Sidelink Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) Design

Abstract

Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques for conveying information via a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE). In some cases, the MAC‑CE may relate to sidelink communications between two user equipments (UEs). A first wireless node may send the first MAC‑CE on at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link and provide routing information for the first MAC‑CE. The routing information may indicate, for example, a source node, a destination node, or a transit route through one or more nodes. The routing information may also indicate whether the service sent with the first MAC‑CE is a relayed service or a service originating from the first node.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to U.S. Application No. 17 / 092,101, filed on November 6, 2020, which claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62 / 932,803, filed on November 8, 2019, both of which have been assigned to the assignee of this application and are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety as if fully set forth below and for all applicable purposes. Technical Field

[0003] Aspects of the present disclosure relate to wireless communications and, more particularly, to techniques for generating and utilizing medium access control (MAC) control elements (CEs) related to sidelink communications. Background Art

[0004] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various telecommunication services such as telephony, video, data, messaging, broadcast, etc. These wireless communication systems may employ multiple access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., bandwidth, transmit power, etc.). Examples of such multiple access systems include, by way of example, 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, Advanced LTE (LTE-A) systems, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) systems, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) systems, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) systems, Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) systems, Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) systems, and Time Division Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD-SCDMA) systems.

[0005] In some examples, a wireless multiple access communication system may include multiple base stations (BSs) each capable of simultaneously supporting communication of multiple communication devices, also referred to as user equipment (UE). In an LTE or LTE-A network, a set of one or more base stations may define an evolved Node B (eNB). In other examples (e.g., in a next generation, new radio (NR) or 5G network), a wireless multiple access communication system may include multiple distributed units (DUs) (e.g., edge units (EUs), edge nodes (ENs), radio heads (RHs), smart radio heads (SRHs), transmit receive points (TRPs), etc.) communicating with multiple central units (CUs) (e.g., central nodes (CNs), access node controllers (ANCs), etc.), wherein a set of one or more DUs communicating with one CU may define an access node (e.g., which may be referred to as a BS, 5G NB, next generation Node B (gNB or gNode B), transmit receive point (TRP), etc.). A BS or DU may communicate with a set of UEs on downlink channels (eg, for transmissions from the BS or DU to the UEs) and uplink channels (eg, for transmissions from the UEs to the BS or DU).

[0006] These multiple access technologies have been adopted in various telecommunication standards to provide a common protocol that enables different wireless devices to communicate within cities, countries, regions, and even around the world. NR (e.g., New Radio or 5G) is an example of an emerging telecommunication standard. NR is a collection of enhancements to the LTE mobile standard announced by 3GPP. NR is designed to better support mobile broadband Internet access by improving spectrum efficiency, reducing costs, improving services, utilizing new spectrum, and better integrating with other open standards using OFDMA with cyclic prefix (CP) on downlink (DL) and uplink (UL). To this end, NR supports beamforming, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna technology, and carrier aggregation.

[0007] However, as the demand for mobile broadband access continues to grow, there is a need for further improvements to NR and LTE technologies. Preferably, these improvements should be applicable to other multiple access technologies and the telecommunication standards that use these technologies. Summary of the invention

[0008] The systems, methods, and devices of the present disclosure each have several aspects, no single one of which is solely responsible for its desirable attributes. Some features will now be briefly discussed without limiting the scope of the disclosure as expressed by the claims that follow. After considering this discussion, and in particular, after reading the section entitled "Detailed Description of the Invention," one will understand how the features of the present disclosure provide advantages including improved communication between access points and stations in a wireless network.

[0009] Particular aspects provide a method for wireless communication by a first node. In general, the method includes: preparing at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) associated with sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs); sending the first MAC-CE on at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link; and providing routing information for the first MAC-CE.

[0010] Particular aspects provide a method for wireless communication by a second node. In general, the method includes: receiving at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs) from a first node on at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link; obtaining routing information for the first MAC-CE; and processing the first MAC-CE based at least in part on the routing information.

[0011] A particular aspect provides a method for wireless communication by a first node. In general, the method includes: sending a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) for activating or deactivating resources or services related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs); and determining a timing for the activation or deactivation based at least in part on routing information for the first MAC-CE.

[0012] Particular aspects provide a method for wireless communication by a second node. In general, the method includes: receiving a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) for activating or deactivating resources or services related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs); and determining a timing for the activation or deactivation based at least in part on routing information for the first MAC-CE.

[0013] Certain aspects provide means, devices and / or computer-readable media having computer-executable code stored therein for performing the techniques described herein.

[0014] To achieve the foregoing and related ends, the one or more aspects include features that are fully described below and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative features of the one or more aspects. However, these features are only indicative of some of the various ways in which the principles of the various aspects can be used. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] In order that the manner in which the above-mentioned features of the present disclosure may be understood in detail, a more specific description briefly outlined above may be obtained by reference to aspects, some of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It should be noted, however, that the accompanying drawings illustrate only certain typical aspects of the present disclosure and are therefore not to be considered as limiting its scope, so that the description may admit of other equally effective aspects.

[0016] Figure 1 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating an example telecommunications system in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0017] Figure 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example logical architecture of a distributed radio access network (RAN) according to certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0018] Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating an example physical architecture of a distributed RAN according to certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0019] Figure 4 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating a design of an example base station (BS) and user equipment (UE) in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 5A and 5B A diagrammatic representation of an example vehicle-to-everything (V2X) system is shown in accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0021] Figure 6 Example sidelink communication modes are described.

[0022] Figure 7 is a flow chart illustrating example operations that may be performed by a first node according to certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0023] Figure 8 is a flow chart illustrating example operations that may be performed by a second node according to certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0024] Fig. 9 is a flow chart illustrating example operations that may be performed by a first node according to certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0025] Fig.10 is a flow chart illustrating example operations that may be performed by a second node according to certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0026] To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures. It is contemplated that elements disclosed in one aspect may be beneficially utilized in other aspects without specific recitation. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] Aspects of the present disclosure provide apparatus, methods, processing systems, and computer-readable media for generating and processing sidelink MAC-CEs.

[0028] The following description provides examples, rather than limitations on 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 omit, replace, or add various processes or components as appropriate. For example, the method described may be performed in an order different from the order described, and various steps may be added, omitted, or combined. In addition, the features described in some examples may be combined in some other examples. For example, any number of aspects set forth herein may be used to implement a device or practice method. In addition, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover such devices or methods that use other structures, functions, or structures and functions in addition to or different from the various aspects of the present disclosure set forth herein. It should be understood that any aspect of the present disclosure disclosed herein may be embodied by one or more elements of the claims. The term "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described as "exemplary" herein is not necessarily to be interpreted as being preferred or advantageous over other aspects.

[0029] The techniques described herein can be used for various wireless communication technologies (such as LTE, CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA and other networks). The terms "network" and "system" are often used interchangeably. A CDMA network can implement wireless technologies such as Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), cdma2000, etc. UTRA includes Wideband CDMA (WCDMA) and other variants of CDMA. cdma2000 covers IS-2000, IS-95 and IS-856 standards. A TDMA network can implement wireless technologies such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM). An OFDMA network can implement wireless technologies such as NR (e.g., 5GRA), Evolved UTRA (E-UTRA), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDMA, etc. UTRA and E-UTRA are part of Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS).

[0030] New Radio (NR) is an emerging wireless communication technology based on the development of the 5G Technology Forum (5GTF). 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) and Advanced LTE (LTE-A) are versions of UMTS using E-UTRA. UTRA, E-UTRA, UMTS, LTE, LTE-A, and GSM are described in documents from an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership Project" (3GPP). cdma2000 and UMB are described in documents from an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership Project 2" (3GPP2). The techniques described herein can be used for the wireless networks and wireless technologies mentioned above as well as other wireless networks and wireless technologies. For clarity, although aspects may be described herein using terms commonly associated with 3G and / or 4G wireless technologies, aspects of the present disclosure may be applied in communication systems based on other generations (such as 5G and later, including NR technologies).

[0031] New Radio (NR) access (e.g., 5G technology) can support various wireless communication services (such as enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) targeting wide bandwidth (e.g., 80 MHz or above), millimeter wave (mmW) targeting high carrier frequency (e.g., 25 GHz or above), massive machine type communication MTC (mMTC) targeting non-backward compatible MTC technology, and / or mission-critical services targeting ultra-reliable low latency communication (URLLC). These services may include latency and reliability requirements. These services may also have different transmission time intervals (TTIs) for meeting respective quality of service (QoS) requirements. In addition, these services may coexist in the same subframe.

