example, for UE devices associated with a higher CE level, a single frequency-tone resource may be used for an UL channel. An UL channel (e.g., an ACK channel) may be allocated to one or more UE devices for transmission of a downlink ACK, a downlink NAK, or a combination thereof. When a single frequency-tone resource is used for an UL channel (e.g., an ACK channel), FDM may be used for allocations to different UE devices in the frequency domain. In other examples, using CDM in frequency across bandwidth for several UE devices at a lower CE level may have a higher overall multiplexing capacity than a single frequency-tone allocation multiplexed in the frequency domain as described above.

[0082] In some examples, single tone allocation (using CDM in the time domain) can be used to allocate resources for a UL channel (e.g., an ACK channel) to multiple UE devices. Two or more OFDM symbol periods can be allocated for data or reference signal transmissions, including ACK transmissions. The two or more OFDM symbol periods can be an OFDM symbol period pair. The OFDM symbol periods can be adjacent in time, or not adjacent.

[0083] In some cases, a system supporting an UL channel that can be used for narrowband communication (e.g., NB-LTE communication) may support multiple different techniques described herein to allocate resources to UL channels (including for allocating ACK channels) of different UE devices. For example, a base station may support allocating single-tone resources to an ACK channel, where resources are allocated to more than one UE device using CDM in the time domain. The same base station may also support allocating a single tone to an ACK channel, where resources for ACK channels of different UE devices are allocated to different tones using FDM. The base station may also support allocating ACK channels for UE devices using CDM in both the time domain and the frequency domain (e.g., for resource blocks). In some examples, a base station may select a technique to allocate resources for a UL channel (such as an ACK channel) for each of one or more UE devices based on channel characteristics associated with transmissions to and from UE devices. For example, the allocation of an ACK channel to a UE device with good channel characteristics may use a technique in which ACK is allocated using CDM in both the time domain and the frequency domain for resource blocks, while the allocation of an ACK channel to a UE device with poor channel characteristics may use one of the single-tone allocation techniques described above. The base station may support different allocation techniques between different resource blocks (eg, between different resource blocks in the same time slot or the same subframe, or across different time slots or subframes).

[0084] Figure 4 4 shows a time and frequency resource allocation 400 for an UL channel that may be used for narrowband communication (e.g., NB-LTE communication) according to aspects of the present disclosure. Narrowband communication may occur between a base station and a set of narrowband (e.g., LTE-capable) UE devices. In some examples, the base station may be a reference Figure 1 and 2 The example of the base station 105 described above, while the narrowband UE device may be a reference Figure 1 and 2 An example of a UE device 115 is described.

[0085] As an example, the time and frequency resource allocation 400 may correspond to a single LTE resource block 405 having 168 reference elements (e.g., a resource block spanning twelve tones and fourteen OFDM symbol periods). An OFDM symbol period may define two slots (e.g., a first slot 410 and a second slot 415) and a subframe 420. The OFDM symbol periods of each slot are numbered 1 to 7. Resource elements associated with OFDM symbol periods 3, 4, and 5 of each slot may be allocated for reference symbol transmission, while resource elements associated with OFDM symbol periods 1, 2, 6, and 7 of each slot may be allocated to data symbol transmission (e.g., downlink ACK / NAK transmissions), similar to the time and frequency resource allocation for LTE PUCCH.

[0086] In some examples, Figure 4 The frequency resources allocated to the UL channel in the subframe may be the same set of frequency resources or a different set of frequency resources allocated to the UL channel in one or more other subframes. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH.

[0087] In some examples, cross-slot CDM in the time domain can be used to allocate resources of UL channels to multiple UE devices. Cross-slot CDM in the time domain can be enabled at least in part by allocating the same set of frequency resources to the UL channel for the first and second slots of each subframe (e.g., by limiting the intra-subframe frequency hopping between resource blocks when allocating frequency resources to the UL channel within the subframe). In some examples, applying cross-slot CDM in the time domain may include applying orthogonal cover codes to eight OFDM symbol periods allocated to data symbol transmission in the first slot 410 and the second slot 415, and applying a discrete Fourier transform (DFT) with an expansion factor of 6 to six OFDM symbol periods allocated to reference symbol transmission in the first slot 410 and the second slot 415. In some examples, cross-slot CDM may include cross-subframe CDM in the time domain. In some examples, cross-slot CDM in the time domain may be used in conjunction with CDM in the frequency domain to allocate resources of UL channels to multiple UE devices. In other examples, cross-slot CDM in the time domain can be used in conjunction with FDM to allocate resources of the UL channel to multiple UE devices (e.g., each UE device can be allocated one or more individual frequency tones). In some examples, the frequency resources of the time and frequency resource allocation 400 can be subdivided into 72 frequency tones.

[0088] Figure 5 500 is a diagram illustrating a time and frequency resource allocation for an UL channel that may be used for narrowband communication (e.g., NB-LTE communication) according to various aspects of the present disclosure. Narrowband communication may occur between a base station and a set of narrowband (e.g., LTE-capable) UE devices. In some examples, the base station may be a reference Figure 1 and 2 The example of the base station 105 described above, while the narrowband UE device may be a reference Figure 1 and 2 An example of a UE device 115 is described. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH.

[0089] As an example, the time and frequency resource allocation 500 may correspond to a pair of LTE resource blocks or subframes (e.g., a first LTE resource block 505 or a first subframe 510, and a second LTE resource block 515 or a second subframe 520) having a combined 336 reference elements (e.g., each LTE resource block may span twelve tones and fourteen OFDM symbol periods). The OFDM symbol period of each LTE resource block may define two time slots (e.g., the OFDM symbol period of the first LTE resource block 505 may define a first time slot 525 and a second time slot 530, while the OFDM symbol period of the second LTE resource block 515 may define a third time slot 535 and a fourth time slot 540).

[0090] The same number of resources (e.g., resource elements) of the UL channel can be allocated to reference symbol transmission and data symbol transmission. For example, resource elements included in the second time slot of each LTE resource block or subframe (e.g., resource elements included in the second time slot 530 and the fourth time slot 540) can be allocated to reference symbol transmission, while resource elements included in the first time slot of each LTE resource block or subframe (e.g., the first time slot 525 and the third time slot 535) can be allocated to data symbol transmission. Alternatively, the OFDM symbol period of the UL channel can be alternately allocated to reference symbol transmission and data symbol transmission. Allocating multiple consecutive OFDM symbol periods to reference symbol transmission or data symbol transmission can provide better orthogonality and increased UE device transmission capacity in some cases. Allocating alternating OFDM symbol periods to reference symbol transmission or data symbol transmission can provide better channel estimation in some cases. In other alternatives, subframes (e.g., first subframe 510 and second subframe 520) may be alternately allocated to reference symbol transmission and data symbol transmission, or resources allocated to the UL channel may be equally allocated to reference symbol transmission and data symbol transmission in other ways. Allocating an equal (same) number of resources to reference symbol transmission and data symbol transmission may provide better quality transmission, and may enable spreading over a larger number of resources (e.g., by applying a DFT spreading with a spreading factor of 7 times that of an orthogonal cover code (e.g., such that the spreading factor of the DFT may be 7, 14, 21, etc.), which may increase the transmission capacity of the UL channel to handle transmissions of more UE devices. In some examples, the spreading factor may be limited by the TTI bundle size, where the TTI bundle size may be limited by the mobility of the device (e.g., UE device).

[0091] In some examples, Figure 4 The frequency resources allocated to the UL channel in the subframe may be the same frequency resource set or a different frequency resource set allocated to the UL channel in one or more other subframes.

[0092] In some examples, cross-subframe CDM in the time domain can be used to allocate resources for a UL channel to multiple UE devices. Cross-subframe CDM in the time domain can be enabled at least in part by allocating the same set of frequency resources to the UL channel for the first subframe 510 and the second subframe 520 (e.g., by limiting intra-subframe and inter-subframe frequency hopping between resource blocks when allocating frequency resources to the UL channel within a subframe), although inter-subframe frequencies may be allowed when resources of different TTI sets are allocated to the UL channel. In other examples, cross-slot CDM and FDM in the time domain can be used to allocate resources for a UL channel to multiple UE devices (e.g., each UE device can be allocated one or more individual frequency tones). In some examples, the frequency resources of the time and frequency resource allocation 500 can be subdivided into 72 frequency tones.

