Apparatus and method for aligning contention-based wireless communications

Abstract

Various aspects described herein relate to determining a configuration indicating multiple synchronization points in time for contention-based communications; determining a contention window for a given synchronization point in the multiple synchronization points using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters; and sending one or more contention-based signals during the contention window to attempt to acquire a channel for sending communications.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Generally speaking, aspects of the present disclosure relate to wireless communication systems, and more particularly, aspects of the present disclosure relate to contention-based wireless communications. Background Art

[0002] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content such as voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, etc. These systems may be multiple-access systems capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing the available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of such multiple-access systems include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, and orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, and single-carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems.

[0003] These multiple access technologies have been adopted in various telecommunication standards to provide a common protocol that enables different wireless devices to communicate at a city, country, region, and even global level. For example, the fifth generation (5G) wireless communication technology, which may be referred to as 5G New Radio (5G NR), is envisioned to extend and support a wide variety of usage scenarios and applications for current mobile network generations. In one aspect, 5G communication technology may include: enhanced mobile broadband that addresses human-centric use cases for accessing multimedia content, services, and data; ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC) with certain specifications for latency and reliability; and massive machine-type communications that may allow for a considerable number of connected devices and the transmission of relatively low amounts of non-delay-sensitive information.

[0004] Additionally, wireless communication technologies such as 5G NR may be used for communication between devices operating in a controlled environment, such as in an Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) environment, which may include nodes (e.g., factory automation nodes) that are intended to communicate with each other in a localized network. In one example, a frame-based equipment (FBE) approach may be employed, wherein a base station acquires a channel, indicates a fixed frame period (FFP) for its transmission and an idle duration at the end of the FFP to allow transmission in the next frame (e.g., by one or more user equipment (UE)). The FBE approach may be rigid and may require the UE to detect a downlink signal in order to transmit in the next frame. Summary of the invention

[0005] In order to provide a basic understanding of one or more aspects, a simplified summary of these aspects is given below. This summary is not an exhaustive review of all expected aspects, and is neither intended to identify the key or important elements of all aspects, nor to describe the scope of any or all aspects. Its only purpose is to give some concepts of one or more aspects in a simplified form as a prelude to a more detailed description given later.

[0006] According to one aspect, a method of wireless communication is provided. The method includes: determining a configuration indicating a plurality of synchronization points in time for contention-based communication; determining a contention window for a given synchronization point in the plurality of synchronization points using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters; and sending one or more contention-based signals during the contention window to attempt to acquire a channel for sending communications.

[0007] In another example, an apparatus for wireless communication is provided. The apparatus includes: a transceiver; a memory configured to store instructions; and one or more processors communicatively coupled to the memory and the transceiver. The one or more processors are configured to: determine a configuration indicating a plurality of synchronization points in time for contention-based communication; for a given synchronization point in the plurality of synchronization points, determine a contention window using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters; and send one or more contention-based signals during the contention window to attempt to acquire a channel for sending communications.

[0008] In another aspect, an apparatus for wireless communication is provided. The apparatus includes: means for determining a configuration indicating a plurality of synchronization points in time for contention-based communication; means for determining a contention window for a given synchronization point in the plurality of synchronization points using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters; and means for sending one or more contention-based signals during the contention window to attempt to acquire a channel for sending communications.

[0009] In another aspect, a computer-readable medium is provided, including code executable by one or more processors for wireless communication. The code includes code for performing the following operations: determining a configuration indicating a plurality of synchronization points in time for contention-based communication; for a given synchronization point in the plurality of synchronization points, determining a contention window using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters; and sending one or more contention-based signals during the contention window to attempt to acquire a channel for sending communications.

[0010] To accomplish the foregoing and related ends, one or more aspects include features hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the accompanying drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative features of one or more aspects. However, these features are indicative of only a few of the various ways in which the principles of the various aspects may be employed, and this description is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] The disclosed aspects will be described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which are provided to illustrate rather than limit the disclosed aspects, wherein like reference numerals represent like elements, and in which:

[0012] Figure 1 An exemplary wireless communication system according to various aspects of the present disclosure is shown;

[0013] Figure 2 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary UE according to various aspects of the present disclosure;

[0014] Figure 3 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary base station according to various aspects of the present disclosure;

[0015] Figure 4 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary method for aligning contention-based communications according to various aspects of the present disclosure;

[0016] Figure 5 illustrates an exemplary timeline for Category (CAT)-4 Listen Before Talk (LBT) communications in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[0017] Figure 6 illustrates exemplary misaligned and aligned timelines for CAT-4 LBT communications in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure;

[0018] Figure 7 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary method for aligning contention-based communications according to various aspects of the present disclosure; and

[0019] Figure 8 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary MIMO communication system including a base station and a UE according to various aspects of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] Various aspects are now described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, for the purpose of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of one or more aspects. However, it can be apparent that these aspects can be implemented without these specific details.

[0021] In summary, the described features relate to operating using contention-based wireless communications in a controlled environment, where nodes in the environment can communicate by first acquiring a channel by performing a contention-based process such as a clear channel assessment (CCA). A controlled environment can be defined as an environment in which all nodes communicating with each other are controlled by a single operator or entity that can control the deployment and interference environment, such as an Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) environment, where a factory owner may own or control the nodes. In such an environment, wireless communication technologies such as fifth generation (5G) new radio (NR) or other cellular technologies can be used for communication between nodes, where the environment may include one or more base stations to facilitate communication between nodes and a backend network, between nodes themselves, and the like.

[0022] As described above, previous support for wireless communications in such environments is based on implementing nodes as frame-based devices (FBEs) with fixed frame periods (FFPs) indicated by the base station (e.g., in system information block (SIB) 1). In such implementations, only the base station (e.g., gNB) contends for the channel, with a single listen-before-talk (LBT) being utilized at the beginning of each FFP. An idle duration is designed at the end of the FFP to allow the LBT to be transmitted in the next frame. UE transmissions within the FFP are conditioned on detection of base station transmissions in the same FFP. In this regard, specific processing timelines may be required in order for the UE to detect downlink (DL) signals and respond. In other aspects described herein, a node (e.g., UE) may be implemented as a load-based device (LBE) to allow greater flexibility in communications. For example, an LBE-based implementation may not require a more flexible fixed periodicity structure, may not have the problem of sending uplink (UL) signals / channels at the beginning of a fixed frame period, and may not require the UE to detect DL signals / channels prior to UL transmissions. Additionally, LBE-based implementations may be designed to avoid blocking based on cross-link interference, avoid LBT failures due to another base station / UE transmitting nearby, to reduce the overhead of certain LBT procedures (shorter time gaps), etc., as described herein.

[0023] In various aspects described herein, synchronization points can be configured in time between nodes in a controlled environment (e.g., based on a configuration generated and / or received from a base station or core network node). For a given synchronization point, each node can determine a contention window using a deterministic function based on received parameters so that each node can determine the same contention window. The node can send an LBT signal during the contention window to try to acquire a channel to send wireless communications. This can ensure that the nodes are competing for channels at the same or similar times, which can improve communication opportunities. In one aspect, based on ensuring that the nodes use the same contention window, more time can be given to previous communications for transmission.