[0032] Example Wireless Communication System

[0033] Figure 1 An example wireless communication network 100 is illustrated in which aspects of the present disclosure may be implemented. For example, Figure 1 The UE 120 and / or BS 110 may be configured to perform the following reference Figure 7-10 Operations are described to generate and / or process a sidelink MAC-CE.

[0034] like Figure 1As described in, the wireless communication network 100 may include multiple base stations (BS) 110 and other network entities. A BS may be a station that communicates with a user equipment (UE). Each BS 110 may provide communication coverage for a specific geographical area. In 3GPP, the term "cell" may refer to the coverage area of ​​a node B (NB) and / or a NB subsystem that provides services for the coverage area, depending on the context in which the term is used. In the NR system, the term "cell" may be interchangeable with a next-generation node B (gNB or g-node B), an NR BS, a 5G NB, an access point (AP), or a transmit receive point (TRP). In some examples, the cell may not necessarily be fixed, and the geographical area of ​​the cell may move according to the location of the mobile BS. In some examples, any suitable transport network may be used to interconnect the base stations to each other and / or one or more other base stations or network nodes (not shown) in the wireless communication network 100 through various types of backhaul interfaces (such as direct physical connections, wireless connections, virtual networks, etc.).

[0035] In general, any number of wireless networks can be deployed in a given geographic area. Each wireless network can support a specific radio access technology (RAT) and can operate on one or more frequencies. RAT can also be referred to as a radio technology, air interface, etc. Frequency can also be referred to as a carrier, subcarrier, frequency channel, tone, subband, etc. Each frequency can support a single RAT in a given geographic area to avoid interference between wireless networks of different RATs. In some cases, NR or 5G RAT networks can be deployed.

[0036] A BS may provide communication coverage for macro cells, pico cells, femto cells, and / or other types of cells. A macro cell may cover a relatively large geographic area (e.g., a radius of several kilometers) and may allow unrestricted access by UEs with service subscriptions. A pico cell may cover a relatively small geographic area and may allow unrestricted access by UEs with service subscriptions. A femto cell may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a home) and may allow restricted access by UEs associated with the femto cell (e.g., UEs in a closed subscriber group (CSG), UEs of users in a home, etc.). A BS for a macro cell may be referred to as a macro BS. A BS for a pico cell may be referred to as a pico BS. A BS for a femto cell may be referred to as a femto BS or a home BS. In Figure 1In the example shown in FIG. 1 , BSs 110a, 110b, and 110c may be macro BSs for macro cells 102a, 102b, and 102c, respectively. BS 110x may be a pico BS for pico cell 102x. BSs 110y and 110z may be femto BSs for femto cells 102y and 102z, respectively. One BS may support one or more (e.g., three) cells.

[0037] The wireless communication network 100 may also include a relay station. A relay station is a station that receives transmissions of data and / or other information from an upstream station (e.g., a BS or a UE) and sends transmissions of data and / or other information to a downstream station (e.g., a UE or a BS). A relay station may also be a UE that relays transmissions for other UEs. Figure 1 In the example shown in , a relay station 110r may communicate with a BS 110a and a UE 120r to facilitate communication between the BS 110a and the UE 120r. A relay station may also be referred to as a relay BS, a relay, or the like.

[0038] The wireless communication network 100 may be a heterogeneous network including different types of BSs (e.g., macro BSs, pico BSs, femto BSs, repeaters, etc.). These different types of BSs may have different transmit power levels, different coverage areas, and different effects on interference in the wireless communication network 100. For example, a macro BS may have a high transmit power level (e.g., 20 watts), while a pico BS, a femto BS, and a repeater may have a lower transmit power level (e.g., 1 watt).

[0039] The wireless communication network 100 may support synchronous or asynchronous operation. For synchronous operation, the BSs may have similar frame timings and may allow transmissions from different BSs to be approximately aligned in time. For asynchronous operation, the BSs may have different frame timings and may not allow transmissions from different BSs to be aligned in time. The techniques described herein may be used for both synchronous and asynchronous operation.

[0040] A network controller 130 may be coupled to a set of BSs and provide coordination and control for these BSs. The network controller 130 may communicate with the BSs 110 via a backhaul. The BSs 110 may also communicate with each other via a wireless or wired backhaul (eg, directly or indirectly).

[0041] UE 120 (e.g., 120x, 120y, etc.) may be dispersed throughout the wireless communication network 100, and each UE may be fixed or mobile. UE may also be referred to as a mobile station, terminal, access terminal, subscriber unit, station, customer premises equipment (CPE), cellular phone, smart phone, personal digital assistant (PDA), wireless modem, wireless communication device, handheld device, laptop computer, cordless phone, wireless local loop (WLL) station, tablet computer, camera, gaming device, netbook, smartbook, ultrabook, home appliance, medical device or medical equipment, biometric sensor / device, wearable device (such as smart watch, smart clothing, smart glasses, smart wristband, smart jewelry (e.g., smart ring, smart bracelet, etc.)), entertainment device (e.g., music device, video device, satellite radio, etc.), vehicle-mounted component or sensor, smart meter / sensor, industrial manufacturing equipment, global positioning system device, or any other suitable device configured to communicate via a wireless or wired medium. Some UEs may be considered as machine type communication (MTC) devices or evolved MTC (eMTC) devices. MTC and eMTC UEs include, for example, robots, drones, remote devices, sensors, meters, monitors, location tags, etc. that can communicate with a BS, another device (e.g., a remote device), or some other entity. A wireless node may provide, for example, a connection for or to a network (e.g., a wide area network such as the Internet or a cellular network) via a wired or wireless communication link. Some UEs may be considered as Internet of Things (IoT) devices, which may be narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) devices.

[0042] Certain wireless networks (e.g., LTE) use orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) on the downlink and single carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the uplink. OFDM and SC-FDM divide the system bandwidth into multiple (K) orthogonal subcarriers, which are also commonly referred to as tones, frequency bins, etc. Each subcarrier can be modulated with data. In general, modulation symbols are sent in the frequency domain using OFDM and in the time domain using SC-FDM. The spacing between adjacent subcarriers can be fixed, and the total number of subcarriers (K) can be dependent on the system bandwidth. For example, the spacing of the subcarriers can be 15kHz, and the minimum resource allocation (referred to as a "resource block" (RB)) can be 12 subcarriers (or 180kHz). Therefore, for system bandwidths of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 megahertz (MHz), respectively, the nominal fast Fourier transform (FFT) size can be equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024, or 2048. The system bandwidth may also be partitioned into subbands. For example, one subband may cover 1.08 MHz (ie, 6 resource blocks), and there may be 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 subbands for system bandwidths of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 MHz, respectively.

[0043] Although aspects of the examples described herein may be associated with LTE technology, aspects of the present disclosure may be applicable to other wireless communication systems such as NR. NR may use OFDM with CP on the uplink and downlink and include support for half-duplex operation using TDD. Beamforming may be supported and the beam direction may be dynamically configured. MIMO transmissions with precoding may also be supported. MIMO configurations in the DL may support up to 8 transmit antennas with up to 8 streams and multi-layer DL transmissions of up to 2 streams per UE. Multi-layer transmissions with up to 2 streams per UE may be supported. Aggregation of multiple cells with up to 8 serving cells may be supported.

[0044] In some examples, access to the air interface can be scheduled. The scheduling entity (e.g., BS) allocates resources for communication between some or all devices and equipment in its service area or cell. The scheduling entity can be responsible for scheduling, allocating, reconfiguring and releasing resources for one or more subordinate entities. That is, for scheduled communications, the subordinate entity uses the resources allocated by the scheduling entity. The base station is not the only entity that can act as a scheduling entity. In some examples, the UE can act as a scheduling entity, and can schedule resources for one or more subordinate entities (e.g., one or more other UEs), and other UEs can use the resources scheduled by the UE for wireless communication. In some examples, the UE can act as a scheduling entity in an end-to-end (P2P) network and / or a mesh network. In the mesh network example, the UE can communicate directly with each other in addition to communicating with the scheduling entity.

[0045] exist Figure 1 In FIG. 1 , a solid line with double arrows indicates desired transmissions between a UE and a serving BS, which is a BS designated to serve the UE on the downlink and / or uplink. A thin dashed line with double arrows indicates interfering transmissions between a UE and a BS.