[0093] Figure 6 600 is a diagram illustrating a time and frequency resource allocation for an UL channel that may be used for narrowband communication (e.g., NB-LTE communication) according to aspects of the present disclosure. Narrowband communication may occur between a base station and a set of narrowband (e.g., LTE-capable) UE devices. In some examples, the base station may be a reference Figure 1 and 2 The example of the base station 105 described above, while the narrowband UE device may be a reference Figure 1 and 2 An example of a UE device 115 is described. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH.

[0094] As an example, the time and frequency resource allocation 600 can correspond to four LTE resource blocks or subframes (e.g., a first LTE resource block 605 or a first LTE subframe 610, a second LTE resource block 615 or a second LTE subframe 620, a third LTE resource block 625 or a third subframe 630, and a fourth LTE resource block 635 or a fourth subframe 640) having a combined 672 reference elements (e.g., each LTE resource block can span twelve frequency tones and fourteen OFDM symbol periods). The OFDM symbol period of each LTE resource block can define two time slots (e.g., the OFDM symbol period of the first LTE resource block 605 can define a first time slot 645 and a second time slot 650, etc.).

[0095] The TTIs (eg, time slots) of the first LTE subframe 610 and the second LTE subframe 620 may be bundled, and cross-subframe CDM in the time domain may be used to allocate resources of the first LTE resource block 605 and the second LTE resource block 615 to multiple UE devices, as described with reference to FIG. Figure 5CDM or FDM in the frequency domain may also be used to allocate resources of the first LTE resource block 605 and the second LTE resource block 615 to multiple UE devices. The TTIs of the third LTE resource block 625 and the fourth LTE resource block 635 may also be bundled and referred to. Figure 5 The described cross-subframe CDM in the time domain and other techniques may be used to allocate resources of the third LTE resource block 625 and the fourth LTE resource block 635 to multiple UE devices.

[0096] The same or different frequency resources may be allocated to the time slots and subframes corresponding to the bundled TTI. Figure 6 As shown in , frequency hopping may be allowed between segments of two bundled TTIs (eg, the frequency resources associated with different segments of a bundled TTI may be the same or different). Frequency hopping within a bundled transmission may provide frequency diversity.

[0097] The TTIs (eg, subframes) of the first LTE resource block 605 and the second LTE resource block 615 may be bundled, and cross-subframe CDM in the time domain may be used to allocate resources of the first LTE resource block 605 and the second LTE resource block 615 to multiple UE devices, as described with reference to Figure 5 CDM or FDM in the frequency domain may also be used to allocate resources of the first LTE resource block 605 and the second LTE resource block 615 to multiple UE devices. The TTIs of the third LTE resource block 625 and the fourth LTE resource block 635 may also be bundled and referred to. Figure 5 The described cross-subframe CDM in the time domain and other techniques may be used to allocate resources of the third LTE resource block 625 and the fourth LTE resource block 635 to multiple UE devices.

[0098] like Figure 6 As shown in , the same frequency resources may be allocated to the time slots and subframes corresponding to the bundled TTI. However, cross-subframe frequency hopping may be allowed between the segments of two bundled TTIs (eg, the frequency resources associated with different segments of the bundled TTI may be the same or different).

[0099] Figure 7 1 shows a single frequency tone resource 700 of a UL channel that can be used for narrowband communication (e.g., NB-LTE communication) according to aspects of the present disclosure, where the single frequency tone resource can be allocated to a narrowband UE device. The narrowband communication can occur between a base station and a narrowband UE device. In some examples, the base station can be referenced to Figure 1 and 2 The example of the base station 105 described above, while the narrowband UE device may be a reference Figure 1 and 2An example of a UE device 115 is described. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH.

[0100] As an example, the single-tone resource 700 may correspond to four LTE subframes (e.g., a first LTE subframe 705, a second LTE subframe 710, a third LTE subframe 715, and a fourth LTE subframe 720). Each LTE subframe may span fourteen OFDM symbol periods. The OFDM symbol period of each LTE subframe may define two time slots (e.g., the OFDM symbol period of the first LTE subframe 705 may define a first time slot 725 and a second time slot 730, etc.).

[0101] The TTIs (e.g., time slots) of the first LTE subframe 705, the second LTE subframe 710, the third LTE subframe 715, and the fourth LTE subframe 720 may be bundled. Within each TTI bundle, the tone allocated to the UE device may hop frequency within the LTE resource block (across subframes, such as Figure 7 In the example of FIG. 1 , the frequency hopping of the LTE resource blocks within a TTI bundle may be performed across time slots or across subframes. ...

[0102] In some cases, for example, when a UE device may be associated with a higher CE level, a single frequency-tone resource 700 may be used for an UL channel. As further discussed above, an UL channel (e.g., an ACK channel) may be allocated to one or more UE devices for transmission of a downlink ACK, a downlink NAK, or a combination thereof. The ACK channel or another UL channel may use the single frequency-tone resource 700 for transmission of an ACK / NAK. The UE device may use the single frequency-tone resource 700 for a particular time slot (e.g., a first time slot 725) or a subframe (e.g., a first subframe 705), where allocations for several different users (e.g., narrowband UE devices) are frequency-domain multiplexed across part or all of the bandwidth of the time slot or subframe.

[0103] In some cases, using a higher CE level may result in a lower overall effective bandwidth. Using FDM for a single tone allocation for the ACK channel (or other UL channels) can improve the overall multiplexing capacity in situations where a higher CE level is used. For example, the overall multiplexing capacity when using a single tone allocation that is FDMed across a bandwidth at a higher CE level can be an improvement in capacity relative to using CDM in frequencies across a bandwidth at a higher CE level. In other examples (such as for UE devices using a lower CE level), using CDM in frequencies across a bandwidth can have a higher overall multiplexing capacity than a single tone allocation that uses FDM across a user's bandwidth.

[0104] Figure 8 800 is a diagram illustrating a time and frequency resource allocation for an UL channel that may be used for narrowband communication (e.g., NB-LTE communication) according to various aspects of the present disclosure. Narrowband communication may occur between a base station and a set of narrowband (e.g., LTE-capable) UE devices. In some examples, the base station may be a reference Figure 1 and 2 The example of the base station 105 described above, while the narrowband UE device may be a reference Figure 1 and 2 An example of a UE device 115 is described. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH.

[0105] As an example, the time and frequency resource allocation 800 can correspond to a single LTE resource block 805 with 168 reference elements (e.g., a resource block spanning twelve tones and fourteen OFDM symbol periods). An OFDM symbol period can define two time slots (e.g., a first time slot 810 and a second time slot 815) and a subframe 820. The OFDM symbol periods of each time slot are numbered 1 to 7. Resource elements associated with OFDM symbol periods 2 and 6 of each time slot can be allocated for reference symbol transmission, while resource elements associated with OFDM symbol periods 1, 3, 4, 5, and 7 of each time slot can be allocated to data symbol transmission (e.g., CQI transmission), similar to the time and frequency resource allocation for LTE PUCCH. In some examples, Figure 8 The frequency resources allocated to the UL channel in the subframe may be the same frequency resource set or a different frequency resource set allocated to the UL channel in one or more other subframes.

[0106] In some examples, CDM in the time domain can be used to allocate resources for UL channels to multiple UE devices. In some examples, applying CDM in the time domain can include applying orthogonal cover codes to pairs of OFDM symbol periods allocated for data symbol transmission (e.g., to the first OFDM symbol pair 825, the second OFDM symbol pair 830, the third OFDM symbol pair 835, the fourth OFDM symbol pair 840, and the fifth OFDM symbol pair 845). Cross-slot CDM in the time domain (e.g., for applying orthogonal cover codes to the third OFDM symbol pair 835) can be enabled at least in part by allocating the same set of frequency resources to the UL channel for the first slot 810 and the second slot 815 of the subframe 820 (e.g., by limiting intra-subframe frequency hopping between resource blocks when allocating frequency resources to the UL channel within the subframe). Applying CDM in the time domain may also include applying an orthogonal cover code (or other CDM code) with an expansion factor of 2 to an OFDM symbol period pair allocated for reference symbol transmission (e.g., to the sixth OFDM symbol pair 850 and the seventh OFDM symbol pair 855). In some examples, CDM in the time domain may be used in conjunction with CDM in the frequency domain to allocate resources of a UL channel to multiple UE devices.

