Multi-mode configuration for coverage enhancement

Abstract

Various aspects of the present disclosure relate to maintaining, defining, configuring, and implementing coverage enhancement modes defined for a radio access network. A base station may maintain parameters defining a plurality of coverage enhancement modes in a lookup table, and may select a first coverage enhancement mode from two or more coverage enhancement modes for use with a first user equipment to accommodate use of one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, capabilities of the first user equipment, or channel measurement reports of the first user equipment, and schedule a set of control and data channels to be used for communication with the first user equipment using a first transmission scheme defined by first parameters associated with the first coverage enhancement mode. The set of control and data channels may include uplink control and data channels and downlink control and data channels.

Description

Technical Field

[0001]

[0011] The techniques discussed below generally relate to wireless communication networks, and more specifically, the techniques discussed below relate to predefining, selecting, and activating coverage enhancement modes. Background Art

[0002] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide a variety of telecommunication services such as telephony, video, data, messaging, and broadcasts. Typical wireless communication systems may employ multiple access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources. Examples of such multiple access technologies include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, single-carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, and time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) systems.

[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. One example telecommunication standard is 5G New Radio (5G NR). 5G NR is part of the continued mobile broadband evolution released by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) to meet new requirements associated with latency, reliability, security, scalability (e.g., along with the Internet of Things (IoT)) and other requirements. 5G NR includes services associated with enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), massive machine type communications (mMTC), and ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC). Some aspects of 5G NR may be based on the 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard. There is a need for further improvements to 5G NR technology. These improvements may also be applicable to other multiple access technologies and telecommunication standards that employ these technologies. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The following presents an overview of one or more aspects of the present disclosure in order to provide a basic understanding of such aspects. This overview is not an extensive overview of all anticipated features of the present disclosure and is neither intended to identify key or important elements of all aspects of the present disclosure nor to delineate the scope of any or all aspects of the present disclosure. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects of the present disclosure in a form that serves as a prelude to the more detailed description that will be presented later.

[0005] Various aspects of the present disclosure relate to maintaining, defining, configuring, and / or operating a coverage enhancement mode selected from a plurality of coverage enhancement modes defined for a radio access network. As an example, a base station may maintain parameters for defining the plurality of coverage enhancement modes in a lookup table and may select a coverage enhancement mode for a user equipment based on channel conditions, user equipment capabilities, and / or a request received from the user equipment.

[0006] In one example, a method for wireless communication at a base station in a wireless communication network is disclosed. The method may include maintaining a plurality of parameters associated with two or more coverage enhancement modes defined for the wireless communication network; selecting a first coverage enhancement mode from the two or more coverage enhancement modes for use with a first user equipment to accommodate use of one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, capabilities of the first user equipment, or channel measurement reports of the first user equipment; and scheduling a set of control and data channels to be used for communication with the first user equipment using a first transmission scheme defined by a first parameter associated with the first coverage enhancement mode. The set of control and data channels may include uplink control and data channels and downlink control and data channels.

[0007] Another example provides a base station in a wireless communication network, the base station comprising: a wireless transceiver; a memory configured to: maintain a plurality of parameters associated with two or more coverage enhancement modes defined for the wireless communication network; and a processor communicatively coupled to the wireless transceiver and the memory. The processor may be configured to: select a first coverage enhancement mode from the two or more coverage enhancement modes for use with a first user equipment to accommodate use of one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, capabilities of the first user equipment, or channel measurement reports of the first user equipment; and schedule a set of control and data channels to be used for communication with the first user equipment using a first transmission scheme defined by first parameters associated with the first coverage enhancement mode. The set of control and data channels may include uplink control and data channels and downlink control and data channels.

[0008] Another example provides a method for wireless communication at a user equipment in a wireless communication network. The method may include: maintaining a plurality of parameters associated with two or more coverage enhancement modes defined for the wireless communication network; configuring the user equipment for a first coverage enhancement mode selected from the two or more coverage enhancement modes to accommodate use of one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, capabilities of the user equipment, or channel measurement reports of the user equipment; and communicating on a wireless channel according to the first coverage enhancement mode. The first coverage enhancement mode may be defined by a first parameter of the plurality of parameters that corresponds to the first coverage enhancement mode.

[0009] Another example provides a user equipment in a wireless communication network, the user equipment comprising: a wireless transceiver; a memory; and a processor communicatively coupled to the wireless transceiver and the memory. The processor may be configured to: configure the user equipment for a first coverage enhancement mode selected from two or more coverage enhancement modes to accommodate use of one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, capabilities of the user equipment, or channel measurement reports of the user equipment; and communicate on a wireless channel according to the first coverage enhancement mode. The first coverage enhancement mode may be defined by a first parameter of the plurality of parameters that corresponds to the first coverage enhancement mode.

[0010] Various method, system, device, and apparatus embodiments may also include additional features. For example, the first coverage enhancement mode may be selected to accommodate carrier aggregation, dual connectivity, dynamic spectrum sharing, or licensed assisted access.

[0011] In some examples, a payload repetition number for transmitting control and data information to the first user equipment on a downlink or uplink can be configured. The payload repetition number for control and data channel communications on the downlink and uplink is jointly defined by the first parameter. When repetition or frequency hopping is enabled for an uplink channel or for a downlink channel, a lower order modulation can be defined by the first transmission scheme. The first parameter can define a maximum number of frequency hops.

[0012] In some examples, the first parameter may define a first coding rate range for a data channel on an uplink channel or for a downlink channel. When the coding rate of the control channel or the data channel is within the configured range, a number of payload repetitions for transmitting the uplink channel or for the downlink channel with the first user equipment may be configured.

[0013] In one example, the first transmission scheme defined by the first parameter is based on binary phase shift keying, quadrature phase shift keying, or 16-point quadrature amplitude modulation.

[0014] In one example, the first parameter defines an aggregation level for a physical downlink control channel. When the aggregation level is greater than 8 or when the aggregation level is greater than 16, a payload repetition number may be configured for communicating with the first UE.

[0015] In one example, an uplink or downlink reference signal is configured according to the first parameter to adapt to uplink or downlink coverage enhancement.

[0016] In some examples, a second coverage enhancement mode is selected from the two or more coverage enhancement modes for use in uplink or downlink communications with a second user equipment. The second coverage enhancement mode may be selected to accommodate use of corresponding one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, capabilities of the second user equipment, or channel measurement reports from the second user equipment. A larger bandwidth may be provided for scheduling the first user equipment than for scheduling the second user equipment. In some cases, the first user equipment includes a normal or enhanced set of user equipment capabilities, and the second user equipment includes a reduced set of user equipment capabilities. A second transmission scheme, different from the first transmission scheme, may be used to schedule a set of control and data channels for uplink or downlink communications with the second user equipment. The first coverage enhancement mode may be defined for a downlink broadcast data channel, control channel, or reference signal, and the second coverage enhancement mode may be defined for a downlink unicast data channel, control channel, or reference signal. The first coverage enhancement mode may be defined for fixed or low-mobility user equipment, and the second coverage enhancement mode may be defined for high-mobility user equipment. The first coverage enhancement mode may be defined for a single-hop communication link, and the second coverage enhancement mode may be defined for a multi-hop communication link. The first coverage enhancement mode may define a transport block size, downlink control information size, or uplink control information size that is different from a corresponding transport block size, downlink control information size, or uplink control information size defined by the second coverage enhancement mode.

[0017] In some examples, support for at least one of the two or more coverage enhancement modes may be indicated in a physical broadcast channel or a system information block. Support for the at least one coverage enhancement mode may be indicated in a bitmap field of a master information block, a system information block, or a combination thereof. The parameters for uplink and downlink control, data, or reference signal communication corresponding to different coverage enhancement modes may be specified in a lookup table hard-coded according to a wireless standard. The lookup table for maintaining the parameters for uplink and downlink control, data, or reference signal communication corresponding to different coverage enhancement modes may be dynamically configured by the network or base station. Support for the at least one coverage enhancement mode may be indicated by the base station in a bitmap field of a master information block, a system information block, or a combination thereof.

[0018] In some examples, a user equipment-specific coverage enhancement mode can be signaled in dedicated radio resource control signaling or in downlink control information. The user equipment-specific coverage enhancement mode can be selected from the two or more coverage enhancement modes. The UE-specific coverage enhancement mode can be signaled in an undefined bit of the downlink control information, or by mapping to a demodulation reference signal or to cyclic redundancy check bits appended to the downlink control information.

[0019] In one example, selecting the first coverage enhancement mode includes receiving a request for the first coverage enhancement mode from the first user equipment. The request for the first coverage enhancement mode may be received during initial access in a random access channel using dedicated random access channel resources.

[0020] In one example, the request for the first coverage enhancement mode is sent by the first user equipment. The request for the first coverage enhancement mode may be received after a radio resource control connection has been established with the wireless communication network. The first coverage enhancement mode may be requested in an explicit scheduling request or in the capability report. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system according to some aspects.

[0022] Figure 2 is a conceptual illustration of an example of a radio access network in accordance with some aspects.

[0023] Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a frame structure for use in a radio access network in accordance with some aspects.

[0024] Figure 4is a block diagram illustrating a wireless communication system supporting beamforming and / or multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication in accordance with some aspects.

[0025] Figure 5 is a message flow diagram illustrating an example of messaging for implementing multi-mode coverage enhancement in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0026] Figure 6 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for a base station employing a processing system according to some aspects.

[0027] Figure 7 is a flow chart of a method for base station selection and configuration of coverage enhancement mode according to certain aspects disclosed herein.

[0028] Figure 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for a UE employing a processing system according to some aspects.

[0029] Figure 9 is a flow chart of a method for a UE according to certain aspects disclosed herein. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] The detailed description set forth below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings is intended as a description of various configurations and is not intended to represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein may be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details to provide a thorough understanding of the various concepts. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring such concepts.

