User Equipment Coordination Set Scheduling

Abstract

This document describes a method, apparatus, system, and apparatus for scheduling a User Equipment Coordination Set (UECS) (404), wherein a coordinating user equipment (111) receives from a base station (121) an instruction specifying multiple user equipments (112, 113) to be included in the UECS (602). The coordinating user equipment (111) allocates resources to each of the multiple user equipments (112, 113) for communication using the local wireless network (604), and sends UECS resource grants (520, 525) to each of the multiple user equipments (112, 113) for communication using the local wireless network (606). The coordinating user equipment (111) uses the resources granted in the UECS resource grants (520, 525) for the local wireless network to communicate with the multiple user equipments (112, 113) to coordinate joint communication between the UECS (404) and the base station (121) (608). Coordinate user equipment (111) to participate in joint communication with multiple user equipment (112, 113) to communicate data (610) with base station (121) for a target user equipment in user equipment coordination set (404).

Description

Background Technology

[0001] A User Equipment Coordination Set (UECS) is formed by multiple User Equipments (UEs) assigned as a group to work together in a manner similar to distributed antennas to benefit a specific UE (e.g., a target UE). A UECS includes a coordinating UE, which coordinates the joint transmission and reception of downlink and / or uplink data for the target UE or multiple UEs in the UECS. Joint communication improves the link budget of communication by combining the antennas and transceivers of multiple UEs in the UECS compared to a single UE communicating with a base station. Summary of the Invention

[0002] This invention is provided to introduce a simplified concept for user equipment coordination set scheduling. These simplified concepts are further described below in detail. This invention is not intended to identify essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended for use in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.

[0003] In various aspects, methods, apparatus, systems, and devices are described for scheduling local wireless network communications by a user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication network, the UE being configured as a coordinating UE coordination set. The coordinating UE receives an instruction from a base station specifying multiple UEs to be included in the UE coordination set, and allocates air interface resources to each of the multiple UEs for communication using the local wireless network. The coordinating UE sends a UECS resource grant to each of the multiple UEs for communication using the local wireless network, and communicates with the multiple UEs using the resources granted in the UECS resource grant for the local wireless network to coordinate joint communication between the UE coordination set and the base station. The coordinating UE participates in the joint communication with the multiple UEs to communicate data of the target UEs in the UE coordination set to the base station. Attached Figure Description

[0004] The following describes in detail one or more aspects of user equipment coordination set scheduling. The same reference numerals are used in different instances of the specification and figures to indicate similar elements:

[0005] Figure 1 The illustration shows an example operating environment in which various aspects of user equipment coordination set scheduling can be implemented.

[0006] Figure 2 The diagram illustrates an example device for user equipment and serving cell base stations.

[0007] Figure 3 The diagram illustrates the air interface resources that extend between user equipment and base stations and enable various aspects of user equipment coordination set scheduling.

[0008] Figure 4 The illustration shows an example environment in which various aspects of user equipment coordination set scheduling can be implemented.

[0009] Figure 5 The illustration shows example data and control transactions between devices in the user equipment coordination set and the base station, based on various aspects of scheduling according to the user equipment coordination set.

[0010] Figure 6 The illustration shows an example method for scheduling user equipment coordination sets that is generally related to coordinating user equipment, based on various aspects of the technology described herein. Detailed Implementation

[0011] This document describes methods, apparatus, systems, and devices for scheduling a User Equipment Coordination Set (UE Coordination Set, UECS), wherein a coordinating user equipment receives from a base station an instruction specifying multiple user equipments to be included in the UE Coordination Set. The coordinating user equipment allocates air interface resources to each of the multiple user equipments for communication using the local wireless network and sends a UECS resource grant to each of the multiple user equipments for communication using the local wireless network. The coordinating user equipment uses the resources granted in the UECS resource grant for the local wireless network to communicate with the multiple user equipments to coordinate joint communication between the UE Coordination Set and the base station. The coordinating user equipment participates in joint communication with the multiple user equipments to communicate data with the base station for a target user equipment in the UE Coordination Set.

[0012] A UE coordination set is formed by multiple UEs assigned as a group to work together in a manner similar to distributed antennas to benefit a specific user equipment. A UE coordination set includes a coordinating UE, which coordinates the joint transmission and reception of downlink and / or uplink data for a specific UE (e.g., a target UE) or multiple UEs within the UE coordination set. By combining the antennas and transmitters of multiple UEs in the UE coordination set, the effective transmit power of a specific UE is significantly increased, and the effective signal quality is greatly improved.

[0013] Multiple UEs can receive downlink data transmissions independently from the base station. Unlike traditional relay technology, these UEs do not decode the downlink transmissions into data packets and then forward them to their destination. Instead, the UE demodulates and samples the downlink transmissions to generate I / Q samples. The UE determines where to forward the I / Q samples of the downlink transmissions, such as to a coordinating UE or a target UE for decoding. In some respects, the target UE can be included in a subset of target UEs within a UE coordination set. The coordinating UE (or target UE) receives I / Q samples from other UEs in the UE coordination set and stores them in a buffer for decoding. The coordinating UE (or target UE) then synchronizes the stored I / Q samples and decodes them into data packets for the target UE. Thus, the processing of I / Q samples occurs at the coordinating UE or the target UE. In this way, the UE coordination set acts as a distributed antenna for the target UE. The target UE includes its own antenna and participates in the reception, demodulation, and sampling of downlink transmissions from the base station, and forwards the sampled I / Q data to the coordinating UE. However, if the target UE is a coordinated UE, the target UE will not forward I / Q samples to itself.

[0014] In one use case, multiple UEs can form a UE coordination set to transmit messages to the base station with a higher effective transmission power than the possible effective transmission power of an individual UE. Furthermore, these UEs can form a UE coordination set to receive messages from the base station with a higher effective reception sensitivity than the possible effective reception sensitivity of a single UE. One of the multiple UEs acts as the coordinating UE of the UE coordination set to aggregate data signals intended for the target UE and received by the UE coordination set. Each UE demodulates and samples the radio frequency signal and forwards baseband samples to the coordinating UE using the local wireless network. The coordinating UE then aggregates and processes the samples to generate decoded data and provides it to the target UE. Alternatively, the coordinating UE can forward stored samples to the target UE to allow the target UE to decode the data.

[0015] In all aspects, the UE coordinates the scheduling of communication between UEs within the UECS to enable joint transmission and / or joint reception. The UE coordinates the use of the local radio network to schedule communication within the UECS. The local radio network may use unlicensed radio technologies, Radio Access Network (RAN) resources allocated by the base station to the UECS used for the local radio network, or resources in the Citizen Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) radio spectrum licensed by the CBRS Spectrum Access System (SAS).