[0107] In other examples, CDM in the time domain can be used in conjunction with FDM to allocate resources for a UL channel to multiple UE devices (e.g., each UE device can be assigned one or more individual frequency tones). For example, CDM in the time domain can be used to allocate resources for a UL channel to a first set of UE devices as described above for a single frequency tone of an LTE resource block 805, where CDM can be applied (e.g., by applying an orthogonal cover code) to more than one OFDM symbol period allocated to the data or reference symbol transmission of the frequency tone. These more than one OFDM symbol periods can be pairs of OFDM symbol periods as described above. In the example of single frequency tone allocation, FDM can be applied, but CDM may not be applied in the frequency domain. The code-division multiplexed OFDM symbols can be frequency domain multiplexed within the LTE resource block 805.

[0108] For additional UE devices (such as a second set of UE devices), CDM in the time domain may be similarly applied to one or more other tones of the LTE resource block 805. CDM may be applied to OFDM symbol periods of data or reference symbol periods.

[0109] In some examples as described above, one or more OFDM symbol period pairs may carry one or more single-tone ACKs or NAKs for one or more ACK channels of a UE device. Thus, an ACK channel of a UE device (e.g., carrying downlink ACKs and downlink NAKs) may be a single-tone transmission with CDM in the time domain along with one or more other ACK channels of other UE devices. The ACK channels may be frequency division multiplexed (and not code division multiplexed in frequency) within the LTE resource block 805.

[0110] In some examples, the frequency resources of time and frequency resource allocation 800 can be subdivided into 72 frequency tones.

[0111] Fig. 9 900 is shown as a time and frequency resource allocation within a superframe 905 that can be used for narrowband communication (e.g., NB-LTE communication) according to aspects of the present disclosure. Narrowband communication can occur between a base station and a set of narrowband (e.g., LTE-capable) UE devices. In some examples, the base station can be referenced to Figure 1 and 2 The example of the base station 105 described above, while the narrowband UE device may be a reference Figure 1 and 2 An example of a UE device 115 is described.

[0112] As an example, resources of superframe 905 may be allocated to PRACH, UL channels carrying UL control information, PUSCH, and SRS. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH. In some examples, resources may be allocated to SRS in each symbol period of each subframe of the superframe. In some examples, resources may be allocated to SRS in the last symbol period of each subframe, where resources are allocated to UL channels or PUSCH. PRACH, UL channels, PUSCH, and SRS may be multiplexed on resources in superframe 905 in the time domain, frequency domain, or a combination thereof.

[0113] Fig.10 1000 shows a device 1005 for use in wireless communications according to various aspects of the present disclosure. The device 1005 may be a reference Figure 1 1 or 2. The device 1005 may also be or include a processor. The device 1005 may include a receiver 1010, a wireless communication manager 1020, or a transmitter 1030. Each of these components may be in communication with each other.

[0114] The components of device 1005 may be implemented individually or collectively with one or more application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) adapted to perform some or all applicable functions in hardware. Alternatively, these functions may be performed by one or more other processing units (or cores) on one or more integrated circuits. In other examples, other integrated circuits (e.g., structured / platform ASICs, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), systems on chips (SoCs), and / or other semi-custom ICs) that can be programmed in any manner known in the art may be used. The functions of each component may also be implemented in whole or in part with instructions implemented in a memory and formatted to be executed by one or more general or special purpose processors.

[0115] In some examples, receiver 1010 may include at least one radio frequency (RF) receiver, such as at least one RF receiver operable to receive transmissions on at least one RF spectrum band. In some examples, one or more of the at least one RF spectrum band may be used for narrowband communications (e.g., NB-LTE communications), such as, for example, referring to Figure 1-9 The receiver 1010 may be used to communicate with one or more communication links of a wireless communication system (such as reference Figure 1 or 2) to receive various data or control signals on one or more communication links of the wireless communication system 100 or 200 described in FIG.

[0116] In some examples, transmitter 1030 may include at least one RF transmitter, such as at least one RF transmitter operable to transmit on at least one radio frequency spectrum band. Transmitter 1030 may be used to transmit on one or more communication links (such as reference Figure 1 Various data or control signals are transmitted on one or more communication links of the wireless communication system 100 or 200 described in or 2.

[0117] In some examples, wireless communication manager 1020 can be used to manage one or more aspects of wireless communication of device 1005. In some examples, a portion of wireless communication manager 1020 can be incorporated into or shared with receiver 1010 or transmitter 1030. In some examples, wireless communication manager 1020 can include resource identifier 1035, UE device identifier 1040, UL channel resource allocator 1045, or UE device resource allocator 1050.

[0118] The resource identifier 1035 may be used to identify time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in each of the plurality of subframes. The identified resources may include out-of-band resources or in-band resources, as shown in FIG. Figure 3Described. UE device identifier 1040 can be used to identify multiple UE devices (for example, UE devices require uplink resources for narrowband communication). UL channel resource allocator 1045 can be used to allocate time resources and at least a first portion of frequency resources to the UL channel. In some examples, for the first time slot and the second time slot of each subframe in a plurality of subframes, the same set of frequency resources can be allocated to the UL channel. In some examples, from one subframe to another subframe in a plurality of subframes, the same set of frequency resources or different sets of frequency resources can be allocated to the UL channel. UE device resource allocator 1050 can be used to allocate resources of the UL channel to the identified multiple UE devices. In some examples, the UL channel can be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH.

[0119] Fig.11 A diagram 1100 of a wireless communication manager 1020-a is shown in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The wireless communication manager 1020-a may be a reference Fig.10 The wireless communication manager 1020 described herein may be replaced with or may be described in reference to Figure 1 and 2 The wireless communication manager 1020-a may be used to manage one or more aspects of wireless communication of the base station. In some examples, a portion of the wireless communication manager 1020-a may be incorporated into a receiver or transmitter of the device (such as, for example, referring to Fig.10 In some examples, the wireless communication manager 1020-a may include a resource identifier 1035-a, a UE device identifier 1040-a, a UL channel resource allocator 1045-a, or a UE device resource allocator 1050-a, which may be referenced Fig.10 Examples of resource identifier 1035, UE device identifier 1040, UL channel resource allocator 1045, or UE device resource allocator 1050 are described. Wireless communication manager 1020-a may also include PRACH resource allocator 1105, PUSCH resource allocator 1110, SRS resource allocator 1115, or feedback processor 1135.

[0120] The components of the wireless communication manager 1020-a may be implemented individually or collectively using one or more ASICs adapted to perform some or all applicable functions in hardware. Alternatively, these functions may be performed by one or more other processing units (or cores) on one or more integrated circuits. In other examples, other types of integrated circuits (e.g., structured / platform ASICs, FPGAs, SoCs, and / or other types of semi-custom ICs) that may be programmed in any manner known in the art may be used. The functionality of each component may also be implemented in whole or in part using instructions implemented in a memory and formatted to be executed by one or more general or application-specific processors.

[0121] The resource identifier 1035-a may be used to identify time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in each of the plurality of subframes. The identified resources may include out-of-band resources or in-band resources, as described in detail in FIG. Figure 3 as described.

[0122] The UE device identifier 1040 - a may be used to identify multiple UE devices (eg, UE devices requiring uplink resources for narrowband communications).

[0123] The UL channel resource allocator 1045-a can be used to allocate at least a first portion of time resources and frequency resources to the UL channel. In some examples, the same set of frequency resources can be allocated to the UL channel for a first time slot and a second time slot of each subframe in a plurality of subframes. In some examples, the same set of frequency resources or a different set of frequency resources can be allocated to the UL channel from one subframe to another subframe in a plurality of subframes. In some examples, the UL channel can be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH.

[0124] The PRACH resource allocator 1105 may be used to allocate a second portion of time resources and frequency resources to the PRACH. The PUSCH resource allocator 1110 may be used to allocate a third portion of time resources and frequency resources to the PUSCH. The SRS resource allocator 1115 may be used to allocate a fourth portion of time resources and frequency resources to the SRS. In some examples, a combination of two or more of the UL channel resource allocator 1045-a, the PRACH resource allocator 1105, the PUSCH resource allocator 1110, or the SRS resource allocator 1115 may multiplex the UL channel, PRACH, PUSCH, or SRS in the time domain (on time resources identified for narrowband communication), the frequency domain (on frequency resources identified for narrowband communication), or a combination thereof.