[0031] Although aspects and embodiments are described in this application by illustrating some examples, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that additional implementations and use cases may occur in many different arrangements and scenarios. The innovations described herein can be implemented across many different platform types, devices, systems, shapes, sizes, and packaging arrangements. For example, embodiments and / or uses may be generated via integrated chip embodiments and other devices based on non-module components (e.g., end-user devices, vehicles, communication devices, computing devices, industrial devices, retail / purchase devices, medical devices, devices with AI functions, etc.). Although some examples may or may not specifically point to use cases or applications, the applicability of various types of the described innovations may occur. Implementations may range from chip-level or modular components to non-modular, non-chip-level implementations, and may also be aggregated, distributed, or OEM devices or systems incorporating one or more aspects of the described innovations. In some actual settings, the devices incorporating the described aspects and features may also necessarily include additional components and features for implementing and practicing the claimed and described embodiments. For example, the transmission and reception of wireless signals necessarily include multiple components for analog and digital purposes (e.g., hardware components including antennas, RF chains, power amplifiers, modulators, buffers, processors, interleavers, adders / summers, etc.) The innovations described herein are intended to be implemented in a variety of devices, chip-level components, systems, distributed arrangements, end-user devices, etc., of various sizes, shapes, and configurations.

[0032] The various concepts presented throughout this disclosure may be implemented in a variety of telecommunication systems, network architectures, and communication standards. Figure 1 By way of illustrative example and not limitation, various aspects of the present disclosure are described with reference to a wireless communication system 100. The wireless communication system 100 includes three interacting domains: a core network 102, a radio access network (RAN) 104, and a user equipment (UE) 106. By virtue of the wireless communication system 100, the UE 106 is able to perform data communications with an external data network 110, such as (but not limited to) the Internet.

[0033] The RAN 104 may implement any suitable wireless communication technology or technologies to provide wireless access to the UE 106. As an example, the RAN 104 may operate in accordance with the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) New Radio (NR) specifications, which are often referred to as 5G. As another example, the RAN 104 may operate under a mix of 5G NR and Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (eUTRAN) standards, which are often referred to as LTE. 3GPP refers to this hybrid RAN as the Next Generation RAN, or NG-RAN. Of course, many other examples may be used within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0034] As shown, the RAN 104 includes multiple base stations 108. In general, a base station is a network element in a radio access network that is responsible for wireless transmission and reception to and from a UE in one or more cells. A base station may be referred to variously by those skilled in the art as a base transceiver station (BTS), a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a transceiver function, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), an access point (AP), a Node B (NB), an evolved Node B (eNB), a next generation Node B (gNB), or some other suitable terminology in different technologies, standards, or contexts.

[0035] Further shown is a radio access network 104 that supports wireless communications for multiple mobile devices. A mobile device may be referred to as a user equipment (UE) in the 3GPP standard, but those skilled in the art may also refer to the mobile device as a mobile station (MS), subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile user station, access terminal (AT), mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handheld device, terminal, user agent, mobile client, client, or some other suitable terminology. A UE may be a device that provides a user with access to network services.

[0036] Within this document, a "mobile" device does not necessarily have the ability to move and can be stationary. The term mobile device or mobile device broadly refers to a wide variety of devices and technologies. A UE may include multiple hardware structural components whose size, shape, and arrangement facilitate communication; such components may include antennas, antenna arrays, RF chains, amplifiers, one or more processors, etc. electrically coupled to each other. For example, some non-limiting examples of mobile devices include: mobile devices, cellular (cell) phones, smartphones, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phones, laptops, personal computers (PCs), notebooks, netbooks, smartbooks, tablets, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and various embedded systems, e.g., corresponding to the "Internet of Things" (IoT). A mobile device may also be a car or other transportation vehicle, a remote sensor or actuator, a robot or robotic device, a satellite radio device, a global positioning system (GPS) device, an object tracking device, a drone, a multirotor aircraft, a quadrotor aircraft, a remote control device, a consumer and / or wearable device, such as glasses, a wearable camera, a virtual reality device, a smartwatch, a health or fitness tracker, a digital audio player (e.g., an MP3 player), a camera, a game console, etc. Mobile devices may also be digital home or smart home devices, such as home audio, video and / or multimedia devices, appliances, vending machines, smart lighting, home security systems, smart meters, etc. Mobile devices may also be smart energy devices, security devices, solar panels or solar arrays, municipal infrastructure devices that control power, lighting, water, etc. (e.g., smart grids); industrial automation and enterprise devices; logistics controllers; agricultural equipment; military defense equipment, vehicles, aircraft, ships, and weapons, etc. In addition, mobile devices can provide connected medicine or telemedicine support, that is, healthcare at a distance. Telemedicine devices may include remote health monitoring devices and remote health management devices, whose communications may be given priority processing or priority access over other types of information, for example, in terms of priority access for the transmission of critical service data and / or associated QoS for the transmission of critical service data.

[0037] Wireless communications between the RAN 104 and the UE 106 can be described as utilizing an air interface. Transmissions over the air interface from a base station (e.g., base station 108) to one or more UEs (e.g., UE 106) can be referred to as downlink (DL) transmissions. According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the term downlink can refer to point-to-multipoint transmissions originating from a scheduling entity (e.g., base station 108, described further below). Another way to describe this scheme can be to use the term broadcast channel multiplexing. Transmissions from a UE (e.g., UE 106) to a base station (e.g., base station 108) can be referred to as uplink (UL) transmissions. According to other aspects of the present disclosure, the term uplink can refer to point-to-point transmissions originating from a scheduled entity (described further below; e.g., UE 106).

[0038] In some examples, access to the air interface can be scheduled, wherein a scheduling entity (e.g., base station 108) allocates resources for communication between some or all devices and equipment within its service area or cell. In the present disclosure, as discussed further below, a scheduling entity can be responsible for scheduling, allocating, reconfiguring, and releasing resources for one or more scheduled entities. That is, for scheduled communications, UE 106 (which can be a scheduled entity) can use resources allocated by scheduling entity 108.

[0039] Base station 108 is not the only entity that can serve as a scheduling entity. That is, in some examples, a UE can serve as a scheduling entity, scheduling resources for one or more scheduled entities (e.g., one or more other UEs). And as discussed in more detail below, a UE can communicate directly with other UEs in a peer-to-peer manner and / or in a relay configuration.

[0040] like Figure 1 , a scheduling entity 108 may broadcast downlink traffic 112 to one or more scheduled entities 106. In general, a scheduling entity 108 is a node or device responsible for scheduling traffic in a wireless communication network, including downlink traffic 112 and, in some examples, uplink traffic 116 from one or more scheduled entities 106 to the scheduling entity 108. On the other hand, a scheduled entity 106 is a node or device that receives downlink control information 114 from another entity (e.g., the scheduling entity 108) in the wireless communication network, including but not limited to scheduling information (e.g., grants), synchronization or timing information, or other control information.

[0041] In addition, uplink and / or downlink control information and / or traffic information can be divided into frames, subframes, time slots and / or symbols in time. As used herein, a symbol can refer to a time unit in which each subcarrier carries one resource element (RE) in an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) waveform. In OFDM, in order to maintain the orthogonality of the subcarriers or tones, the subcarrier spacing (SCS) can be equal to the inverse of the symbol period. The digital scheme of the OFDM waveform refers to its specific subcarrier spacing and cyclic prefix (CP) overhead. A time slot can carry 7 or 14 OFDM symbols. A subframe can refer to a duration of 1 millisecond. Multiple subframes or time slots can be grouped together to form a single frame or radio frame. Of course, these definitions are not required, and any appropriate scheme for organizing the waveform can be utilized, and the various time divisions of the waveform can have any appropriate duration.

[0042] Typically, base stations 108 may include a backhaul interface for communicating with a backhaul portion 120 of a wireless communication system. Backhaul portion 120 may provide a link between base stations 108 and core network 102. Furthermore, in some examples, a backhaul network may provide interconnections between respective base stations 108. Various types of backhaul interfaces may be employed, such as a direct physical connection using any suitable transport network, a virtual network, and the like.

[0043] The core network 102 can be part of the wireless communication system 100 and can be independent of the radio access technology used in the RAN 104. In some examples, the core network 102 can be configured according to 5G standards (e.g., 5GC). In other examples, the core network 102 can be configured according to 4G Evolved Packet Core (EPC) or any other suitable standard or configuration.

[0044] One or more of the base stations 108 may be configured to define a BWP within the operating bandwidth provided by the wireless communication system, and may also be configured to define the structure and number of sub-BWPs within the BWP such that the sub-BWPs may be used to schedule frequency hopping transmissions. As an example, the base station 108 may use two or more sub-BWPs to schedule frequency hopping transmissions, with intervening scheduling gaps providing time for a receiver in the UE 106 to re-tune RF front-end components, such as antennas, filters, or amplifiers (which may be low noise amplifiers (LNAs)).

[0045] Now refer to Figure 2 , a schematic diagram of a RAN 200 is provided by way of example and not limitation. In some examples, the RAN 200 may be similar to the one described above and in Figure 1The geographic area covered by the RAN 200 may be divided into cellular regions (cells) that may be uniquely identified by a user equipment (UE) based on an identity broadcast from an access point or base station. Figure 2 Macro cells 202, 204, and 206, and small cell 208 are shown, each of which may include one or more sectors (not shown). A sector is a sub-area of a cell. All sectors within a cell are served by the same base station. A radio link within a sector may be identified by a single logical identifier belonging to that sector. In a cell divided into sectors, multiple sectors within the cell may be formed by antenna groups, with each antenna responsible for communicating with UEs in a portion of the cell.

[0046] Various base station arrangements can be utilized. For example, Figure 2 , two base stations 210 and 212 are shown in cells 202 and 204; and a third base station 214 is shown controlling a remote radio head (RRH) 216 in cell 206. That is, the base stations may have integrated antennas or may be connected to antennas or RRHs via feeder cables. In the illustrated example, cells 202, 204, and 126 may be referred to as macro cells because base stations 210, 212, and 214 support cells having large sizes. In addition, base station 218 is shown in a small cell 208 (e.g., a micro cell, a pico cell, a femto cell, a home base station, a home node B, a home eNode B, etc.) that may overlap with one or more macro cells. In this example, cell 208 may be referred to as a small cell because base station 218 supports a cell having a relatively small size. Cell sizing may be performed based on system design and component constraints.

