Resource allocation method for sidelink communication and apparatus thereof

Abstract

Various examples and schemes related to resource allocation enhancements for sidelink (SL) communications are described. A user equipment (UE) receives a sidelink control information (SCI) signal from a peer UE indicating a reserved resource. The UE then determines whether the reserved resource is acceptable by performing a reference signal received power (RSRP)-based comparison. Based on the result of the determination, the UE performs a transmission to the peer user equipment or one or more other user equipment. The resource allocation methods and apparatuses for sidelink communications provided herein can improve reliability and reduce sidelink communication latency.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communications. In particular, it relates to enhanced mechanisms for resource allocation for sidelink (SL) communications. BACKGROUND

[0002] The methods described in this section are not prior art to the claims listed below and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.

[0003] Under the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) specification for 5th Generation (5G) NR, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) SL communications can be conducted through unicast, groupcast, and broadcast communications. However, there are still some issues to be addressed in terms of SL resource allocation for improving reliability and reducing SL communication latency. Therefore, there is a need for a solution to enhance SL communication resource allocation. SUMMARY

[0004] The following summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In other words, the following summary is presented to introduce some concepts, features, benefits and advantages of the novel and non-obvious technology described herein. A selected implementation is described in further detail below. Thus, the following summary is not intended to be limiting, and is provided merely to introduce various concepts, features, benefits and advantages of the claimed subject matter.

[0005] It is an object of the present disclosure to present various schemes, concepts, designs, methods, systems and apparatuses related to enhanced mechanisms for SL resource allocation. The various schemes presented herein can improve reliability and reduce SL communication latency as a solution to certain issues in 5G NR V2X communications.

[0006] Under various proposed schemes regarding SL resource allocation according to the present disclosure, a receiving (Rx) user equipment (UE) can apply an assistance resource allocation mechanism to improve reliability and reduce overall latency of SL communications. The mechanism can be implemented independently based on sensing and resource allocation mechanisms or jointly with a transmitting (Tx) UE. For example, the Rx UE can transmit assistance information to assist the Tx UE in resource selection by the Tx UE. For a reserved resource indicated in a sidelink control information (SCI) from a peer Tx UE, if the reserved resource is not preferred based on sensing results by the Rx UE, the Rx UE can indicate to the peer Tx UE that the resource is not preferred through specific signaling (e.g., one or more bits in a physical SL feedback channel (PSFCH)). On the other hand, if the reserved resource is preferred or acceptable based on sensing results at the Rx UE, the Rx UE can transmit the SCI carrying resource reservation information from the peer Tx UE to one or more potential interfering UEs for avoiding resource collision.

[0007] In one aspect, a method can include receiving, from a peer UE (e.g., a peer Tx UE), a SCI signal indicating a reserved resource. The method can also include determining whether the reserved resource is acceptable by performing a reference signal received power (RSRP)-based comparison. The method can further include performing a transmission to the peer UE or one or more other UEs in accordance with a result of the determination.

[0008] In another aspect, a method can include transmitting, to a peer UE (e.g., a peer Rx UE), a SCI signal indicating a reserved resource. The method can also involve receiving, from the peer UE, an indication that the reserved resource is not preferred. The method can further include performing resource selection or reselection in response to receiving the indication.

[0009] In yet another aspect, an apparatus can include a transceiver configured for wireless communication and a processor coupled to the transceiver. The processor can receive, via the transceiver, a SCI signal indicating a reserved resource from a peer UE (e.g., a peer Tx UE) and determine whether the reserved resource is acceptable by performing a RSRP-based comparison. Then, depending on a result of the determination, the processor can perform, via the transceiver, a transmission to the peer UE or one or more other UEs.

[0010] It is worth noting that while the description provided herein is in the context of certain radio access technologies, networks and network topologies such as Fifth Generation (5G) and NR V2X, the concepts, schemes and any variants / derivatives thereof proposed can be implemented in, for, and by any other type of radio access technologies, networks and network topologies, such as but not limited to Long-Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced, LTE-Advanced Pro, Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi), and any future developed networks and technologies. Therefore, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the examples described herein. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0011] The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the application, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this application. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the application and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the application. It is understood that the drawings are schematic and are not necessarily drawn to scale. Certain components that are shown can be exaggerated in size in order to illustrate certain concepts more clearly.

[0012] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an example communication scenario in accordance with embodiments of the application.

[0013] Figure 2 is a block diagram of an example communication scenario in accordance with embodiments of the application.

[0014] Figure 3 is a flowchart of an example process in accordance with embodiments of the application.

[0015] Figure 4 is a flowchart of an example process in accordance with embodiments of the application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0016] Detailed embodiments and implementations of the claimed subject matter are disclosed herein. It should be understood, however, that the disclosed embodiments and implementations are merely examples of the claimed subject matter, which can be implemented in various forms. The present invention can be implemented in numerous ways, including but not limited to the exemplary embodiments and implementations described herein. Rather, the present invention should be construed broadly as relating to the described subject matter, which can be implemented in a variety of ways. In the following description, numerous specific details are provided to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments and implementations presented. However, one having ordinary skill in the relevant art will recognize that the invention can be practiced without the specific details presented.