[0024] See below Figure 1-8 The described features are given in more detail.

[0025] As used in this application, the terms "component", "module", "system" and the like are intended to include computer-related entities, such as but not limited to hardware, firmware, a combination of hardware and software, software, or software in execution. For example, a component may be but not limited to the following: a process, a processor, an object, an executable file, a thread of execution, a program and / or a computer running on a processor. By way of illustration, both an application and a computing device running on a computing device may be a component. One or more components may reside in a process and / or a thread of execution, and a component may be located on a computer and / or distributed between two or more computers. In addition, these components may be executed from various computer-readable media with various data structures stored thereon. A component may be such as a signal having one or more data packets (e.g., data from a component interacting with another component in a local system, a distributed system, and / or interacting with other systems by means of signals across a network such as the Internet) communicated by means of local and / or remote processes.

[0026] The technology described herein can be used for various wireless communication systems, for example, CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA and other systems. The terms "system" and "network" are often used interchangeably. A CDMA system can implement radio technologies such as CDMA2000, Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), etc. CDMA2000 covers IS-2000, IS-95 and IS-856 standards. IS-2000 versions 0 and A are commonly referred to as CDMA2000 1X, 1X, etc. IS-856 (TIA-856) is commonly referred to as CDMA2000 1xEV-DO, High Speed ​​Packet Data (HRPD), etc. UTRA includes Wideband CDMA (WCDMA) and other variants of CDMA. A TDMA system can implement radio technologies such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM). OFDMA systems can implement technologies such as Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), Evolved UTRA (E-UTRA), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash OFDM, etc. TMRadio technologies such as LTE and UTRA. UTRA and E-UTRA are part of the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS). 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) and Improved LTE (LTE-A) are new 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 technology described herein can be used for the systems and radio technologies mentioned above and other systems and radio technologies, including cellular (e.g., LTE) communications on shared radio frequency spectrum bands. However, for the purpose of example, the following description describes LTE / LTE-A systems, and LTE terms are used in most of the following descriptions, but the technology is applicable to applications other than LTE / LTE-A applications (e.g., for fifth generation (5G) new radio (NR) networks or other next generation communication systems).

[0027] The following description provides examples without limiting 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 processes or components may be omitted, replaced or added to each example as appropriate. For example, the described method may be performed in an order different from that described, and various steps may be added, omitted or combined. In addition, features described with respect to some examples may be combined in other examples.

[0028] Various aspects or features will be presented in terms of systems that may include multiple devices, components, modules, etc. It should be understood and appreciated that the various systems may include additional devices, components, modules, etc., and / or may not include all of the devices, components, modules, etc. discussed in conjunction with the figures. Combinations of these methods may also be used.

[0029] Figure 11 is a diagram illustrating aspects of a wireless communication system and access network 100. The wireless communication system (also referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) may include a base station 102, a UE 104, an evolved packet core (EPC) 160, and / or a 5G core (5GC) 190. The base station 102 may include a macro cell (a high power cellular base station) and / or a small cell (a low power cellular base station). A macro cell may include a base station. A small cell may include a femto cell, a pico cell, and a micro cell. In one aspect, the base station 102 may also include a gNB 180, as further described herein. In one aspect, some nodes of the wireless communication system may have a modem 240 and a communication component 242, the communication component 242 being used to substantially align contention-based communications in time, and some nodes may have a modem 340 and a configuration component 342, the configuration component 342 being used to configure contention-based communications to be substantially aligned in time, as described herein. Although UE 104 is shown as having a modem 240 and a communication component 242, and base station 102 / gNB 180 is shown as having a modem 340 and a configuration component 342, this is an illustrative example, and substantially any node or node type may include a modem 240 and a communication component 242 and / or a modem 340 and a configuration component 342 (and / or a node may have both components 242, 342) to provide the corresponding functionality described herein.

[0030] Base stations 102 configured for 4G LTE (which may be collectively referred to as Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN)) may be interfaced with EPC 160 via a backhaul link 132 (e.g., using an S1 interface). Base stations 102 configured for 5G NR (which may be collectively referred to as Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN)) may be interfaced with 5GC 190 via a backhaul link 184. In addition to other functions, base stations 102 may also perform one or more of the following functions: transmission of user data, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection establishment and release, load balancing, distribution of non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, radio access network (RAN) sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), user and device tracking, RAN information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and transmission of warning messages. The base stations 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., through the EPC 160 or the 5GC 190) via a backhaul link 134 (e.g., using an X2 interface). The backhaul link 134 may be wired or wireless.

[0031] The base station 102 may communicate wirelessly with one or more UEs 104. Each of the base stations 102 may provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110. There may be overlapping geographic coverage areas 110. In one aspect, the small cell 102' may have a coverage area 110' that overlaps with the coverage area 110 of one or more macro base stations 102. A network including both small cells and macro cells may be referred to as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include a home evolved Node B (eNB) (HeNB), which may provide services to a restricted group (which may be referred to as a closed subscriber group (CSG)). The communication link 120 between the base station 102 and the UE 104 may include an uplink (UL) (also referred to as a reverse link) transmission from the UE 104 to the base station 102 and / or a downlink (DL) (also referred to as a forward link) transmission from the base station 102 to the UE 104. The communication link 120 may use multiple input multiple output (MIMO) antenna technology, which includes spatial multiplexing, beamforming and / or transmit diversity. The communication link may be through one or more carriers. The base station 102 / UE 104 may use a spectrum with a bandwidth of up to Y MHz (e.g., 5, 10, 15, 20, 100, 400, etc. MHz) for each carrier allocated in a carrier aggregation of up to a total of Yx MHz (e.g., for x component carriers) for transmission in the DL and / or UL directions. The carriers may be adjacent to each other or may not be adjacent to each other. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to DL and UL (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated for DL ​​than for UL). The component carrier may include a primary component carrier and one or more secondary component carriers. The primary component carrier may be referred to as a primary cell (PCell), and the secondary component carrier may be referred to as a secondary cell (SCell).

[0032] In another aspect, some UEs 104 may communicate with each other using a device-to-device (D2D) communication link 158. The D2D communication link 158 may use DL / UL WWAN spectrum. The D2D communication link 158 may use one or more sidelink channels, such as a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), a physical sidelink discovery channel (PSDCH), a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH). The D2D communication may be through a variety of wireless D2D communication systems, such as, in one aspect, FlashLinQ, WiMedia, Bluetooth, ZigBee, Wi-Fi based on IEEE 802.11 standards, LTE, or NR.

[0033] The wireless communication system may also include a Wi-Fi access point (AP) 150 that communicates with a Wi-Fi station (STA) 152 via a communication link 154 in the 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum. When communicating in the unlicensed spectrum, the STA 152 / AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) before communicating to determine whether the channel is available.

[0034] The small cell 102' may operate in licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in unlicensed spectrum, the small cell 102' may employ NR and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum as the 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum used by the Wi-Fi AP 150. The small cell 102' employing NR in the unlicensed spectrum may improve coverage and / or increase capacity of the access network.