[0047] It is to be understood that the wireless access network 200 may include any number of wireless base stations and cells. In addition, relay nodes may be deployed to extend the size or coverage area of a given cell. Base stations 210, 212, 214, 218 provide wireless access points to the core network for any number of mobile devices. In some examples, base stations 210, 212, 214, and / or 218 may be similar to those described above and in Figure 1 The base station / scheduling entity 108 shown in FIG.

[0048] Within the RAN 200, cells may include UEs that may communicate with one or more sectors of each cell. In addition, each base station 210, 212, 214, and 218 may be configured to provide connectivity to the core network 102 (see FIG. 1 ) for all UEs in the respective cell. Figure 1) access point. For example, UEs 222 and 224 can communicate with base station 210; UEs 226 and 228 can communicate with base station 212; UEs 230 and 232 can communicate with base station 214 by way of RRH 216; and UE 234 can communicate with base station 218. In some examples, UEs 222, 224, 226, 228, 230, 232, 234, 236, 238, 240, and / or 242 can communicate with the base stations described above and in Figure 1 The UE / scheduled entity 106 shown in FIG. 1 is the same as that shown in FIG.

[0049] In some examples, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) 220 (which may be a drone or a quadcopter) may be a mobile network node and may be configured to act as a UE. For example, UAV 220 may operate in cell 202 by communicating with base station 210.

[0050] In a further aspect of the RAN 200, sidelink signals can be used between UEs without having to rely on scheduling or control information from a base station. For example, two or more UEs (e.g., UEs 226 and 228) can communicate with each other using peer-to-peer (P2P) or sidelink signals 227 without relaying the communication through a base station (e.g., base station 212). In a further example, UE 238 is shown communicating with UEs 240 and 242. Here, UE 238 can act as a scheduling entity or primary sidelink device, and UEs 240 and 242 can each act as a scheduled entity or non-primary sidelink device (e.g., secondary sidelink device). In yet another example, a UE can act as a scheduling entity or a scheduled entity in a device-to-device (D2D), peer-to-peer (P2P), vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) network, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) network, and / or a mesh network. In the mesh network example, in addition to communicating with the scheduling entity, UEs 240 and 242 can optionally communicate directly with each other. Thus, in a wireless communication system having scheduled access to time-frequency resources and having a cellular configuration, a P2P configuration, or a mesh configuration, a scheduling entity and one or more scheduled entities can communicate using the scheduled resources. In some examples, the sidelink signal 227 includes sidelink traffic and sidelink control. In some examples, the sidelink control information may include a request signal, such as a request to send (RTS), a source send signal (STS), and / or a direction select signal. The request signal may provide a request duration for the scheduled entity to keep the sidelink channel available for the sidelink signal. The sidelink control information may also include a response signal, such as a clear to send (CTS) and / or a destination receive signal (DRS). The response signal may provide an indication of the availability of the sidelink channel for the scheduled entity, for example, within the requested duration. The exchange of request and response signals (e.g., a handshake) may enable different scheduled entities performing sidelink communication to negotiate the availability of the sidelink channel before communicating the sidelink traffic information.

[0051] In the radio access network 200, the ability of a UE to communicate independently of its location while moving is called mobility. Figure 1 The AMF establishes, maintains, and releases various physical channels between the UE and the radio access network under the control of the core network 102 in the wireless access network. The AMF may include a security context management function (SCMF) that manages security contexts for both control plane and user plane functions, and a security anchor function (SEAF) that performs authentication.

[0052] The radio access network 200 can utilize either DL-based mobility or UL-based mobility to implement mobility and handover (i.e., the transfer of a UE's connection from one radio channel to another). In a network configured for DL-based mobility, during a call with a scheduling entity, or at any other time, a UE can monitor various parameters of the signal from its serving cell and various parameters of neighboring cells. Depending on the quality of these parameters, the UE can maintain communication with one or more of the neighboring cells. During this time, if the UE moves from one cell to another, or if the signal quality from a neighboring cell exceeds the signal quality from the serving cell for a given amount of time, the UE can perform a handoff or handover from the serving cell to the neighboring (target) cell. For example, a UE 224 (illustrated as a vehicle, but any suitable form of UE may be used) can move from the geographic area corresponding to its serving cell 202 to the geographic area corresponding to a neighboring cell 206. When the signal strength or quality from a neighboring cell 206 exceeds the signal strength or quality of its serving cell 202 for a given amount of time, the UE 224 can send a report message to its serving base station 210 indicating this condition. In response, UE 224 may receive a handover command, and the UE may undergo handover to cell 206 .

[0053] In a network configured for UL-based mobility, the network can utilize the UL reference signal from each UE to select a serving cell for each UE. In some examples, base stations 210, 212, and 214 / 216 can broadcast a unified synchronization signal (e.g., a unified primary synchronization signal (PSS), a unified secondary synchronization signal (SSS), and a unified physical broadcast channel (PBCH)). UEs 222, 224, 226, 228, 230, and 232 can receive the unified synchronization signal, derive the carrier frequency and time slot timing from the synchronization signal, and send an uplink pilot or reference signal in response to the derived timing. The uplink pilot signal sent by a UE (e.g., UE 224) can be received simultaneously by two or more cells (e.g., base stations 210 and 214 / 216) within the radio access network 200. Each of the cells may measure the strength of the pilot signal, and the radio access network (e.g., one or more of base stations 210 and 214 / 216 and / or a central node within the core network) may determine a serving cell for UE 224. As UE 224 moves through radio access network 200, the network may continue to monitor the uplink pilot signals transmitted by UE 224. When the signal strength or quality of the pilot signal measured by a neighboring cell exceeds the signal strength or quality measured by the serving cell, network 200 may, with or without notifying UE 224, handover UE 224 from the serving cell to a neighboring cell.

[0054] Although the synchronization signals transmitted by base stations 210, 212, and 214 / 216 may be uniform, the synchronization signals may not identify a specific cell, but may identify a region of multiple cells operating on the same frequency and / or with the same timing. The use of regions in 5G networks or other next-generation communication networks implements an uplink-based mobility framework and improves the efficiency of both the UE and the network because the number of mobility messages that need to be exchanged between the UE and the network can be reduced.

[0055] In various implementations, the air interface in the radio access network 200 can use licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or shared spectrum. Licensed spectrum typically provides exclusive use of a portion of spectrum by virtue of a mobile network operator purchasing a license from a government regulator. Unlicensed spectrum provides shared use of a portion of spectrum without the need for a government-granted license. While access to unlicensed spectrum typically still requires compliance with certain technical regulations, any operator or device can generally gain access. Shared spectrum can fall between licensed and unlicensed spectrum, where technical regulations or restrictions may be required to access the spectrum, but the spectrum can still be shared by multiple operators and / or multiple RATs. For example, the holder of a license for a portion of licensed spectrum can provide Licensed Shared Access (LSA) to share the spectrum with other parties, e.g., using conditions determined by the appropriate licensee to gain access. Wireless devices can implement various wireless technologies in which multiple radio units can operate simultaneously in the same or adjacent radio frequency (RF) bands. For example, License Assisted Access (LAA) technology can utilize carrier aggregation in the downlink to combine 5G transmissions in unlicensed or shared spectrum with LTE in licensed spectrum.

[0056] In order to achieve a low block error rate (BLER) for transmissions over the radio access network 200 while still achieving very high data rates, channel coding can be used. That is, wireless communications can typically utilize suitable error-correcting block codes. In a typical block code, an information message or sequence is divided into code blocks (CBs), and an encoder (e.g., CODEC) at the transmitting device then mathematically adds redundancy to the information message. Utilizing this redundancy in the encoded information message can improve the reliability of the message by correcting any bit errors that may occur due to noise.

[0057] In some 5G NR specifications, user data traffic is encoded using a quasi-cyclic low-density parity check (LDPC) algorithm with two different basemaps: one for large code blocks and / or high code rates, and the other for other purposes. Polar codes are used based on nested sequences to encode control information and the Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH). For these channels, rate matching is achieved using puncturing, shortening, and repetition.

[0058] However, those skilled in the art will appreciate that aspects of the present disclosure may be implemented using any suitable channel code. Various implementations of the scheduling entity 108 and the scheduled entity 106 may include suitable hardware and capabilities (e.g., encoders, decoders, and / or CODECs) to utilize one or more of these channel codes for wireless communication.

[0059] The air interface in the radio access network 200 may utilize one or more multiplexing and multiple access algorithms to enable simultaneous communication of various devices. For example, the 5G NR specification utilizes OFDM with CP to provide multiple access for UL transmissions from UEs 222 and 224 to the base station 210, and provides multiplexing for DL transmissions from the base station 210 to one or more UEs 222 and 224. In addition, for UL transmissions, the 5G NR specification provides support for discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) with CP (also known as single carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA)). However, within the scope of the present disclosure, multiplexing and multiple access are not limited to the above schemes and may be provided using time division multiple access (TDMA), code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), sparse code multiple access (SCMA), resource spread multiple access (RSMA), or other suitable multiple access schemes. Furthermore, multiplexed DL transmissions from base station 210 to UEs 222 and 224 may be provided using time division multiplexing (TDM), code division multiplexing (CDM), frequency division multiplexing (FDM), orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), sparse code multiplexing (SCM), or other suitable multiplexing schemes.

[0060] The air interface in the radio access network 200 may also use one or more duplex algorithms. Duplex refers to a point-to-point communication link in which two endpoints can communicate with each other in both directions. Full-duplex means that two endpoints can communicate with each other simultaneously. Half-duplex means that at a certain time, only one endpoint can send information to the other endpoint. In wireless links, full-duplex channels generally rely on physical isolation of the transmitter and receiver and appropriate interference cancellation techniques. Full-duplex emulation is frequently implemented for wireless links using frequency division duplex (FDD) or time division duplex (TDD). In FDD, transmissions in different directions operate at different carrier frequencies. In TDD, time division multiplexing is used to separate transmissions in different directions on a given channel. That is, at certain times, the channel is dedicated to transmissions in one direction, while at other times, the channel is dedicated to transmissions in the other direction, where the direction can change very quickly (e.g., several times per time slot).