[0046] Figure 2 It shows that Figure 1 1. An example logical architecture of a distributed radio access network (RAN) 200 implemented in a wireless communication network 100 illustrated in FIG. 5G access node 206 may include access node controller (ANC) 202. ANC 202 may be a central unit (CU) of the distributed RAN 200. A backhaul interface to a next generation core network (NG-CN) 204 may terminate at ANC 202. A backhaul interface to an adjacent next generation access node (NG-AN) 210 may terminate at ANC 202. ANC 202 may include one or more TRPs 208 (e.g., cells, BSs, gNBs, etc.).

[0047] The TRP 208 may be a distributed unit (DU). The TRP 208 may be connected to a single ANC (e.g., ANC 202) or more than one ANC (not illustrated). For example, for a RAN that shares wireless as a service (RaaS) and service-specific ANC deployments, the TRP 208 may be connected to more than one ANC. The TRPs 208 may each include one or more antenna ports. The TRP 208 may be configured to provide services to the UE individually (e.g., dynamically selected) or jointly (e.g., jointly transmitted).

[0048] The logical architecture of the distributed RAN 200 may support fronthaul solutions across different deployment types. For example, the logical architecture may be based on transmit network capabilities (eg, bandwidth, latency, and / or jitter).

[0049] The logical architecture of the distributed RAN 200 may share features and / or components with LTE. For example, the next generation access node (NG-AN) 210 may support dual connectivity with NR and may share a common fronthaul for LTE and NR.

[0050] The logical architecture of the distributed RAN 200 may enable collaboration between TRPs 208, for example, within a TRP and / or across TRPs via the ANC 202. An inter-TRP interface may not be used.

[0051] Logical functions may be dynamically distributed in the logical architecture of the distributed RAN 200. A radio resource control (RRC) layer, a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, a medium access control (MAC) layer, and a physical (PHY) layer may be adaptively placed at a DU (e.g., TRP 208) or a CU (e.g., ANC 202).

[0052] Figure 3 An example physical architecture of a distributed RAN 300 according to aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. A centralized core network unit (C-CU) 302 may host core network functions. The C-CU 302 may be centrally deployed. To handle peak capacity, C-CU 302 functions may be offloaded (e.g., to Advanced Wireless Services (AWS)).

[0053] A centralized RAN unit (C-RU) 304 may host one or more ANC functions. Optionally, the C-RU 304 may host core network functions locally. The C-RU 304 may have a distributed deployment. The C-RU 304 may be close to the network edge.

[0054] The DU 306 may host one or more TRPs (edge ​​node (EN), edge unit (EU), radio head (RH), smart radio head (SRH), etc.) The DU may be placed at the edge of the network with radio frequency (RF) capabilities.

[0055] Figure 4 Describes aspects that can be used to implement the present disclosure (such as in Figure 110 and UE 120. For example, antenna 452, processors 466, 458, 464 and / or controller / processor 480 of UE 120 and / or antenna 434, processors 420, 460, 438 and / or controller / processor 440 of BS 110 may be used to perform the operations referred to herein. Figure 7-10 Various techniques and methods are described.

[0056] At the BS 110, the transmit processor 420 may receive data from a data source 412 and control information from a controller / processor 440. The control information may be for a physical broadcast channel (PBCH), a physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH), a physical hybrid ARQ indicator channel (PHICH), a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), a group common PDCCH (GC PDCCH), etc. The data may be for a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), etc. The processor 420 may process (e.g., encode and symbol map) the data and the control information to obtain data symbols and control symbols, respectively. The processor 420 may also generate reference symbols, for example, for a primary synchronization signal (PSS), a secondary synchronization signal (SSS), and a cell-specific reference signal (CRS). The transmit (TX) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) processor 430 may perform spatial processing (e.g., precoding) on ​​the data symbols, control symbols, and / or reference symbols, if applicable, and may provide output symbol streams to modulators (MODs) 432a through 432t. Each modulator 432 may process a respective output symbol stream (e.g., for OFDM, etc.) to obtain an output sample stream. Each modulator may further process (e.g., convert to analog, amplify, filter, and upconvert) the output sample stream to obtain a downlink signal. The downlink signals from modulators 432a through 432t may be transmitted via antennas 434a through 434t, respectively.

[0057] At the UE 120, antennas 452a through 452r can receive downlink signals from the base station 110 and can provide received signals to demodulators (DEMODs) 454a through 454r in the transceiver, respectively. Each demodulator 454 can condition (e.g., filter, amplify, downconvert, and digitize) a respective received signal to obtain input samples. Each demodulator can further process the input samples (e.g., for OFDM, etc.) to obtain received symbols. A MIMO detector 456 can obtain received symbols from all demodulators 454a through 454r, perform MIMO detection on the received symbols if applicable, and provide detected symbols. A receive processor 458 can process (e.g., demodulate, deinterleave, and decode) the detected symbols, provide decoded data for the UE 120 to a data sink 460, and provide decoded control information to a controller / processor 480.

[0058] On the uplink, at the UE 120, a transmit processor 464 may receive and process data from a data source 462 (e.g., for a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH)) and control information from a controller / processor 480 (e.g., for a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH)). The transmit processor 464 may also generate reference symbols for reference signals (e.g., for a sounding reference signal (SRS)). The symbols from the transmit processor 464 may be precoded by a TX MIMO processor 466 if applicable, further processed by demodulators 454a through 454r in the transceiver (e.g., for SC-FDM, etc.), and sent to the base station 110. At the BS 110, the uplink signal from the UE 120 may be received by the antenna 434, processed by the modulator 432, detected by the MIMO detector 436 if applicable, and further processed by the receive processor 438 to obtain decoded data and control information sent by the UE 120. The receive processor 438 may provide decoded data to a data sink 439 and decoded control information to a controller / processor 440 .

[0059] Controllers / processors 440 and 480 may direct the operation at BS 110 and UE 120, respectively. Processor 440 and / or other processors and modules at BS 110 may perform or direct the execution of processes for the techniques described herein. Memories 442 and 482 may store data and program codes for BS 110 and UE 120, respectively. Scheduler 444 may schedule UEs for data transmission on the downlink and / or uplink.

[0060] In some cases, two or more subordinate entities (e.g., UEs) may communicate with each other using sidelink signals. Real applications of such sidelink communications may include public safety, proximity services, UE-to-network relays, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, Internet of Everything (IoE) communications, IoT communications, mission-critical mesh networks, and / or various other suitable applications. In general, a sidelink signal may refer to a signal that is transmitted from one subordinate entity (e.g., UE1) to another subordinate entity (e.g., UE2) without relaying the communication through a scheduling entity (e.g., UE or BS) even if the scheduling entity may be used for scheduling and / or control purposes. In some examples, a sidelink signal may be transmitted using a licensed spectrum (unlike wireless local area networks that typically use unlicensed spectrum).

[0061] Figure 5A and 5B A diagrammatic representation of an example vehicle-to-everything (V2X) system according to some aspects of the present disclosure is shown. For example, Figure 5A and 5B The vehicles shown in FIG. 4 can communicate via a sidelink channel as described herein and can perform sidelink CSI reporting.

[0062] Figure 5A and 5B The V2X system provided in the present invention provides two complementary transmission modes. Figure 5A The first transmission mode illustrated by the example in involves direct communication (e.g., also referred to as sidelink communication) between participants that are close to each other in a local area. Figure 5B The second transmission mode illustrated by the example in relates to network communication through a network which may be implemented through a Uu interface (eg, a wireless communication interface between a radio access network (RAN) and a UE).

[0063] refer to Figure 5A , a V2X system 500 (e.g., including vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications) is illustrated as having two vehicles 502, 504. A first transmission mode allows direct communication between different participants at a given geographic location. As illustrated, the vehicle may have a wireless communication link 506 with a person (V2P) (e.g., via a UE) through a PC5 interface. Communication between vehicles 502 and 504 may also occur through a PC5 interface 508. In a similar manner, communication from vehicle 502 to other highway components (e.g., highway component 510) may occur, such as traffic signals or signs (V2I) through a PC5 interface 512. Figure 5AFor each communication link described in , bidirectional communication can occur between elements, and therefore, each element can be a transmitter and receiver of information. The V2X system 500 can be a self-managed system implemented without assistance from a network entity. Since no network service interruption occurs during switching operations for moving vehicles, the self-managed system can achieve improved spectrum efficiency, reduced costs, and increased reliability. The V2X system can be configured to operate in a licensed or unlicensed spectrum, so any vehicle with an equipped system can access common frequencies and share information. Such coordinated / common spectrum operation allows safe and reliable operation.