[0016] In other aspects, the coordinating UE schedules communication within the UECS based on several factors. For example, the coordinating UE receives Channel Quality Indicators (CQIs) and / or power headroom reports from local radio network communications from each UE in the UECS. The coordinating UE uses the received CQIs and / or power headroom reports to configure communication between UEs within the UECS's local radio network.

[0017] On the other hand, the coordinating UE allocates air interface resources for communication within the UECS based on the state of the UEs in the UECS. For example, the coordinating UE receives a coordination buffer status report from the UEs in the UECS. The coordinating UE allocates communication resources within the UECS based on the coordination buffer status report received from the UEs in the UECS.

[0018] Example Environment

[0019] Figure 1 An example environment 100 is illustrated, comprising multiple user equipment 110s (UE 110), shown as UE 111, UE 112, UE 113, and UE 114. Each UE 110 can communicate with one or more base stations 120 (shown as base stations 121 and 122) via one or more wireless communication links 130 (wireless links 130), shown as wireless links 131 and 132. Each UE 110 (shown as UE 111, UE 112, and UE 113) in the UE coordination set can communicate with a coordinating UE and / or a target UE in the UE coordination set via one or more local wireless network connections such as local wireless network connections 133, 134, and 135 (e.g., WLAN, Bluetooth, NFC, Personal Area Network (PAN), WiFi-Direct, IEEE 802.15.4, ZigBee, Thread, millimeter wave communication (mmWave), etc.). Although shown as a smartphone, UE110 can be implemented as any suitable computing or electronic device, such as a mobile communication device, modem, mobile phone, gaming device, navigation device, media device, laptop computer, desktop computer, tablet computer, smart appliance, vehicular communication system, Internet of Things (IoT) device (e.g., sensor node, controller / actuator node, or combination thereof). Base station 120 (e.g., Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network Node B, E-UTRAN Node B, Evolved Node B, eNode B, eNB, Next Generation Node B, gNode B, gNB, ng-eNB, etc.) can be implemented in macro cells, micro cells, small cells, pico cells, etc., or any combination thereof.

[0020] Base station 120 communicates with user equipment 110 using radio links 131 and 132, which can be implemented as any suitable type of radio link. Radio links 131 and 132 include control and data communications, such as downlinks transmitting data and control information from base station 120 to user equipment 110, uplinks transmitting other data and control information from user equipment 110 to base station 120, or both. Radio link 130 may include one or more radio links (e.g., radio links) or bearers implemented using any suitable communication protocol or standard, or a combination of communication protocols or standards (such as 3GPP LTE, 5G NR, etc.). Multiple radio links 130 can be aggregated in carrier aggregation to provide higher data rates for UE 110. Multiple radio links 130 from multiple base stations 120 can be configured for Coordinated Multipoint (CoMP) communication with UE 110.

[0021] Base station 120 is collectively referred to as radio access network 140 (e.g., RAN, evolved universal terrestrial radio access network, E-UTRAN, 5G NR RAN, or NR RAN). Base stations 121 and 122 in RAN 140 are connected to core network 150. Base stations 121 and 122 are connected to core network 150 at locations 102 and 104, respectively, via the NG2 interface for control plane signaling and the NG3 interface for user plane data communication when connected to the 5G core network, or the S1 interface for control plane signaling when connected to the evolved packet core (EPC) network. Base stations 121 and 122 can communicate at location 106 to exchange user plane and control plane data via the Xn interface using the Xn Application Protocol (XnAP) or via the X2 interface using the X2 Application Protocol (X2AP). User equipment 110 can connect to a public network (such as the Internet 160) via core network 150 to interact with remote services 170.

[0022] Example device

[0023] Figure 2 The illustration shows an example device diagram 200 for user equipment and base stations. In various aspects, device diagram 200 describes devices that can implement various aspects of UE coordination set scheduling. Figure 2 This includes multiple UEs 110 and base station 120. The multiple UEs 110 and base station 120 may include, for clarity, from... Figure 2Additional functions and interfaces omitted. UE 110 includes an antenna 202, a radio frequency front-end 204 (RF front-end 204), and radio frequency transceivers (e.g., LTE transceiver 206 and 5G NR transceiver 208) for communicating with base station 120 in 5GRAN 141 and / or E-UTRAN 142. UE 110 includes one or more additional transceivers (e.g., local wireless network transceiver 210) for communicating with at least the coordinating UE and / or the target UE of the UE coordination set via one or more wireless local wireless networks (e.g., WLAN, Bluetooth, NFC, Personal Area Network (PAN), WiFi-Direct, IEEE 802.15.4, ZigBee, Thread, mmWave, etc.). The RF front-end 204 of UE 110 can couple or connect the LTE transceiver 206, the 5G NR transceiver 208, and the local wireless network transceiver 210 to the antenna 202 to facilitate various types of wireless communication.

[0024] The antenna 202 of UE 110 may include an array of multiple antennas configured to be similar to or different from each other. The antenna 202 and RF front-end 204 may be tuned to one or more frequency bands defined by the 3GPP LTE and 5G NR communication standards and implemented by the LTE transceiver 206 and / or the 5G NR transceiver 208, and / or the antenna 202 and RF front-end 204 may be tunable to one or more of the aforementioned frequency bands. Additionally, the antenna 202, RF front-end 204, LTE transceiver 206, and / or 5G NR transceiver 208 may be configured to support beamforming for transmission and reception of communications with base station 120. By way of example and not limitation, the antenna 202 and RF front-end 204 may be implemented to operate in sub-gigahertz bands, sub-6GHz bands, and / or above 6GHz bands defined by the 3GPP LTE and 5G NR communication standards. In addition, the RF front-end 204 can be tuned to one or more frequency bands defined and implemented by the local wireless network transceiver 210 and / or the RF front-end 204 can be tuned to one or more of the above frequency bands to support the transmission and reception of communications with other UEs in the UE coordination set via the local wireless network.

[0025] UE 110 includes sensor 212, which can be implemented to detect various attributes such as temperature, power supply, power usage, battery status, etc. Therefore, sensor 212 may include any one or a combination of a temperature sensor, a thermistor, a battery sensor, and a power usage sensor.

[0026] UE 110 also includes a processor 214 and a computer-readable storage medium 216 (CRM 216). The processor 214 may be a single-core or multi-core processor made of various materials, such as silicon, polysilicon, high-k dielectrics, copper, etc. The computer-readable storage medium described herein does not include propagating signals. CRM 216 may include any suitable memory or storage device that can be used to store device data 218 of UE 110, such as random access memory (RAM), static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), non-volatile RAM (NVRAM), read-only memory (ROM), or flash memory. Device data 218 includes user data, multimedia data, beamforming codebooks, applications, and / or the operating system of UE 110, which can be executed by processor 214 to enable user plane communication, control plane signaling, and user interaction with UE 110.