[0125] In some examples, the SRS resource allocator 1115 may allocate resources for transmitting SRS in each symbol period in each of a plurality of subframes. In some examples, the SRS resource allocator 1115 may allocate resources for transmitting SRS in the last symbol period of each subframe, wherein the resources are allocated to a UL channel or a PUSCH.

[0126] The UE device resource allocator 1050-a can be used to allocate resources of the UL channel to the identified multiple UE devices. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel can be allocated to the multiple UE devices using frequency hopping within the resource block. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel can be allocated to the UE devices in the multiple UE devices additionally or alternatively based at least in part on the CE level associated with the UE device. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel allocated to the multiple UE devices may include a bundled TTI.

[0127] In some examples, UE device resource allocator 1050-a may include reference symbol allocator 1120, CDM allocator 1125, or FDM allocator 1130. Reference symbol allocator 1120 may be used to optionally allocate the same number of resources of the UL channel to reference symbol transmission and data symbol transmission.

[0128] In some examples, CDM allocator 1125 may be used to allocate resources of UL channels to multiple UE devices using cross-slot CDM in the time domain and CDM in the frequency domain. Alternatively, CDM allocator 1125 and FDM allocator 1130 may be used to allocate resources of UL channels to multiple UE devices using cross-slot CDM and FDM in the time domain. In some examples, cross-slot CDM in the time domain may include cross-subframe CDM in the time domain.

[0129] The feedback processor 1135 can be used to receive at least one or a combination of downlink ACK, downlink NAK, CQI from multiple UE devices. Downlink ACK, downlink NAK or CQI can be received on the UL channel. When the resources of the UL channel are allocated to multiple UE devices using cross-slot CDM in the time domain and CDM in the frequency domain, downlink ACK, downlink NAK, or CQI can be received from each UE device in multi-frequency transmission. When the resources of the UL channel are allocated to multiple UE devices using cross-slot CDM and FDM in the time domain, downlink ACK, downlink NAK, or CQI can be received from each UE device in a single frequency transmission. In some examples, multiple single frequency transmissions can be received from one or more UE devices on the UL channel in parallel.

[0130] In some examples, the feedback processor 1135 may include a CSI processor 1140. The CSI processor 1140 may be used to determine the CSI of at least one downlink of the narrowband communication. The CSI may be determined based at least in part on the CQI of at least one downlink received from one or more of the plurality of UE devices. Alternatively, the CSI processor 1140 may be used to estimate the CSI of at least one downlink of the narrowband communication. The CSI may be estimated based at least in part on the following parameters: a measurement of the SRS, a CQI of an uplink of the narrowband communication, a CQI received on the PUSCH, or a combination thereof.

[0131] Fig.12 A diagram 1200 of a device 1215 for use in wireless communications according to various aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The device 1215 may be a reference Figure 1 and 2 Examples of various aspects of one or more UE devices 115 are described. Device 1215 may also be or include a processor. Device 1215 may include a receiver 1210, a wireless communication manager 1220, or a transmitter 1230. Each of these components may be in communication with each other.

[0132] The components of device 1215 may be implemented individually or collectively using one or more ASICs adapted to perform some or all applicable functions in hardware. Alternatively, these functions may be performed by one or more other processing units (or cores) on one or more integrated circuits. In other examples, other integrated circuits (e.g., structured / platform ASICs, FPGAs, SoCs, and / or other semi-custom ICs) that can be programmed in any manner known in the art may be used. The functions of each component may also be implemented in whole or in part using instructions implemented in a memory formatted to be executed by one or more general or special purpose processors.

[0133] In some examples, receiver 1210 may include at least one RF receiver, such as at least one RF receiver operable to receive transmissions on at least one RF spectrum band. In some examples, one or more of the at least one RF spectrum band may be used for narrowband communications (e.g., NB-LTE communications), such as, for example, referring to Figure 1-9 Receiver 1210 may be used to communicate with one or more communication links of a wireless communication system (such as reference Figure 1 or 2) to receive various data or control signals on one or more communication links of the wireless communication system 100 or 200 described in FIG.

[0134] In some examples, transmitter 1230 may include at least one RF transmitter, such as at least one RF transmitter operable to transmit on at least one radio frequency spectrum band. Transmitter 1230 may be used to transmit on one or more communication links (such as reference Figure 1 Various data or control signals are transmitted on one or more communication links of the wireless communication system 100 or 200 described in or 2.

[0135] In some examples, wireless communication manager 1220 can be used to manage one or more aspects of wireless communication of device 1215. In some examples, portions of wireless communication manager 1220 can be incorporated into or shared with receiver 1210 or transmitter 1230. In some examples, wireless communication manager 1220 can include resource identifier 1235, UL channel resource identifier 1240, or feedback transmission manager 1245.

[0136] The resource identifier 1235 may be used to identify time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in each of the plurality of subframes. The identified resources may include out-of-band resources or in-band resources, as shown in FIG. Figure 3 As described. UL channel resource identifier 1240 can be used to receive an indication of at least a first portion of time resources and frequency resources of a UL channel allocated to a UE device. Feedback transmission manager 1245 can be used to transmit at least one of a downlink ACK, a downlink NAK, a CQI, or a combination thereof. In some cases, the UL channel can be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH.

[0137] Fig.13 A diagram 1300 of a wireless communication manager 1220-a is shown in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The wireless communication manager 1220-a may be a reference Fig.12 The wireless communication manager 1220 described herein may be replaced with or may be described in reference to Figure 1 and 2 The wireless communication manager 1220-a may be used to manage one or more aspects of wireless communication of the UE device. In some examples, a portion of the wireless communication manager 1220-a may be incorporated into a receiver or transmitter of the device (e.g., see Fig.12 In some examples, the wireless communication manager 1220-a may include a resource identifier 1235-a, a UL channel resource identifier 1240-a, or a feedback transmission manager 1245-a, which may be referenced Fig.12Examples of a resource identifier 1235, a UL channel resource identifier 1240, or a feedback transmission manager 1245 are described.

[0138] The components of the wireless communication manager 1220-a may be implemented individually or in aggregate using one or more ASICs adapted to perform some or all applicable functions in hardware. Alternatively, the functions may be performed by one or more other processing units (or cores) on one or more integrated circuits. In other examples, other types of integrated circuits (e.g., structured / platform ASICs, FPGAs, SoCs, and / or other types of semi-custom ICs) that may be programmed in any manner known in the art may be used. The functionality of each component may also be implemented in whole or in part using instructions implemented in a memory and formatted to be executed by one or more general or application-specific processors.

[0139] The resource identifier 1235-a may be used to identify time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in each of the plurality of subframes. The identified resources may include out-of-band resources or in-band resources, as described in detail in relation to FIG. Figure 3 as described.

[0140] The UL channel resource identifier 1240-a may be used to receive an indication of at least a first portion of time resources and frequency resources allocated to a UL channel for a UE device.In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH.

[0141] The feedback transmission manager 1245-a can be used to transmit at least one of a downlink ACK, a downlink NAK, a CQI, or a combination thereof. In some examples, the feedback transmission manager 1245-a may include a CDM transmission manager 1305 or an FDM transmission manager 1310. In some examples, the CDM transmission manager 1305 may be used to transmit a downlink ACK, a downlink NAK, and / or a CQI on a UL channel using cross-slot CDM in the time domain and CDM in the frequency domain. Alternatively, the CDM transmission manager 1305 and the FDM transmission manager 1310 may be used to transmit a downlink ACK, a downlink NAK, and / or a CQI on a UL channel using cross-slot CDM and FDM in the time domain. In some examples, the cross-slot CDM in the time domain may include cross-subframe CDM in the time domain.

[0142] In some examples of device 1215, feedback transmission manager 1245-a can be used to transmit the same number of reference symbols and data symbols on the UL channel.

[0143] Fig.14A diagram 1400 of a base station 105-c (e.g., a base station forming part or all of an eNB) for use in wireless communications according to various aspects of the present disclosure is shown. In some examples, the base station 105-c may be a base station 105-c. Figure 1 , 2 Examples of aspects of one or more of the base stations 105 or devices 1005 described in and 10. The base station 105-c may be configured to implement or facilitate reference to Figure 1-11 At least some of the described base station features and functions.