[0017] SUMMARY

[0018] Embodiments of the present invention relate to various techniques, methods, schemes, and / or solutions for resource allocation enhancements for SL communication in NR V2X communication. According to the present invention, multiple possible solutions are implemented, either individually or jointly. That is, while these possible solutions are described individually below, two or more of these possible solutions can also be implemented in combination or another way.

[0019] Figure 1 An example network environment 100 is described in which various solutions and schemes according to the present invention are implemented. Referring to Figure 1 , the network environment 100 can include a Rx UE (interchangeably referred to herein as a “peer Rx UE”), a Tx UE (interchangeably referred to herein as a “peer Tx UE”), and one or more other UEs (which can potentially cause interference to the Rx UE due to receiving transmissions from the Tx UE, interchangeably referred to herein as “potential interfering UEs”) for wireless communication in a NR V2X network. As described below, in the network environment 100, the Rx UE, the Tx UE, and the one or more other UEs can implement various schemes related to resource allocation enhancements for SL communication according to the present invention.

[0020] Under various proposed schemes according to the present invention related to SL resource allocation, the Rx UE can apply an assistance resource allocation mechanism to improve reliability and reduce overall latency of SL communication. The mechanism can be implemented independently or jointly with the Tx UE based on sensing and resource allocation mechanisms. For example, the Rx UE can send assistance information to assist the Tx UE in resource selection by the Tx UE. For a reserved resource indicated in a SCI signal from a peer Tx UE, if the reserved resource is not preferred based on sensing results at the Rx UE, the Rx UE can indicate to the peer Tx UE that the resource is not preferred through specific signaling (e.g., one or more bits in PSFCH). On the other hand, if the reserved resource is preferred or acceptable based on sensing results at the Rx UE, the Rx UE can send a SCI carrying resource reservation information from the peer Tx UE to one or more potential interfering UEs for avoiding resource collision. Notably, the peer Tx UE can be in communication with the peer Rx UE, while the one or more other Tx UEs are in communication with one or more other Rx UEs. Thus, in the absence of effective coordination between the peer Tx UE and the one or more other Tx UEs, transmissions by the one or more other Tx UEs to the one or more other Rx UEs can cause interference at the peer Rx UE.

[0021] Under the proposed scheme according to the present application, the assistance resource allocation mechanism can include multiple stages, steps or operations involving the peer Rx UE, the peer Tx UE, and one or more other UEs (e.g., one or more other Tx UEs and / or one or more other Rx UEs), in Figure 1 and are denoted as Step 1, Step 2A, Step 2B, Step 3A, Step 3B-1 and Step 3B-2 in the following description. Reference is made to Figure 1 In Step 1, the peer Tx UE can transmit data associated with a control channel to the peer Rx UE, where the control channel can carry (e.g., in SCI) specific resource reservation information to indicate to the peer Rx UE the time and / or frequency resources reserved by the peer Tx UE for future transmission.

[0022] Upon receiving the SCI from the peer Tx UE, the peer Rx UE can check and determine whether the reserved time / frequency resources indicated in the SCI are acceptable or preferred according to past peer Rx UE sensing results (e.g., historical sensing results). The sensing results can be the results of performing channel sensing on the peer Rx UE channel, where transmissions from UEs (including the peer Tx UE) occur on the channel in the network environment 100 to collect channel priority information and resource reservation information (obtained from received SCI signals from any UE in the network environment 100) and RSRP results measured on the demodulation reference signal (DMRS) of the received SCI signals and / or related data DMRS. That is, upon receiving the SCI from the peer Tx UE, the peer Rx UE can check the reserved resources indicated in the SCI and compare the RSRP performance of the peer Tx UE and one or more other UEs (e.g., potential interfering UEs) in the same resource reservation according to the peer Rx UE’s past sensing results.

[0023] For example, in case the RSRP of the peer Tx UE is higher than the RSRP of the potential interfering UE, the reserved resource by the peer Tx UE can be considered as “acceptable” or “preferred” by the peer Rx UE. Otherwise, the reserved resource is considered as “unacceptable” or “unpreferred” by the peer Rx UE. In addition, the peer Rx UE can consider the priority between the peer Tx UE and the potential interfering UE when comparing the RSRP performance. Furthermore, based on the priority level of the peer Tx UE and the potential interfering UE, a RSRP offset or threshold is derived or (pre-)configured. The RSRP offset can be different for different priority pairs between the peer Tx UE and the potential interfering UE. The peer Rx UE can determine the RSRP difference (hereinafter interchangeably referred to as “RSRP difference”) between the peer Tx UE and the potential interfering UE and the RSRP offset or threshold, where the RSRP offset or threshold can be derived from the priority formula of the peer Tx UE and the potential interfering UE. In case the RSRP difference is higher (or lower) than the RSRP offset or threshold, the reserved resource can be considered as “acceptable” or “preferred” by the peer Rx UE. Otherwise, the reserved resource can be considered as “unacceptable” or “unpreferred” by the peer Rx UE. Based on the determination of “preferred” or “unpreferred” on the reserved resource, the peer Rx UE can send assistance information to the peer Tx UE and / or the potential interfering UE.