[0027] CRM 216 also includes a communication manager 220 (e.g., a communication manager application 220). Alternatively or additionally, the communication manager 220 may be implemented wholly or partially as hardware logic or circuitry integrated with or separate from other components of the UE 110. At least in some respects, the communication manager 220 configures the RF front end 204, LTE transceiver 206, 5G NR transceiver 208, and / or local radio network transceiver 210 to implement the techniques described herein for selective participation in the UE coordination set.

[0028] Figure 2 The illustrated device diagram of base station 120 includes a single network node (e.g., gNode B). The functionality of base station 120 can be distributed across multiple network nodes or devices and can be distributed in any manner suitable for performing the functions described herein. Base station 120 includes an antenna 252 for communicating with UE 110, a radio frequency front-end 254 (RF front-end 254), one or more LTE transceivers 256, and / or one or more 5G NR transceivers 258. The RF front-end 254 of base station 120 can couple or connect the LTE transceivers 256 and 5G NR transceivers 258 to antenna 252 to facilitate various types of wireless communication. The antenna 252 of base station 120 may include an array of multiple antennas configured to be similar to or different from each other. Antenna 252 and RF front-end 254 can be tuned to one or more frequency bands defined by the 3GPP LTE and 5G NR communication standards and implemented by the LTE transceivers 256 and / or 5G NR transceivers 258, and / or antenna 252 and RF front-end 254 may be tunable to one or more of the aforementioned frequency bands. Additionally, the antenna 252, RF front end 254, LTE transceiver 256 and / or 5G NR transceiver 258 can be configured to support beamforming, such as massive MIMO, for the transmission and reception of communications with any UE 110 in the UE coordination set.

[0029] Base station 120 also includes processor 260 and computer-readable storage medium 262 (CRM 262). Processor 260 may be a single-core or multi-core processor made of various materials such as silicon, polysilicon, high-k dielectric, copper, etc. CRM 262 may include any suitable memory or storage device that can be used to store device data 264 of base station 120, such as random access memory (RAM), static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), non-volatile RAM (NVRAM), read-only memory (ROM), or flash memory. Device data 264 includes network scheduling data, radio resource management data, beamforming codebook, applications, and / or the operating system of base station 120, which can be executed by processor 260 to enable communication with UE 110.

[0030] CRM 262 also includes a base station manager 266 (e.g., a base station manager application 266). Alternatively or additionally, the base station manager 266 may be implemented wholly or partially as hardware logic or circuitry integrated or separate from other components of the base station 120. At least in some respects, the base station manager 266 configures the LTE transceiver 256 and the 5G NR transceiver 258 for communication with the UE 110 and with the core network. The base station 120 includes an inter-base station interface 268, such as an Xn and / or X2 interface, which the base station manager 266 configures to exchange user plane and control plane data with another base station 120 to manage communication between the communication base station 120 and the UE 110. The base station 120 includes a core network interface 270, which the base station manager 266 configures to exchange user plane and control plane data with core network functions and entities.

[0031] air interface resources

[0032] Figure 3The diagram illustrates an air interface resource that extends between a user equipment and a base station and enables various aspects of UE coordination set scheduling. Air interface resource 302 can be divided into resource elements 304, each occupying a certain intersection of spectrum and elapsed time. A portion of air interface resource 302 is graphically illustrated in a grid or matrix having multiple resource blocks 310, including example resource blocks 311, 312, 313, and 314. Thus, an example of resource element 304 includes at least one resource block 310. As shown, time is depicted along the horizontal dimension as the x-axis, and frequency is depicted along the vertical dimension as the y-axis. As defined by a given communication protocol or standard, air interface resource 302 can span any suitable specified frequency range and / or can be divided into intervals of any specified duration. Time increments can correspond to, for example, milliseconds (mSec). Frequency increments can correspond to, for example, megahertz (MHz).

[0033] In the example operation, generally, base station 120 allocates a portion of air interface resource 302 (e.g., resource element 304) for uplink and downlink communication. Each resource block 310 of network access resources can be allocated to support corresponding wireless communication links 130 for multiple user equipments 110. In the lower left corner of the grid, resource block 311 can span a specified frequency range 306 as defined by a given communication protocol and includes multiple subcarriers or frequency subbands. Resource block 311 can include any suitable number of subcarriers (e.g., 12), each corresponding to a corresponding portion (e.g., 15 kHz) of the specified frequency range 306 (e.g., 180 kHz). Resource block 311 can also span a specified time interval 308 or time slot (e.g., lasting approximately half a millisecond or 7 orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols) as defined by a given communication protocol. Time interval 308 includes sub-intervals, each of which can correspond to a symbol, such as an OFDM symbol. Figure 3 As shown, each resource block 310 may include multiple resource elements 320 (REs) corresponding to, or defined by, subcarriers of frequency range 306 and sub-intervals (or symbols) of time interval 308. Alternatively, a given resource element 320 may span more than one frequency subcarrier or symbol. Therefore, resource unit 304 may include at least one resource block 310, at least one resource element 320, etc.

[0034] In the example implementation, multiple user equipment 110s (one shown) communicate with base station 120 (one shown) via access provided by a portion of air interface resource 302. Base station manager 266 ( Figure 2As shown, the appropriate data rate, information type, or information quantity (e.g., data or control information) to be communicated (e.g., transmitted) by user equipment 110 can be determined. For example, base station manager 266 can determine that each user equipment 110 should transmit at a different appropriate data rate or transmit a different appropriate information quantity. Base station manager 266 then allocates one or more resource blocks 310 to each user equipment 110 based on the determined data rate or information quantity.

[0035] Additionally, or as an alternative to block-level resource allocation, base station manager 266 can allocate resource units at the element level. Therefore, base station manager 266 can allocate one or more resource units 320 or individual subcarriers to different user equipment 110. In doing so, a resource block 310 can be allocated to facilitate network access for multiple user equipment 110. Thus, base station manager 266 can allocate one or more subcarriers or resource elements 320 of resource block 310 to a single user equipment 110 or divide it among multiple user equipment 110 at various granularities, thereby achieving higher network utilization or increased spectral efficiency.