[0035] The base station 102 (whether a small cell 102' or a large cell (e.g., a macro base station)) may include an eNB, a gNodeB (gNB), or other types of base stations. Some base stations (e.g., gNB 180) may operate in traditional sub-6 GHz spectrum, in millimeter wave (mmW) frequencies, and / or near mmW frequencies to communicate with UE 104. When the gNB 180 operates in mmW or near mmW frequencies, the gNB 180 may be referred to as a mmW base station. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a portion of RF in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and has a wavelength between 1 mm and 10 mm. Radio waves in this band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near mmW may extend down to frequencies of 3 GHz with a wavelength of 100 mm. The super high frequency (SHF) band extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz and is also referred to as centimeter waves. Communications using the mmW / near mmW radio frequency bands have extremely high path loss and short distances. The mmW base station 180 can utilize beamforming 182 with the UE 104 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short distance. The base station 102 referenced herein can include a gNB 180.

[0036] The EPC 160 may include a mobility management entity (MME) 162, other MMEs 164, a serving gateway 166, a multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS) gateway 168, a broadcast multicast service center (BM-SC) 170, and a packet data network (PDN) gateway 172. The MME 162 may communicate with a home subscriber server (HSS) 174. The MME 162 is a control node that handles signaling between the UE 104 and the EPC 160. Typically, the MME 162 provides bearer and connection management. All user Internet Protocol (IP) packets are transmitted through the serving gateway 166, which itself is connected to the PDN gateway 172. The PDN gateway 172 provides UE IP address allocation and other functions. The PDN gateway 172 and the BM-SC 170 are connected to IP services 176. The IP services 176 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), a PS streaming service, and / or other IP services. The BM-SC 170 may provide functionality for MBMS user service provisioning and delivery. The BM-SC 170 may serve as an entry point for content provider MBMS transmissions, may be used to authorize and initiate MBMS bearer services within a public land mobile network (PLMN), and may be used to schedule MBMS transmissions. The MBMS Gateway 168 may be used to distribute MBMS services to base stations 102 belonging to a multicast broadcast single frequency network (MBSFN) area that broadcasts a specific service, and may be responsible for session management (start / stop) and collecting eMBMS-related billing information.

[0037] 5GC 190 may include an access and mobility management function unit (AMF) 192, other AMFs 193, a session management function unit (SMF) 194, and a user plane function unit (UPF) 195. AMF 192 may communicate with a unified data management unit (UDM) 196. AMF 192 may be a control node that processes signaling between UE 104 and 5GC 190. Typically, AMF 192 provides QoS flow and session management. All user Internet Protocol (IP) packets (e.g., from one or more UEs 104) may be transmitted through UPF 195. UPF 195 may provide UE IP address allocation for one or more UEs and other functions. UPF 195 is connected to IP services 197. IP services 197 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), a PS streaming service, and / or other IP services.

[0038] A base station may also be referred to as a gNB, a Node B, an evolved Node B (eNB), an access point, a base transceiver, a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a transceiver functional unit, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), a transmit receive point (TRP), or some other appropriate term. The base station 102 provides an access point to the EPC 160 or the 5GC 190 for the UE 104. Examples of UEs 104 include cellular phones, smart phones, session initiation protocol (SIP) phones, laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), satellite radio units, global positioning systems, multimedia devices, video devices, digital audio players (e.g., MP3 players), cameras, game consoles, tablet devices, smart devices, wearable devices, vehicles, electric meters, gas pumps, large or small kitchen appliances, health care devices, implants, sensors / actuators, displays, or any other similarly functional devices. Some of the UEs 104 may be referred to as IoT devices (e.g., parking meters, gas pumps, toasters, vehicles, heart monitors, etc.). IoT UEs may include machine type communication (MTC) / enhanced MTC (eMTC, also referred to as category (CAT)-M, Cat M1) UEs, NB-IoT (also referred to as CAT NB1) UEs, and other types of UEs. In the present disclosure, eMTC and NB-IoT may refer to technologies that may evolve from or be based on these technologies in the future. In one aspect, eMTC may include FeMTC (further eMTC), eFeMTC (further enhanced eMTC), and mMTC (massive MTC), etc., and NB-IoT may include eNB-IoT (enhanced NB-IoT), FeNB-IoT (further enhanced NB-IoT), etc. UE104 may also be referred to as a station, a mobile station, a user station, a mobile unit, a user unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communication device, a remote device, a mobile user station, an access terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a mobile phone, a user agent, a mobile client, a client, or some other appropriate terminology.

[0039] In one aspect, communication component 242 can align contention-based communications with other nodes (e.g., other UEs 104, base stations 102, etc.) at least in part by determining a synchronization point at which to initiate a contention-based access process, determining a contention window for sending LBT or other contention-based signals, etc., as further described herein. In one aspect, configuration component 342 can configure one or more nodes to align contention-based communications with other nodes. In one aspect, configuration component 342 can configure synchronization points, parameters for determining contention windows, such that each node determines the same contention window for a given synchronization point, etc., as further described herein.

[0040] Now go to Figure 2-8 , various aspects are depicted with reference to one or more components and one or more methods that can perform the actions or operations described herein, where dashed aspects may be optional. Figure 4 and 7 The operations described in the description are given in a specific order and / or performed by exemplary components, but it should be understood that the actions and the order in which the components perform the actions may vary depending on the implementation. In addition, it should be understood that the following actions, functions and / or components described may be performed by a specially programmed processor, a processor executing specially programmed software or computer-readable media, or any other combination of hardware components and / or software components capable of performing the described actions or functions.

[0041] Reference Figure 2 , an example of an implementation of the UE 104 may include a variety of components, some of which have been described above and are further described herein, including components such as one or more processors 212 and memory 216 in communication via one or more buses 244 and a transceiver 202, which may operate in conjunction with a modem 240 and / or a communication component 242 for substantially aligning contention-based communications in time, as further described herein.

[0042] In one aspect, the one or more processors 212 may include a modem 240 using one or more modem processors and / or may be part of the modem 240. Thus, various functions associated with the communication component 242 may be included in the modem 240 and / or the processor 212, and in one aspect, may be performed by a single processor, while in other aspects, different ones of these functions may be performed by a combination of two or more different processors. In one aspect, the one or more processors 212 may include any one or any combination of the following: a modem processor, or a baseband processor, or a digital signal processor, or a transmit processor, or a receive processor, or a transceiver processor associated with the transceiver 202. In other aspects, some of the features of the one or more processors 212 and / or the modem 240 associated with the communication component 242 may be performed by the transceiver 202.

[0043] In addition, the memory 216 can be configured to store data used herein and / or a local version of the application 275 executed by the at least one processor 212 or one or more subcomponents of the communication component 242 and / or its subcomponents. The memory 216 may include any type of computer-readable medium usable by a computer or at least one processor 212, such as a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), a tape, a disk, an optical disk, a volatile memory, a non-volatile memory, and any combination thereof. In one aspect, the memory 216 may be a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing one or more computer-executable codes, wherein when the UE 104 is operating the at least one processor 212 to execute the communication component 242 and / or one or more subcomponents thereof, the one or more computer-executable codes are used to define the communication component 242 and / or one or more subcomponents thereof, and / or data associated therewith.