[0024] Under the proposed scheme, in step 2A, the peer Rx UE can send an indication of “unpreferred” (also referred to as “conflict indication”) to the peer Tx UE if the reserved resource is considered as “unpreferred”. Such indication (e.g., one or more bits) is carried in the PSFCH from the peer Rx UE to the peer Tx UE. In addition, depending on the transmission timing and / or (pre-)configuration, there is or is not multiplexing with the SL acknowledgement / negative-acknowledgement (A / N) bits. In case there is no multiplexing of these indication bits with the A / N bits, the PSFCH can carry one at a time (e.g., the indication with one but not both of the A / N bits) by using different time / frequency / sequence resources for differentiation. In case there is multiplexing of the indication bits with the A / N bits, the PSFCH can carry one or more additional bits at a time (e.g., two bits, where one bit is for the A / N and the other bit is for the “unpreferred” indication). In this case, four PSFCH resources (sequences) can be needed to indicate two bits of information. The PSFCH resource used for transmission is determined by the peer Rx UE based on a function of the identity (ID) of the source and / or destination UE. In case of groupcast transmission to a group of UEs, the PSFCH resource used for transmission can be derived from a function of the group ID and / or member ID in the UE group.

[0025] Under the proposed scheme, the PSFCH can carry one or more bits for the “non-preferred” indication regarding the reserved resources. In the case of using one bit, the “non-preferred” indication can correspond to the second resource indicated in the SCI (e.g., the first reserved resource). Alternatively, the “non-preferred” indication can correspond to all resources indicated in the SCI. In this case, some rules can be derived to determine the setting. For example, in the case where none of the reserved resources is preferred, this bit can be set and transmitted by the peer Rx UE. On the other hand, if all the reserved resources are preferred or acceptable, the bit can not be transmitted. That is, when all the reserved resources are acceptable / preferred, the peer Rx UE can not perform the transmission of the indication bit. In the case of using multiple bits for the indication, the “non-preferred” indication can correspond to each of the reserved resources indicated in the SCI. For example, two bits of the “non-preferred” indication can correspond to the second resource in the SCI (e.g., the first reserved resource) and the third resource in the SCI (e.g., the second reserved resource), respectively.

[0026] Under the proposed scheme, in the case of (pre-)configured multiplexing, the transmission timing of the “non-preferred” indication can be the same as that of the A / N (corresponding to the SCI and data received from the peer Tx UE). Alternatively, the “non-preferred” indication can be transmitted on its own timing (e.g., x slots before the time of the reserved resource, where x is the processing time for the peer Tx UE to process the received indication and perform resource reselection as needed). Or, the A / N transmission can be multiplexed with the “non-preferred” indication for transmission, but this can follow the timing of the “non-preferred” indication (e.g., y slots before the time of the reserved resource, y is the processing time for the peer Tx UE to process the received indication, perform resource reselection as needed, process the A / N bits, and prepare for retransmission or new transmission). It is worth noting that the values of x and y can be the same or different, which can be set by (pre-)configuration.

[0027] Under the proposed scheme, upon receiving the SCI and data from the peer Tx UE, in the event that the reserved resource is considered “non-preferred”, the peer Rx UE can be triggered to perform the indication transmission (to indicate that the reserved resource is non-preferred). Furthermore, there can be a delay budget for the transmission of the “non-preferred” indication (e.g., x or y slots before the reserved resource). In the case where the delay budget is exceeded, the peer Rx UE can drop or otherwise cancel the transmission of the indication.

[0028] Under the proposed scheme, in step 2B, the peer Rx UE can transmit SCI (e.g., first SCI and / or second SCI) with or without any associated data (e.g., dummy data) for one or more other Tx UEs if the reserved resources are considered as “acceptable” or “preferred”. The SCI can carry at least the resource reservation information, priority information, and / or source UE ID information obtained from the SCI of the peer Tx UE. For example, the first SCI can be used to carry the resource reservation information and priority information obtained from the first SCI of the peer Tx UE. The second SCI can be used to carry the source ID of the peer Tx UE (instead of the source ID of the peer Rx UE) in the source UE ID field. This can result in the occurrence of forwarding the SCI from the peer Tx UE to obtain greater coverage to avoid the hidden node problem. In addition, the peer Rx UE can include additional resource reservation information in the SCI if / when necessary. In this case, the peer Rx UE can use its own UE ID as the source UE ID in the second SCI. There is or is not dummy data associated with the SCI transmission.