[0036] The base station manager 266 can therefore allocate air interface resources 302 using resource units 304, resource blocks 310, frequency carriers, time intervals, resource elements 320, frequency subcarriers, time sub-intervals, symbols, spreading codes, and some combination thereof. Based on the corresponding allocation of resource units 304, the base station manager 266 can send corresponding messages to multiple user equipments 110, indicating the corresponding allocation of resource units 304 to each user equipment 110. Each message enables the corresponding user equipment 110 to queue information or configure the LTE transceiver 206, 5G NR transceiver 208, and / or local radio network transceiver 210 to communicate via the allocated resource units 304 of the air interface resources 302.

[0037] UE Coordination Set

[0038] Figure 4 An example implementation 400 of user equipment coordination set scheduling is illustrated. The example shown includes base station 121, UE 111, UE 112, and UE 113. Although for clarity, Figure 4 The UECS in the example is shown to include three UEs, but it can include any suitable number of UEs. In the example, Figure 4 Each UE shown has limited transmit power, which may make it difficult to send uplink data to base station 121. This situation may be at least in part due to the UE being close to the cell edge 402 of the cell provided by base station 121 or the UE being in a transmission-challenged location (e.g., a basement, an urban canyon, etc.), resulting in a poor link budget between base station 121 and the UE. Figure 4 Each UE shown may also have, or alternatively have, limited receiver sensitivity, which may be affected by poor link budget due to base station 121 and multipath reception, interference from in-band or out-of-band sources, and attenuation due to weather conditions or objects such as buildings or trees.

[0039] Using the techniques described herein, base station 121 can designate a group of UEs (e.g., UE 111, UE 112, and UE 113) to form a UE coordination set (e.g., UE coordination set 404, UECS 404) for joint transmission and joint reception of data for a target UE (e.g., UE 112). Base station 121 can determine whether coordination is beneficial to a particular UE based on information corresponding to the UE (e.g., UE location, signal level, battery level, etc.). Each UE can choose to join or leave the UE coordination set based on user input or predefined settings. The effective transmit power of target UE 112 can increase significantly (e.g., linearly) with the number of UEs in the UE coordination set, which can significantly improve the link budget of target UE 112. Base station 121 can determine the UE coordination set based on various factors, such as the location of each UE relative to base station 121, the distance between UEs (such as the distance between each UE, the distance between each UE and the target UE, or the distance between each UE and the coordinating UEs in the UE coordination set), or a combination thereof. In some respects, by using a local wireless network, UEs within a certain distance of each other can more easily coordinate to reduce signal interference when they are close together.

[0040] Furthermore, UE coordination can be associated with each UE based on spatial beamforming, timing advance, or both. For example, for beamforming or massive MIMO, it may be desirable that all UEs in the UE coordination set can receive the same signal from the base station. Therefore, all UEs in the UE coordination set can be geographically close to each other, for example, within a threshold distance of a specific UE in the UE coordination set. In this way, UEs in the UE coordination set can each be in the same beam or in beams that are close to each other. Timing advance can indicate the distance between a UE and the base station. Similar timing advance for each UE in the group indicates that these UEs are approximately at the same distance from the base station. UEs that are at predetermined distances from each other and are all at similar distances from the base station may be able to work together in a distributed manner in the UE coordination set to improve signal strength and quality, thereby benefiting the individual UEs in the UE coordination set.

[0041] The base station may send Layer 2 messages (e.g., Media Access Control layer) and / or Layer 3 messages (e.g., Service Data Adaptation Protocol layer) to the UEs to instruct or request them to join a UE coordination set. The base station may provide additional data to the UEs in the UE coordination set to enable the UEs to communicate with at least the coordinating UE or the target UE. The additional data may include the identity of the coordinating UE and / or the identity, security information, and / or local radio network information of the target UE.

[0042] The base station can receive response messages to acknowledge request messages from UEs in the UE coordination set. In some cases, the base station can receive response messages from at least two UEs indicating that the acknowledged UE has joined the UE coordination set. The response message can indicate that the UE's user has agreed to the request message.

[0043] Furthermore, the base station can identify and command (or request) a specific UE in the UE coordination set to act as the coordinating UE (e.g., the primary UE) of the UE coordination set. For example, base station 121 can send a configuration message (e.g., a request message) to a specific UE to request that the specific UE act as the coordinating UE of the UE coordination set. The specific UE can accept or reject the request based on user input from the UE user or by being set to automatically accept or reject such a request. In some aspects, the UE can send a UE capability message or other Layer 3 message in response to the request message from base station 121. The coordinating UE can coordinate messages and samples sent between UEs in the UE coordination set for joint transmission and joint reception. In various aspects, the coordinating UE can determine where the joint processing will occur, for example, at the coordinating UE or the target UE. In one example, the coordinating UE can coordinate how a specific UE in the UE coordination set sends I / Q samples to the target UE, which are demodulated signals received by the specific UE from the base station.

[0044] The base station can select a coordinating UE from a group of UEs in a UE coordination set based on various factors, some of which can be sent to the base station via UE capability messages. For example, one factor includes the coordinating UE's processing capabilities, which provide the coordinating UE with the ability to handle certain aspects of the UE coordination set (including central coordination or scheduling). Another factor can include the coordinating UE's battery level status. For instance, if a particular UE in the UE coordination set has a low battery, then that UE may not be a good candidate to serve as a coordinating UE. Therefore, UEs in the UE coordination set with battery levels above a threshold can be considered as candidates for selection as coordinating UEs. In one example, the base station can first select a UE as the coordinating UE, and after the UE coordination set is formed, receive messages from other UEs in the UE coordination set indicating their respective battery level statuses. Then, based on the battery level statuses of the UEs in the UE coordination set, if another UE in the UE coordination set is a better candidate, the base station can change the coordinating UE.

[0045] Another factor may be the location of the coordinating UE. The base station can identify the location of a UE within the UE coordination set based on various factors, such as the angle of arrival of signals from the UE, timing advance, and observed time difference of arrival (OTDOA). The ideal location for the coordinating UE is the geographic center of the UE coordination set, as this location maximizes its ability to coordinate and communicate with other UEs in the set. However, it is not required that the coordinating UE be located at the center of the UE coordination set. More precisely, the coordinating UE can be located anywhere within the UE coordination set that allows it to communicate and coordinate with other UEs in the set. The base station continuously monitors the UE coordination set and can update the coordinating UE at any time based on updated factors such as updated UE location, UE battery level, etc. Alternatively, as mentioned above, the coordinating UE can transfer its joint processing responsibilities to another UE based on factors such as processing power, battery level, and / or geographic location.

[0046] In some respects, a base station may receive from one or more UEs in a UE coordination set an indication of their ability to act as a coordinating UE. Alternatively or additionally, a base station may receive from one or more UEs in a UE coordination set an indication of the user's willingness to allow their UE to participate in the UE coordination set and / or act as a coordinating UE. Therefore, UEs in a UE coordination set may use Layer 3 messages to indicate to the base station whether they are capable of acting as and / or permitted to act as a coordinating UE.