[0144] The base station 105-c may include a base station processor 1410, a base station memory 1420, at least one base station transceiver (represented by base station transceiver(s) 1450), at least one base station antenna (represented by base station antenna(s) 1455), or a wireless communication manager 1020-b. The base station 105-c may also include one or more of a base station communicator 1430 or a network communicator 1440. Each of these components may communicate with each other directly or indirectly over one or more buses 1435.

[0145] The base station memory 1420 may include random access memory (RAM) or read-only memory (ROM). The base station memory 1420 may store computer-readable, computer-executable code 1425, which includes instructions configured to, when executed, cause the base station processor 1410 to perform various functions related to wireless communication described herein (including, for example, as described with reference to Figure 1-11 The code 1425 may be instructions for allocating resources for narrowband communication on a PRACH, dedicated PUCCH, PUSCH, or SRS to a UE device as described herein. Alternatively, the code 1425 may be not directly executable by the base station processor 1410, but is configured (e.g., when compiled and executed) to cause the base station 105-c to perform various functions described herein.

[0146] The base station processor 1410 may include an intelligent hardware device, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller, an ASIC, etc. The base station processor 1410 may process information received through the base station transceiver(s) 1450, the base station communicator 1430, or the network communicator 1440. The base station processor 1410 may also process information to be sent to the transceiver(s) 1450 for transmission through the antenna(s) 1455, to be sent to the base station communicator 1430 for transmission to one or more other base stations 105-d and 105-e, or to be sent to the network communicator 1440 for transmission to the core network 130-a (which may be a reference to Figure 1The base station processor 1410 may handle various aspects of communicating (or managing communications) on one or more radio frequency spectrum bands, either alone or in conjunction with the wireless communication manager 1020-b.

[0147] The base station transceiver(s) 1450 may include a modem configured to modulate packets and provide the modulated packets to the base station antenna(s) 1455 for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the base station antenna(s) 1455. The base station transceiver(s) 1450 may be implemented in some examples as one or more base station transmitters and one or more separate base station receivers. The base station transceiver(s) 1450 may support communications over one or more wireless communication links. The base station transceiver(s) 1450 may be configured to communicate with one or more UE devices or other devices (such as reference 1450) via the antenna(s) 1455. Figure 1 , 2 14 and 12) for bidirectional communication with one or more of the UE devices 115 or devices 1215 described in the examples of FIG. 14 and 12. The base station 105-c may, for example, include multiple base station antennas 1455 (e.g., an antenna array). The base station 105-c may communicate with the core network 130-a via a network communicator 1440. The base station 105-c may also communicate with other base stations (such as base stations 105-d and 105-e) using a base station communication manager 1430.

[0148] The wireless communication manager 1020-b may be configured to execute or control the reference Figure 1-11 The wireless communication manager 1020-b or portions thereof may include a processor, or some or all of the functions of the wireless communication manager 1020-b may be performed by or in conjunction with the base station processor 1410. In some examples, the wireless communication manager 1020-b may be a reference to Fig.10 and 11 An example of a wireless communication manager 1020 is described.

[0149] Fig.15A diagram 1500 of a UE device 115-c for use in wireless communications is shown in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The UE device 115-c may have various configurations and may be a wireless communication device, a personal computer (e.g., a laptop computer, a netbook computer, a tablet computer, etc.), a handheld device, a cellular phone, a smart phone, a cordless phone, a wireless modem, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a digital video recorder (DVR), an Internet appliance, a game console, an e-reader, etc. The UE device 115-c may have an internal power source (not shown) such as a small battery in some examples to facilitate mobile or remote operation. In some examples, the UE device 115-c may be a reference Figure 1 , 2 Examples of aspects of one or more of the UE devices 115 or devices 1215 described in and 12. The UE 115-c may be configured to implement reference Figure 1-9 , 12 and 13 describe at least some of the UE device features and functions.

[0150] The UE device 115 may include a UE device processor 1510, a UE device memory 1520, at least one UE device transceiver (represented by UE device transceiver(s) 1530), at least one UE device antenna (represented by UE device antenna(s) 1540), or a wireless communication manager 1220-b. Each of these components may communicate with each other directly or indirectly over one or more buses 1535.

[0151] The UE device memory 1520 may include RAM or ROM. The UE device memory 1520 may store computer-readable, computer-executable code 1525, which includes a configuration that, when executed, causes the UE device processor 1510 to perform various functions related to wireless communication described herein (including, for example, referring to Figure 1-9 , 12 and 13 as described in the instructions for transmitting narrowband communications on the PRACH, dedicated PUCCH, PUSCH or SRS. Alternatively, the code 1525 may be not directly executable by the UE device processor 1510, but is configured (e.g., when compiled and executed) to cause the UE device 115-c to perform various functions described herein.

[0152] The UE device processor 1510 may include an intelligent hardware device, such as a CPU, a microcontroller, an ASIC, etc. The UE device processor 1510 may process information received by the UE device transceiver(s) 1530 or information to be sent to the UE device transceiver(s) 1530 for transmission via the UE device antenna(s) 1540. The UE device processor 1510 may handle various aspects of communicating (or managing communications thereon) on one or more radio frequency spectrum bands, either alone or in conjunction with the wireless communication manager 1220-b.

[0153] The UE device transceiver(s) 1530 may include a modem configured to modulate packets and provide the modulated packets to the UE device antenna(s) 1540 for transmission, and to demodulate packets received from the UE device antenna(s) 1540. The UE device transceiver(s) 1530 may be implemented in some examples as one or more UE device transmitters and one or more separate UE device receivers. The UE device transceiver(s) 1530 may support communications over one or more wireless communication links. The UE device transceiver(s) 1530 may be configured to communicate with one or more base stations or other devices (such as reference 100) via the UE device antenna(s) 1540. Figure 1 , 2 10) for bidirectional communication with one or more of the base stations 105 or devices 1005 described in conjunction with 10. Although the UE device 115-c may include a single UE device antenna, there may be examples in which the UE device 115-c may include multiple UE device antennas 1540.

[0154] The wireless communication manager 1220-b may be configured to execute or control the reference Figure 1-9 , 12, and 13, involving some or all of the UE device features or functions of wireless communications over one or more radio frequency spectrum bands. The wireless communication manager 1220-b or portions thereof may include a processor, or some or all of the functions of the wireless communication manager 1220-b may be performed by or in conjunction with the UE device processor 1510. In some examples, the wireless communication manager 1220-b may be a reference Fig.12 and 13 An example of a wireless communication manager 1220 is described.

[0155] Fig.16 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method 1600 for wireless communication at a base station according to various aspects of the present disclosure. For clarity, in the following, various aspects of one or more base stations 105 described with reference to references 1, 2, and 14, references Fig.10 Aspects of the device 1005 described or referenced Fig.10 , 1114 and 1600 are described in detail with reference to aspects of one or more wireless communication managers 1020 described in detail. In some examples, the base station may execute one or more code sets for controlling functional elements of the base station to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the base station may use dedicated hardware to perform one or more functions described below.

[0156] At block 1605, method 1600 may include identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in each of a plurality of subframes. The identified resources may include out-of-band resources or in-band resources, as described with reference to Figure 3 The operations at block 1605 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The resource identifier 1035 described is executed.

[0157] At block 1610, method 1610 may include identifying a plurality of UE devices (eg, UE devices requiring uplink resources for narrowband communications). The operations at block 1610 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The UE device identifier 1040 described above is used to perform the above operation.

[0158] At block 1615, method 1600 may include allocating at least a first portion of time resources and frequency resources to the UL channel. In some examples, the same set of frequency resources may be allocated to the UL channel for a first time slot and a second time slot of each subframe in the plurality of subframes. In some examples, the same set of frequency resources or a different set of frequency resources may be allocated to the UL channel from one subframe to another subframe in the plurality of subframes. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH. The operation(s) at block 1615 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The UL channel resource allocator 1045 described above is performed.

[0159] At block 1620, method 1600 may include allocating resources of the UL channel to the identified multiple UE devices. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel may be allocated to the multiple UE devices using intra-resource block frequency hopping. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel may be allocated to the UE devices in the multiple UE devices additionally or alternatively based at least in part on the CE level associated with the UE device. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel allocated to the multiple UE devices may include a bundled TTI. The operation(s) at block 1620 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The UE device resource allocator 1050 described above is executed.