[0029] Under the proposed scheme, in step 2B, the peer Rx UE can transmit SCI (e.g., first SCI and / or second SCI) with or without any associated data (e.g., dummy data) for one or more other Tx UEs if the reserved resources are considered as “acceptable” or “preferred”. The SCI can carry at least the resource reservation information, priority information, and / or source UE ID information obtained from the SCI of the peer Tx UE. For example, the first SCI can be used to carry the resource reservation information and priority information obtained from the first SCI of the peer Tx UE. The second SCI can be used to carry the source ID of the peer Tx UE (instead of the source ID of the peer Rx UE) in the source UE ID field. This can result in the occurrence of forwarding the SCI from the peer Tx UE to obtain greater coverage to avoid the hidden node problem. In addition, the peer Rx UE can include additional resource reservation information in the SCI if / when necessary. In this case, the peer Rx UE can use its own UE ID as the source UE ID in the second SCI. There is or is not dummy data associated with the SCI transmission.

[0030] Under the proposed scheme, in step 2B, the peer Rx UE can transmit SCI (e.g., first SCI and / or second SCI) with or without any associated data (e.g., dummy data) for one or more other Tx UEs if the reserved resources are considered as “acceptable” or “preferred”. The SCI can carry at least the resource reservation information, priority information, and / or source UE ID information obtained from the SCI of the peer Tx UE. For example, the first SCI can be used to carry the resource reservation information and priority information obtained from the first SCI of the peer Tx UE. The second SCI can be used to carry the source ID of the peer Tx UE (instead of the source ID of the peer Rx UE) in the source UE ID field. This can result in the occurrence of forwarding the SCI from the peer Tx UE to obtain greater coverage to avoid the hidden node problem. In addition, the peer Rx UE can include additional resource reservation information in the SCI if / when necessary. In this case, the peer Rx UE can use its own UE ID as the source UE ID in the second SCI. There is or is not dummy data associated with the SCI transmission.

[0031] Under the proposed scheme, in step 2B, the peer Rx UE can transmit SCI (e.g., first SCI and / or second SCI) with or without any associated data (e.g., dummy data) for one or more other Tx UEs if the reserved resources are considered as “acceptable” or “preferred”. The SCI can carry at least the resource reservation information, priority information, and / or source UE ID information obtained from the SCI of the peer Tx UE. For example, the first SCI can be used to carry the resource reservation information and priority information obtained from the first SCI of the peer Tx UE. The second SCI can be used to carry the source ID of the peer Tx UE (instead of the source ID of the peer Rx UE) in the source UE ID field. This can result in the occurrence of forwarding the SCI from the peer Tx UE to obtain greater coverage to avoid the hidden node problem. In addition, the peer Rx UE can include additional resource reservation information in the SCI if / when necessary. In this case, the peer Rx UE can use its own UE ID as the source UE ID in the second SCI. There is or is not dummy data associated with the SCI transmission.

[0032] Under the proposed scheme, in step 3B-1, upon receiving SCI with or without data (e.g., dummy data) in step 2B as described above, one or more other Tx UEs (or potential interfering UEs) can receive SCI from the peer Rx UE and perform sensing. Thus, each of the one or more other Tx UEs (or potential interfering UEs) can consider its sensing results (e.g., the resource reservation and channel priority of the peer Tx UE forwarded by the peer Rx UE, and the RSRP performance of the peer Rx UE) in performing resource selection. Advantageously, this can avoid transmission collision with the transmission of the peer Tx UE and can improve performance by avoiding the hidden node problem. Moreover, given the above, it can be seen that the peer Rx UE can be considered as an assisting UE, as it assists the peer Tx UE as well as the other Tx UEs (or potential interfering UEs) in resource (re)selection.

[0033] Under the proposed scheme according to the present application, each UE (e.g., the peer Tx UE and / or the other Tx UEs) in the network environment 100 can perform sensing for resource (re)selection based on the traffic type and / or the resource reservation information and taking into account its own power consumption. If the traffic type is periodic traffic with known packet arrival time and / or in the case that the (periodic or aperiodic) resource has been reserved by SCI (and / or selected by the UE but not reserved), the UE can perform sensing at the reserved (and / or selected by the UE) time and / or before the packet arrival time. If the traffic type is aperiodic traffic with unknown packet arrival time and / or in the case that the resource has not been reserved by SCI (and / or selected by the UE), the UE can perform sensing after the packet arrival. Moreover, the higher layer can indicate the traffic type or the reservation type, so that the UE can determine whether to perform prior sensing (e.g., sensing before the packet arrival) or post-sensing (e.g., sensing after the packet arrival).

[0034] Illustrative Implementations

[0035] Figure 2 An example communication system 200 is shown with an example apparatus 210 and an example apparatus 220 in accordance with embodiments of the present application. Each of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220 can perform various functions to implement the schemes, techniques, procedures, and methods regarding resource allocation enhancements for SL communications in NR V2X communications, including various ones of the schemes described above as described in the procedures below.