[0047] exist Figure 4In Example 400 shown, base station 121 may select UE 111 to act as the coordinating UE because UE 111 is located between UE 112 and UE 113, or because UE 111 is able to communicate with each of the other UEs 112 and UE 113 in the UE coordination set. Base station 121 may select the coordinating UE for various reasons, as illustrated in the examples above. Because they are at the cell edge, all three UEs 111, 112, and 113 have weak cellular signal reception. Base station 121 selects UE 111 to coordinate messages and samples sent for the target UE 112 between base station 121 and UEs 111, 112, and 113. Communication between UEs may occur using local wireless networks 406 such as PAN, NFC, Bluetooth, WiFi-Direct, or local millimeter-wave links. In this example, all three UEs 111, 112, and 113 receive RF signals from base station 121. UEs 111, 112, and 113 demodulate the RF signal to generate a baseband I / Q analog signal and sample the baseband I / Q analog signal to generate I / Q samples. Using local radio transceiver 210, UEs 112 and 113 use local radio network 406 to forward the I / Q samples along with system timing information (e.g., system frame number (SFN)) to coordinating UE 111. Coordinating UE 111 then uses the timing information to synchronize and combine the I / Q samples and processes the combined signal to decode data packets to be used by target UE 112. Coordinating UE 111 then uses local radio network 406 to send the data packets to target UE 112.

[0048] When target UE 112 has uplink data to send to base station 121, the target UE transmits the uplink data to coordinating UE 111. Coordinating UE 111 uses local radio network 406 to distribute the uplink data as I / Q samples to each UE in UE coordination set 404. Each UE in UE coordination set 404 synchronizes with base station 121 for timing information and its data transmission resource allocation. Then, all three UEs in UE coordination set 404 jointly transmit the uplink data to base station 121. Base station 121 receives the jointly transmitted uplink data from UEs 111, 112, and 113 and processes the combined signals to decode the uplink data from target UE 112.

[0049] User Equipment Coordination Set Scheduling

[0050] In various aspects, to enable the UECS to perform joint transmission and / or joint reception, the UE coordinates the scheduling of communications within the UECS, such as coordinating communications between the UE and other UEs within the local wireless network. The local wireless network may use unlicensed radio technologies (as described above), licensed frequency band RAN resources allocated by the base station to the UECS for use in the local wireless network, or resources in the Citizen Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) radio spectrum licensed to the UECS by the CBRS Spectrum Access System (SAS).

[0051] For UECS scheduling using licensed frequency band resources, base station 121 grants air interface resources 302 to coordinating UE 111 for use in the local wireless network. Coordinating UE 111 then allocates portions of those air interface resources 302 required for communication with other UEs in UECS 404 (e.g., UE 112 and / or UE 113). For UECS scheduling using CBRS spectrum grants, base station 121 allocates a portion of the CBRS spectrum grant resources to coordinating UE 111 for use in the local wireless network. The remaining resources in the CBRS spectrum grant are used for joint reception and / or joint transmission between the UECS and base station 121. Coordinating UE 111 then allocates a portion of the CBRS spectrum grant resources, which are allocated to the local wireless network as needed, for communication with other UEs in UECS 404 (e.g., UE 112 and / or UE 113).

[0052] For UECS scheduling using unlicensed radio spectrum for the local wireless network, base station 121 groups UEs with similar local radio capabilities into the UECS. When base station 121 assigns a UE to the UECS, the base station provides a local wireless network configuration that enables the UE to communicate with the coordinating UE. The coordinating UE schedules air interface resources of the unlicensed radio spectrum as needed to communicate with other UEs in UECS 404 (e.g., UE 112 and / or UE 113). The coordinating UE 111 can also modify the operating parameters of the UEs using the unlicensed local wireless network based on the operating environment of the UECS by sending unicast, multicast, or broadcast communications to one or more UEs in the UECS.

[0053] The coordinating UE determines resource grants and operational parameters for communication on the local radio network based on measurement and / or status information provided by each UE in the UECS. For example, each UE in the UECS determines a UECS-specific channel quality indicator (CQI) (e.g., signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) observed at the UE) for communication received from the coordinating UE via the radio LAN. Each UE sends its UECS-specific CQI to the coordinating UE. The coordinating UE evaluates each of the received UECS-specific CQIs to determine an appropriate modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for each UE in the UECS. The coordinating UE sends the MCS configuration and associated resource grants to each UE for coordinating communication within the UECS. For example, in the case of licensed or CBRS spectrum, the resource grant is a portion of the resource grant provided by the base station to the UECS. In the case of unlicensed spectrum, the coordinating UE may send radio LAN operational parameters, such as the radio channel or frequency of the radio LAN, channel bandwidth, preamble detection threshold, etc.

[0054] In one aspect, the coordinating UE can send a UECS-specific power control command to each UE in the UECS, specifying the transmit power to be used by that UE for coordination of joint transmission and joint reception with the base station. Each UE in the UECS sends a UECS-specific power headroom report to the coordinating UE. The coordinating UE uses the UECS-specific power headroom report to determine the transmit power of each UE. The coordinating UE sends a UECS-specific power control command to each UE to indicate the transmit power that each corresponding UE will use for coordinating communications within the UECS.

[0055] On the other hand, the coordinating UE can determine the timing advance required by the UE based on signals received from the UE via the local wireless network. The coordinating UE can send a UECS-specific timing advance command to the UE in the UECS, which specifies the timing advance for the UE to use for coordinating joint transmission and joint reception with the base station.

[0056] On the other hand, the coordinating UE sends synchronization signals so that other UEs, especially those newly added to the UECS, can find the coordinating UE on the local wireless network. For example, when a base station adds a UE to the UECS, the base station specifies the timing and frequency of the synchronization signals sent by the coordinating UE so that the newly added UE in the UECS can find the coordinating UE and synchronize UECS operations using the local wireless network. The synchronization signals can be specific to an individual UE, a subset of UEs, or all UEs in the UECS.

[0057] In other aspects, the coordinating UE sends scheduling commands to each UE in the UECS to coordinate joint communication with the base station. The scheduling commands include indications of time and frequency resources used by the UE in the UECS to communicate with the coordinating UE within the UECS for joint communication. Each UE in the UECS has a specific identity to indicate the scheduling command to each specific UE. Optionally or additionally, the scheduling commands may include indications of time and frequency resources used by the UE for joint communication with base station 121.