[0044] The transceiver 202 may include at least one receiver 206 and at least one transmitter 208. The receiver 206 may include hardware, firmware, and / or software code executable by a processor for receiving data, the code including instructions and stored in a memory (e.g., a computer-readable medium). In one aspect, the receiver 206 may be a radio frequency (RF) receiver. In one aspect, the receiver 206 may receive signals transmitted by at least one base station 102. In addition, the receiver 206 may process these received signals and may also obtain measurement results of the signals, such as but not limited to Ec / Io, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), reference signal received power (RSRP), received signal strength indicator (RSSI), etc. The transmitter 208 may include hardware, firmware, and / or software code executable by a processor for sending data, the code including instructions and stored in a memory (e.g., a computer-readable medium). Suitable examples of the transmitter 208 may include, but are not limited to, an RF transmitter.

[0045] Additionally, in one aspect, the UE 104 may include an RF front end 288 that may operate in communication with the one or more antennas 265 and the transceiver 202 to receive and transmit radio transmissions, in one aspect, wireless communications transmitted by at least one base station 102 or wireless transmissions transmitted by the UE 104. The RF front end 288 may be connected to the one or more antennas 265 and may include one or more low noise amplifiers (LNAs) 290, one or more switches 292, one or more power amplifiers (PAs) 298, and one or more filters 296 for transmitting and receiving RF signals.

[0046] In one aspect, the LNA 290 can amplify the received signal at a desired output level. In one aspect, each LNA 290 can have a specified minimum gain value and a maximum gain value. In one aspect, the RF front end 288 can use one or more switches 292 to select a specific LNA 290 and its specified gain value based on the desired gain value for a particular application.

[0047] Additionally, in one aspect, the RF front end 288 can use one or more PAs 298 to amplify the signal for RF output at a desired output power level. In one aspect, each PA 298 can have a specified minimum gain value and a maximum gain value. In one aspect, the RF front end 288 can use one or more switches 292 to select a particular PA 298 and its specified gain value based on the desired gain value for a particular application.

[0048] In addition, in one aspect, the RF front end 288 can use one or more filters 296 to filter the received signal to obtain an input RF signal. Similarly, in one aspect, the output from the corresponding PA 298 can be filtered using a corresponding filter 296 to produce an output signal for transmission. In one aspect, each filter 296 can be connected to a specific LNA 290 and / or PA 298. In one aspect, the RF front end 288 can use one or more switches 292 to select a transmit path or a receive path using a specified filter 296, LNA 290, and / or PA 298 based on the configuration as specified by the transceiver 202 and / or the processor 212.

[0049] Thus, the transceiver 202 may be configured to transmit and receive wireless signals through one or more antennas 265 via the RF front end 288. In one aspect, the transceiver may be tuned to operate at a specified frequency so that, in one aspect, the UE 104 may communicate with one or more base stations 102 or one or more cells associated with one or more base stations 102. In one aspect, the modem 240 may configure the transceiver 202 to operate at a specified frequency and power level based on the UE configuration of the UE 104 and the communication protocol used by the modem 240.

[0050] In one aspect, the modem 240 can be a multi-band multi-mode modem that can process digital data and communicate with the transceiver 202 so that the digital data is sent and received using the transceiver 202. In one aspect, the modem 240 can be multi-band and can be configured to support multiple frequency bands for a specific communication protocol. In one aspect, the modem 240 can be multi-mode and configured to support multiple operating networks and communication protocols. In one aspect, the modem 240 can control one or more components (e.g., RF front end 288, transceiver 202) of the UE 104 based on the specified modem configuration to enable the transmission and / or reception of signals from the network. In one aspect, the modem configuration can be based on the mode of the modem and the frequency band in use. In another aspect, the modem configuration can be based on UE configuration information associated with the UE 104 (such as provided by the network during cell selection and / or cell reselection).

[0051] In one aspect, the communication component 242 may optionally include: a synchronization point determination component 252 for determining a time instance corresponding to a synchronization point; and / or a contention window determination component 254 for determining a contention window or contention window for sending an LBT signal associated with communications at a synchronization point, as further described herein.

[0052] In one aspect, processor 212 may correspond to Figure 8 Similarly, the memory 216 may correspond to one or more processors in conjunction with the UE described in the embodiment of the present invention. Figure 8 The memory described by the UE in .

[0053] Reference Figure 3 , an example of an implementation of a base station 102 (e.g., base station 102 and / or gNB 108, as described above) may include a variety of components, some of which have been described above, but include components such as one or more processors 312 and memory 316 that communicate with each other via one or more buses 344 and a transceiver 302, which can operate in conjunction with a modem 340 and a configuration component 342 that configures contention-based communications to be substantially aligned in time, as further described herein.

[0054] The transceiver 302, receiver 306, transmitter 308, one or more processors 312, memory 316, application 375, bus 344, RF front end 388, LNA 390, switch 392, filter 396, PA 398 and one or more antennas 365 can be the same as or similar to the corresponding components of UE 104 described above, but are configured or otherwise programmed for base station operation as opposed to UE operation.

[0055] In one aspect, the configuration component 342 may optionally include: a synchronization point indication component 352 for indicating parameters regarding multiple synchronization points (e.g., time instances corresponding to synchronization points, periods for determining synchronization points, etc.); and / or a contention window indication component 354 for indicating one or more parameters for determining a contention window associated with communications at a given synchronization point, as further described herein.

[0056] In one aspect, processor 312 may correspond to Figure 8 Similarly, the memory 316 may correspond to one or more processors in conjunction with the base station described in the embodiment of the present invention. Figure 8 The memory described in the base station.

[0057] Figure 4 A flow chart showing an example of a method 400 for aligning contention-based communications. In one aspect, UE 104 may use Figure 1-2 One or more components shown may be used to perform the functions described in method 400. In addition, in one aspect, UE 104 may substantially represent any downstream node downstream of a base station or other access point, which may include UEs or UE functions provided for factory or automation equipment or IIoT devices, etc.

[0058] In method 400, at block 402, a configuration indicating multiple synchronization points in time for contention-based communication may be determined. In one aspect, synchronization point determination component 252 (e.g., in conjunction with processor 212, memory 216, transceiver 202, communication component 242, etc.) may determine a configuration indicating multiple synchronization points in time for contention-based communication. In one aspect, synchronization point determination component 252 may determine a synchronization point as a point (e.g., a time instance) within a time period in which a communication process may be initiated. In one aspect, the synchronization points may be evenly distributed within the time period or may be unevenly distributed. In addition, in one aspect, the synchronization points may be shared for downlink and uplink communications. In addition, in one aspect, the synchronization points may be configured as a periodic fixed pattern and may be configured such that transmission in one synchronization point may stop with a sufficiently large gap before the next synchronization point.