[0160] Thus, method 1600 may provide wireless communications.It should be noted that method 1600 is just one implementation, and the operations of method 1600 may be rearranged or otherwise modified such that other implementations are possible.

[0161] Fig.17 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method 1700 for wireless communication at a base station according to various aspects of the present disclosure. For clarity, in the following, various aspects of one or more base stations 105 described with reference to references 1, 2, and 14, references Fig.10 Aspects of the device 1005 described or referenced Fig.10 , 11 14 and 1700. In some examples, the base station may execute one or more code sets for controlling the functional elements of the base station to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the base station may use dedicated hardware to perform one or more functions described below.

[0162] At block 1705, method 1700 may include identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in each of a plurality of subframes. The identified resources may include out-of-band resources or in-band resources, as described with reference to Figure 3 The operations at block 1705 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The resource identifier 1035 described is executed.

[0163] At block 1710, method 1700 may include identifying a plurality of UE devices (eg, UE devices requiring uplink resources for narrowband communications). The operations at block 1710 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The UE device identifier 1040 described above is used to perform.

[0164] At block 1715, method 1700 may include allocating at least a first portion of time resources and frequency resources to the UL channel. In some examples, the same set of frequency resources may be allocated to the UL channel for a first time slot and a second time slot of each of the plurality of subframes. In some examples, the same set of frequency resources or a different set of frequency resources may be allocated to the UL channel from one subframe to another in the plurality of subframes. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH. The operation(s) at block 1715 may use reference to Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The UL channel resource allocator 1045 described above is performed.

[0165] At block 1720, method 1700 may optionally include allocating the same number of resources of the UL channel to the reference symbol transmission and the data symbol transmission. The operations at block 1720 may use the reference symbol. Fig.10 , 11 and 14 described wireless communication manager 1020, referring to Fig.10 UE device resource allocator 1050 described, or refer to Fig.11 The description is performed by reference symbol allocator 1120.

[0166] At block 1725, method 1700 may include allocating resources of the UL channel to the identified multiple UE devices. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel may be allocated to the multiple UE devices using intra-resource block frequency hopping. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel may be allocated to the UE devices in the multiple UE devices additionally or alternatively based at least in part on the CE level associated with the UE device. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel allocated to the multiple UE devices may include a bundled TTI. The operation(s) at block 1725 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The UE device resource allocator 1050 described above is executed.

[0167] After the operation(s) at block 1725, the method 1700 may continue at block 1730 or block 1740. At block 1730, the method 1700 may include receiving at least one of a downlink ACK, a downlink NAK, a CQI, or a combination thereof from a plurality of UE devices on a UL channel. The operation(s) at block 1730 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.11 The feedback processor 1135 described above is executed.

[0168] At block 1735, method 1700 may include determining CSI for at least one downlink of narrowband communication based at least in part on the CQI for at least one downlink received from one or more of the plurality of UE devices (e.g., at block 1730). The operations at block 1735 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.11 The described CSI processor 1140 is executed.

[0169] At block 1740, method 1700 may include receiving at least one of a downlink ACK, a downlink NAK, or a combination thereof from a plurality of UE devices on a UL channel. The operations at block 1740 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.11 The feedback processor 1135 described above is executed.

[0170] At block 1745, method 1700 may include estimating CSI for at least one downlink of narrowband communication based at least in part on: a measurement of SRS, a CQI for an uplink of narrowband communication, a CQI received on a PUSCH, or a combination thereof. The operations at block 1745 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.11 The described CSI processor 1140 is executed.

[0171] Thus, method 1700 can provide wireless communications. It should be noted that method 1700 is just one implementation, and the operations of method 1700 may be rearranged or otherwise modified such that other implementations are possible.

[0172] Fig.181 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method 1800 for wireless communication at a base station according to various aspects of the present disclosure. For clarity, in the following, various aspects of one or more base stations 105 described with reference to references 1, 2, and 14, references Fig.10 Aspects of the device 1005 described or referenced Fig.10 , 11 14 and 14 to describe the method 1800. In some examples, the base station may execute one or more code sets for controlling the functional elements of the base station to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the base station may use dedicated hardware to perform one or more functions described below.

[0173] At block 1805, method 1800 may include identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in each of a plurality of subframes. The identified resources may include out-of-band resources or in-band resources, as described with reference to Figure 3 The operations at block 1805 may be performed using reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The resource identifier 1035 described is executed.

[0174] At block 1810, method 1800 may include identifying a plurality of UE devices (eg, UE devices requiring uplink resources for narrowband communications). The operations at block 1810 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The UE device identifier 1040 described above is used to perform the above operation.

[0175] At block 1815, method 1800 may include allocating at least a first portion of time resources and frequency resources to the UL channel. In some examples, the same set of frequency resources may be allocated to the UL channel for a first time slot and a second time slot of each of the plurality of subframes. In some examples, the same set of frequency resources or a different set of frequency resources may be allocated to the UL channel from one subframe to another in the plurality of subframes. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH. The operation(s) at block 1815 may use reference to Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The UL channel resource allocator 1045 described above is performed.

[0176] At block 1820, method 1800 may optionally include allocating the same number of resources of the UL channel to the reference symbol transmission and the data symbol transmission. The operations at block 1820 may use the reference symbol. Fig.10 , 11 and 14 described wireless communication manager 1020, referring to Fig.10 UE device resource allocator 1050 described, or refer to Fig.11 The description is performed by reference symbol allocator 1120.

[0177] After the operation(s) at box 1820, method 1800 may continue at box 1825 or box 1835. At box 1825 or 1835, method 1800 may include allocating resources of the UL channel to the identified multiple UE devices. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel may be allocated to the multiple UE devices using frequency hopping within the resource block. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel may be allocated to the UE devices in the multiple UE devices additionally or alternatively based at least in part on the CE level associated with the UE device. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel allocated to the multiple UE devices may include a bundled TTI.

[0178] At block 1825, method 1800 may include allocating resources of the UL channel to multiple UE devices using cross-slot CDM in the time domain and CDM in the frequency domain. In some examples, the cross-slot CDM in the time domain may include cross-subframe CDM in the time domain. The operations at block 1825 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and 14 described wireless communication manager 1020, referring to Fig.10 and 11 UE device resource allocator 1050 described, or refer to Fig.11 The CDM allocator 1125 described above is executed.

[0179] At block 1830, method 1800 may include receiving a multi-tone transmission on a UL channel from each of a plurality of UE devices. The operations at block 1830 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.11 The feedback processor 1135 described above is executed.

[0180] At block 1835, method 1800 may include allocating resources of the UL channel to multiple UE devices using cross-slot CDM and FDM in the time domain. In some examples, the cross-slot CDM in the time domain may include cross-subframe CDM in the time domain. The operations at block 1835 may use reference Fig.10 ,11 and 14 described wireless communication manager 1020, referring to Fig.10 and 11 UE device resource allocator 1050 described, or refer to Fig.11 The CDM allocator 1125 or the FDM allocator 1130 described above may be used to perform the above.

[0181] At block 1840, method 1800 may include receiving a single tone transmission from each of the plurality of UE devices in parallel on the UL channel. In some examples, the plurality of single tone transmissions may be received in parallel on the UL channel from one or more UE devices. The operations at block 1830 may be performed using reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.11 The feedback processor 1135 described above is executed.

[0182] Thus, method 1800 can provide wireless communications.It should be noted that method 1800 is just one implementation, and the operations of method 1800 may be rearranged or otherwise modified such that other implementations are possible.

[0183] Fig.19 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method 1900 for wireless communication at a base station according to various aspects of the present disclosure. For clarity, in the following, various aspects of one or more base stations 105 described with reference to references 1, 2, and 14, references Fig.10 Aspects of the device 1005 described or referenced Fig.10 , 11 14 and 14 to describe the method 1900. In some examples, the base station may execute one or more code sets for controlling the functional elements of the base station to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the base station may use dedicated hardware to perform one or more functions described below.

[0184] At block 1905, method 1900 may include identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in each of a plurality of subframes. The identified resources may include out-of-band resources or in-band resources, as described with reference to Figure 3 The operations at block 1905 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The resource identifier 1035 described is executed.

[0185] At block 1910, method 1900 may include identifying a plurality of UE devices (eg, UE devices requiring uplink resources for narrowband communications). The operations at block 1910 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The UE device identifier 1040 described above is used to perform.