[0061] Will refer to Figure 3Various aspects of the present disclosure are described using OFDM waveforms schematically illustrated in FIG. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that various aspects of the present disclosure can be applied to SC-FDMA waveforms in substantially the same manner as described herein below. That is, for clarity, some examples of the present disclosure may focus on OFDM links, but it will be appreciated that the same principles can also be applied to SC-FDMA waveforms.

[0062] Now refer to Figure 3 , shows an expanded view 300 of an exemplary DL subframe 302, illustrating an OFDM resource grid. However, as those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, the PHY transmission structure for any particular application may differ from the example described herein depending on any number of factors. Here, time is in the horizontal direction in units of OFDM symbols; and frequency is in the vertical direction in units of subcarriers.

[0063] Resource grid 304 can be used to schematically represent the time-frequency resources used for a given antenna port. That is, in a multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) implementation with multiple available antenna ports, a corresponding plurality of resource grids 304 can be available for communication. Resource grid 304 is divided into multiple resource elements (REs) 306. An RE (which is 1 subcarrier x 1 symbol) is the smallest discrete portion of the time-frequency grid and contains a single complex value representing data from a physical channel or signal. Depending on the modulation used in a particular implementation, each RE can represent one or more bits of information. In some examples, a block of REs can be referred to as a physical resource block (PRB), or resource block (RB) 308, which contains any suitable number of consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain. In one example, an RB can include 12 subcarriers, regardless of the digital scheme used. In some examples, depending on the digital scheme, an RB can include any suitable number of consecutive OFDM symbols in the time domain. Within this disclosure, it is assumed that a single RB, such as RB 308, corresponds entirely to a single communication direction (either transmission or reception for a given device).

[0064] Scheduling a UE (e.g., a scheduled entity) for downlink or uplink transmission typically involves scheduling one or more resource elements 306 within one or more subbands. Thus, a UE typically utilizes only a subset of the resource grid 304. In some examples, an RB may be the smallest resource unit that can be allocated to a UE. Therefore, the more RBs scheduled for a UE, and the higher the modulation scheme selected for the air interface, the higher the data rate for the UE.

[0065] In this illustration, RB 308 is shown as occupying less than the entire bandwidth of subframe 302, with some subcarriers shown above and below RB 308. In a given implementation, subframe 302 may have a bandwidth corresponding to any number of RBs in one or more RBs 308. Furthermore, in this illustration, RB 308 is shown as occupying less than the entire duration of subframe 302, but this is merely one possible example.

[0066] Each 1ms subframe 302 may be composed of one or more adjacent time slots. Figure 3 In the example shown, as an illustrative example, a subframe 302 includes four time slots 310. In some examples, a time slot can be defined according to a specified number of OFDM symbols with a given cyclic prefix (CP) length. For example, a time slot can include 7 or 14 OFDM symbols with a nominal CP. Additional examples may include mini-slots with shorter durations (e.g., one to three OFDM symbols), which are sometimes referred to as shortened transmission time intervals (TTIs). In some cases, these mini-slots or shortened transmission time intervals (TTIs) can occupy resources scheduled for ongoing time slot transmissions for the same UE or for different UEs for transmission. Any number of resource blocks within a subframe or time slot can be utilized.

[0067] An expanded view of one of the time slots 310 shows the time slot 310 including a control region 312 and a data region 314. In general, the control region 312 may carry a control channel, and the data region 314 may carry a data channel. Of course, a time slot may contain all DL, all UL, or at least one DL portion and at least one UL portion. Figure 3 The structure shown in is merely exemplary in nature, and different slot structures may be used, and one or more of each of the control region and the data region may be included.

[0068] Although not in Figure 3 Although not shown in FIG, various REs 306 within an RB 308 may be scheduled to carry one or more physical channels, including a control channel, a shared channel, a data channel, etc. Other REs 306 within an RB 308 may also carry pilot or reference signals, including but not limited to a demodulation reference signal (DMRS), a control reference signal (CRS), or a sounding reference signal (SRS). These pilot or reference signals may enable a receiving device to perform channel estimation for the corresponding channel, which may enable coherent demodulation / detection of the control and / or data channels within the RB 308.

[0069] In a downlink transmission, a transmitting device (e.g., a scheduling entity 108) may allocate one or more REs 306 (e.g., within a control region 312) to carry downlink control information for one or more scheduled entities, including one or more downlink control channels, such as the PBCH; the PSS; the SSS; the physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH); the physical hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) indicator channel (PHICH); and / or the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). The PCFICH provides information to assist a receiving device in receiving and decoding the PDCCH. The PDCCH carries downlink control information (DCI), including, but not limited to, power control commands, scheduling information, grants, and / or allocations of REs for downlink and uplink transmissions. The PHICH carries HARQ feedback transmissions, such as acknowledgements (ACKs) or negative acknowledgements (NACKs). HARQ is a technique well known to those skilled in the art, wherein the integrity of packet transmissions can be checked for accuracy at the receiving end (e.g., using any suitable integrity checking mechanism, such as a checksum or cyclic redundancy check (CRC)). If the integrity of the transmission is verified, an ACK may be sent, whereas if the integrity is not verified, a NACK may be sent. In response to the NACK, the transmitting device may send a HARQ retransmission, which may implement append combining, incremental redundancy, and the like.

[0070] In an UL transmission, a transmitting device (e.g., a scheduled entity 106) may utilize one or more REs 306 to carry UL control information, including one or more UL control channels to a scheduling entity, wherein the UL control channels may include a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) and / or a random access channel (RACH) such as an uplink physical random access channel (PRACH). The RACH may be used, for example, in a random access procedure during initial access in the uplink. The UL control information may include various packet types and categories, including pilots, reference signals, and information configured to enable or assist in decoding uplink data transmissions. In some examples, the control information may include a scheduling request (SR), i.e., a request to a scheduling entity to schedule an uplink transmission. Here, in response to the SR sent on the control channel, the scheduling entity may send downlink control information that may schedule resources for uplink packet transmission. The UL control information may also include HARQ feedback, channel state feedback (CSF), or any other suitable UL control information.

[0071] In addition to control information, one or more REs 306 may be allocated for user data or traffic (e.g., within the data region 314). Such traffic may be carried on one or more traffic channels, e.g., on a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) for DL transmissions, or on a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) for UL transmissions. In some examples, one or more REs 306 within the data region 314 may be configured to carry system information blocks (SIBs), which carry information that enables access to a given cell. 3GPP defines different types of PDSCH, where the type may define certain characteristics, including the location of the DMRS symbol, the location of the starting symbol of the PDSCH, and the allowed length of the PDSCH. For example, PDSCH mapping type A provides for the DMRS symbol to be the third or fourth symbol, while the DMRS symbol is the first symbol for a PDSCH with PDSCH mapping type B.

[0072] These physical channels are typically multiplexed and mapped onto transport channels for processing at the medium access control (MAC) layer. Transport channels carry blocks of information called transport blocks (TBs). The transport block size (TBS), which can correspond to multiple bits of information, can be a controlled parameter based on the modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and the number of RBs in a given transmission.

[0073] Combined with the above Figure 1-3 The channels or carriers described are not necessarily all channels or carriers that may be used between a scheduling entity and a scheduled entity, and those skilled in the art will recognize that other channels or carriers may be utilized in addition to those shown, such as other traffic, control, and feedback channels.

[0074] In some aspects of the present disclosure, the scheduling entity and / or the scheduled entity may be configured for beamforming and / or multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technology. Figure 4 An example of a wireless communication system 400 that supports beamforming and / or MIMO is shown. In a MIMO system, a transmitter 402 includes multiple transmit antennas 404 (e.g., N transmit antennas), and a receiver 406 includes multiple receive antennas 408 (e.g., M receive antennas). Thus, there are N×M signal paths 410 from the transmit antennas 404 to the receive antennas 408. Each of the transmitter 402 and the receiver 406 can be implemented, for example, within a scheduling entity, a scheduled entity, or any other suitable wireless communication device.

[0075] The use of this multi-antenna technology enables wireless communication systems to exploit the spatial domain to support spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and transmit diversity. Spatial multiplexing can be used to send different data streams (also called layers) simultaneously on the same time-frequency resources. Data streams can be sent to a single UE to increase the data rate, or to multiple UEs to increase the overall system capacity, the latter of which is called multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO). This is achieved by spatially precoding each data stream (i.e., multiplying the data stream by different weights and phase shifts) and then sending each spatially precoded stream through multiple transmit antennas on the downlink. The spatially precoded data streams arrive at the UE with different spatial signatures, which enables each UE to recover one or more data streams destined for the UE. On the uplink, each UE sends a spatially precoded data stream, which enables the base station to identify the source of each spatially precoded data stream.

[0076] The number of data streams or layers corresponds to the rank of the transmission. Typically, the rank of a MIMO system is limited by the number of transmit antennas 404 or receive antennas 408, whichever is lower. In addition, the channel conditions at the UE and other considerations such as the available resources at the base station may also affect the transmission rank. For example, the rank (and therefore the number of data streams) assigned to a particular UE on the downlink can be determined based on a rank indicator (RI) sent from the UE to the base station. The RI can be determined based on the antenna configuration (e.g., the number of transmit and receive antennas) and the signal to interference and noise ratio (SINR) measured on each receive antenna. For example, the RI can indicate the number of layers that can be supported under current channel conditions. The base station can use the RI along with resource information (e.g., the available resources and amount of data to be scheduled for the UE) to assign a transmission rank to the UE.

[0077] In one example, if Figure 4 As shown, a rank-2 spatial multiplexing transmission on a 2x2 MIMO antenna configuration will send one data stream from each transmit antenna 404. Each data stream follows a different signal path 410 to each receive antenna 408. Receiver 406 can then reconstruct the data stream using the received signal from each receive antenna 408.

[0078] A processor in transmitter 402 may map codewords to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols may be split into parallel streams. Each stream may be mapped to an OFDM subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., a pilot) in the time and / or frequency domain, and then combined using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time-domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM streams are spatially precoded to produce multiple spatial streams. Each spatial stream may be provided to a different antenna 404.