[0059] When determining the configuration at block 402, optionally at block 404, the configuration may be received from a base station. In one aspect, synchronization point determination component 252 (e.g., in conjunction with processor 212, memory 216, transceiver 202, communication component 242, etc.) may receive the configuration from a base station (e.g., a base station serving UE 104). In one aspect, synchronization point determination component 252 may receive the configuration from the base station via radio resource control (RRC) signaling, wherein the configuration may indicate a specific time instance for synchronization points, one or more periods of one or more periodic fixed patterns for determining synchronization points, etc., parameters for determining synchronization points based on network load, capacity, data rate, etc., etc. In one aspect, the synchronization points may not be evenly distributed in time, but may have a pattern of periods between synchronization points.

[0060] In one aspect, each synchronization point can define a time instance at which a node will initiate a contention-based communication process. In one aspect, a node can use an LBT process that starts at a synchronization point to potentially acquire a channel and send a communication to one or more other nodes. In one aspect, the LBT process can include a CAT-2 LBT process or a CAT-4 LBT process. The CAT-4 LBT process can be defined by a postponement period after the start of a synchronization point (during which the node does not send) and a contention window (during which the node can send a signal to contend for a channel). Figure 5 An example is shown in FIG.

[0061] Figure 5Examples of timelines 500, 502 for CAT-4 LBT processes are shown. As shown in timelines 500, 502, in CAT-4 LBT, the deferral period may include a fixed period (e.g., 16 microseconds (us)), followed by one or more dynamic periods, which may be a number n multiplied by a fixed value (e.g., 9us), where n may correspond to a channel access priority class (CAPC) of the communication. In timeline 500, n=2, and in timeline 502, n=3. In CAT-4 LBT, the contention window may be another number N multiplied by a fixed value (e.g., 9us), where N may be a random number between 0 and the contention window size. In timeline 500, N=3, and in timeline 502, N=4. Nodes that acquire a channel may transmit after the contention window, as shown in timeline 500, and other nodes may avoid transmitting after the contention window is counted down. In this regard, when conventional CAT-4 LBT is used, nodes may have different timelines that end at different times.

[0062] In method 400, at block 406, a contention window may be determined for a given synchronization point in a plurality of synchronization points using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters. In one aspect, contention window determination component 254 (e.g., in conjunction with processor 212, memory 216, transceiver 202, communication component 242, etc.) may determine the contention window for a given synchronization point in a plurality of synchronization points (e.g., a next or current synchronization point) and using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters. In one aspect, using a deterministic function may ensure that nodes determine the same contention window (e.g., determine the same N value), which may allow for greater certainty in contention signaling between nodes, which in turn may allow for better certainty in scheduling synchronization points so that nodes have enough time to transmit before the next synchronization point. Using the same contention window may at least provide some gap reduction in the possible timelines used by the nodes. Figure 6 An example is shown in FIG.

[0063] Figure 6 An example of a timeline 600 in which CAT-4 LBT is not aligned and a timeline 602 in which CAT-4 LBT is more aligned (e.g., by aligning at least the contention window) is shown. As shown, when CAT-4 LBT is more aligned in timeline 602, the previous transmission stop point before the next synchronization point can be extended, thereby providing a gap reduction 604. Such a gap reduction can allow for longer or additional transmissions, shorter delays between synchronization points, etc.

[0064] In one aspect, the contention window determination component 254 may determine one or more configured parameters from a configuration of the base station (e.g., a configuration received at block 404 or other configuration). In one aspect, the configuration may include one or more configured parameters applied to each of a plurality of synchronization points or corresponding modes, parameters common to all synchronization points, and the like. In one aspect, the one or more configured parameters may include a common configurable seed for determining a random number. In another aspect, the deterministic function may be a time-based element, such as a slot index or a symbol index corresponding to a synchronization point. In one aspect, wireless communication may be based on an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol and / or a slot including a plurality of OFDM symbols, wherein the OFDM symbol and / or the slot may have a corresponding index indicated by the base station. Thus, in one aspect, the contention window determination component 254 may determine a contention window (e.g., N) based at least in part on a symbol or slot index and / or based on a common configurable seed for determining a random number, and the like, so that each node (e.g., each UE in a controlled environment, each base station, and the like) may determine the same value contention window (e.g., value N) for the same synchronization point. In this manner, in one aspect, all nodes starting at the same time may use the same random number and therefore the same (or similar) CAT-4 LBT length (where the CAT-4 LBT length is again based on a value of n, which may depend on the CAPC). However, at different time instances (e.g., synchronization points), the random number may be random (or different). In this regard, as described above, the gap at each synchronization point may only need to cover the common window size, rather than the worst-case window size (e.g., as described above). Figure 6 Additionally, in one aspect, the value of n for the deferral period in CAT-4 LBT may also be based on (or specific to) a slot or symbol index (or other time unit corresponding to a synchronization point), and thus, in this regard, each node may determine the same overall CAT-4 LBT length (e.g., deferral period and contention window) for a given synchronization point.

[0065] In the method 400, at block 408, one or more contention-based signals may be sent during the contention window in an attempt to acquire a channel for sending communications. In one aspect, the communication component 242 (e.g., in conjunction with the processor 212, the memory 216, the transceiver 202, etc.) may send one or more contention-based signals (e.g., LBT signals) during the contention window in an attempt to acquire a channel for sending communications. In the event that the transmission of the one or more contention-based signals yields the channel, the UE 104 may send communications on the channel. In the event that the transmission of the one or more contention-based signals does not yield the channel during the contention window, the UE 104 may refrain from sending communications and may attempt to send contention-based signals after the next synchronization point.

[0066] In one aspect, the contention window size may be adjusted based on one or more factors such as congestion, and the contention window (N) may be determined based on the contention window size. Contention window size adjustment may be a mechanism in LBE for fallback when there is potential congestion, where the size of the contention window may be increased (e.g., doubled, to a maximum value), and when there is no congestion, the contention window is reset to a minimum size. The adjustment may be driven by decoding errors (e.g., decoding errors are used as an approximation of collision events). However, decoding errors may occur naturally even in the absence of collisions. There are implementation-based techniques that can reduce the target block error rate (BLER), so the doubling may be low for changes in the contention window, but may still be unavoidable. The contention window size may be per-node (due to independent error events) and may not be aligned across nodes in general, and one node may not know the contention window size of another node (and may therefore determine a different value of N). Therefore, different contention window sizes may result in different determinations of the random number N.

[0067] In this regard, when determining the contention window at box 406, the contention window determination component 254 can assume a minimum contention window size (e.g., for calculating N or for otherwise ensuring that the calculated N does not exceed the minimum contention window size). In one aspect, if the node is actually using the minimum contention window size, the countdown of the contention window can occur in the determined contention window. If the node does not use the minimum contention window size, the node can start the countdown in advance (before entering the contention window) because the contention window may not be long enough to complete the countdown. Opportunistically, the communication component 242 can complete the countdown of the contention window, sending a contention-based signal during the contention window (if there is no major interference source above the ED threshold), or if there is a major interference source, the communication component 242 can complete the countdown (e.g., related to subsequent synchronization points) on multiple contention windows. This means that channel access may be delayed, and the node may miss one or more synchronization point intervals.