[0036] Each of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220 can be part of an electronic device, such as a UE, such as a vehicle, a portable or mobile device, a wearable device, a wireless communication device, or a computing device. For example, each of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220 can be implemented in a vehicle, a smartphone, a smartwatch, a personal digital assistant, a digital camera, or a computing device such as a tablet computer, a laptop computer, or a notebook computer. Each of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220 can also be part of a machine type device, such as an IoT or NB-IoT device, such as a fixed or stationary device, a home device, a wired communication device, or a computing device. For example, each of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220 can be implemented in a smart thermostat, a smart refrigerator, a smart door lock, a wireless speaker, or a home control center. In certain embodiments, each of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220 can also be implemented in one or more IC chips, such as but not limited to, one or more single-core processors, one or more multi-core processors, one or more RISC processors, or one or more CISC processors. Each of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220 includes at least Figure 2 the components shown in FIG. 2, such as the processor 212 and the processor 222, respectively. Each of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220 can further include one or more other components that are unrelated to the schemes presented by the present disclosure (such as an internal power supply, a display device, and / or a user interface device), but such other components of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220 are not described in FIG. 2, nor described below, for the sake of brevity and conciseness. Figure 2

[0037] In many embodiments, at least one of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220 can be part of an electronic device, such as a vehicle, a road side unit (RSU), a network node or base station (e.g., an eNB, a gNB, a TRP), a small cell, a router, or a gateway. For example, at least one of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220 can be implemented as a vehicle in a V2X or V2X network, an eNodeB in a LTE, LTE-Advanced, or LTE-Advanced Pro network, or a gNB in a 5G, NR, IoT, or NB-IoT network. Alternatively, at least one of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220 can be implemented in one or more IC chips, such as but not limited to, one or more single-core processors, one or more multi-core processors, one or more RISC processors, or one or more CISC processors. ​

[0038] In an aspect, each of processor 212 and processor 222 can be implemented in the form of one or more single-core processors, one or more multi-core processors, or one or more CISC processors. That is, even though the singular term "processor" is used herein to refer to processor 212 and processor 222, each of processor 212 and processor 222 can include multiple processors in some embodiments, and a single processor in other embodiments, in accordance with the present application. In another aspect, each of processor 212 and processor 222 can be implemented in the form of hardware (and, optionally, firmware) having electronic components, which can include, for example and without limitation, one or more transistors, one or more diodes, one or more capacitors, one or more resistors, one or more inductors, one or more memristors, and / or one or more varactors, configured and arranged in accordance with the specific purposes of the various embodiments in accordance with the present application. In other words, each of processor 212 and processor 222 can be implemented, at least in some embodiments, as a special purpose machine, specially designed, configured, and arranged to perform certain tasks in accordance with the various embodiments of the present application, including resource allocation enhancements for SL communications in NR V2X communications.

[0039] In some embodiments, apparatus 210 can also include a transceiver 216 coupled to processor 212 as a communication device, and transceiver 216 can be capable of wirelessly transmitting and receiving data. In some embodiments, apparatus 210 can further include a memory 214 coupled to processor 212 and accessible by processor 212 and capable of storing data. In some embodiments, apparatus 220 can also include a transceiver 226 coupled to processor 222 as a communication device, and transceiver 226 can be capable of wirelessly transmitting and receiving data. In some embodiments, apparatus 220 can further include a memory 224 coupled to processor 222 and accessible by processor 222 and capable of storing data. Thus, apparatus 210 and apparatus 220 can be capable of wirelessly communicating with each other via transceiver 216 and transceiver 226, respectively.

[0040] To help better understand, the following description of the operation, functionality, and capabilities of each of apparatus 210 and apparatus 220 is provided in the context of an NR V2X communications environment, where apparatus 210 is implemented into or as a wireless communication device, a communication device, or a first UE (which can be a peer Tx UE in network environment 100), and apparatus 220 is implemented into or as a wireless communication device, a communication device, or a second UE (which can be a peer Rx UE in network environment 100).

[0041] Among various proposed schemes related to SL communication resource allocation enhancements in NR V2X communications according to the present application, the processor 222 of the apparatus 220 can receive, via the transceiver 226, an SCI signal indicating a reserved resource from the apparatus 210 as a peer UE (e.g., a peer Tx UE). Further, the processor 222 can determine whether the reserved resource is acceptable by performing an RSRP-based comparison. Moreover, in accordance with the determination result, the processor 222 performs a transmission to the peer UE or one or more other UEs via the transceiver 226.

[0042] In some embodiments, in performing the transmission, in response to determining that the reserved resource is not acceptable according to the RSRP-based comparison, the processor 222 can send an indication to the peer UE that the reserved resource is not preferred. In some embodiments, the indication can include one or more bits carried in a PSFCH.

[0043] In some embodiments, in performing the transmission, in response to determining that the reserved resource is acceptable according to the RSRP-based comparison, the processor 222 can send one or more SCI signals to one or more other UEs, the signal indicating assistance information including one or more of: resource reservation information, priority information, source UE ID. In some embodiments, the PSFCH resource for sending the one or more SCI signals is determined by one or both of the source UE ID and the destination UE ID.