[0079] In some examples, spatial multiplexing can be achieved using a coordinated multi-point (CoMP) network configuration, where transmissions from multiple transmission points (TRPs) can be directed to a single UE simultaneously. In a multi-TRP transmission scheme, multiple TRPs may or may not be co-located and may or may not be in the same cell. Each of the multiple TRPs can send the same or different data to the user equipment (UE). When different data is sent from multiple TRPs, higher throughput can be achieved. When the same data (with potentially different redundancy versions) is sent from multiple TRPs, transmission reliability can be improved. In some examples, each TRP can communicate with the UE using the same carrier frequency. In other examples, each TRP can utilize a different carrier frequency (referred to as a component carrier), and carrier aggregation (CA) can be performed at the UE. In this example, the multi-TRP transmission scheme can be referred to as a multi-carrier or multi-cell transmission scheme.

[0080] The amount of information that can be sent in the PDCCH depends in part on the aggregation level (AL) used to control the decoding of the PDCCH received from the wireless channel. In some implementations, one of several ALs defined for the network is used to select the DCI format that can be mapped to the DL control symbols. A higher AL increases the likelihood that the UE can successfully decode the DCI by using a larger number of subcarriers per UE DCI, thereby reducing the number of UE DCIs that can be sent and / or reducing the number of OFDM symbols available for PDSCH. When fewer OFDM symbols are available for PDSCH, a higher PDSCH coding rate can be used.

[0081] Beamforming is a signal processing technique that can be used at a transmitter 402 or a receiver 406 to form or steer an antenna beam (e.g., a transmit beam or a receive beam) along a spatial path between the transmitter 402 and the receiver 406. Beamforming can be achieved by combining signals transmitted via antennas 404 or 408 (antenna elements of an antenna array module) so that some of these signals experience constructive interference and others experience destructive interference. To induce the desired constructive / destructive interference, the transmitter 402 or the receiver 406 can apply an amplitude and / or phase offset to the signals transmitted or received from each of the antennas 404 or 408 associated with the transmitter 402 or the receiver 406.

[0082] A base station (e.g., a gNB) is typically capable of communicating with a UE using beams of different beam widths. For example, a base station may be configured to utilize a wider beam when communicating with a UE in motion and a narrower beam when communicating with a stationary UE. In some examples, to select a specific beam for communicating with the UE, the base station may transmit a reference signal, such as a synchronization signal block (SSB) or a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS), on each of a plurality of beams in a beam scanning manner. The UE may measure the reference signal received power (RSRP) on each of the beams and transmit a beam measurement report to the base station indicating the measured RSRP for each of the beams. The base station may then select a specific beam for communicating with the UE based on the beam measurement report. In other examples, when the channel is reciprocal, the base station may derive a specific beam for communicating with the UE based on uplink measurements of one or more uplink reference signals, such as a sounding reference signal (SRS).

[0083] 5G NR networks can provide a variety of services associated with eMBB that can meet improved and diverse system requirements and can support communications with advanced UEs (including UEs configured for eMBB, URLLC, V2X, etc.). In 5G NR use cases or applications, peak capabilities are not required and / or UEs do not need to have the capabilities of advanced UEs. 5G NR can be extended to enable efficient and cost-effective deployment in applications where peak throughput, latency, reliability, and / or other requirements can be relaxed. In some cases, scalable 5G NR implementations can optimize cost and efficiency in terms of, for example, power consumption and system overhead.

[0084] 5G NR networks may implement a feature set that supports reduced complexity and / or reduced capability (RedCap) UEs, which may be referred to as NR Light. In some examples, reduced complexity UEs may include wearable devices, industrial sensors, video surveillance equipment (e.g., fixed cameras), and / or other suitable devices. Compared to standard UEs (e.g., smartphones), reduced complexity UEs may have lower wireless transmission power, fewer antennas (e.g., antennas for transmission and / or reception), reduced bandwidth for wireless transmission and / or reception, reduced computational complexity / memory, and / or longer battery life.

[0085] The UE may support a reduced maximum bandwidth (BW). Certain conventional 5G NR protocols or standards may require the UE to support a maximum channel BW defined for the frequency band in which it operates. In one example, the UE may be required to support 50 MHz for a 15 kHz SCS and 100 MHz for a 30 / 60 kHz SCC (which may be 3300 MHz–3800 MHz for band n78). A 5G NR light UE may support bandwidths in the range of 5.0 MHz to 20 MHz.

[0086] In various implementations, a 5G NR Lightweight UE may be equipped with a single antenna for receiving signals. The limitation of a single receive antenna reduces diversity in DL signaling. For example, when data-encoded signals propagate over multiple paths, diversity can improve system reliability. DL spatial diversity can be achieved when multiple receive antennas are used to receive DL signals from multiple different propagation paths.

[0087] Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide multiple coverage enhancement (CE) modes that can be provided for UEs deployed in different frequency bands and equipped with different capabilities. Some UEs may experience poor channel conditions due to various reasons (including interference, natural geographical features between the base station and the UE, other obstacles such as walls, buildings, etc., and / or the movement of the UE). CE techniques (which may include extending the transmission time) can be used to improve wireless coverage for these and other UEs. The extended transmission time can be used for coverage enhancement on both UL and DL. The transmission time can be extended by using a lower order modulation scheme, a lower coding rate for the data channel, a higher AL for the PDCCH, and / or transport block or payload repetition.

[0088] The selection of the number of repetitions for DL and UL physical control channels and / or data channels can be based on a trade-off between coverage efficiency and resource allocation efficiency. For example, some conventional systems provide multiple MCS tables with multiple entries for communication between a base station and a UE. In one example, five MCS tables may be available for a base station, with each MCS table comprising 32 or more entries. However, some combinations of modulation, coding rate (or AL for PDCCH) and / or number of repetitions provide a poor compromise between CE and resource allocation efficiency. Certain aspects of the present disclosure identify multiple combinations of number of repetitions, modulation and coding rate, or AL that can be used for multiple mode CE. Systematic selection between preconfigured, agreed upon, or standardized CE modes enables a base station to efficiently configure a UE for CE. The availability of preconfigured, agreed upon, or standardized CE modes can enable a UE to select and request a preferred or desired CE mode.

[0089] Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide various design options for CE in 5G NR networks by defining and / or supporting multiple coverage enhancement modes. Each CE mode can be configured with a different set of parameters and / or definitions for physical channels, reference signals, and / or processes. Certain CE modes can be defined to address propagation losses that may be associated with channel characteristics. CE mode configuration parameters can be defined to accommodate constrained configurations for modulation, coding rate or AL, and repetition level.

[0090] According to one or more aspects of the present disclosure, a UE and a base station may be configured to maintain information describing multiple CE modes designated for use in a 5G NR network. Figure 5 An example 500 is shown in which a base station 502 (e.g., a gNB) includes a lookup table (LUT 504) that can be used to maintain parameters for multiple CE modes. In one example, the CE modes represented in the LUT 504 can be pre-designed or pre-defined by a system designer so that each CE mode represented in the LUT 504 provides a good or reasonable trade-off between CE and resource allocation efficiency. In some cases, the LUT 504 can be updated by the network during system operation.

[0091] The parameters stored in the LUT 504 can be used to configure the UE 506 for the selected CE mode. In one example, the base station 502 can configure the UE 506 according to the parameters defined for the selected CE mode. In another example, when the UE 506 maintains a local LUT 508, the base station 502 can indicate the table entry to the UE 508, and the UE 506 can index the local LUT 508 to obtain the configuration parameters for the indicated CE mode.

[0092] The CE mode may be selected based on channel conditions, the location and type of the UE 506 relative to the base station 502, and other conditions affecting the 5G NR network. In one example, the CE mode may be specified to support operations on different frequency bands within a cell (including licensed, unlicensed, and shared spectrum, which may be deployed in low or high frequency bands). In another example, the CE mode may be specified to support operations CA, dual connectivity (DC), dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS), LAA deployments, including, for example, fallback CC selection and CE mode configuration.

[0093] In another example, CE modes can be specified to support different capabilities of UEs (including RedCap and Advanced UEs) operating within a cell. RedCap and Advanced UEs can use different CE modes based on available bandwidth, antenna configuration, device complexity, and / or cost. In some cases, a CE mode specified for one type of device can be used by another type of device. For example, an Advanced UE can request a CE mode for reduced capability operation in order to accumulate power savings benefits.

[0094] In another example, CE modes can be specified to support different applications and / or use cases. Certain CE modes can be specified for use within a cell for broadcast or unicast services, fixed or high mobility UEs, single-hop or multi-hop (sidelink or relay) connections. Some CE modes can be specified for different cell sizes.

[0095] In some cases, multiple CE modes may coexist within a network, cell, and / or base station 502. Base station 502 may be configured to support multiple CE modes, a single CE mode, or no CE mode. Base station 502 may indicate support for one or more CEs in a PDCCH.

[0096] According to one aspect, multiple CE modes can be defined for use by the base station 502 when communicating with the UE 506. Each CE mode can define parameters including modulation, coding rate, AL for PDCCH transmission, and repetition level. The base station 502 can select one of the predefined CE modes based on factors including channel conditions, UE capabilities, and / or requirements of an application or specific use case.

[0097] In certain aspects of the present disclosure, CE modes may be defined or distinguished by one or more configuration parameters. Each CE mode may be configured with different parameter and / or entry sets for physical channels, reference signals, and / or processes, including, for example, digital scheme MCS (PDSCH / PUSCH), AL (PDCCH), DMRS, tracking reference signal (TRS), CSI-RS, and / or SRS enhancement. When increased path loss is observed, the reference signal may be enhanced. When the path loss increases, the CE mode may be activated, and the CE mode may include configuration parameters for providing enhanced reference signals. For example, the TRS may be modified to ensure tracking loop synchronization to ensure reliable demodulation and / or decoding.

[0098] The CE mode can be configured with a maximum number of repetition levels, which can be continuous or non-continuous in the time domain. Non-continuous repetition can be configured to prevent UL repetitions from interfering with DL transmissions and to prevent UL repetitions from interfering with UL transmissions. When CE is increased, the repetition level can be increased. The CE mode can be configured with a maximum number of frequency hopping. The CE mode can be configured with parameters for HARQ, RACH, power control, timing control, beam management and / or radio resource management (RRM) measurement processes. The CE mode can be configured with parameters for duplex mode, where the duplex mode can include FDD half-duplex or full-duplex, TDD, supplementary uplink (SUL) and / or supplementary downlink. The CE mode can be configured with parameters for timeline adaptation, including, for example, relaxation on K0 / K1 / K2 that may be necessary to handle cross-slot scheduling, repetition and channel estimation based on DMRS bundling.