[0068] In another aspect, a CAPC may be determined for a synchronization point, and / or sending one or more contention-based signals may be based on determining that the corresponding communication has the same (or conforming) CAPC of the synchronization point. In method 400, optionally at block 410, a CAPC for a given synchronization point may be determined. In one aspect, a synchronization point determination component 252 (e.g., in conjunction with processor 212, memory 216, transceiver 202, communication component 242, etc.) may determine a CAPC for a given synchronization point. In one aspect, the length of time between a synchronization point and the next synchronization point may allow for a channel occupancy time (COT) for sending a data volume that may be sufficient for a given CAPC. In one aspect, given a synchronization point, the maximum transmission burst length after each synchronization point (until the next synchronization point) may be known. The maximum COT length from a synchronization point may be up to the next synchronization point, minus the CAT-4 LBT gap length (e.g., the length of the postponement period and / or contention window). Therefore, a CAPC value may be associated with a maximum COT duration and a contention window size. In one aspect, given a maximum COT of X milliseconds (ms) from the synchronization point, a transmission may not need to use a CAPC with a longer window and longer burst length than X ms.

[0069] In one aspect, when determining the CAPC at block 410, optionally at block 412, a configuration indicating the CAPC for one or more of the plurality of synchronization points may be received. In one aspect, the synchronization point determination component 252 (e.g., in conjunction with the processor 212, the memory 216, the transceiver 202, the communication component 242, etc.) may receive a configuration indicating the CAPC for one or more of the plurality of synchronization points. In one aspect, the configuration may be received with and / or may be part of the configuration received at block 404, or may be received as a separate configuration from the base station (e.g., using RRC signaling, etc.). In one aspect, in the configuration received at block 404, the CAPC may be indicated for each synchronization point, or a common CAPC may be indicated for all synchronization points, etc.

[0070] In another aspect, when determining the CAPC at block 410, the CAPC may be determined based on the size of the time period corresponding to a given synchronization point, optionally at block 414. In one aspect, synchronization point determination component 252 (e.g., in conjunction with processor 212, memory 216, transceiver 202, communication component 242, etc.) may determine the CAPC based on the size of the time period corresponding to a given synchronization point. In one aspect, synchronization point determination component 252 may determine a CAPC that may be associated with a maximum COT duration and / or contention window size for a synchronization point, as described above.

[0071] In any case, in one aspect, the communication component 242 can use the CAPC associated with the synchronization point to determine the CAT-4 LBT gap length, or otherwise determine the start of the contention window. In one aspect, the communication component 242 can use the CAPC to determine a deferral period (e.g., a value of n), which can be based on the CAPC, as described above. In this regard, each node can determine the same n value based on determining the same CAPC for the synchronization point, and can therefore determine the same CAT-4 LBT gap length based on determining the same n and N values, as described above.

[0072] When sending one or more contention-based signals at block 408, optionally at block 410, the one or more contention-based signals may be determined to be sent based on determining that the CAPC used for communication is consistent with the CAPC used for a given synchronization point. In one aspect, the communication component 242 (e.g., in conjunction with the processor 212, the memory 216, the transceiver 202, etc.) may determine to send one or more contention-based signals based on determining that the CAPC used for communication is consistent with the CAPC used for a given synchronization point. In one aspect, if the UE 104 is not using or does not have a CAPC for a synchronization point, it may avoid sending contention-based signals in the contention window altogether and may wait for the next synchronization point.

[0073] Figure 7 A flowchart showing an example of a method 700 for configuring node alignment contention-based communication. In one aspect, the base station 102 may use Figure 1 and 3 One or more of the components described in the method 700 may be used to perform the functions described in method 700.

[0074] In method 700, at block 702, a configuration indicating a plurality of synchronization points in time for contention-based communication may be determined. In one aspect, synchronization point indicating component 352 (e.g., in conjunction with processor 312, memory 316, transceiver 302, configuration component 342, etc.) may determine a configuration indicating a plurality of synchronization points in time for contention-based communication. In one aspect, synchronization point indicating component 352 may determine a synchronization point as a point (e.g., a time instance) within a time period in which a communication process may be initiated (e.g., as described above with reference to block 402 of method 400). In one aspect, the synchronization points may be configured as a periodic fixed pattern, and may be configured such that transmission in one synchronization point may be stopped with a sufficiently large gap before the next synchronization point. In one aspect, synchronization point indicating component 352 may generate a configuration, or may receive a configuration from a core network node or another base station, etc.

[0075] Upon determining the configuration at block 702, the configuration may optionally be sent to one or more UEs at block 704. In one aspect, synchronization point indicating component 352 (e.g., in conjunction with processor 312, memory 316, transceiver 302, configuration component 342, etc.) may send the configuration to one or more UEs (e.g., UE 104 or other downstream nodes that may be served by base station 102). In one aspect, synchronization point indicating component 352 may use RRC signaling to send the configuration to the one or more UEs, wherein the configuration may indicate a specific time instance for synchronization points, one or more periods of one or more periodic fixed patterns for determining synchronization points, etc., parameters for determining synchronization points based on network load, capacity, data rate, etc., etc. (e.g., as described above with reference to block 404 of method 400).

[0076] In the method 700, at block 706, a contention window may be determined for a given synchronization point in the plurality of synchronization points using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters. In one aspect, the contention window indication component 354 (e.g., in conjunction with the processor 312, the memory 316, the transceiver 302, the configuration component 342, etc.) may determine the contention window for a given synchronization point in the plurality of synchronization points (e.g., the next or current synchronization point) and using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters (e.g., as described above with reference to block 406 of the method 400). In one aspect, using a deterministic function may ensure that nodes determine the same contention window (e.g., determine the same value of N), which may allow for greater determinism in contention signaling between nodes, which in turn may allow for better determinism in scheduling synchronization points so that nodes have sufficient time to transmit before the next synchronization point.

[0077] In one aspect, the contention window indication component 354 may indicate one or more configured parameters in a configuration sent to one or more UEs (e.g., in a configuration sent at block 704 or other configuration). In one aspect, the configuration may include one or more configured parameters applied to each of a plurality of synchronization points or corresponding modes, parameters common to all synchronization points, etc. In one aspect, the one or more configured parameters may include a common configurable seed for determining a random number. In another aspect, the deterministic function may be a time-based element, such as a slot index or a symbol index corresponding to a synchronization point, as described above. In one aspect, the contention window indication component 354 may determine a contention window (e.g., N) based at least in part on a symbol or slot index and / or based on a common configurable seed for determining a random number, etc. (and / or a common configurable seed may be configured for one or more UEs), so that each node (e.g., each UE in a controlled environment, each base station, etc.) may determine the same value contention window (e.g., value N) for the same synchronization point, as described above.

[0078] In the method 700, at block 708, one or more contention-based signals may be sent during the contention window in an attempt to acquire a channel for sending communications. In one aspect, the configuration component 342 (e.g., in conjunction with the processor 312, the memory 316, the transceiver 302, etc.) may send one or more contention-based signals (e.g., LBT signals) during the contention window in an attempt to acquire a channel for sending communications. In the event that the transmission of the one or more contention-based signals yields the channel, the UE 104 may send communications on the channel. In the event that the transmission of the one or more contention-based signals does not yield the channel during the contention window, the UE 104 may refrain from sending communications and may attempt to send contention-based signals after the next synchronization point.