[0186] At block 1915, method 1900 may include allocating at least a first portion of time resources and frequency resources to the UL channel. In some examples, the same set of frequency resources may be allocated to the UL channel for a first time slot and a second time slot of each subframe in the plurality of subframes. In some examples, the same set of frequency resources or a different set of frequency resources may be allocated to the UL channel from one subframe to another subframe in the plurality of subframes. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH. The operation(s) at block 1915 may use reference to Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The UL channel resource allocator 1045 described above is performed.

[0187] At block 1920, method 1900 may include allocating a second portion of time resources and frequency resources to the PRACH. The operations at block 1920 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and 14 described wireless communication manager 1020, referring to Fig.10 UE device resource allocator 1050 described, or refer to Fig.11 The PRACH resource allocator 1105 described above is performed.

[0188] At block 1925, method 1900 may include allocating a third portion of time resources and frequency resources to the PUSCH. The operations at block 1925 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.11 The PUSCH resource allocator 1110 described above is executed.

[0189] At block 1930, method 1900 may include allocating a fourth portion of time resources and frequency resources to the SRS. In some examples, resources for transmitting the SRS may be allocated in each symbol period of each of the plurality of subframes. In some examples, resources for transmitting the SRS may be allocated in the last symbol period of each subframe, where the resources are allocated to the UL channel or the PUSCH. The operations at block 1930 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.11 UL channels, PRACH, PUSCH, and SRS may be multiplexed in the time domain (on the time resources identified at block 1905 for narrowband communication), the frequency domain (on the frequency resources identified at block 1905 for narrowband communication), or a combination thereof.

[0190] At block 1935, method 1900 may optionally include allocating the same number of resources of the UL channel to the reference symbol transmission and the data symbol transmission. The operations at block 1935 may use the reference symbol. Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.11 The description is performed by reference symbol allocator 1120.

[0191] At block 1940, method 1900 may include allocating resources of the UL channel to the identified multiple UE devices. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel may be allocated to the multiple UE devices using intra-resource block frequency hopping. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel may be allocated to the UE devices in the multiple UE devices additionally or alternatively based at least in part on the CE level associated with the UE device. In some examples, the resources of the UL channel allocated to the multiple UE devices may include a bundled TTI. The operation(s) at block 1940 may use reference Fig.10 , 11 and the wireless communication manager 1020 described in 14, or with reference to Fig.10 and 11 The UE device resource allocator 1050 described above is executed.

[0192] Thus, method 1900 can provide wireless communications.It should be noted that method 1900 is just one implementation, and the operations of method 1900 may be rearranged or otherwise modified such that other implementations are possible.

[0193] In some examples, reference Figure 16-19 Aspects of the described methods 1600, 1700, 1800, or 1900 may be combined.

[0194] Fig. 20 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method 2000 for wireless communication at a UE device according to various aspects of the present disclosure. For clarity, in the following, various aspects of one or more UE devices 115 described with reference to references 1, 2, and 15, references Fig.12 Aspects of the device 1215 described, or referenced Fig.12 , 13 15 to describe the method 2000. In some examples, the UE device may execute one or more code sets to control the functional elements of the UE device to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the UE device may use dedicated hardware to perform one or more functions described below.

[0195] At block 2005, method 2000 may include identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in each of a plurality of subframes. The identified resources may include out-of-band resources or in-band resources, as described with reference to Figure 3 The operations at block 2005 may be performed using reference Fig.12 , 13 and the wireless communication manager 1220 described in 15, or with reference to Fig.12 and 13 The resource identifier 1235 described is executed.

[0196] At block 2010, method 2000 may include receiving an indication of at least a first portion of time resources and frequency resources allocated to a UL channel of a UE device. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH. The operations at block 2010 may use reference Fig.12 , 13 and the wireless communication manager 1220 described in 15, or with reference to Fig.12 and 13 The UL channel resource identifier 1240 described above is performed.

[0197] At block 2015, method 2000 may include transmitting at least one of a downlink ACK, a downlink NAK, a CQI, or a combination thereof on a UL channel. The operations at block 2015 may use reference Fig.12 , 13 and the wireless communication manager 1220 described in 15, or with reference to Fig.12 and 13 The feedback transmission manager 1245 described above is executed.

[0198] Thus, method 2000 can provide wireless communications.It should be noted that method 2000 is just one implementation, and the operations of method 2000 may be rearranged or otherwise modified such that other implementations are possible.

[0199] Fig.21 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method 2100 for wireless communication at a UE device according to various aspects of the present disclosure. For clarity, in the following, various aspects of one or more UE devices 115 described with reference to references 1, 2, and 15, references Fig.12 Aspects of the device 1215 described, or referenced Fig.12 , 13 15 to describe the method 2100 in terms of aspects of one or more wireless communication managers 1220 described in the embodiments of the present invention. In some examples, the UE device may execute one or more code sets to control the functional elements of the UE device to perform the functions described below. Additionally or alternatively, the UE device may use dedicated hardware to perform one or more functions described below.

[0200] At block 2105, method 2100 may include identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in each of a plurality of subframes. The identified resources may include out-of-band resources or in-band resources, as described with reference to Figure 3 The operations at block 2105 may be performed using reference Fig.12 , 13 and the wireless communication manager 1220 described in 15, or with reference to Fig.12 and 13 The resource identifier 1235 described is executed.

[0201] At block 2110, method 2100 may include receiving an indication of at least a first portion of time resources and frequency resources allocated to a UL channel of a UE device. In some cases, the UL channel may be an example of a UL control channel such as a dedicated PUCCH. The operations at block 2110 may use reference Fig.12 , 13 and the wireless communication manager 1220 described in 15, or with reference to Fig.12 and 13 The UL channel resource identifier 1240 described above is performed.

[0202] At block 2115, method 2100 may include transmitting at least one of a downlink ACK, a downlink NAK, a CQI, or a combination thereof on a UL channel. The operations at block 2115 may use reference Fig.12 , 13 and the wireless communication manager 1220 described in 15, or with reference to Fig.12 and 13The feedback transmission manager 1245 described above is executed.

[0203] After the operation(s) at block 2110, the method 2100 may continue at block 2115 or block 2120. At block 2115 or 2120, the method 2100 may include transmitting at least one of a downlink ACK, a downlink NAK, a CQI, or a combination thereof on the UL channel. At block 2115, the method 2110 may include transmitting the downlink ACK, the downlink NAK, and / or the CQI on the UL channel using cross-slot CDM in the time domain and CDM in the frequency domain. In some examples, the cross-slot CDM in the time domain may include cross-subframe CDM in the time domain. The operation(s) at block 2115 may use reference Fig.12 , 13 and 15 described wireless communication manager 1220, referring to Fig.12 and 13 Feedback transmission manager 1245 described herein, or reference Fig.13 The described CDM transmission manager 1305 is executed.

[0204] At block 2120, method 2110 may include transmitting a downlink ACK, a downlink NAK, and / or a CQI on a UL channel using cross-slot CDM and FDM in the time domain. In some examples, the cross-slot CDM in the time domain may include cross-subframe CDM in the time domain. The operations at block 2120 may use reference Fig.12 , 13 and 15 described wireless communication manager 1220, referring to Fig.12 and 13 Feedback transmission manager 1245 described herein, or reference Fig.13 The described CDM transmission manager 1305 or FDM transmission manager 1310 is executed.

[0205] In some examples, method 2100 may include transmitting the same number of reference symbols and data symbols on the UL channel.

[0206] Thus, method 2100 can provide wireless communications.It should be noted that method 2100 is just one implementation, and the operations of method 2100 can be rearranged or otherwise modified such that other implementations are possible.

[0207] The detailed description set forth above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings describes examples and does not represent all examples that can be implemented or fall within the scope of the claims. The terms "example" and "exemplary" when used in this specification mean "used as an example, instance, or illustration" and do not mean "better than" or better than other examples. This detailed description includes specific details to provide an understanding of the described techniques. However, these techniques can be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the concepts of the described examples.