[0099] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, parameters and configurations associated with each CE mode may be maintained in one or more LUTs 504, 508 maintained in the base station 502 and / or the UE 506, respectively. The parameters for the CE mode maintained by the LUTs 504, 508 may be defined by a protocol or specification and may be hard-coded in the base station 502 and / or the UE 506. In some implementations, the configurations and parameters associated with each CE mode may be signaled by the network in state information / radio resource control (SI / RRC) signaling. For example, a default configuration for each CE mode may be hard-coded according to a radio access technology specification, and the network may override the default configuration using SI / RRC signaling.

[0100] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the default configuration for a CE mode may be subject to rules for defining restricted configurations for the CE mode. The rules for restricting the default configuration for the CE mode may provide different CE modes that may support different ranges of TBs (for PDSCH / PUSCH) or payload sizes for DCI and / or uplink control information (UCI). Partial overlap of TBS or DCI / UCI payload sizes may be allowed across different CE modes.

[0101] When repetition or frequency hopping is enabled, the rules for limiting the default configuration for CE mode may prioritize lower order modulation. For example, when the repetition level or frequency hopping is greater than a predetermined threshold, the modulation scheme for PDSCH / PUSCH may be limited to QPSK (or 16-QAM).

[0102] When AL is greater than 8 or 16, the rules for limiting the default configuration for CE mode can configure PDCCH repetition in CSS or USS. When the coding rate is in the range of [Rmin, Rmax], repetition for PDSCH (unicast or broadcast) and / or PUSCH (unicast) can be configured.

[0103] Rules for limiting the default configuration for CE modes can define constraints on high speed / Doppler. In some cases, cell-specific CE modes may not need to address high-speed UEs. For CE for high-speed UEs, other solutions such as macro diversity and multi-connectivity can be adopted.

[0104] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, and as shown in the message flow diagram 510, the base station 502 can be configured to indicate the base station's support for a single or multiple CE modes in one or more broadcast messages 512 (such as PBCH, SIB). In one example, the base station 502 can use a bitmap to indicate support for a single or multiple CE modes. For example, the base station can send a 4-bit binary bitmap with a value of 1000 to indicate support for CE mode A, and can send a 4-bit binary bitmap with a value of 1001 to indicate support for CE mode A and CE mode B.

[0105] In some implementations, the UE 506 may request a specific CE mode 514. In one example, the UE may request a specific CE mode during initial access using dedicated RACH resources. In another example, the UE may request a specific CE mode after RRC connection by sending an explicit scheduling request or a UE capability report. In one example, the UE may request a specific CE mode using a bitmap. In one example, when CE mode A is defined for reduced bandwidth transmission, a RedCap UE with reduced bandwidth capability for wireless transmission and / or reception may request CE mode A using a 4-bit binary bitmap with a value of 1000, and when CE mode B is defined for high-speed UEs, an advanced UE may request CE mode B using a 4-bit binary bitmap with a value of 1001. In another example, a RedCap UE may indicate reduced bandwidth capability in a UE capability report.

[0106] The base station 502 may use DCI to signal UE-specific configurations for DL and / or UL 516. The UE-specific configuration may define the number of repetitions / hops corresponding to the selected or chosen CE mode by repurposing unused bits of the DCI field. For example, MCS restriction may reduce the I / O by mapping the CRC mask to the DCI and / or the DMRS scrambling ID to the PDCCH. MCS range.

[0107] Figure 6 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for an exemplary base station 600 employing a processing system 614. For example, the base station 600 may be such as Figure 1 and 2 . The processing system 614 may include a bus interface 608, a bus 602, a memory 605, a processor 604, and a computer-readable medium 606. The computer-readable medium 606 may store or maintain computer-executable code, instructions, and / or software. In addition, the base station 600 may include an optional user interface 612 and a transceiver 610, which may provide a unit for communicating with various other devices via a transmission medium (e.g., an air interface). In addition, the base station 600 may also include one or more antenna array modules 620. According to various aspects of the present disclosure, a processing system 614 including one or more processors 604 may be used to implement an element, or any part of an element, or any combination of elements. That is, the processor 604 used in the base station 600 may be used to implement any one or more processes described below.

[0108] In some aspects of the present disclosure, the processor 604 may include circuits configured for various functions. For example, the processor 604 may include a resource assignment and scheduling circuit 642 that is configured to generate, schedule, and modify resource assignments or grants for time-frequency resources (e.g., a set of one or more resource elements). For example, the resource assignment and scheduling circuit 642 may schedule time-frequency resources within multiple time division duplex (TDD) and / or frequency division duplex (FDD) subframes, time slots, and / or mini-slots to carry user data traffic and / or control information to and / or from multiple UEs. In other examples, the resource assignment and scheduling circuit 642 may be configured to schedule a communication channel for a first UE using a first transmission scheme defined by parameters associated with a first coverage enhancement mode. In some examples, the resource assignment and scheduling circuit 642 may collaborate with a CE mode parameter selection circuit 648. The resource assignment and scheduling circuit 642 may also be configured to execute a resource assignment and scheduling module 652 stored in the computer-readable medium 606 to implement one or more of the functions described herein.

[0109] The processor 604 may further include a CE mode parameter maintenance circuit 644 configured to maintain, update, and / or configure a plurality of parameters 618 associated with two or more coverage enhancement modes defined for the wireless communication network. The CE mode parameter maintenance circuit 644 may further be configured to execute a CE mode parameter maintenance module 654 stored on the computer-readable medium 606 to implement one or more of the functions described herein.

[0110] The processor 604 may also include a communication and processing circuit 646 configured to communicate with the UE. In some examples, the communication and processing circuit 646 may include one or more hardware components that provide a physical structure that performs processes related to wireless communication (e.g., signal reception and / or signal transmission) and signal processing (e.g., processing received signals and / or processing signals for transmission). The communication and processing circuit 646 may be configured to send a CSI-RS to the UE and receive channel state feedback (CSF) 618 from the UE in response to the CSI-RS. The CSF may include, for example, a channel quality indicator (CQI), a precoding matrix indicator (PMI), and a rank indicator (RI). In some examples, the communication and processing circuit 646 may store the CSF 618 in the memory 605 for further processing. In addition, the communication and processing circuit 646 may be configured to implement a HARQ feedback mechanism to receive ACK / NACK from the UE. The communication and processing circuit 646 may also be configured to execute a communication and processing module 656 stored on the computer-readable medium 606 to implement one or more of the functions described herein.

[0111] The processor 604 may also include a CE mode parameter selection circuit 648 configured to maintain a plurality of parameters 618 associated with two or more coverage enhancement modes defined for the wireless communication network and select a first coverage enhancement mode for use with the first UE. The CE mode parameter selection circuit 648 may also be configured to identify a plurality of parameters 618 associated with the coverage enhancement mode selected for use with the UE in the wireless communication network. The CE mode parameter selection circuit 648 may also be configured to execute a CE mode parameter selection module 658 stored on the computer-readable medium 606 to implement one or more of the functions described herein.

[0112] In some examples, the processing system 614 of the base station 600 selects a first coverage enhancement mode for use with a first UE, schedules a communication channel for the first UE using a first transmission scheme defined by a first parameter associated with the first coverage enhancement mode, and signals the UE-specific coverage enhancement mode in a DCI. The processing system 614 may indicate support for at least one coverage enhancement mode in a physical broadcast channel or a system information block, wherein support for at least one coverage enhancement mode is indicated in a bitmap field. The processing system 614 may configure a payload repetition number for communication with the first UE. The payload repetition number may be defined by a first parameter. The first parameter may define a maximum number of frequency hops. The first parameter may define a coding rate for a data channel. The first parameter may define an aggregation level for a PDCCH.

[0113] The processing system 614 may also be configured to select a second coverage enhancement mode for use with the second UE and to provide a larger bandwidth for scheduling the first UE than for scheduling the second UE. For example, the first UE may be an advanced UE and the second UE may be a reduced capability UE. The processing system 614 may also be configured to select the second coverage enhancement mode for use with the second UE and to schedule a communication channel for the second UE using a second transmission scheme different from the first transmission scheme.

[0114] Figure 7Flowchart 700 is a method for a base station in a wireless communication network to select and configure a CE mode for one or more UEs. At block 702, the base station may maintain a plurality of parameters associated with two or more coverage enhancement modes defined for the wireless communication network. At block 704, the base station may select a first coverage enhancement mode from the two or more coverage enhancement modes for use with a first UE. The first coverage enhancement mode may be selected to accommodate use of one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell size, capabilities of the first UE, or channel measurement reports from the first UE. According to one aspect, the first coverage enhancement mode may be selected from two or more coverage enhancement modes that have been predefined, designed, and / or configured by a network designer. The first coverage enhancement mode may be selected to accommodate carrier aggregation, dual connectivity, dynamic spectrum sharing, and / or licensed-assisted access. At block 706, the base station may schedule a set of control and data channels to be used for communication with the first UE using a first transmission scheme defined by first parameters associated with the first coverage enhancement mode. The set of control and data channels may include uplink control and / or data channels. The set of control and data channels may include uplink and / or downlink control and data channels. In one example, the first parameter defines the maximum number of frequency hopping. In another example, the first parameter may define a first coding rate range for a data channel on an uplink channel or for a downlink channel. When the coding rate of the control or data channel is within the configured range, the base station may be configured to transmit the uplink channel or the payload repetition number for the downlink channel with the first UE. The first transmission scheme that may be defined by the first parameter is based on BPSK, QPSK, or 16-QAM. In some cases, different repetitions may be configured for DL and UL control and data channels to take into account the asymmetry of the transmit power of the base station and the UE. In some cases, benefits may be obtained from balancing the coverage enhancement defined for DL and UL control and / or data communications, and a joint definition of the number of repetitions for DL and UL may be provided or enabled.