[0064] Figure 5B A V2X system 550 is shown for communications between a vehicle 552 and a vehicle 554 through a network entity 556. These network communications may occur through discrete nodes such as base stations (e.g., eNBs or gNBs) that send and receive information to and from vehicles 552, 554 (e.g., relay information therebetween). Network communications through vehicle-to-network (V2N) links 558 and 510 may be used, for example, for long-range communications between vehicles, such as for communicating the presence of an automobile accident some distance ahead along a highway or freeway. Other types of communications may be sent by the nodes to the vehicles, such as, in particular, traffic conditions, road hazard warnings, environmental / weather reports, and service station availability. Such data may be obtained from a cloud-based sharing service.

[0065] In some cases, two or more subordinate entities (e.g., UEs) may communicate with each other using sidelink signals. As described above, V2V and V2X communications are examples of communications that may be sent via sidelinks. Other applications of sidelink communications may include, in particular, public safety or service announcement communications, communications for proximity services, communications for UE to network relays, device to device (D2D) communications, Internet of Everything (IoE) communications, Internet of Things (IoT) communications, mission-critical mesh communications. In general, a sidelink may refer to a direct link between a subordinate entity (e.g., UE1) and another subordinate entity (e.g., UE2). Thus, a sidelink may be used to send and receive communications (also referred to herein as "sidelink signals") without relaying communications through a scheduling entity (e.g., BS) even if the scheduling entity may be used for scheduling or control purposes. In some examples, a licensed spectrum (different from a wireless local area network that typically uses an unlicensed spectrum) may be used to transmit a sidelink signal.

[0066] Various sidelink channels may be used for sidelink communications, including a physical sidelink discovery channel (PSDCH), a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and a physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH). The PSDCH may carry discovery statements that enable proximate devices to discover each other. The PSCCH may carry control signaling such as sidelink resource configuration and other parameters for data transmission, and the PSSCH may carry data transmission.

[0067] For operations related to PSSCH, the UE performs either transmission or reception in a slot on a carrier. NR sidelink supports the case where all symbols in one slot are available for sidelink and another case where only a subset of consecutive symbols in one slot are available for sidelink.

[0068] The PSFCH may carry feedback such as channel state information (CSI) related to the sidelink channel quality. A sequential based PSFCH format with one symbol (excluding the AGC training period) may be supported. The following formats may be possible: a PSFCH format based on PUCCH format 2 and a PSFCH format that spans all symbols available for the sidelink in a slot.

[0069] Figure 6 An overview of sidelink communications (broadcast and multicast device-to-device or D2D) between UEs is provided. As noted above, by reference to Figure 5A and 5B , sidelink generally refers to a link between two users or between a user and a repeater that can be used in different scenarios and different applications.

[0070] For example, for applications with in-coverage operation, both users are within the coverage of one gNB but communicate directly. This can be assumed to enable some gaming applications. For applications with partial coverage operation, one UE is in coverage and acts as a relay to extend coverage for other users. For applications with out-of-coverage operation, users are outside the coverage of the gNB but still need to communicate. This type of operation is important for mission-critical applications such as V2X and public safety.

[0071] As in Figure 6 As described in the , resource allocation for sidelink communication can be done in different ways. In the first mode (mode 1), the gNB "schedules" the sidelink resources to be used by the UE for SL transmission.

[0072] For the second mode (Mode 2), the UE determines the sidelink resources (the gNB does not schedule SL transmission resources within the SL resources configured by the gNB / network). In this case, the UE autonomously selects SL resources for transmission. The UE may assist in SL resource selection for other UEs. The UE may be configured with a grant for SL transmission with NR configuration, and the UE may schedule SL transmissions for other UEs.

[0073] Example Sidelink MAC-CE Design

[0074] Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques for communicating information via a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE).In some cases, a MAC-CE may involve sidelink communications between two user equipments (UEs).

[0075] Although there are some costs, MAC-CE has advantages over other types of command messages. For example, MAC-CE has the improved reliability provided by hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), but with correspondingly increased latency. HARQ acknowledgment (Ack) or negative acknowledgment (Nack) respectively provides confirmation of whether the MAC-CE (e.g., command) has been received.

[0076] The replacement command message (replacing MAC-CE) includes Downlink Control Information (DCI) on DL and Uplink Control Information (UCI) on UL (eg, via PUCCH or PUSCH). Although these messages do not have any HARQ Ack / Nack, they are generally less reliable but have lower latency.

[0077] For various reasons, MAC-CE is used in sidelink communications (e.g., as described above with reference to Figure 6 For example, a Sidelink Buffer Status Report (SL-BSR) MAC-CE may be sent over the cellular link (Uu), but indicates the buffer status of the sidelink traffic (e.g., the UE has sidelink traffic to send to another UE and requests resources from the gNB in ​​accordance with Mode 1).

[0078] Furthermore, for NR V2X, CSI reports can be sent via the sidelink MAC-CE. This approach can avoid the UE having to implement a receiver for UCI multiplexing.

[0079] For advanced systems (e.g., in Release 17), use cases may require more (and different) types of sidelink-related MAC-CEs. Such MAC-CEs may include both MAC-CEs sent over Uu and MAC-CEs sent over the sidelink (carrying sidelink-related information in both cases).

[0080] In case of sidelink relay, MAC-CE may indicate the traffic being relayed or originating. In case of Uu-PC5 slot aggregation (where both cellular and sidelink may be used), special handling of MAC-CE may be considered. For example, MAC-CE may indicate which code block groups (CBGs of transport blocks / TBs) are from which link.

[0081] In some cases, the MAC-CE may indicate which CBGs carry other MAC-CEs. The MAC-CE may be placed at the beginning or end of a TB, for example, depending on urgency.

[0082] Aspects of the present disclosure provide sidelink-related MAC-CE designs that can accommodate these various use cases. For example, in some cases, the MAC-CE may include routing information that can help the receiver identify and process different types of services (e.g., relayed services / original services, services sent via the sidelink / services sent via Uu).

[0083] Figure 7 is a flow chart illustrating example operations 700 that may be performed by a first node according to certain aspects of the present disclosure. For example, operations 700 may be performed by Figure 6 , or a UE or a base station (eg, any one of which is a first node) shown in FIG. 1 . In some examples, the first node may be Figure 5A and Figure 5B Any of BS 556, vehicle 502, vehicle 504, vehicle 552 or vehicle 554.

[0084] Operations 700 begin at 702 by preparing at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) associated with sidelink communications between two user equipments (UEs). For example, the preparation may include appending relay or routing information to the Uu MAC-CE. When the MAC-CE is for a sidelink, the preparation may include including sidelink-related content (examples are provided below).

[0085] At 704, the first node sends a first MAC CE on at least one of a sidelink (e.g., PC5) or a cellular link (e.g., Uu). At 706, the first node provides routing information for the first MAC CE. For example, the relay or routing information may indicate one or more of a source node, a destination node, and a transit route. In some cases, the relay or routing information may be indicated separately, such as in an RRC, a DCI, or a sidelink equivalent of an RRC and a DCI. In some cases, when relaying sidelink-related content, routing information may be populated or removed for a MAC-CE relayed by the sidelink.

[0086] Figure 8 8 is a flow chart illustrating example operations 800 that may be performed by a second node according to certain aspects of the present disclosure. For example, operations 800 may be performed by Figure 6 800 may be performed by the UE or base station (eg, either one as the second node) shown in FIG. 800. For example, when the second node is configured to communicate with the first node of operation 700 in a sidelink channel, operation 800 may be performed by the UE or base station (eg, either one as the second node). Figure 7 Likewise, in some examples, the second node can be another one of any of BS 556, vehicle 502, vehicle 504, vehicle 552, or vehicle 554 of FIG. 5 .

[0087] Operations 800 begin at 802 by receiving at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) associated with sidelink communications between two user equipments (UEs) via at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link from a first node, such as the first node of operation 700. At 804, the second node obtains routing information for the first MAC CE. At 806, the second node processes the first MAC CE based at least in part on the routing information. Details of the MAC-CE associated with the sidelink are provided below.

