Power saving method and device in wireless side link communication

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to methods and apparatus for wireless communication resource configuration. Various configuration schemes for sidelink control resources and / or sidelink data communication resources can reduce the duration that a user device is required to use the sidelink communication resources to monitor sidelink data, thereby providing power savings in sidelink communications.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure is directed generally to wireless communications, and more particularly to sidelink communication resource and control resource allocation and configuration for power conservation. Background Art

[0002] User devices in a wireless network can communicate data with each other via direct sidelink communication channels without the need for data relaying by any radio access network node. Compared to other traditional applications involving UE-UE sidelink communication, some application scenarios for sidelink communication, such as those involving in-vehicle wireless network devices, may have more stringent and unpredictable communication requirements. Providing a resource allocation and provisioning mechanism to achieve low-power and efficient use of sidelink communication and control resources is crucial. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The present disclosure is directed to methods, systems, and devices related to wireless communications, and more particularly, to power conservation in sidelink communications between communication terminals.

[0004] In one embodiment, a method for controlling wireless sidelink communications is disclosed. The method includes: determining, by a first user equipment (UE), a radio resource configuration that specifies a first set of radio resources for transmitting one or more sidelink control information in a sidelink resource period; and transmitting, by the first UE, the sidelink control information on one of the first set of radio resources before transmitting a set of sidelink data on one of a set of second radio resources within the sidelink resource period. The sidelink control information is configured to indicate to a second UE whether to monitor the set of second radio resources during a configured time period after receiving the sidelink control information.

[0005] In another embodiment, a method for controlling wireless sidelink communications is also disclosed. The method includes: determining, by a first user equipment (UE), a radio resource configuration that specifies a first set of radio resources for receiving one or more sidelink control information in a sidelink resource period; monitoring, by the first UE, the first set of radio resources for one or more sidelink control information from a second UE during the sidelink resource period; and monitoring, by the first UE, a set of second radio resources for a set of sidelink data from the second UE during a configured time period within the sidelink resource period after receiving the sidelink control information from the second UE. The sidelink control information is configured to indicate to the first UE whether to monitor the set of second radio resources during the configured time period.

[0006] Various devices are also disclosed. Each of these devices includes a processor and a memory, wherein the processor is configured to read computer code from the memory to implement any one of the above methods.

[0007] A computer-readable medium is also disclosed. The computer-readable medium includes instructions that, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform any one of the above methods.

[0008] These and other aspects and embodiments thereof are described in more detail in the following drawings, description, and claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Figure 1 An example diagram of a wireless communication network is shown in accordance with various embodiments.

[0010] Figure 2 An example wireless data communication and control resource allocation and configuration scheme for sidelink communications is shown.

[0011] Figure 3 An example logic flow for information exchange between two user equipments for unicast sidelink configuration and communication is shown.

[0012] Figure 4 Another example logic flow for information exchange between two user equipments for unicast sidelink configuration and communication is shown.

[0013] Figure 5 An example logic flow for information exchange between user equipment for multicast sidelink configuration and communication is shown.

[0014] Figure 6 Another example logic flow for information exchange between user equipment for multicast sidelink configuration and communication is shown.

[0015] Figure 7 An example wireless data communication resource allocation and configuration scheme for broadcast sidelink communications is shown.

[0016] Figure 8 Another example wireless data communication resource allocation and configuration scheme for broadcast sidelink communications is shown.

[0017] Figure 9 Another example wireless data communication resource allocation and configuration scheme for broadcast sidelink communications is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] The techniques and examples of the embodiments and / or examples in this disclosure can be used to improve performance in wireless communication systems. Unless otherwise specified, ideal or preferred examples, embodiments or examples are not implied. The section headings used in this disclosure are for ease of understanding and do not limit the techniques disclosed in the sections to the corresponding sections. However, please note that the embodiments can be embodied in a variety of different forms, and therefore, the scope of the present disclosure or the claimed subject matter is intended to be interpreted as not being limited to any embodiment set forth below. Various embodiments can be embodied as methods, devices, components or systems. Therefore, the embodiments of the present disclosure can take the form of hardware, software, firmware or any combination thereof, for example.

[0019] The Internet of Vehicles (IoV) refers to a network system used for wireless communication and information exchange between vehicles, pedestrians, roadside equipment, the internet, and other data networks, based on various communication protocols and data exchange standards. IoV communications help improve road safety and traffic efficiency, providing broadband mobile data access and data exchange between network nodes. In-vehicle network communications can be categorized into various types based on the communication endpoints, including but not limited to vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, vehicle-to-infrastructure / vehicle-to-network (V2I / V2N) communications, and vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) communications. These types of communications are collectively referred to as vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communications.

[0020] The Internet of Vehicles may rely heavily on sidelink communications between terminal devices or user equipment (UE) in the network. As used in this disclosure, sidelink communication refers to the direct wireless information exchange between UEs. For example, V2X communication may rely on direct sidelink data exchange from a source UE to a destination UE via an air interface without the need for any wireless base station to forward. This communication mode has been studied and implemented in the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). An example V2X subsystem based on sidelink communication technology is shown as Figure 1 part of and may be referred to as, for example, PC5-based V2X communication or V2X sidelink communication.