[0079] As described above, in one aspect, the contention window size can be adjusted based on one or more factors. In one aspect (e.g., in the presence of an ideal backhaul), the base station can signal its contention window size to other neighboring base stations via the backhaul and / or receive the contention window size from other base stations. In this regard, determining the contention window at block 706 can be a random number generated based on the maximum value of the contention window size in the neighborhood. Similarly, in one aspect, the contention window indication component 354 can configure the maximum value of the contention window size to its serving UE to determine the same contention window.

[0080] In another aspect, a CAPC may be determined for a synchronization point, and / or sending one or more contention-based signals may be based on determining that corresponding communications have the same (or consistent) CAPC for a synchronization point, as described above. In method 700, optionally at block 710, a CAPC may be determined for a given synchronization point. In one aspect, synchronization point indicating component 352 (e.g., in conjunction with processor 312, memory 316, transceiver 302, configuration component 342, etc.) may determine a CAPC for a given synchronization point (e.g., as described above with reference to block 410 of method 400).

[0081] In one aspect, upon determining the CAPC at block 710, optionally at block 712, a configuration indicating the CAPC for one or more of the plurality of synchronization points may be sent. In one aspect, the synchronization point indicating component 352 (e.g., in conjunction with the processor 312, the memory 316, the transceiver 302, the configuration component 342, etc.) may send a configuration indicating the CAPC for one or more of the plurality of synchronization points. In one aspect, the configuration may be sent with and / or may be part of the configuration sent at block 704, or may be sent as a separate configuration to one or more UEs (e.g., using RRC signaling, etc.). In one aspect, in the configuration sent at block 704, the synchronization point indicating component 352 may indicate the CAPC for each synchronization point, or may indicate a common CAPC for all synchronization points, etc.

[0082] In any case, in one aspect, configuration component 342 can use the CAPC associated with the synchronization point to determine the CAT-4 LBT gap length, or otherwise determine the start of the contention window. In one aspect, configuration component 342 can use the CAPC to determine a deferral period (e.g., a value of n), which can be based on the CAPC, as described above. In this regard, each node can determine the same n value based on determining the same CAPC for the synchronization point, and can therefore determine the same CAT-4 LBT gap length based on determining the same n and N values, as described above.

[0083] Figure 8 1 is a block diagram of a MIMO communication system 800 including a base station 102 and a UE 104. The MIMO communication system 800 may be shown with reference to Figure 1 The wireless communication access network 100 is described in detail. The base station 102 may be a reference Figure 1Examples of various aspects of base station 102 are described. Base station 102 can be equipped with antennas 834 and 835, and UE 104 can be equipped with antennas 852 and 853. In MIMO communication system 800, base station 102 can send data on multiple communication links simultaneously. Each communication link can be referred to as a "layer", and the "rank" of the communication link can indicate the number of layers used for communication. In one aspect, in a 2x2 MIMO communication system where base station 102 sends two "layers", the rank of the communication link between base station 102 and UE 104 is 2.

[0084] At the base station 102, a transmit (Tx) processor 820 may receive data from a data source. The transmit processor 820 may process data. The transmit processor 820 may also generate control symbols or reference symbols. The transmit MIMO processor 830 may perform spatial processing (e.g., precoding) on ​​data symbols, control symbols, or reference symbols (if applicable), and may provide an output symbol stream to transmit modulators / demodulators 832 and 833. Each modulator / demodulator 832 to 833 may process a corresponding output symbol stream (e.g., for OFDM, etc.) to obtain an output sample stream. Each modulator / demodulator 832 to 833 may further process (e.g., convert to analog, amplify, filter, and up-convert) the output sample stream to obtain a DL signal. In an example, the DL signals from modulators / demodulators 832 and 833 may be transmitted via antennas 834 and 835, respectively.

[0085] UE 104 may be a reference Figure 1-2 Examples of various aspects of the UE 104 described herein. At the UE 104, the UE antennas 852 and 853 may receive DL signals from the base station 102 and may provide the received signals to the modulators / demodulators 854 and 855, respectively. Each modulator / demodulator 854 to 855 may condition (e.g., filter, amplify, downconvert, and digitize) the respective received signals to obtain input samples. Each modulator / demodulator 854 to 855 may further process the input samples (e.g., for OFDM, etc.) to obtain received symbols. The MIMO detector 856 may obtain received symbols from the modulators / demodulators 854 and 855, perform MIMO detection on the received symbols (if applicable), and provide detected symbols. The receive (Rx) processor 858 may process (e.g., demodulate, deinterleave, and decode) the detected symbols, provide decoded data for the UE 104 to a data output, and provide decoded control information to the processor 880 or the memory 882.

[0086] In some cases, processor 880 may execute stored instructions to instantiate communication component 242 (eg, see Figure 1 and2 ).

[0087] On the uplink (UL), at the UE 104, a transmit processor 864 may receive data from a data source and process the data. The transmit processor 864 may also generate reference symbols for reference signals. The symbols from the transmit processor 864 may be precoded by a transmit MIMO processor 866 (if applicable), further processed by modulators / demodulators 854 and 855 (e.g., for SC-FDMA, etc.), and transmitted to the base station 102 according to the communication parameters received from the base station 102. At the base station 102, the UL signal from the UE 104 may be received by antennas 834 and 835, processed by modulators / demodulators 832 and 833, detected by a MIMO detector 836 (if applicable), and further processed by a receive processor 838. The receive processor 838 may provide decoded data to a data output and to the processor 840 or memory 842.

[0088] In some cases, processor 840 may execute stored instructions to instantiate configuration component 342 (eg, see Figure 1 and 3 ).

[0089] The components of the UE 104 may be implemented, individually or collectively, with one or more application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) adapted to perform some or all of the applicable functions in hardware. Each of the mentioned modules may be a means for performing one or more functions related to the operation of the MIMO communication system 800. Similarly, the components of the base station 102 may be implemented, individually or collectively, with one or more ASICs adapted to perform some or all of the applicable functions in hardware. Each of the mentioned components may be a means for performing one or more functions related to the operation of the MIMO communication system 800.

[0090] The above detailed description set forth above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings describes examples and does not represent the only examples that can be implemented or are within the scope of the claims. The term "example" when used in this description means "used as an example, instance, or illustration" and is not "preferred" or "advantageous over other examples." For the purpose of providing an understanding of the described techniques, the detailed description includes specific details. However, these techniques can be implemented without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the concepts of the described examples.

[0091] Information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different techniques and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be mentioned throughout the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, computer executable codes or instructions stored on a computer-readable medium, or any combination thereof.

[0092] The various illustrative blocks and components described in conjunction with the disclosure herein may be implemented or executed using a specially programmed device designed to perform the functions described herein, such as a processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof. The specially programmed processor may be a microprocessor, but in an alternative manner, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The specially programmed processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, a combination of one or more microprocessors and a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0093] The functions described herein can be implemented with hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented with software executed by a processor, the functions can be stored on or transmitted by a non-transitory computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or codes. Other examples and implementations are within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, the functions described above can be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hard wiring, or any combination of these items. The features used to implement the functions can also be physically located at various locations, including being distributed so that partial functions in the functions are implemented at different physical locations. In addition, as used herein (including in the claims), the "or" used in the list of items ending with "at least one of" indicates a separable list, so that, for example, a list of "at least one of A, B, or C" means A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C).