[0088] There are various types of sidelink related MAC-CEs. These include, for example, Uu MAC-CEs (DL or UL) relayed via sidelink, MAC-CEs sent on SL with SL related content, and MAC-CEs sent on Uu with SL related content (e.g., SL-BSR already in LTE).

[0089] For Uu MAC-CE (DL or UL) relayed via sidelink, relay / routing information may be attached. As an alternative, routing (and / or relay) information may be provided separately (e.g., indicated via RRC / MAC-CE / DCI or their sidelink equivalents). As used herein, the term routing information includes relay information, and such information may indicate, for example, one or more of a source node, a destination node, or a transit route). If the last leg of the relay route is via cellular (Uu), the routing information may be removed at that point (or some / all may be retained, such as retaining the source ID). In some cases, in the case of Uu+PC5 timeslot aggregation, the last leg may be a combined sidelink and cellular (Uu+PC5). In such a case, the routing information indication may be different in this case compared to Uu alone (e.g., the routing information may indicate on which link different MAC-CEs are sent).

[0090] The MAC-CE sent on the SL can convey various SL-related content. For example, the MAC-CE may include a sidelink CSI (SL-CSI), a sidelink timing advance (SL-TA), a sidelink transmit power control (SL-TPC) command, a sidelink scheduling request (SL-SR), a sidelink buffer status report (SL-BSR), or a sidelink power headroom report (SL-PHR). In some cases, the sidelink MAC-CE may be used for activation / deactivation of resources or services such as sidelink semi-persistent scheduling (SL-SPS) or sidelink configuration grant (SL-CG similar to SPS UL) and / or non-periodic or semi-persistent CSI-RS or SRS (A / SP SL-CSIRS / SRS). In the case of such a MAC-CE being relayed by the SL, the routing information may be modified (e.g., added / removed) as indicated in the case of the SL relay Uu MAC-CE described above.

[0091] The MAC-CE may also be sent on Uu with SL-related content, such as the SL-BSR mentioned above to indicate that the UE has sidelink traffic to send and requests authorization of resources from the base station. Other types of MAC-CE sent on Uu may include SL-PHR, TPC, recommended bit rate, CBR / CR, etc. In some cases, the MAC-CE may be sent as a gNB-relayed version of the type of MAC-CE described above that may be sent on SL with SL-related content (e.g., instead of sending directly to another UE, the UE may send via the base station).

[0092] In the case of a MAC-CE sent via Uu+PC5 timeslot aggregation, a 'header' MAC-CE may be used to indicate which CBGs are from which link (Uu or PC5 or both). Such a MAC-CE may also indicate the location of other MAC-CEs (e.g., which CBGs have MAC-CEs) and / or which link they are sent over (Uu or PC5 or both).

[0093] In the case of MAC-CE commands, the corresponding activation / deactivation of resources or services is usually based on the timing of the confirmation of the command. For example, a certain activation / deactivation of SPS resources may occur n subframes after the corresponding command is confirmed (ACKed) via, for example, HARQ Ack. However, in the case of relay MAC-CE, the timing may be difficult to determine due to possible variable delays caused by different routes (with different hop counts).

[0094] However, aspects of the present disclosure may help address this issue by considering routing / relay information when determining MAC-CE activation time, thereby providing a sidelink-related MAC-CE design that can accommodate these various use cases. For example, in some cases, MAC-CE may include routing information that can help the receiver identify and process different types of traffic (e.g., relayed traffic / original traffic, traffic sent via sidelink / traffic sent via Uu).

[0095] Fig. 9 900 is a flow chart illustrating example operations 900 that may be performed by a first node to determine a MAC-CE activation timing according to certain aspects of the present disclosure. For example, operations 900 may be performed by Figure 6 The UE or base station shown in is executed.

[0096] Operations 900 begin at 902 by sending a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) for activating or deactivating resources or services related to sidelink communications between two user equipments (UEs). At 904, the first node determines a timing for activation or deactivation based at least in part on routing information for the first MAC CE.

[0097] Fig.10 1 is a flow chart illustrating example operations 1000 that may be performed by a second node to determine a MAC-CE activation timing according to certain aspects of the present disclosure. For example, operations 1000 may be performed by Figure 6 The UE or base station shown in is executed.

[0098] Operations 1000 begin at 1002 by receiving a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) for activating or deactivating resources or services related to sidelink communications between two user equipments (UEs). At 1004, a second node determines a timing for activation or deactivation based at least in part on routing information for a first MAC CE.

[0099] As noted above, the activation time of the sidelink MAC-CE may be adjusted based on the link and / or route over which it is sent. In some cases, the SL MAC-CE sent on Uu may not have an activation time (e.g., UL MAC-CE, DL MAC-CE carrying TA command and recommended bit rate may not have an activation time).

[0100] However, as noted above, many have an activation time based on the time of the acknowledgement (ACK) transmission (e.g., 3ms or N slots after the Ack transmission). The count of time in such cases either includes or excludes TA commands received during the count. In some cases, for this purpose, an Ack transmission refers to an acknowledgement of the entire TB (as opposed to just an acknowledgement of the CB / CBG carrying the MAC-CE). In general, the UL MAC-CE does not have an activation time, as how to respond to it is up to the gNB implementation.

[0101] A SL MAC-CE with SL-related content sent to the gNB may be treated similarly to a Uu UL MAC-CE (e.g., and is left to the gNB implementation). A MAC-CE (with SL-related content) sent to the UE over the SL or over the DL may be treated similarly to a Uu DL MAC-CE. In such a case, the activation time may be based on the Ack transmission. As noted above, the Ack transmission (or delivery) time and also the function mapping that delivery time to the activation time (e.g., a delay parameter such as n milliseconds or m slots) may be different for a MAC-CE sent over the SL versus over the DL.

[0102] Therefore, the routing / relay information may be considered when determining the time to activate / deactivate a MAC-CE sent with or without relaying.In some cases, the timing may also depend on whether the Ack transmission is relayed or not.

[0103] For example, if the Ack transmission is not relayed (even though the MAC-CE itself may be relayed, the Ack may be directly from the final destination to the original sender), the activation timing may follow the (conventional) Ack transmission timing.

[0104] If the Ack is relayed, there are various options for determining the activation timing. For example, according to a first option, the timing of the first hop of the Ack route may be followed. Since the final receiver may not know the first hop, separate signaling may be used (e.g., as part of the Ack or in DCI / MAC-CE / RRC). In some cases, the timing may be, for example, 3ms from the timing (as in Uu).

[0105] In some cases, this type of fixed timing may not be optimal for the time it takes for the Ack to reach the final destination (depending on the number of hops). Therefore, a variable time X ms may be used instead, where the value of X depends on the number of hops. Because the actual number of hops may be dynamic (e.g., because each node may choose its own preferred route), a preconfigured (or "expected") number of hops may be used instead.

[0106] According to the first option, the timing of the last hop of the Ack route can be used to determine the MAC-CE activation timing. In this case, the receiver knows the timing based on when it receives the Ack. But in this case, the sender may not know the time. Therefore, the activation timing can be based on a preconfigured / expected timing (based on the number of hops) instead of a fixed time, which effectively becomes equivalent to the option described above with X ms.

[0107] If the Ack transmission can be relayed through multiple routes, the number of hops used to determine X ms can be rule-based. For example, X can be based on the shortest route among multiple routes or the longest route among multiple routes (e.g., where the length is measured in terms of hops).

[0108] Example aspects

[0109] Aspect 1: A method for wireless communication by a first node, comprising: preparing at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs); sending a first MAC-CE on at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link; and providing routing information for the first MAC-CE.

[0110] Aspect 2: The method according to aspect 1, wherein the routing information includes at least one of the following: a source node, a destination node, or a transit route passing through one or more nodes.

[0111] Aspect 3: The method according to aspect 1, wherein the routing information indicates whether the traffic transmitted along with the first MAC-CE is relayed traffic or originating traffic at the first node.

[0112] Aspect 4: The method according to aspect 1, wherein the routing information is sent together with the first MAC-CE.

[0113] Aspect 5: The method according to aspect 4, wherein the routing information is included in one or more fields in the first MAC-CE.

[0114] Aspect 6: The method according to aspect 4, wherein the routing information is included in the second MAC-CE.

[0115] Aspect 7: The method according to aspect 1, wherein the first MAC-CE is included in a transport block (TB) transmitted via an aggregation of the sidelink and the cellular link.