[0058] On the other hand, each UE in the UECS can send a coordination buffer status report to the coordinating UE. The coordinating UE uses the received coordination buffer status report to schedule air interface resources within the UECS for joint communication of the data indicated in the buffer status report. For example, as a result of receiving the coordination buffer status report from the UE, the coordinating UE allocates resources based on the coordination buffer status report and sends a scheduling command to the UE including an indication of the allocated resources.

[0059] Figure 5 The diagram illustrates the data and control transactions between devices in a user equipment coordination set (UEC) and a base station, used for joint communication within the UAC, according to various aspects of UAC scheduling. Although not illustrated for clarity, it is possible to implement... Figure 5 The various responses to the messages illustrated in the diagram are to ensure reliable operation of UECS selective participation.

[0060] For 505, please refer to the above. Figure 4 The base station 121 configures a UECS (e.g., UECS 404) including UE 111, UE 112, and UE 113. The base station 121 configures UE 111 as a coordinating UE for the UECS. Although for clarity, Figure 5 The UECS in the diagram is illustrated to include three UEs, but any appropriate number of UEs may be included in the UECS. Configuration 505 of UECS 404 may include timing and frequency information for base station 121 to send a synchronization signal, which is then sent by a coordinating UE to enable other UEs in the UECS to locate the coordinating UE and synchronize UECS operations using the local wireless network. For example, configuration 505 of UECS 404 may include coordinating UE 111 sending a synchronization signal so that UE 112 and UE 113 can synchronize with coordinating UE 111 via the local wireless network.

[0061] At 510, base station 121 sends a resource grant for UECS 404 to coordinating UE 111. The resource grant includes an indication of air interface resources for joint communication between UECS 404 and base station 121. The resource grant may include licensed band RAN resources or CBRS spectrum grant resources for use by the local radio network used by UECS 404. Base station 121 may include an indication of the types of resources included in the resource grant (e.g., resources for joint communication, resources for the local radio network, or both). If resources for joint communication and resources for the local radio network are included in the resource grant, base station 121 may include an indication of which resources in the grant are assigned to joint communication and which resources in the grant are assigned to the local radio network.

[0062] Alternatively, in 510, if the local radio network uses unlicensed spectrum, the resource grant includes air interface resources for joint communication between UECS 404 and base station 121. The resource grant may also include local radio network configurations that enable the UE to communicate within the UECS. Alternatively, the local radio network configurations can be communicated separately from the resource grant.

[0063] At 515, coordinating UE 111 allocates air interface resources for the local wireless network to each UE in UECS 404. At 520 and 525, coordinating UE 111 sends UECS resource grants for the local wireless network and joint communications to UE 112 and UE 113, respectively. At 520, as referenced above... Figure 4 As stated, UEs 111, 112, and 113 use authorized resources to conduct joint communication with base station 121.

[0064] Periodically, triggered by changing channel conditions or in response to a request from coordinating UE 111, the UE in the UECS reports status or measurement information to the coordinating UE. At 535, UE 112 sends a UECS report to coordinating UE 111. For example, the report may include a UECS-specific channel quality indicator (CQI) for the local wireless network, a UECS-specific power margin report for the local wireless network, etc.

[0065] At 540, coordinating UE 111 evaluates the information included in the UECS report and, if appropriate, determines a reconfiguration of the settings for UE 112. For example, if a UECS-specific CQI indicates that the channel conditions for UE 112 on the local radio network have deteriorated, the coordinating UE may determine a new MCS for coordinating communication between UE 110 and UE 112. In another example, based on UE 112's UECS-specific power margin report, the coordinating UE may determine a new transmit power for coordinating communication between UE 110 and UE 112. At 545, coordinating UE 111 sends a UECS reconfiguration message to UE 112, which includes the new configuration determined by coordinating UE 111, thereby instructing UE 112 to reconfigure its communication settings for communication on the local radio network.

[0066] At 550, UE 113 buffers uplink data for transmission to base station 121. UE 113 sends a coordination buffer status report to coordinating UE 111. At 555, upon receiving the coordination buffer status report, coordinating UE 111 schedules air interface resources for UE 113 to send buffered data to coordinating UE 111 for joint transmission to base station 121. Additionally or optionally, coordinating UE 111 may also schedule additional air interface resources for other UEs in the UECS to facilitate local radio network communication required to support joint communication. At 560, coordinating UE 113 sends a scheduling command including resource scheduling to UE 113. Additionally or optionally, coordinating UE 111 may also send resource scheduling (…) to other UEs in the UECS. Figure 5 (Not shown in the image). In 565, UECS 404 communicates jointly with base station 121 to transmit buffered uplink data of UE 113 (as mentioned above). Figure 4 The above).

[0067] Joint communication via UE coordination set 404 enhances the ability of the target UE to send and receive data from base station 121 by essentially acting as a distributed antenna for the target UE. For example, base station 121 uses RF signals to send downlink data to multiple UEs in UE coordination set 404. At least some of the multiple UEs demodulate the received RF signals into analog baseband signals and sample the baseband signals to generate a set of I / Q samples, which the UEs send along with system timing information to coordinating UE 111. Coordinating UE 111 accumulates the I / Q samples from each UE and stores them in a memory buffer. Because each UE in UE coordination set 404 is synchronized with base station 121, all UEs in UE coordination set 404 have a common time based on a common time base (e.g., system frame number (SFN)), which effectively enables the coordinating UE to manage the timing and alignment of I / Q samples for the accumulation and storage of I / Q samples in the memory buffer. For joint reception and decoding, coordinating UE 111 processes stored I / Q samples to decode downlink data for the target UE. In various aspects, the I / Q samples may be processed at multiple UEs (e.g., fewer than all UEs in the UE coordination set), at the target UE, or at coordinating UE 111. At least a subset of UEs in the UE coordination set 404 may participate in the accumulation and / or joint processing of downlink I / Q samples. In at least one aspect, coordinating UE 111 may select which UEs in the UE coordination set 404 should be included in the subset of UEs participating in the accumulation and / or joint processing of downlink I / Q samples. In other aspects, base station 121 may make this selection. For joint transmission, multiple UEs in the UE coordination set 404 each use their respective antennas and transmitters to transmit uplink data from the target UE on air interface resources as directed by the base station of the coordinating UE coordination set. Thus, the uplink data of the target UE can be processed together, and the data can be transmitted using the transmitters and transmission antennas of multiple (including all) UEs in the UE coordination set 404. In one example, the target UE uses its local radio transceiver 210 to send uplink data to the coordinating UE 111. The coordinating UE 111 uses its local radio transceiver 210 to distribute the data to the other UEs in the UE coordination set 404. Then, all UEs in the UE coordination set 404 process and send the uplink data to the base station 121. In this way, joint transmission provides a more efficient link budget for the transmission of uplink data for the target UE.