[0115] According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the configuration and selection of the coverage enhancement mode may be jointly determined based on cell-specific conditions (e.g., frequency band, cell size, etc.) and UE conditions (e.g., UE capabilities, UE measurements of RSRP, etc.). In some cases, before the base station selects a specific coverage enhancement mode for the UE, the UE reports its capabilities or channel measurements to the base station. A specific coverage enhancement mode may include a parameter group associated with multiple DL and UL physical channels (control or data) and reference signals. The coverage enhancement mode configuration may include a parameter group associated with multiple reference signals and / or control and data channels (such as PDCCH, PDSCH, PUSCH, PUCCH, PRACH, CSI-RS, and / or SRS) on DL and UL.

[0116] In some implementations, a base station may configure a payload repetition number for communicating control and / or data information with a first UE on a downlink and / or uplink. The payload repetition number for control and / or data channel communications on the downlink and / or uplink may be jointly defined by a first parameter. A lower order modulation may be defined when repetition or frequency hopping is enabled for an uplink channel or for a downlink channel.

[0117] In one example, the first parameter defines an aggregation level for the PDCCH. When the aggregation level is greater than 8 or when the aggregation level is greater than 16, the base station may configure a payload repetition number for communicating with the first UE.

[0118] The base station may configure the reference signal according to the first parameter to adapt to the channel conditions. The base station may select the second coverage enhancement mode for use with the second UE, and when, for example, the first UE is an advanced UE and the second UE is a reduced capability UE, the base station may provide a larger bandwidth for scheduling the first UE than for scheduling the second UE.

[0119] In certain implementations, a base station may select a second coverage enhancement mode from two or more coverage enhancement modes for communicating with a second UE on an uplink or downlink, the second coverage enhancement mode being selected to accommodate use of corresponding one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, capabilities of the second UE, or channel measurement reports of the second UE. The base station may provide a larger bandwidth for scheduling the first UE than for scheduling the second UE. In one example, the UE may include a normal or enhanced UE capability set, and the second UE may include a reduced UE capability set. In one example, the first coverage enhancement mode may be defined for a downlink broadcast data channel, control channel, or reference signal, and the second coverage enhancement mode may be defined for a downlink unicast data channel, control channel, or reference signal. In another example, the first coverage enhancement mode may be defined for a fixed or low-mobility UE, and the second coverage enhancement mode may be defined for a high-mobility UE. In another example, the first coverage enhancement mode may be defined for a single-hop communication link, and the second coverage enhancement mode may be defined for a multi-hop communication link. In another example, the first coverage enhancement mode may define a transport block, downlink control information, or uplink control information size that is different from the size of the corresponding transport block, downlink control information, or uplink control information defined by the second coverage enhancement mode.

[0120] In some implementations, parameters for uplink and downlink control, data, or reference signal communications corresponding to different coverage enhancement modes are specified in a lookup table that is hard-coded according to the wireless standard or dynamically indicated by the base station. The base station may indicate support for at least one coverage enhancement mode by the base station in a bitmap field of a master information block (MIB) or a system information block (SIB), or in a combination of MIB and SIB indications. Support for at least one coverage enhancement mode may be indicated in a bitmap field. The base station may signal the UE-specific coverage enhancement mode in a DCI. The UE-specific coverage enhancement mode may be signaled in an undefined bit of the DCI or by mapping to a DMRS or CRC. The UE-specific coverage enhancement mode may be signaled in an undefined bit of the DCI or by mapping to a demodulation reference signal or to cyclic redundancy check bits appended to the DCI.

[0121] In one example, selecting the first coverage enhancement mode includes receiving a request for the first coverage enhancement mode from the first UE.The request for the first coverage enhancement mode may be received during initial access in a RACH using dedicated RACH resources.

[0122] In another example, selecting the first coverage enhancement mode includes: receiving a request for the first coverage enhancement mode from the first UE. Receiving the request for the first coverage enhancement mode after establishing an RRC connection with the wireless communication network. The first coverage enhancement mode can be requested in an explicit scheduling request or a capability report.

[0123] Figure 8 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for an exemplary user equipment (e.g., UE 800) employing a processing system 814. For example, UE 800 may be Figure 1 and Figure 2 The processing system 814 may be connected to the UE shown in any one or more of Figure 6 The processing system 614 shown is substantially the same, including a bus interface 808, a bus 802, a memory 805, a processor 804, and a computer readable medium 806. In addition, the UE 800 may include the same Figure 6800. For example, the transceiver 810 may be configured to couple the UE 800 to a 5G NR wireless communication network. Additionally, the UE may include one or more antenna modules 820. The antenna modules may include one or more antennas. According to various aspects of the present disclosure, a processing system 814 including one or more processors 804 may be utilized to implement an element, any portion of an element, or any combination of elements. That is, the processor 804, as utilized in the UE 800, may be used to implement any one or more of the processes described below.

[0124] In some aspects of the present disclosure, the processor 804 may include circuits configured for various functions. For example, the processor 804 may include a communication and processing circuit 842 configured to communicate with a base station. In some examples, the communication and processing circuit 842 may include one or more hardware components that provide a physical structure that performs processes related to wireless communication (e.g., signal reception and / or signal transmission) and signal processing (e.g., processing received signals and / or processing signals for transmission). In some examples, the communication and processing circuit 842 may be configured to generate uplink signals at millimeter wave frequencies or below 6 GHz and transmit the uplink signals via the transceiver 810 and the antenna module 820. In addition, the communication and processing circuit 842 may be configured to receive and process downlink signals at millimeter wave frequencies or below 6 GHz via the antenna module 820 and the transceiver 810.

[0125] The communication and processing circuit 842 may also be configured to send and receive millimeter wave relay signals to and from other UEs. In some examples, the millimeter wave relay signals may include synchronization signals, random access messages, beam reference signals (RS), and / or relay communications. The communication and processing circuit 842 may also be configured to execute a communication and processing module 852 stored on the computer-readable medium 806 to implement one or more of the functions described herein.

[0126] The processor 804 may also include a CE mode parameter maintenance circuit 844. The CE mode parameter maintenance circuit 844 may manage parameters that configure and control certain features and operational aspects of the transceiver 810 and / or antenna module 820, including power amplifiers, low noise amplifiers, switches, filters, phase management circuits, power trackers, tuners, antennas, etc. The CE mode parameter maintenance circuit 844 may also be configured to execute a CE mode parameter maintenance module 854 stored on the computer-readable medium 806 to implement one or more of the functions described herein.

[0127] The CE mode parameter maintenance circuit 844 can be configured to operate in conjunction with the CE mode configuration circuit 846. For example, the CE mode configuration circuit 846 can configure the transceiver 810 to monitor receive and transmit signals in any of a number of frequency bands using parameters defined by the selected CE mode, including parameters for selecting the MCS and the maximum number of payload repetitions. The CE mode configuration circuit 846 can configure a frequency hopping configuration. The CE mode configuration circuit 846 can also be configured to execute CE mode configuration software 856 stored on the computer-readable medium 806 to implement one or more of the functions described herein.

[0128] Figure 9 900 is a flowchart of a method for wireless communication at a UE in a wireless communication network. The UE may be configured to implement one or more CE modes according to certain aspects disclosed herein. At block 902, the UE may configure or maintain a plurality of parameters associated with two or more coverage enhancement modes defined for the wireless communication network. At block 906, the UE may configure the user equipment for a first coverage enhancement mode selected from the two or more coverage enhancement modes to accommodate use of one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, user equipment capabilities, or channel measurement reports from the user equipment. The first coverage enhancement mode may be defined by a first parameter of the plurality of parameters corresponding to the first coverage enhancement mode. At block 906, the UE may communicate on a wireless channel according to the first coverage enhancement mode selected based on channel conditions and the capabilities of the user equipment. The UE may be configured to activate the first coverage enhancement mode in response to signaling received in downlink control information.

[0129] In certain implementations, the UE may request the first coverage enhancement mode using an uplink control channel. The first coverage enhancement mode may be requested during initial access in the RACH using dedicated RACH resources. The first coverage enhancement mode may be requested in a scheduling request or capability report sent after a connection has been established with the wireless communication network. The first coverage enhancement mode may be requested after receiving an indication that a base station in the wireless communication network supports the first coverage enhancement mode, the indication being in a bitmap field of a MIB or SIB, or a combination of the MIB and SIB.

[0130] Several aspects of wireless communication networks have been presented with reference to exemplary implementations. As those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, various aspects described throughout this disclosure may be extended to other telecommunication systems, network architectures, and communication standards.

[0131] By way of example, various aspects may be implemented within other systems defined by 3GPP, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE), Evolved Packet System (EPS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), and / or Global System for Mobile (GSM). Various aspects may also be extended to systems defined by the Third Generation Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2), such as CDMA2000 and / or Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO). Other examples may be implemented within systems employing IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Ultra-Wideband (UWB), Bluetooth, and / or other suitable systems. The actual telecommunication standard, network architecture, and / or communication standard employed will depend on the specific application and the overall design constraints imposed on the system.

[0132] In this disclosure, the word "exemplary" is used to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any implementation or aspect described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects of the disclosure. Similarly, the term "aspect" does not require that all aspects of the disclosure include the discussed feature, advantage, or mode of operation. The term "coupled" is used herein to refer to a direct or indirect coupling between two objects. For example, if object A physically contacts object B, and object B contacts object C, objects A and C can still be considered to be coupled to each other even if they are not in direct physical contact with each other. For example, a first object can be coupled to a second object even if the first object never directly physically contacts the second object. The terms "circuit" and "circuitry" are used broadly and are intended to include: hardware implementations of electrical devices and conductors that, when connected and configured, enable the performance of the functions described in this disclosure, without limitation to types of electronic circuits, and software implementations of information and instructions that, when executed by a processor, enable the performance of the functions described in this disclosure.

[0133] exist Figure 1-9 One or more of the components, steps, features, and / or functions shown in the drawings can be rearranged and / or combined into a single component, step, feature, or function, or embodied in several components, steps, or functions. Additional elements, components, steps, and / or functions may also be added without departing from the novel features disclosed herein. Figure 1 、 2 , 4, 6 and 8 can be configured to perform one or more of the methods, features or steps described herein. The novel algorithms described herein can also be efficiently implemented in software and / or embedded in hardware.