[0116] Aspect 8: The method according to aspect 7, wherein the routing information indicates a first one or more code block groups (CBGs) transmitted via the sidelink and a second one or more CBGs transmitted via the cellular link.

[0117] Aspect 9: The method according to Aspect 8, wherein the first MAC-CE also indicates the location of one or more other MAC-CEs in at least one of the first CBG or the second CBG.

[0118] Aspect 10: The method according to aspect 1, wherein the content of the routing information depends at least in part on whether the MAC-CE is sent via a sidelink, a cellular link, or an aggregation of the sidelink and the cellular link.

[0119] Aspect 11: A method according to Aspect 1, wherein the first MAC-CE originates from another node and the first node is relaying the first MAC-CE; and the routing information provided by the first node is modified relative to the routing information in the first MAC-CE received by the first node.

[0120] Aspect 12: The method according to aspect 11, wherein the modification comprises at least one of: removing the routing information; or updating the routing information based on the route selected by the first node for the first MAC-CE.

[0121] Aspect 13: A method according to Aspect 1, wherein the first MAC-CE indicates at least one of a sidelink timing advance command, a sidelink transmission power control command, a sidelink scheduling request, a sidelink buffer status report, a sidelink power headroom report, or a recommended bit rate.

[0122] Aspect 14: A method according to Aspect 1, wherein the first MAC-CE is designed to activate or deactivate resources or services; and the method also includes: determining the timing for activation or deactivation based at least in part on confirmation of the first MAC-CE and routing information.

[0123] Aspect 15: The method of aspect 14, wherein, if the acknowledgment is relayed, the timing depends at least in part on the number of hops in the route in which the acknowledgment is sent.

[0124] Aspect 16: The method according to aspect 15, wherein the first node is configured to have an expected candidate hop count.

[0125] Aspect 17: The method according to aspect 15, wherein the timing is based on the shortest candidate route in terms of hop count or the longest candidate route in terms of hop count.

[0126] Aspect 18: The method of aspect 14, wherein the timing is based on a first hop in a route in which the acknowledgement is sent; and the first node receives information about the number of hops in the route between the first hop and the first node.

[0127] Aspect 19: The method of aspect 14, wherein the timing is based on the last hop in the route in which the acknowledgment is sent.

[0128] Aspect 20: A method for wireless communication by a second node, comprising: receiving at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs) from a first node on at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link; obtaining routing information for the first MAC-CE; and processing the first MAC-CE based at least in part on the routing information.

[0129] Aspect 21: The method according to Aspect 20, wherein the routing information includes at least one of the following: a source node, a destination node, or a transit route passing through one or more nodes.

[0130] Aspect 22: The method according to aspect 20, wherein the routing information indicates whether the traffic sent along with the first MAC-CE is relayed traffic or originating traffic at the first node.

[0131] Aspect 23: The method according to aspect 20, wherein the routing information is obtained together with the first MAC-CE.

[0132] Aspect 24: The method according to aspect 23, wherein the routing information is included in one or more fields in the first MAC-CE.

[0133] Aspect 25: The method according to aspect 23, wherein the routing information is obtained via the second MAC-CE.

[0134] Aspect 26: The method according to aspect 20, wherein the first MAC-CE is included in a transport block (TB) transmitted via an aggregation of the sidelink and the cellular link.

[0135] Aspect 27: The method according to Aspect 26, wherein the routing information indicates a first one or more code block groups (CBGs) transmitted via the sidelink and a second one or more CBGs transmitted via the cellular link.

[0136] Aspect 28: The method according to Aspect 27, wherein the first MAC-CE also indicates the location of one or more other MAC-CEs in at least one of the first CBG or the second CBG.

[0137] Aspect 29: The method of aspect 20, wherein the content of the routing information depends at least in part on whether the MAC-CE is sent via a sidelink, a cellular link, or an aggregation of the sidelink and the cellular link.

[0138] Aspect 30: The method according to aspect 20, wherein the routing information indicates that the first MAC-CE is originated from another node and is relayed by the first node.

[0139] Aspect 31: A method according to Aspect 20, wherein the first MAC-CE indicates at least one of a sidelink timing advance command, a sidelink transmission power control command, a sidelink scheduling request, a sidelink buffer status report, a sidelink power headroom report, or a recommended bit rate.

[0140] Aspect 32: A method according to Aspect 20, wherein the first MAC-CE is designed to activate or deactivate resources or services; and the method also includes: determining the timing for activation or deactivation based at least in part on confirmation of the first MAC-CE and routing information.

[0141] Aspect 33: The method of aspect 32, wherein, if the acknowledgment is relayed, the timing depends at least in part on the number of hops in the route in which the acknowledgment is sent.

[0142] Aspect 34: The method according to aspect 33, wherein the first node is configured to have an expected candidate hop count.

[0143] Aspect 35: The method according to aspect 33, wherein the timing is based on the shortest candidate route in terms of hop count or the longest candidate route in terms of hop count.

[0144] Aspect 36: The method of aspect 32, wherein the timing is based on a first hop in a route in which the acknowledgement is sent; and the first node receives information regarding the number of hops in the route between the first hop and the first node.

[0145] Aspect 37: The method of aspect 32, wherein the timing is based on the last hop in the route in which the acknowledgment is sent.

[0146] Aspect 38: A method for wireless communication by a first node, comprising: sending a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) for activating or deactivating resources or services related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs); and determining the timing for activation or deactivation based at least in part on routing information for the first MAC-CE.

[0147] Aspect 39: A method for wireless communication by a second node, comprising: receiving a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) for activating or deactivating resources or services related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs) from a first node; and determining a timing for activation or deactivation based at least in part on routing information for the first MAC-CE.

[0148] Aspect 40: An apparatus for wireless communication by a first node, comprising: a unit for preparing at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) associated with sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs); a unit for sending a first MAC-CE on at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link; and a unit for providing routing information for the first MAC-CE.

[0149] Aspect 41: The apparatus according to Aspect 40, wherein the routing information includes at least one of the following: a source node, a destination node, or a transit route passing through one or more nodes.

[0150] Aspect 42: The apparatus according to aspect 40, wherein the routing information indicates whether the traffic sent along with the first MAC-CE is relayed traffic or originating traffic at the first node.

[0151] Aspect 43: The apparatus according to aspect 40, wherein the routing information is sent together with the first MAC-CE.

[0152] Aspect 44: The apparatus according to aspect 43, wherein the routing information is included in one or more fields in the first MAC-CE.

[0153] Aspect 45: The apparatus according to aspect 43, wherein the routing information is included in the second MAC-CE.

[0154] Aspect 46: The apparatus according to aspect 40, wherein the first MAC-CE is included in a transport block (TB) transmitted via an aggregation of the sidelink and the cellular link.

[0155] Aspect 47: An apparatus according to Aspect 46, wherein the routing information indicates a first one or more code block groups (CBGs) sent via the sidelink and a second one or more CBGs sent via the cellular link.

[0156] Aspect 48: The apparatus according to Aspect 47, wherein the first MAC-CE further indicates the location of one or more other MAC-CEs in at least one of the first CBG or the second CBG.

[0157] Aspect 49: The apparatus of aspect 40, wherein the content of the routing information depends at least in part on whether the MAC-CE is sent via a sidelink, a cellular link, or an aggregation of the sidelink and the cellular link.

[0158] Aspect 50: An apparatus according to Aspect 40, wherein the first MAC-CE originates from another node and the first node is relaying the first MAC-CE; and the routing information provided by the first node is modified relative to the routing information in the first MAC-CE received by the first node.

[0159] Aspect 51: The apparatus according to aspect 50, wherein the modification comprises at least one of: removing the routing information; or updating the routing information based on the route selected by the first node for the first MAC-CE.

[0160] Aspect 52: An apparatus according to Aspect 40, wherein the first MAC-CE indicates at least one of a sidelink timing advance command, a sidelink transmission power control command, a sidelink scheduling request, a sidelink buffer status report, a sidelink power headroom report, or a recommended bit rate.

[0161] Aspect 53: An apparatus according to Aspect 40, wherein the first MAC-CE is designed to activate or deactivate resources or services; and the apparatus further includes: a unit for determining the timing for activation or deactivation based at least in part on confirmation of the first MAC-CE and routing information.