[0208] Information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different techniques and technologies. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be mentioned throughout the above description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0209] The various illustrative blocks and components described in conjunction with the disclosure herein may be implemented or performed with a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, an FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in an alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in cooperation with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0210] The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, each function may be stored on or transmitted by a computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or codes. Other examples and implementations fall within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, the functions described above may be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hard wiring, or any combination thereof. The features that implement the functions may also be physically located in various locations, including being distributed so that the various parts of the functions are implemented at different physical locations. As used herein (including in the claims), the term "and / or" used in the enumeration of two or more items means that any one of the listed items may be adopted alone, or any combination of two or more listed items may be adopted. For example, if a composition is described as comprising components A, B, and / or C, the composition may comprise only A; only B; only C; a combination of A and B; a combination of A and C; a combination of B and C; or a combination of A, B, and C. Similarly, as used herein (including in the claims), "or" used in a list of items (e.g., in a list of items followed by a phrase such as "at least one of" or "one or more of") indicates a disjunctive list so 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).

[0211] Computer-readable media include both computer storage media and communication media, including any media that facilitates a computer program to be transferred from one place to another. Storage media can be any available media that can be accessed by a general or special-purpose computer. As an example and not limitation, computer-readable media may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store the desired program code means of an instruction or data structure form and can be accessed by a general or special-purpose computer or a general or special-purpose processor. Any connection is also properly referred to as computer-readable media. For example, if 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 microwaves, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio and microwaves are included in the definition of medium. Disk and disc as used herein include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray disc, wherein disk usually reproduces data magnetically, while disc reproduces data optically with laser. Combinations of the above media are also included in the scope of computer-readable media.

[0212] The previous description of the disclosure is provided to enable those skilled in the art to make or use the disclosure. Various modifications to the disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the universal principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosure. The terms "example" or "exemplary" throughout the disclosure indicate an example or instance without implying or requiring any preference for the referenced example. Thus, the disclosure is not limited to the examples and designs described herein, but should be granted the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication at a base station, comprising: identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in a plurality of subframes; identifying a plurality of user equipment (UE) devices; allocating at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources to an uplink (UL) channel to carry UL control information, wherein the first portion includes a time slot having seven symbols; as well as Allocating resources of the UL channel to the identified multiple UE devices; as well as Symbols 1, 2, 6, and 7 of the time slot are allocated for UL data transmission and symbols 3, 4, and 5 of the time slot are allocated for reference symbol transmission.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: One or both of a downlink acknowledgment (ACK) and a downlink negative acknowledgment (NAK) are received from one or more of the plurality of UE devices on the UL channel.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising: The UL channel is multiplexed with a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), a physical random access channel (PRACH), a sounding reference signal (SRS), or a combination thereof in one or both of the time and frequency domains.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the UL channel comprises a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

5. The method of claim 1, wherein allocating resources of the UL channel to the plurality of UE devices comprises: Resources of the UL channel are allocated to the plurality of UEs using frequency domain multiplexing (FDM).

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising: Single tone transmissions are received in parallel from the plurality of UE devices on the UL channel.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising: A plurality of single tone transmissions are received in parallel from UE devices among the plurality of UE devices on the UL channel.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the time slot is a first time slot and the first portion includes a second time slot, and wherein allocating the time resources and at least a first portion of the frequency resources to the UL channel comprises: For the first time slot and the second time slot in the plurality of subframes, the UL channel is allocated a same set of frequency resources.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein allocating the time resources and at least a first portion of the frequency resources to the UL channel comprises: The UL channel is allocated a same set of frequency resources from one subframe to another subframe in the plurality of subframes.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein allocating resources of the UL channel to the plurality of UE devices comprises: Resources of the UL channel are allocated to the plurality of UE devices using intra-resource block frequency hopping.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the time resources and the frequency resources of the UL channel allocated to the plurality of UE devices comprise a bundled transmission time interval (TTI).

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising: Channel state information (CSI) for at least one downlink of the narrowband communication is estimated based at least in part on measurements of a sounding reference signal (SRS), channel quality information (CQI) for the uplink of the narrowband communication, CQI received on a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), or a combination thereof.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein allocating resources of the UL channel to the plurality of UE devices comprises: Resources of the UL channel are allocated to a UE device among the plurality of UE devices based at least in part on a coverage enhancement (CE) level associated with the UE device.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising: A sounding reference signal (SRS) is transmitted during each symbol period of each subframe of the plurality of subframes.

15. An apparatus for wireless communication at a base station, comprising: processor; a memory in communication with the processor; as well as instructions stored in the memory, the instructions being executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in a plurality of subframes; identifying a plurality of user equipment (UE) devices; allocating at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources to an uplink (UL) channel to carry UL control information, wherein the first portion includes a time slot having seven symbols; as well as Allocating resources of the UL channel to the identified multiple UE devices; as well as Symbols 1, 2, 6, and 7 of the time slot are allocated for UL data transmission and symbols 3, 4, and 5 of the time slot are allocated for reference symbol transmission.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the instructions are executable by the processor to: One or both of a downlink acknowledgment (ACK) and a downlink negative acknowledgment (NAK) are received from one or more of the plurality of UE devices on the UL channel.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the instructions are executable by the processor to: The UL channel is multiplexed with a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), a physical random access channel (PRACH), a sounding reference signal (SRS), or a combination thereof in one or both of the time and frequency domains.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the UL channel comprises a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the instructions executable by the processor to allocate resources of the UL channel to the plurality of UE devices include instructions executable by the processor to: Resources of the UL channel are allocated to the plurality of UEs using frequency domain multiplexing (FDM).

20. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the time slot is a first time slot and the first portion includes a second time slot, and wherein the instructions executable by the processor to allocate the time resources and at least a first portion of the frequency resources to the UL channel include instructions executable by the processor to: For the first time slot and the second time slot in the plurality of subframes, the UL channel is allocated a same set of frequency resources.

21. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the instructions executable by the processor to allocate the time resources and at least a first portion of the frequency resources to the UL channel include instructions executable by the processor to: The UL channel is allocated a same set of frequency resources from one subframe to another subframe in the plurality of subframes.

22. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the instructions executable by the processor to allocate resources of the UL channel to the plurality of UE devices further comprise instructions executable by the processor to: Resources of the UL channel are allocated to the plurality of UE devices using intra-resource block frequency hopping.

23. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the time resources and the frequency resources of the UL channel allocated to the plurality of UE devices comprise a bundled transmission time interval (TTI).

24. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the instructions executable by the processor to allocate resources of the UL channel to the plurality of UE devices further comprise instructions executable by the processor to: Resources of the UL channel are allocated to a UE device among the plurality of UE devices based at least in part on a coverage enhancement (CE) level associated with the UE device.

25. A method for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE) device, comprising: identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in a plurality of subframes; receiving an indication that at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources are allocated to an uplink (UL) channel to carry UL control information for the UE device, wherein the first portion includes a time slot having seven symbols, and symbols 1, 2, 6, and 7 of the time slot are allocated for UL data transmission and symbols 3, 4, and 5 of the time slot are allocated for reference symbol transmission; and One or both of a downlink acknowledgement (ACK) and a downlink negative acknowledgement (NAK) are transmitted in one or more of symbols 1, 2, 6, and 7 of the time slots of the first portion.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising: A physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) is transmitted, wherein the UL channel is multiplexed with the PUSCH.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the UL channel comprises a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

28. The method of claim 25, further comprising: Frequency domain multiplexing (FDM) is used for transmission on the UL channel.

29. An apparatus for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE) device, comprising: processor; a memory in communication with the processor; as well as instructions stored in the memory, the instructions executable by the processor to: identifying time resources and frequency resources for narrowband communication in a plurality of subframes; receiving an indication that at least a first portion of the time resources and the frequency resources are allocated to an uplink (UL) channel to carry UL control information for the UE device, wherein the first portion includes a time slot having seven symbols, and symbols 1, 2, 6, and 7 of the time slot are allocated for UL data transmission and symbols 3, 4, and 5 of the time slot are allocated for reference symbol transmission; and One or both of a downlink acknowledgement (ACK) and a downlink negative acknowledgement (NAK) are transmitted in one or more of symbols 1, 2, 6, and 7 of the time slots of the first portion.

30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the instructions are executable by the processor to: A physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) is transmitted, wherein the UL channel is multiplexed with the PUSCH.

31. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the UL channel comprises a dedicated physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

32. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the instructions are executable by the processor to: Transmissions are made on the UL channel using frequency domain multiplexing (FDM) across time slots.

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