[0044] In some embodiments, in performing the RSRP-based comparison, the processor 222 can perform certain operations. For example, the processor 222 can determine a first value related to a first RSRP offset for a first RSRP of the peer UE measured on the reserved resource. In addition, the processor 222 can determine a second value related to a second RSRP offset for a second RSRP of a potential interfering UE measured on the reserved resource. Moreover, the processor 222 can compare the first value and the second value. In some embodiments, in response to the first value being greater than the second value, the reserved resource is determined to be acceptable. Conversely, in response to the second value being greater than the first value, the reserved resource is determined to be not acceptable. In some embodiments, the values of the first and second RSRP offsets can be derived from the priorities of the peer UE and the potential interfering UE.

[0045] In another proposed solution related to resource allocation enhancements for SL communications in NR V2X communications according to the present disclosure, the processor 212 of the apparatus 210 can transmit, via the transceiver 216, an SCI signal indicating a reserved resource to the apparatus 220 as a peer UE (e.g., a peer Rx UE). Further, the processor 212 can receive, via the transceiver 216, an indication from the peer UE that the reserved resource is not preferred. Further, in response to receiving the indication, the processor 212 can perform, via the transceiver 216, resource selection or reselection.

[0046] In some embodiments, the indication can include one or more bits carried in a PSFCH.

[0047] In some embodiments, in performing the resource selection or reselection, the processor 212 can perform channel sensing based on one or both of a traffic type and resource reservation information.

[0048] In some embodiments, in response to the traffic type being periodic traffic, the performing of channel sensing can include the processor 212 performing channel sensing before a packet arrival time. Otherwise, in response to the traffic type being aperiodic traffic, the performing of channel sensing can include the processor 212 performing channel sensing after a packet arrival time.

[0049] Illustrative flow

[0050] Figure 3 is an example flow 300 shown by way of example in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. The flow 300 can be an illustrative embodiment in accordance with the proposed solutions of the present disclosure related to resource allocation enhancements for SL communications in NR V2X communications. The flow 300 can represent feature implementation aspects of the apparatus 210 and the apparatus 220. The flow 300 can include one or more operations, actions, or functions shown by one or more of blocks 310, 320, 330. While the various blocks are shown as discrete, the various blocks of the flow 300 can be split into more blocks, combined into fewer blocks, or have portions of blocks deleted, depending on the desired implementation. Further, the blocks of the flow 300 can be performed in the order shown or, alternatively, in a different order. The flow 300 can also be repeated in whole or in part. The apparatus 210, the apparatus 220, and / or any suitable wireless communication device, UE, road side unit (RSU), base station, or machine type device can implement the flow 300. For illustrative purposes only and without limitation of the scope, the flow 300 is described below in the context of the apparatus 210 as a first UE (e.g., the peer Tx UE in the network environment 100) and the apparatus 220 as a second UE (e.g., the peer Rx UE in the network environment 100). The flow 300 can begin at block 310. Figure 3

[0051] ​At block 310, the process 300 can include the processor 222 of the apparatus 220 receiving, via the transceiver 226, a SCI signal indicating a reserved resource from the apparatus 210 as a peer UE (e.g., a peer Tx UE). The process 300 can proceed from block 310 to block 320.

[0052] At block 320, the process 300 can include the processor 222 determining whether the reserved resource is acceptable by performing an RSRP-based comparison. The process 300 can proceed from block 320 to block 330.

[0053] At block 330, the process 300 can include the processor 222 performing, via the transceiver 226, a transmission to the peer UE or one or more other UEs in accordance with a result of the determination.

[0054] In some embodiments, in performing the transmission, in response to determining that the reserved resource is not acceptable according to the RSRP-based comparison, the process 300 can include the processor 222 sending an indication to the peer UE that the reserved resource is not preferred. In some embodiments, the indication can include one or more bits carried in a PSFCH.

[0055] In some embodiments, in performing the transmission, in response to determining that the reserved resource is acceptable according to the RSRP-based comparison, the process 300 can include the processor 222 sending one or more SCI signals to one or more other UEs, the signals indicating assistance information including one or more of: resource reservation information, priority information, source UE ID. In some embodiments, a PSFCH resource for sending the one or more SCI signals is determined by one or both of a source UE ID and a destination UE ID.

[0056] In some embodiments, in performing the RSRP-based comparison, the process 300 can include the processor 222 performing certain operations. For example, the processor 222 can determine a first value related to a first RSRP offset of a first RSRP of the peer UE measured on the reserved resource. Additionally, the process 300 can include the processor 222 determining a second value between a second RSRP of a potential interfering UE measured on the reserved resource and a second RSRP offset. Furthermore, the process 300 can include the processor 222 comparing the first value and the second value. In some embodiments, in response to the first value being greater than the second value, the reserved resource is determined to be acceptable. Conversely, in response to the second value being greater than the first value, the reserved resource is determined to be not acceptable. In some embodiments, values of the first and second RSRP offsets can be derived from priorities of the peer UE and the potential interfering UE.