[0162] Aspect 54: The apparatus of aspect 53, wherein, if the acknowledgment is relayed, the timing depends at least in part on the number of hops in the route in which the acknowledgment is sent.

[0163] Aspect 55: The apparatus according to Aspect 54, wherein the first node is configured to have an expected candidate hop count.

[0164] Aspect 56: The apparatus of aspect 54, wherein the timing is based on the shortest candidate route in terms of hop count or the longest candidate route in terms of hop count.

[0165] Aspect 57: The apparatus of aspect 53, wherein the timing is based on a first hop in a route in which the acknowledgement is sent; and the first node receives information about a number of hops in the route between the first hop and the first node.

[0166] Aspect 58: The apparatus of aspect 53, wherein the timing is based on a last hop in a route in which the acknowledgment is sent.

[0167] Aspect 59: An apparatus for wireless communication by a second node, comprising: a unit for receiving at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs) from a first node via at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link; a unit for obtaining routing information for the first MAC-CE; and a unit for processing the first MAC-CE based at least in part on the routing information.

[0168] Aspect 60: The apparatus according to Aspect 59, wherein the routing information comprises at least one of the following: a source node, a destination node, or a transit route passing through one or more nodes.

[0169] Aspect 61: The apparatus according to aspect 59, wherein the routing information indicates whether the traffic sent along with the first MAC-CE is relayed traffic or originating traffic at the first node.

[0170] Aspect 62: The apparatus according to aspect 59, wherein the routing information is obtained together with the first MAC-CE.

[0171] Aspect 63: The apparatus according to aspect 62, wherein the routing information is included in one or more fields in the first MAC-CE.

[0172] Aspect 64: The apparatus according to aspect 62, wherein the routing information is obtained via the second MAC-CE.

[0173] Aspect 65: The apparatus of aspect 59, wherein the first MAC-CE is included in a transport block (TB) transmitted via an aggregation of the sidelink and the cellular link.

[0174] Aspect 66: An apparatus according to Aspect 65, wherein the routing information indicates a first one or more code block groups (CBGs) transmitted via the sidelink and a second one or more CBGs transmitted via the cellular link.

[0175] Aspect 67: The apparatus according to Aspect 66, wherein the first MAC-CE further indicates the location of one or more other MAC-CEs in at least one of the first CBG or the second CBG.

[0176] Aspect 68: The apparatus of aspect 59, wherein the content of the routing information depends at least in part on whether the MAC-CE is sent via a sidelink, a cellular link, or an aggregation of the sidelink and the cellular link.

[0177] Aspect 69: The apparatus according to aspect 59, wherein the routing information indicates that the first MAC-CE is originated from another node and is relayed by the first node.

[0178] Aspect 70: An apparatus according to Aspect 59, wherein the first MAC-CE indicates at least one of a sidelink timing advance command, a sidelink transmission power control command, a sidelink scheduling request, a sidelink buffer status report, a sidelink power headroom report, or a recommended bit rate.

[0179] Aspect 71: An apparatus according to Aspect 59, wherein the first MAC-CE is designed to activate or deactivate resources or services; and the apparatus further includes: a unit for determining the timing for activation or deactivation based at least in part on confirmation of the first MAC-CE and routing information.

[0180] Aspect 72: The apparatus of aspect 71, wherein, if the acknowledgment is relayed, the timing depends at least in part on the number of hops in the route in which the acknowledgment is sent.

[0181] Aspect 73: The apparatus according to Aspect 72, wherein the first node is configured to have an expected candidate hop count.

[0182] Aspect 74: The apparatus according to Aspect 72, wherein the timing is based on the shortest candidate route in terms of hop count or the longest candidate route in terms of hop count.

[0183] Aspect 75: The apparatus of aspect 71, wherein the timing is based on a first hop in a route in which the acknowledgement is sent; and the first node receives information about a number of hops in the route between the first hop and the first node.

[0184] Aspect 76: The apparatus of aspect 71, wherein the timing is based on a last hop in a route in which the acknowledgment is sent.

[0185] Aspect 77: An apparatus for wireless communication by a first node, comprising: a unit for sending a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) for activating or deactivating resources or services related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs); and a unit for determining the timing for activation or deactivation based at least in part on routing information for the first MAC-CE.

[0186] Aspect 78: An apparatus for wireless communication by a second node, comprising: a unit for receiving a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) for activating or deactivating resources or services related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs) from a first node; and a unit for determining a timing for activation or deactivation based at least in part on routing information for the first MAC-CE.

[0187] Aspect 79: An apparatus for wireless communication by a first node, comprising at least one processor and a memory configured to: prepare at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs); send a first MAC-CE via at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link; and provide routing information for the first MAC-CE.

[0188] Aspect 80: An apparatus for wireless communication by a second node, comprising at least one processor and a memory configured to perform the following operations: receiving at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs) from a first node via at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link; obtaining routing information for the first MAC-CE; and processing the first MAC-CE based at least in part on the routing information.

[0189] Aspect 81: An apparatus for wireless communication by a first node, comprising at least one processor and a memory configured to perform the following operations: sending a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) for activating or deactivating resources or services related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs); and determining the timing for activation or deactivation based at least in part on routing information for the first MAC-CE.

[0190] Aspect 82: An apparatus for wireless communication by a second node, comprising at least one processor and a memory configured to perform the following operations: receiving a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) for activating or deactivating resources or services related to sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs) from a first node; and determining a timing for activation or deactivation based at least in part on routing information for the first MAC-CE.

[0191] The methods disclosed herein include one or more steps or actions for achieving the method. The method steps and / or actions may be interchangeable with each other without departing from the scope of the claims. In other words, unless a specific order of steps or actions is specified, the order and / or use of the specific steps and / or actions may be modified without departing from the scope of the claims.

[0192] As used herein, a phrase referring to "at least one of" a list of items refers to any combination of those items including individual members. As an example, "at least one of a, b, or c" is intended to cover a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, and abc, as well as any combination with multiple identical elements (e.g., aa, aaa, aab, aac, abb, acc, bb, bbb, bbc, cc, and ccc or any other ordering of a, b, and c).

[0193] As used herein, the term "determining" includes a variety of actions. For example, "determining" may include calculating, computing, processing, deriving, reviewing, searching (e.g., searching in a table, a database, or another data structure), ascertaining, etc. In addition, "determining" may include receiving (e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g., accessing data in a memory), etc. In addition, "determining" may include resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing, etc.

[0194] The previous description is provided to enable those skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. The various modifications made to these aspects will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein can be applied to other aspects. Therefore, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but will conform to the full scope consistent with the language of the claims, wherein, unless specifically so indicated, the reference to the element in the singular form is not intended to represent "one and only one", but instead represents "one or more". Unless specifically otherwise indicated, the term "some" refers to one or more. All structural and functional equivalents of the elements of the various aspects described throughout the present disclosure that are known or become known to those skilled in the art later are expressly incorporated herein by reference, and are intended to be included by the claims. In addition, there is nothing disclosed herein that is intended to be dedicated to the public, regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly recorded in the claims. Unless the element is explicitly recorded using the phrase "unit for...", or the element is recorded using the phrase "step for..." in the case of a method claim, otherwise, no claim element should be interpreted according to the provisions of 35 U.S.C. §112 (f).

[0195] The various operations of the methods described above may be performed by any suitable unit capable of performing the corresponding functions. The units may include various hardware and / or software components and / or modules, including but not limited to circuits, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or processors. In general, where operations are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, those operations may have corresponding corresponding units plus functional components. For example, Figure 7-10 The various operations shown in Figure 4 The various processors shown in (such as processors 466, 458, 464 and / or controller / processor 480 of UE 120) execute.