[0068] Example Method

[0069] Based on one or more aspects used for UE coordination set scheduling, refer to Figure 6Example method 600 is described. The order in which the method steps are described is not intended to be construed as limiting, and any number of the method steps may be skipped or combined in any order to implement the method or an alternative method. Generally, any component, module, method, and operation described herein can be implemented using software, firmware, hardware (e.g., fixed logic circuitry), manual processing, or any combination thereof. Some operations of the exemplary method may be described in the general context of executable instructions stored on a computer-readable storage medium local to and / or remotely to a computer processing system, and implementations may include software applications, programs, functions, etc. Alternatively or additionally, any function described herein may be performed at least in part by one or more hardware logic components, such as, but not limited to, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), application-specific standard products (ASSPs), system-on-a-chip (SoCs), complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs), etc.

[0070] Figure 6 The illustration depicts an example method 600 for scheduling a user equipment coordination set, generally related to coordinating user equipment. In block 602, the coordinating user equipment receives from a base station an indication specifying multiple user equipments to be included in the user equipment coordination set. For example, the coordinating user equipment (e.g., coordinating UE 111) receives from a base station (e.g., base station 121) an indication specifying multiple user equipments (e.g., UE 112 and UE 113) to be included in a user equipment coordination set (e.g., UECS 404). The coordinating user equipment also receives from the base station an indication of time and frequency resources for synchronization signals to be transmitted over the local wireless network. The coordinating user equipment transmits these synchronization signals so that other UEs in the UECS can locate the coordinating UE.

[0071] In box 604, the coordinating user equipment allocates air interface resources to each of a plurality of user equipments for communication using the local wireless network. For example, the coordinating user equipment allocates air interface resources with resource grants from licensed spectrum resources received from a base station to each of the plurality of user equipments for communication using the local wireless network. In another example, the coordinating user equipment allocates air interface resources with CBRS radio spectrum grants received from a base station to each of the plurality of user equipments for communication using the local wireless network. In yet another example, the coordinating user equipment allocates air interface resources in unlicensed radio spectrum to each of the plurality of user equipments for communication using the local wireless network.

[0072] In box 606, the coordinating user equipment sends a UECS resource grant to each of a plurality of user equipments for communication using the local wireless network. For example, the coordinating user equipment sends a UECS resource grant (e.g., UECS resource grants 520, 525) to each of the plurality of user equipments for communication using the local wireless network, the UECS resource grant indicating the allocated air interface resources.

[0073] In box 608, coordination is provided for user equipment (UE) to communicate with multiple UEs using resources authorized in the UECS resource grant for the local wireless network, in order to coordinate joint communication between the UE coordination set and the base station. For example, coordination is provided for UE to communicate with multiple UEs using resources authorized in the UECS resource grant for the local wireless network, in order to coordinate joint communication between the UE coordination set and the base station, as described above regarding... Figure 4 As stated above.

[0074] In box 610, a coordinating user equipment (UE) participates in joint communication with multiple UEs to communicate data with the base station for a target UE in a coordinated UE set. For example, the coordinating UE may communicate samples to multiple UEs for joint transmission, receive samples from UEs in a first subset for joint reception, or both.

[0075] Some examples are described in the text below:

[0076] Example 1. A method for scheduling local wireless network communications in a wireless communication network by a coordinating user equipment configured as a User Equipment Coordination Set (UECS), the method comprising the coordinating user equipment:

[0077] Receive from the base station an indication of a specified number of user equipments, including those in the user equipment coordination set;

[0078] Allocate air interface resources to each of the plurality of user equipments for communication using the local wireless network;

[0079] Send a UECS resource grant to each of the plurality of user equipments for communication using the local wireless network, the UECS resource grant indicating the allocated air interface resources;

[0080] Using the air interface resources authorized in the UECS resource grant for the local wireless network to communicate with the plurality of user equipments to coordinate joint communication between the user equipment coordination set and the base station; and

[0081] The user equipment participates in the joint communication to coordinate the communication data between the target user equipment and the base station.

[0082] Example 2. The method according to Example 1, further comprising the coordinating user equipment:

[0083] Receive a UECS report from the first user equipment among the plurality of user equipments;

[0084] The modified configuration of the first user equipment is determined based on the received UECS report, the modified configuration including one or more parameters for communicating using the local wireless network; and

[0085] The modified configuration is sent to the first user equipment, which instructs the first user equipment to reconfigure itself using the one or more parameters for communication using the local wireless network.

[0086] Example 3. The method according to Example 2, wherein the UECS report includes a UECS-specific channel quality indicator (CQI) measured by the first user equipment for the local wireless network, and wherein one or more parameters include an indication of a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for communicating using air interface resources allocated between the coordinated user equipment and the first user equipment for the local wireless network.

[0087] Example 4. The method according to Example 2, wherein the UECS report includes a UECS-specific power margin report of the local wireless network, and wherein one or more parameters include a UECS-specific power control command to indicate the transmit power of UECS transmissions performed by the first user equipment using allocated air interface resources.

[0088] Example 5. The method according to Example 2, wherein the one or more parameters include timing advance, the timing advance specifying a timing advance for the first UE to use for coordinating joint communication with the base station.

[0089] Example 6. The method according to any one of the foregoing examples further includes the coordinating user equipment:

[0090] Receive the coordination buffer status report of the uplink data to be processed from the second user equipment;

[0091] Based on the coordinated cache status report, the air interface resources of the local wireless network are scheduled to coordinate the joint transmission of the uplink data to be processed by the second user equipment; and

[0092] Send a scheduling command including resource scheduling to the second user equipment, the resource scheduling including an indication of the air interface resources to be scheduled.

[0093] Example 7. The method according to Example 6 further includes the coordinating user equipment:

[0094] Send scheduling commands, including corresponding resource scheduling, to other user equipment in the UECS, wherein the corresponding resource scheduling is specific to an individual user equipment in the UECS, a subset of user equipment in the UECS, or all user equipment in the UECS.

[0095] Example 8. The method according to any one of the foregoing examples further includes the coordinating user equipment:

[0096] Receive timing and frequency information for UECS synchronization signals from the base station; and

[0097] The UECS synchronization signal is transmitted through the local wireless network, which effectively enables the plurality of user equipments receiving the UECS synchronization signal to communicate synchronously with the coordinating user equipment through the local wireless network.

[0098] Example 9. The method according to Example 8, wherein the UECS synchronization signal is specific to an individual user equipment in the UECS, a subset of user equipment in the UECS, or all user equipment in the UECS.