[0094] Computer readable medium includes computer storage medium and communication medium, and the communication medium includes any medium that promotes computer program to be transmitted from one place to another place. Storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by general or special-purpose computer. By way of example and not limitation, computer readable medium can include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, disk storage or other magnetic storage device, or can be used for carrying or storing the program code unit of expectation and any other medium that can be accessed by general or special-purpose computer or general or special-purpose processor in the form of instruction or data structure. In addition, any connection is appropriately referred to as computer readable medium. For example, if software is sent from website, server or other remote source using coaxial cable, optical fiber cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL) or wireless technology (for example, infrared, radio and microwave), coaxial cable, optical fiber cable, twisted pair, DSL or wireless technology (for example, infrared, radio and microwave) are included in the definition of medium. As used herein, disk and disc include compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Blu-ray disc, wherein disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above are also included within the scope of computer readable media.

[0095] The previous description of the present disclosure is provided to enable those skilled in the art to implement or use the present disclosure. Various modifications to the present disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure. In addition, although the elements of the described aspects and / or embodiments may be described or claimed in singular form, the plural form is contemplated unless explicitly stated to be limited to the singular form. In addition, unless otherwise stated, all or part of any aspect and / or embodiment may be used together with all or part of any other aspect and / or embodiment. Therefore, the present disclosure is not limited to the examples and designs described herein, but is given the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication, comprising: receiving a configuration indicating a plurality of synchronization points in time for contention-based communication; determining a contention window for a given synchronization point of the plurality of synchronization points using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters; as well as One or more contention-based signals are sent during the contention window to attempt to acquire a channel for transmitting communications.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The use of the deterministic function is also based on one or more parameters of a time period associated with the given synchronization point.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein: The one or more parameters include an index of a symbol or an index of a time slot associated with the given synchronization point.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The one or more configured parameters include a common seed to facilitate determining the contention window based on a common random number.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The contention window is also based at least in part on a minimum contention window size.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The plurality of synchronization points are shared between uplink communications and downlink communications.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: A configuration is received indicating a channel access priority class (CAPC) for one or more synchronization points of the plurality of synchronization points.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein: The configuration indicates the CAPC for each synchronization point of the plurality of synchronization points.

9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: A channel access priority class (CAPC) for transmitting communications during the time period is determined based on a size of the time period corresponding to the given synchronization point.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Receiving the configuration comprises receiving the configuration from a base station, and wherein the one or more configured parameters are received in the configuration or in another configuration from the base station.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Receiving the configuration includes generating the configuration, and further includes sending the configuration to one or more user equipments (UEs).

12. The method according to claim 11, further comprising: A minimum contention window size used in determining the contention window is sent to one or more base stations.

13. The method according to claim 11, further comprising: A configuration indicating a channel access priority class (CAPC) for one or more synchronization points of the plurality of synchronization points is sent to the one or more UEs.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein: The configuration indicates the CAPC for each synchronization point of the plurality of synchronization points.

15. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: Transceiver; a memory configured to store instructions; as well as one or more processors communicatively coupled to the memory and the transceiver, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: receiving a configuration indicating a plurality of synchronization points in time for contention-based communication; determining a contention window for a given synchronization point of the plurality of synchronization points using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters; and One or more contention-based signals are sent during the contention window to attempt to acquire a channel for transmitting communications.

16. The device according to claim 15, wherein: The one or more processors are configured to use the deterministic function further based on one or more parameters of a time period associated with the given synchronization point.

17. The device according to claim 16, wherein: The one or more parameters include an index of a symbol or an index of a time slot associated with the given synchronization point.

18. The device according to claim 15, wherein: The one or more configured parameters include a common seed to facilitate determining the contention window based on a common random number.

19. The device according to claim 15, wherein: The contention window is based at least in part on a minimum contention window size.

20. The device according to claim 15, wherein: The plurality of synchronization points are shared between uplink communications and downlink communications.

21. The device according to claim 15, wherein: The one or more processors are further configured to receive a configuration indicating a channel access priority class (CAPC) for one or more synchronization points of the plurality of synchronization points.

22. The device according to claim 21, wherein The configuration indicates the CAPC for each synchronization point of the plurality of synchronization points.

23. The device according to claim 15, wherein: The one or more processors are further configured to determine a channel access priority class (CAPC) for sending communications during a time period based on a size of the time period corresponding to the given synchronization point.

24. The device according to claim 15, wherein: The one or more processors are configured to receive the configuration at least in part by receiving the configuration from a base station, and wherein the one or more configured parameters are received in the configuration or another configuration from the base station.

25. The device according to claim 15, wherein: The one or more processors are configured to receive the configuration at least in part by generating the configuration, and wherein the one or more processors are further configured to send the configuration to one or more user equipments (UEs).

26. The device according to claim 25, wherein The one or more processors are further configured to send, to one or more base stations, a minimum contention window size used in determining the contention window.

27. The device according to claim 25, wherein: The one or more processors are further configured to send a configuration indicating a channel access priority class (CAPC) for one or more synchronization points of the plurality of synchronization points to the one or more UEs.

28. The device according to claim 27, wherein The configuration indicates the CAPC for each synchronization point of the plurality of synchronization points.

29. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: means for receiving a configuration indicating a plurality of synchronization points in time for contention-based communication; means for determining a contention window for a given synchronization point of the plurality of synchronization points using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters; as well as Means for transmitting one or more contention-based signals during the contention window to attempt to acquire a channel for transmitting communications.

30. The device according to claim 29, wherein: The means for using the deterministic function is also based on one or more parameters of a time period associated with the given synchronization point.

31. The device according to claim 30, wherein The one or more parameters include an index of a symbol or an index of a time slot associated with the given synchronization point.

32. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising code executable by one or more processors for wireless communication, the code comprising code for: receiving a configuration indicating a plurality of synchronization points in time for contention-based communication; determining a contention window for a given synchronization point of the plurality of synchronization points using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters; as well as One or more contention-based signals are sent during the contention window to attempt to acquire a channel for transmitting communications.

33. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 32, wherein: The code for using the deterministic function is also based on one or more parameters of a time period associated with the given synchronization point.

34. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 33, wherein: The one or more parameters include an index of a symbol or an index of a time slot associated with the given synchronization point.

35. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: Transceiver; a memory configured to store instructions; as well as one or more processors communicatively coupled to the memory and the transceiver, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: receiving a first configuration indicating a plurality of synchronization points in time for contention-based communication; receiving a second configuration indicating a channel access priority class (CAPC) for one or more synchronization points of the plurality of synchronization points; determining a contention window for a given synchronization point in the plurality of synchronization points using a deterministic function based at least in part on one or more configured parameters, the one or more configured parameters including a slot index or a symbol index of a synchronization point in the plurality of synchronization points; and One or more contention-based signals are sent during the contention window to attempt to acquire a channel for transmitting communications.

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