[0196] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the present disclosure may be implemented or performed using a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device (PLD), 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 alternatively, the processor may be any commercially available processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, for example, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0197] If implemented in hardware, an example hardware configuration may include a processing system in a wireless node. The processing system may be implemented using a bus architecture. Depending on the specific application and overall design constraints of the processing system, the bus may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges. The bus may link together various circuits including a processor, a machine-readable medium, and a bus interface. The bus interface may be used to connect a network adapter to the processing system via the bus. The network adapter may be used to implement the signal processing functions of the PHY layer. Assuming that the user terminal 120 (see Figure 1 ), a user interface (e.g., a keypad, display, mouse, joystick, etc.) may also be connected to the bus. The bus may also link various other circuits such as timing sources, peripherals, voltage regulators, power management circuits, etc., which are well known in the art and therefore will not be described any further. The processor may be implemented using one or more general and / or special purpose processors. Examples include microprocessors, microcontrollers, DSP processors, and other circuits that can execute software. Those skilled in the art will recognize how to best implement the described functionality for a processing system depending on the specific application and the overall design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0198] If implemented in software, the function can be stored or sent as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium. Software should be broadly understood to represent instructions, data, or any combination thereof, whether it is called software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or something else. Computer-readable media include both computer storage media and communication media, and communication media include any medium that facilitates the transmission of computer programs from one place to another. The processor can be responsible for managing the bus and general processing, and general processing includes the execution of software modules stored on the machine-readable storage medium. The computer-readable storage medium can be coupled to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Alternatively, the storage medium can be an indispensable part of the processor. As an example, the machine-readable medium can include a transmission line, a carrier modulated by data, and / or a computer-readable storage medium with instructions stored thereon separated from the wireless node, and all of these items can be accessed by the processor through the bus interface. Alternatively or in addition, the machine-readable medium or any part thereof can be integrated into the processor (such as, for cache and / or general register files may be so). As an example, examples of machine-readable storage media may include RAM (random access memory), flash memory, ROM (read-only memory), PROM (programmable read-only memory), EPROM (erasable programmable read-only memory), EEPROM (electrically erasable programmable read-only memory), registers, magnetic disks, optical disks, hard disk drives, or any other suitable storage media or any combination thereof. Machine-readable media may be embodied in a computer program product.

[0199] A software module may include a single instruction or many instructions, and may be distributed in several different code segments, in different programs, and in multiple storage media. A computer-readable medium may include some software modules. A software module includes instructions that cause a processing system to perform various functions when executed by a device (such as a processor). A software module may include a sending module and a receiving module. Each software module may reside in a single storage device or be distributed in multiple storage devices. As an example, a software module may be loaded from a hard drive into a RAM when a triggering event occurs. During the execution of a software module, a processor may load some of the instructions into a cache to increase access speed. One or more cache lines may then be loaded into a general register file to be executed by a processor. When the functions of a software module are mentioned below, it should be understood that such functions are implemented by a processor when executing instructions from the software module.

[0200] Furthermore, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared (IR), radio and microwave, then the coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio and microwave are included in the definition of medium. Disk and disc, as used herein, include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Disks, where magnetic disks typically reproduce data magnetically, and optical disks reproduce data optically using lasers. Thus, in some aspects, computer-readable media may include non-transitory computer-readable media (e.g., tangible media). Additionally, for other aspects, computer-readable media may include transient computer-readable media (e.g., signals). Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0201] Thus, certain aspects may include a computer program product for performing the operations presented herein. For example, such a computer program product may include a computer-readable medium having instructions stored (and / or encoded) thereon, the instructions being executable by one or more processors to perform the operations described herein. For example, a computer program product for performing the operations described herein and in Figure 7-10 Instructions for the operations described in .

[0202] Further, it should be appreciated that the modules and / or other suitable units for executing the methods and techniques described herein can be downloaded and / or obtained by a user terminal and / or a base station as appropriate. For example, such a device can be coupled to a server for facilitating the transmission of the units for executing the methods described herein. Alternatively, the various methods described herein can be provided via a storage unit (e.g., RAM, ROM, a physical storage medium such as a compact disk (CD) or a floppy disk, etc.) so that the user terminal and / or the base station can obtain the various methods when the storage unit is coupled to or provided to the device. In addition, any other suitable technology for providing the methods and techniques described herein to the device can be used.

[0203] It should be understood that the claims are not limited to the precise configuration and components described above. Various modifications, changes and variations may be made in the arrangement, operation and details of the methods and apparatus described above without departing from the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication by a first node, comprising: preparing at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) associated with sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs); Sending the first MAC-CE on at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link, wherein the first MAC-CE is designed to activate or deactivate a resource or a service; providing routing information for the first MAC-CE, wherein the content of the routing information depends at least in part on whether the first MAC-CE is sent via the sidelink, the cellular link, or an aggregation of the sidelink and the cellular link; and A timing for the activation or deactivation of the resource or the service is determined based at least in part on the acknowledgement of the first MAC-CE and the routing information.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The routing information includes at least one of the following: a source node, a destination node, or a transit route passing through one or more nodes.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The routing information indicates whether traffic transmitted along with the first MAC-CE is relayed traffic or traffic originated from the first node.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The routing information is sent together with the first MAC-CE.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first MAC-CE is included in a transport block (TB) transmitted via an aggregation of a sidelink and a cellular link.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first MAC-CE originates from another node, and the first node is relaying the first MAC-CE; and The routing information provided by the first node is modified relative to the routing information in the first MAC-CE received by the first node.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first MAC-CE indicates at least one of a sidelink timing advance command, a sidelink transmission power control command, a sidelink scheduling request, a sidelink buffer status report, a sidelink power headroom report or a recommended bit rate.

8. A method for wireless communication by a second node, comprising: receiving, from a first node, at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) related to sidelink communications between two user equipments (UEs) on at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link; Acquire routing information for the first MAC-CE, wherein the first MAC-CE is designed to activate or deactivate resources or services; processing the first MAC-CE based at least in part on the routing information, wherein the content of the routing information depends at least in part on whether the first MAC-CE is sent via the sidelink, the cellular link, or an aggregation of the sidelink and the cellular link; and A timing for the activation or deactivation of the resource or the service is determined based at least in part on the acknowledgement of the first MAC-CE and the routing information.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein: The routing information indicates whether the traffic transmitted along with the first MAC-CE is relayed traffic or traffic originated from the first node.

10. The method according to claim 8, wherein: The routing information is acquired together with the first MAC-CE.

11. The method according to claim 8, wherein: The first MAC-CE is included in a transport block (TB) transmitted via an aggregation of a sidelink and a cellular link.

12. The method according to claim 8, wherein: The routing information indicates that the first MAC-CE originates from another node and is relayed by the first node.

13. The method according to claim 8, wherein: The first MAC-CE indicates at least one of a sidelink timing advance command, a sidelink transmission power control command, a sidelink scheduling request, a sidelink buffer status report, a sidelink power headroom report or a recommended bit rate.

14. An apparatus for wireless communication by a first node, comprising: means for preparing at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) associated with sidelink communication between two user equipments (UEs), wherein the first MAC-CE is designed to activate or deactivate resources or services; means for sending the first MAC-CE on at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link; means for providing routing information for the first MAC-CE, wherein content of the routing information depends at least in part on whether the first MAC-CE is transmitted via the sidelink, the cellular link, or an aggregation of the sidelink and the cellular link; and means for determining a timing for the activation or deactivation of the resource or the service based at least in part on an acknowledgement of the first MAC-CE and the routing information.

15. The device according to claim 14, wherein: The routing information indicates whether traffic transmitted along with the first MAC-CE is relayed traffic or traffic originated from the first node.

16. The device according to claim 14, wherein: The first MAC-CE is included in a transport block (TB) transmitted via an aggregation of a sidelink and a cellular link.

17. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein: The first MAC-CE originates from another node, and the first node is relaying the first MAC-CE; and The routing information provided by the first node is modified relative to the routing information in the first MAC-CE received by the first node.

18. An apparatus for wireless communication by a second node, comprising: means for receiving, from a first node on at least one of a sidelink or a cellular link, at least a first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) related to sidelink communications between two user equipments (UEs); a unit for acquiring routing information for the first MAC-CE, wherein the first MAC-CE is configured to activate or deactivate a resource or a service; means for processing the first MAC-CE based at least in part on the routing information, wherein content of the routing information depends at least in part on whether the first MAC-CE is transmitted via the sidelink, the cellular link, or an aggregation of the sidelink and the cellular link; and means for determining a timing for the activation or deactivation of the resource or the service based at least in part on an acknowledgement of the first MAC-CE and the routing information.

19. The device according to claim 18, wherein: The routing information indicates whether traffic transmitted along with the first MAC-CE is relayed traffic or traffic originated from the first node.

20. The device according to claim 18, wherein The routing information is acquired together with the first MAC-CE.

21. The device according to claim 18, wherein The first MAC-CE is included in a transport block (TB) transmitted via an aggregation of a sidelink and a cellular link.

22. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein: The routing information indicates that the first MAC-CE originates from another node and is relayed by the first node.

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