[0057] Figure 4is an example flow 400 shown in accordance with embodiments of the present application. Flow 400 can be an illustrative embodiment in accordance with the proposed solutions of the present application for resource allocation enhancements for SL communications in NRV2X communications. Flow 400 can be representative of feature implementation aspects of device 210 and device 220. Flow 400 can include one or more operations, actions, or functions shown by one or more of blocks 410, 420, 430. While the various blocks are shown as discrete, the various blocks of flow 400 can be split into more blocks, combined into fewer blocks, or have portions of blocks deleted, depending on the desired implementation. In addition, the blocks of flow 400 can be performed in the order shown, or, alternatively, in a different order. Flow 400 can also be partially or entirely repeated. Device 210, device 220, and / or any suitable wireless communication device, UE, road side unit (RSU), base station, or machine type device can implement flow 400. For purposes of illustration only and not limitation of scope, flow 400 is described below in the context of device 210 as a first UE (e.g., a peer Tx UE in network environment 100) and device 220 as a second UE (e.g., a peer Rx UE in network environment 100). Flow 400 can begin at block 410. Figure 4

[0058] At block 410, flow 400 can include processor 212 of device 210 transmitting, via transceiver 216, an SCI signal indicating a reserved resource to device 220 as a peer UE (e.g., a peer Rx UE). Flow 400 can proceed from block 410 to block 420.

[0059] At block 420, flow 400 can include processor 212 receiving, via transceiver 216 from the peer UE, an indication that the reserved resource is not preferred. Flow 400 can proceed from block 420 to block 430.

[0060] At block 430, flow 400 can include processor 212 performing, via transceiver 216, resource selection or reselection in response to receiving the indication.

[0061] In some embodiments, the indication can include one or more bits carried in a PSFCH.

[0062] In some embodiments, in performing the resource selection or reselection, flow 400 can include processor 212 performing channel sensing based on one or both of a traffic type and resource reservation information.

[0063] ​In some embodiments, responsive to the traffic type being periodic traffic, the performing of the channel sensing can include the processor 212 performing the channel sensing before the data packet arrival time. Otherwise, responsive to the traffic type being aperiodic traffic, the performing of the channel sensing can include the processor 212 performing the channel sensing after the data packet arrival time.

[0064] ADDITIONAL DESCRIPTION

[0065] The herein described subject matter sometimes illustrates different components contained within, or connected with, different other components. It is to be understood that such depicted architectures are merely examples, and that in fact many other architectures can be implemented which achieve the same functionality. In a conceptual sense, any arrangement of components to achieve the same functionality is effectively "associated" such that the desired functionality is achieved. Hence, any two components herein combined to achieve a particular functionality can be seen as "associated with" each other such that the desired functionality is achieved, irrespective of architectures or intermediate components. Likewise, any two components so associated can also be viewed as being "operably connected", or "operably coupled", to each other to achieve the desired functionality, and any two components able to be so associated can also be viewed as being "operably connected", or "operably coupled", to each other to achieve the desired functionality. Specific examples of operably couplable include but are not limited to physically mateable and / or physically interacting components and / or wirelessly interactable and / or wirelessly interacting components and / or logically interacting and / or logically interactable components.

[0066] Further, with respect to any number and / or singular terms herein that indicate a quantity of things, such as "a", "an", "the", etc., such terms can be interpreted to mean a "one or more" or "at least one", unless explicitly stated to the contrary.

[0067] Further, one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that, in general, the terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims (for example, the body of the appended claims) are terms of description and not of limitation, and that the use of these terms will be dictated by the prevailing context, for example, the terms "comprising" and "including" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to", the term "having" should be interpreted as "having at least", the term "including" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to", and the like. One of ordinary skill in the art will further appreciate that, if a specific number of an introduced claim limitation is intended, such intent would be explicitly recited in the claim, and no such intent exists in the absence of such recitation. For example, to facilitate understanding, the appended claims can include the use of introductory phrases such as "at least one" and "one or more". However, the use of such phrases should not be interpreted as implying that any particular claim limitation introduced by the indefinite article "a" or "an" limits that claim to embodiments containing only one such introduced claim limitation, even when the same claim contains the introductory phrase "one or more" or "at least one", and an indefinite article such as "a" or "an", for example, "a and / or an" should be interpreted to mean "at least one" or "one or more", the same applies to the use of the definite article to introduce a claim limitation. Furthermore, even if a specific number of an introduced claim limitation is explicitly recited, one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that such recitation should be interpreted to mean at least the recited number, for example, an unqualified recitation of "two recitations" means at least two recitations or two or more recitations. Furthermore, where a convention such as "at least one of A, B and C, etc." is used, one of ordinary skill in the art will understand the meaning in terms of the convention, for example, a system having at least one of A, B and C will include but not be limited to a system having A alone, a system having B alone, a system having C alone, a system having both A and B, a system having both A and C, a system having both B and C, and / or a system having all of A, B and C, etc. Where a convention such as "at least one of A, B or C, etc." is used, one of ordinary skill in the art will understand the meaning in terms of the convention, for example, a system having at least one of A, B or C will include but not be limited to a system having A alone, a system having B alone, a system having C alone, a system having both A and B, a system having both A and C, a system having both B and C, and / or a system having all of A, B and C, etc. One of ordinary skill in the art will further appreciate that any disjunctive word and / or phrase, for example, any "or", "if then" and "at least one of", appearing in the claims that is intended to encompass only an alternative of any stated term will expressly use the term "exclusive" or "exactly one of" to modify such a term.For example, the phrase "A or B" will be understood to include the possibilities of "A" or "B" or "A and B."