[0099] Example 10. The method according to any one of the foregoing examples further includes the coordinating user equipment:

[0100] Receives a resource grant for licensed spectrum resources from the base station, the resource grant including an indication of licensed spectrum resources allocated by the base station for the local wireless network; and

[0101] Specifically, allocating the air interface resources to each of the plurality of user equipments includes allocating at least a portion of the indicated licensed spectrum resources to each of the plurality of user equipments for communication using the local wireless network.

[0102] Example 11. The method according to Example 10, wherein the resource granting of licensed spectrum resources from the base station includes resources granted for the local wireless network and resources granted for communication between the base station and the UECS.

[0103] Example 12. The method according to any one of Examples 1 to 9, further comprising the coordinating user equipment:

[0104] Receives a CBRS radio spectrum grant for Citizen Broadband Radio Service from the base station, the CBRS radio spectrum grant including an indication of CBRS radio spectrum resources allocated by the base station for the local wireless network; and

[0105] Allocating the air interface resources to each of the plurality of user equipments includes allocating the indicated CBRS radio spectrum resources to each of the plurality of user equipments for communication using the local wireless network.

[0106] Example 13. The method according to Example 12, wherein the CBRS radio spectrum grant from the base station includes resources granted for the local wireless network and resources granted for communication between the base station and the UECS.

[0107] Example 14. The method according to any one of the foregoing examples, wherein the local wireless network communicates using unlicensed radio spectrum, the method further comprising the coordinating user equipment:

[0108] Receive from the base station a configuration for operating the local wireless network using the unlicensed radio spectrum; and

[0109] Allocating the air interface resources to each of the plurality of user equipments for communication using the local wireless network includes scheduling the resources of the unlicensed radio spectrum for communication using the local wireless network.

[0110] Example 15. A user equipment, comprising:

[0111] Wireless transceiver;

[0112] Local wireless network transceiver;

[0113] Processor; and

[0114] Instructions for a communication manager application, executable by the processor, to configure the user equipment to perform any of the methods described in Examples 1 to 14.

[0115] Although aspects of the UE coordination set for out-of-mode use are described in language relating to features and / or methods, the subject matter of the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or methods described. Rather, specific features and methods are disclosed as exemplary implementations of UE coordination set invocations, and other equivalent features and methods fall within the scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, various different aspects are described, and it should be understood that each of the said aspects can be implemented independently or in combination with one or more other said aspects.

Claims

1. A method for scheduling local wireless network communications by a user equipment in a wireless communication network, the user equipment configured as a coordinating user equipment of a user equipment coordinated set (UECS), the method comprising: receiving an indication from a base station, the indication specifying a plurality of user equipments to include in the UECS; allocating an air interface resource for a local wireless network to each of the plurality of user equipments, the local wireless network enabling communications between the coordinating user equipment and the plurality of user equipments; sending a UECS resource grant to each of the plurality of user equipments, the UECS resource grant indicating the allocated air interface resource for the local wireless network; communicating with the plurality of user equipments using the air interface resource granted in the UECS resource grant for the local wireless network to coordinate joint communications between the UECS and the base station by distributing uplink data to each of the user equipments in the UECS for joint transmission to a target user equipment in the UECS or receiving demodulated downlink data from the plurality of user equipments for joint reception to the target user equipment; and participating in the joint communications with the plurality of user equipments to jointly communicate data with the base station by the coordinating user equipment and the plurality of user equipments for the target user equipment.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving a UECS report from a first user equipment of the plurality of user equipments; determining a modified configuration of the first user equipment based on the received UECS report, the modified configuration comprising one or more parameters for communicating using the local wireless network; and sending the modified configuration to the first user equipment, the modified configuration directing the first user equipment to reconfigure the first user equipment for communicating using the local wireless network using the one or more parameters.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, the UECS report comprising a UECS-specific channel quality indicator (CQI) of the local wireless network measured by the first user equipment, and wherein the one or more parameters comprise an indication of a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for communicating using the allocated air interface resource between the coordinating user equipment and the first user equipment for the local wireless network.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein, the UECS report comprising a UECS-specific power headroom report of the local wireless network, and wherein the one or more parameters comprise a UECS-specific power control command to indicate a transmit power of a UECS transmission by the first user equipment using the allocated air interface resource.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein, the one or more parameters comprising a timing advance specifying a timing advance for the first user equipment to use for coordinating joint communications with the base station.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving a coordinating buffer status report of uplink data to be processed from a second user equipment; scheduling air interface resources of the local wireless network based on the coordinated buffer status report to coordinate joint transmission of pending uplink data of the second user equipment; and sending a scheduling command including a resource schedule to the second user equipment, the resource schedule including an indication of the scheduled air interface resources.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising: sending a scheduling command including a respective resource schedule to other user equipment in the UECS, wherein the respective resource schedule is specific to individual user equipment in the UECS, a subset of user equipment in the UECS, or all user equipment in the UECS.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving timing and frequency information of a UECS synchronization signal from the base station; and transmitting the UECS synchronization signal over the local wireless network, the transmitting effective to enable the plurality of user equipment receiving the UECS synchronization signal to synchronize communications with the coordinating user equipment over the local wireless network.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein, The UECS synchronization signal is specific to individual user equipment in the UECS, a subset of user equipment in the UECS, or all user equipment in the UECS.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving a resource grant of licensed spectrum resources from the base station, the resource grant including an indication of licensed spectrum resources allocated by the base station for the local wireless network; and wherein allocating the air interface resources for the local wireless network to each of the plurality of user equipment includes allocating at least a portion of the indicated licensed spectrum resources to each of the plurality of user equipment.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein, The resource grant of licensed spectrum resources from the base station includes resources authorized for the local wireless network and resources authorized for communications between the base station and the UECS.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving a Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) radio spectrum grant from the base station, the CBRS radio spectrum grant including an indication of CBRS radio spectrum resources allocated by the base station for the local wireless network; and allocating the air interface resources for the local wireless network to each of the plurality of user equipment includes allocating the indicated CBRS radio spectrum resources to each of the plurality of user equipment.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein, The CBRS radio spectrum grant from the base station includes resources authorized for the local wireless network and resources authorized for communications between the base station and the UECS.

14. The method of any one of claims 1-13, wherein, The local wireless network communicates using unlicensed radio spectrum, the method further comprising, by the coordinating user equipment: receiving a configuration from the base station for operating the local wireless network using the unlicensed radio spectrum; and allocating the air interface resources for the local wireless network to each of the plurality of user devices comprises scheduling resources of the unlicensed radio spectrum for the local wireless network.

15. A user device comprising: a wireless transceiver; a local wireless network transceiver; a processor; and instructions for a communication manager application, executable by the processor, to configure the user device to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 14.

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