[0134] It is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of steps in the methods disclosed is an illustration of exemplary processes. Based on design preferences, it is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of steps in the methods may be rearranged. The accompanying method claims present elements of the various steps in a sample order, and are not meant to be limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented unless specifically recited therein.

[0135] The preceding description is provided to enable anyone skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Accordingly, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but rather to the full scope consistent with the text of the claims, wherein, unless expressly stated otherwise, reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean "one and only one," but rather "one or more." Unless expressly stated otherwise, the term "some" refers to one or more. A phrase referring to "at least one" of a list of items refers to any combination of those items, including individual members. For example, "at least one of a, b, or c" is intended to encompass: a; b; c; a and b; a and c; b and c; and a, b, and c. All structural and functional equivalents of the elements of the various aspects described in this disclosure that are known or will become known to those skilled in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the claims. In addition, no disclosure herein is intended to be dedicated to the public, regardless of whether such disclosure is expressly recited in the claims.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication at a network entity in a wireless communication network, the method comprising: maintaining a plurality of configuration parameters associated with two or more coverage enhancement modes defined for one or more types of user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication network; selecting a first coverage enhancement mode from the two or more coverage enhancement modes for a first type of UE to adapt to at least one of one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, capabilities of the first type of UEs, or channel measurement reports of the first type of UEs, wherein the first coverage enhancement mode is associated with a first set of configuration parameters among the plurality of configuration parameters, the first set of configuration parameters being associated with a set of control and data channels, wherein the set of control and data channels comprises an uplink control and data channel and a downlink control and data channel; as well as The set of control and data channels for communicating with UEs of the first type is scheduled using a first transmission scheme defined by the first set of configuration parameters associated with the first coverage enhancement mode.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The first coverage enhancement mode is selected to accommodate restricted configurations of carrier aggregation, dual connectivity, dynamic spectrum sharing, and license-assisted access configured for the first type of UE.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: Configuring a payload repetition number for transmitting control and data information with the first type of UE on a downlink or uplink, wherein the payload repetition number for control and data channel communications on the downlink and uplink is jointly defined by the first configuration parameter set.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein: When repetition or frequency hopping is enabled for an uplink channel or for a downlink channel, the first transmission scheme defines one or more lower order modulations.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein The first configuration parameter set defines a maximum number of frequency hopping.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein The first set of configuration parameters defines a first coding rate range for an uplink channel or for a downlink channel.

7. The method according to claim 6, further comprising: When the coding rate of the control channel or the data channel is within the configured range, a payload repetition number or a frequency hopping number for communicating with the first type of UE on an uplink channel or for a downlink channel is configured.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein The first transmission scheme defined by the first set of configuration parameters is based on a lower modulation order comprising at least one of: binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), or 16-point quadrature amplitude modulation (16-QAM).

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein The first set of configuration parameters defines an aggregation level for a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), the method further comprising at least one of the following: When the aggregation level is greater than a threshold value including at least 8 or 16, configuring a payload repetition number for communicating with the first type of UE.

10. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: An uplink or downlink reference signal is configured according to the first configuration parameter set to adapt to uplink or downlink coverage enhancement.

11. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising: selecting a second coverage enhancement mode from the two or more coverage enhancement modes for communicating with a second type of UE on an uplink or a downlink, the second coverage enhancement mode being selected to accommodate corresponding one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, capabilities of the second type of UE, or channel measurement reports of the second type of UE; as well as The first type of UE is scheduled based on the first coverage enhancement mode, and the second type of UE is scheduled based on the second coverage enhancement mode, wherein the first type of UE and the second type of UE are different in at least one of the following aspects: UE capability set, mobility state, or processing timeline.

12. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: selecting a second coverage enhancement mode from the two or more coverage enhancement modes for communicating uplink or downlink control and data information with a second type of UE; as well as A set of control and data channels is scheduled using a second transmission scheme different from the first transmission scheme for uplink or downlink communication with the second type of UEs.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein: The first coverage enhancement mode is defined for a downlink broadcast data channel, a control channel, or a reference signal, and the second coverage enhancement mode is defined for a downlink unicast data channel, a control channel, or a reference signal.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein: The first coverage enhancement mode is defined for a single-hop communication link, and the second coverage enhancement mode is defined for a multi-hop communication link.

15. The method according to claim 12, wherein: The first coverage enhancement mode defines a transport block size, downlink control information size, or uplink control information size that is different from a corresponding transport block size, downlink control information size, or uplink control information size defined by the second coverage enhancement mode.

16. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: Support for at least one of the two or more coverage enhancement modes is indicated in a physical broadcast channel or a system information block.

17. The method according to claim 16, further comprising: indicating support for the at least one coverage enhancement mode in a master information block (MIB), a system information block (SIB), or a combination of the MIB and the SIB, The plurality of configuration parameters corresponding to different coverage enhancement modes for uplink and downlink control, data or reference signal communications are specified in a lookup table hard-coded according to a wireless standard.

18. The method according to claim 16, further comprising: dynamically configuring a lookup table for maintaining the plurality of configuration parameters corresponding to different coverage enhancement modes for uplink and downlink control, data, or reference signal communications, Support for the at least one coverage enhancement mode is indicated in at least one of a bitmap field of a master information block (MIB), a system information block (SIB), or a combination of the MIB and the SIB.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising: A UE-specific coverage enhancement mode is signaled in dedicated radio resource control (RRC) signaling or in downlink control information (DCI), wherein the UE-specific coverage enhancement mode is selected from the two or more coverage enhancement modes.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein The UE-specific coverage enhancement mode is signaled in an undefined bit of the DCI, or by mapping to a demodulation reference signal or to cyclic redundancy check bits appended to the DCI.

21. The method according to claim 1, wherein Selecting the first coverage enhancement mode includes: A request for the first coverage enhancement mode is received from a UE of the first type, wherein the request for the first coverage enhancement mode is received during initial access in a dedicated random access channel (RACH) using RACH resources.

22. The method of claim 1, further comprising: A request for the first coverage enhancement mode is received from a UE of the first type, wherein the request for the first coverage enhancement mode is received after a radio resource control (RRC) connection has been established with the wireless communication network, and wherein the first coverage enhancement mode is requested in an explicit scheduling request or a capability report provided by the UE of the first type.

23. The method according to claim 1, wherein Each of the two or more coverage enhancement modes is configured with a different set of the plurality of configuration parameters to accommodate constrained configurations for modulation, coding rate, aggregation level, and repetition level.

24. A network entity in a wireless communication network, comprising: one or more memories; as well as one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, configured to: maintaining a plurality of configuration parameters associated with two or more coverage enhancement modes defined for a wireless communication network; selecting a first coverage enhancement mode from the two or more coverage enhancement modes for a first type of user equipment (UE) to adapt to at least one of one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, capabilities of the first type of UEs, or channel measurement reports of the first type of UEs, wherein the first coverage enhancement mode is associated with a first set of configuration parameters among the plurality of configuration parameters, the first set of configuration parameters being associated with a set of control and data channels, wherein the set of control and data channels comprises an uplink control and data channel and a downlink control and data channel; as well as The set of control and data channels for communicating with UEs of the first type is scheduled using a first transmission scheme defined by the first set of configuration parameters associated with the first coverage enhancement mode.

25. The network entity according to claim 24, wherein: Each of the two or more coverage enhancement modes is configured with a different set of the plurality of configuration parameters to accommodate constrained configurations for modulation, coding rate, aggregation level, and repetition level.

26. A method for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication network, the method comprising: maintaining a plurality of configuration parameters associated with two or more coverage enhancement modes defined for the wireless communication network; configuring the UE for a first coverage enhancement mode selected from the two or more coverage enhancement modes to adapt to at least one of one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, capabilities of the UE, or channel measurement reports of the UE, wherein the first coverage enhancement mode is associated with a first set of configuration parameters among the plurality of configuration parameters, the first set of configuration parameters being associated with a set of control and data channels, wherein the set of control and data channels comprises an uplink control and data channel and a downlink control and data channel; as well as Communicating on the set of control and data channels scheduled according to the first coverage enhancement mode.

27. The method according to claim 26, further comprising: The first coverage enhancement mode is requested using an uplink control channel.

28. The method according to claim 27, wherein The first coverage enhancement mode is requested during initial access in a dedicated random access channel (RACH) using RACH resources.

29. The method of claim 27, further comprising: After a radio resource control (RRC) connection has been established with the wireless communication network, a scheduling request or a capability report is sent, wherein the first coverage enhancement mode is requested in an explicit scheduling request or the capability report.

30. The method of claim 27, further comprising: receiving, in a master information block (MIB), a system information block (SIB), or a combination of the MIB and the SIB, an indication that a network entity in the wireless communication network supports the first coverage enhancement mode; and After receiving the indication, the first coverage enhancement mode is requested.

31. The method of claim 26, further comprising: The first coverage enhancement mode is activated in response to signaling received in downlink control information.

32. The method of claim 26, wherein: Each of the two or more coverage enhancement modes is configured with a different set of the plurality of configuration parameters to accommodate constrained configurations for modulation, coding rate, aggregation level, and repetition level.

33. A user equipment (UE), comprising: one or more memories; as well as one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, configured to: maintaining a plurality of configuration parameters associated with two or more coverage enhancement modes defined for a wireless communication network; configuring the UE for a first coverage enhancement mode selected from the two or more coverage enhancement modes to adapt to at least one of one or more carrier frequencies, time or frequency duplex modes, cell sizes, capabilities of the UE, or channel measurement reports of the UE, wherein the first coverage enhancement mode is associated with a first set of configuration parameters among the plurality of configuration parameters, the first set of configuration parameters being associated with a set of control and data channels, wherein the set of control and data channels comprises an uplink control and data channel and a downlink control and data channel; as well as Communicating on the set of control and data channels scheduled according to the first coverage enhancement mode.

34. The UE according to claim 33, wherein: Each of the two or more coverage enhancement modes is configured with a different set of the plurality of configuration parameters to accommodate constrained configurations for modulation, coding rate, aggregation level, and repetition level.

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