[0068] From the above, it is to be understood that various modifications can be made in the various implementations described herein without departing from the scope and spirit of the application. Accordingly, the various implementations disclosed herein are not intended to be limiting, but merely illustrative of the present application. The scope of the present application is to be determined by the following claims.

Claims

1. A method of resource allocation for sidelink communication, comprising: receiving, from a peer user equipment, a sidelink control information signal indicating a reserved resource; determining whether the reserved resource is acceptable to assist the peer user equipment in resource selection by performing a reference signal received power based comparison; and performing a transmission to the peer user equipment or one or more other user equipments, respectively, in accordance with a result of the determination, wherein the performing the reference signal received power based comparison comprises: determining a first value between a first reference signal received power of the peer user equipment measured on the reserved resource and a first reference signal received power offset; determining a second value between a second reference signal received power of a potential interfering user equipment measured on the reserved resource and a second reference signal received power offset; and comparing the first value and the second value. in response to determining that the reserved resource is not acceptable according to the reference signal received power based comparison, sending an indication to the peer user equipment that the reserved resource is not preferred. 2.The method of Claim 1, wherein the indication comprises one or more bits carried in a physical sidelink feedback channel. 3.The method of Claim 2, wherein the performing the transmission comprises, in response to determining that the reserved resource is acceptable according to the reference signal received power based comparison, sending one or more sidelink control information signals to the one or more other user equipments, the one or more sidelink control information signals indicating assistance information including resource reservation information, priority information, source user equipment identity, or a combination. 4.The method of Claim 1, wherein a physical sidelink feedback channel resource for sending the one or more sidelink control information signals is determined by one or both of the source user equipment identity and a destination user equipment identity. 5.The method of Claim 4, wherein in response to the first value being greater than the second value, determining that the reserved resource is acceptable, and wherein in response to the second value being greater than the first value, determining that the reserved resource is not acceptable. 6.The method of Claim 1, wherein values of the first and second reference signal received power offsets are derived from priorities of the peer user equipment and the potential interfering user equipment. 7.The method of Claim 1, wherein 8.An apparatus for resource allocation for sidelink communication, comprising: a transceiver configured for wireless communication; and a processor coupled to the transceiver and configured to perform the following operations: receiving, via the transceiver, from a peer user equipment, a sidelink control information signal indicating a reserved resource; determining whether the reserved resource is acceptable to assist the peer user equipment in resource selection by performing a reference signal received power based comparison; and performing a transmission to the peer user equipment or one or more other user equipments, respectively, via the transceiver, in accordance with a result of the determination, wherein in performing the reference signal received power based comparison, the processor is configured to: determine a first value related to a first reference signal received power of the peer user equipment measured on the reserved resource and a first reference signal received power offset; determine a second value related to a second reference signal received power of a potential interfering user equipment measured on the reserved resource and a second reference signal received power offset; and compare the first value and the second value. ​ ​ ​ 9. The apparatus for resource allocation for sidelink communications of claim 8, wherein, In the step of performing the transmission, in response to determining that the reserved resource is unacceptable according to the comparison based on the reference signal received power, the processor is configured to transmit an indication that the reserved resource is not preferred to the peer user equipment.

10. The apparatus for resource allocation for sidelink communications of claim 9, wherein, The indication comprises one or more bits carried in a physical sidelink feedback channel.

11. The apparatus for resource allocation for sidelink communications of claim 8, wherein, In the step of performing the transmission, in response to determining that the reserved resource is acceptable according to the comparison based on the reference signal received power, one or more sidelink control information signals are transmitted to the one or more other user equipment, the one or more sidelink control information signals indicating resource reservation information, priority information, source user equipment identification or a combination of assistance information.

12. The apparatus for resource allocation for sidelink communications of claim 11, wherein, A physical sidelink feedback channel resource for transmitting the one or more sidelink control information signals is determined from one or both of the source user equipment identification and the destination user equipment identification.

13. The apparatus for resource allocation for sidelink communications of claim 8, wherein, In response to the first value being greater than the second value, the reserved resource is determined to be acceptable, and wherein in response to the second value being greater than the first value, the reserved resource is determined to be unacceptable.

14. The apparatus for resource allocation for sidelink communications of claim 8, wherein, The values of the first and second reference signal received power offsets are derived from priorities of the peer user equipment and the potential interfering user equipment.

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