[0021] The application scenarios for V2X communications are expanding and diversifying. Advanced V2X services and applications include, but are not limited to, vehicle platooning, expanded sensors, semi-autonomous driving, fully autonomous driving, and remote driving. These applications and services demand increasingly advanced network performance, including wider bandwidth, lower latency, and higher reliability. For example, these applications and services may require that the underlying sidelink communication technology support communication packet sizes ranging from 50 to 12,000 bytes, message transmission rates of 2 to 50 messages per second, maximum end-to-end latency of 3 to 500 milliseconds, transmission reliability of 90% to 99.999%, data rates of 0.5 to 1000 Mbps, and a signal range of 50 to 1000 meters, depending on the specific data services required.

[0022] While sidelinks can be used to communicate between them, the various UEs described above may also be connected to a radio access network and, via the access network, to a core network. The radio access network and the core network may participate in configuring and provisioning the communication resources required for transmitting / receiving data and control information for sidelink communications. Example radio access networks may be based on, for example, cellular 4G LTE or 5G NR technologies and / or formats. Figure 1 An example system diagram of a wireless access communication network 100 including UEs 102, 124, and 126 and a wireless access network node (WANN) 104 is shown. Each of UEs 102, 124, and 126 may include, but is not limited to, a mobile phone, a smartphone, a tablet, a laptop, an in-vehicle communication device, a roadside communication device, a sensor device, a smart home appliance (e.g., a television, a refrigerator, an oven, etc.), or other devices capable of wireless communication over a network. The UEs may communicate with each other indirectly via the WANN 104 or directly via a side link. Figure 1 As shown, for example, UE 102 may include a transceiver circuit 106 coupled to an antenna 108 to enable wireless communication with WANN 104 or with another UE such as UE 124 or 126. Transceiver circuit 106 may also be coupled to a processor 110, which may also be coupled to a memory 112 or other storage device. Memory 112 may store computer instructions or code therein that, when read and executed by processor 110, cause processor 110 to implement the various methods described herein for sidelink resource allocation / configuration and data transmission / reception.

[0023] Similarly, WANN 104 may include a base station or other wireless network access point capable of wirelessly communicating with one or more UEs over a network. For example, WANN 104 may be implemented as a 4G LTE base station, a 5G NR base station, a 5G centralized cell base station, or a 5G distributed cell base station. Each of these WANN types may be configured to perform a corresponding set of wireless network functions. WANN 104 may include transceiver circuitry 114 coupled to an antenna 116, which may include various forms of antenna towers 118, to enable wireless communication with UEs 102, 124, and 126. Transceiver circuitry 114 may be coupled to one or more processors 120, which may be further coupled to memory 122 or other storage device. Memory 122 may store instructions or code therein that, when read and executed by processor 120, cause processor 120 to perform various functions. These functions may include, for example, functions related to configuring and provisioning wireless communication resources for exchanging data and control information in sidelink communications between UEs.

[0024] For simplicity and clarity, only one WANN and three UEs are shown in the wireless communication access network 100. It should be understood that one or more WANNs may exist in the wireless communication network, and each WANN may serve one or more UEs. Figure 1 UEs 102, 124, and 126 are shown as being served within one serving cell, but they may alternatively be served by different cells and / or no cell. Although various embodiments of sidelink communications are discussed below in the context of a specific example cellular wireless communication access network 100, the underlying principles are applicable to other types of wireless communication networks.

[0025] Figure 1 The side link communication between various UEs can support the coexistence of various different communication broadcast types, including unicast, groupcast (or multicast) and broadcast. In conventional technology, the UE deployed in the access network 100 may need to exhaustively monitor a wide range of side link radio resources in unicast, multicast or broadcast mode, resulting in large power consumption. For some low-power UEs, this power consumption may be at an unacceptably high level. To address this problem, the various embodiments described in the present disclosure provide methods, devices and systems for configuring and supplying wireless communication resources to carry side link data and / or carry side link control information, thereby enabling UEs to reduce their power consumption when monitoring and receiving unicast, multicast or broadcast side link data.

[0026] Wireless communication resources used for the transmission of data or control information can typically be allocated in the time dimension and the carrier frequency dimension. Each of these dimensions can be allocated and provided according to its minimum allocation granularity. Sidelink resource allocation can be specified as a collection of time-frequency blocks. For example, sidelink data communication resources can be configured and allocated as one or more sidelink resource pools. Each sidelink resource pool can be associated with a resource configuration. For the purposes of this disclosure, the focus is on the time dimension of resource allocation. Specifically, time resources can be allocated at the granularity of time slots of predefined time length. Alternatively, time resources can be allocated at the symbol level.

[0027] An example of a resource pool allocated to a UE for sidelink data communication is shown in Figure 2 This is shown as 200. Such a resource pool can be configured and allocated to UEs for unicast, multicast or broadcast. The sidelink communication resources allocated within the resource pool are shown as various vertical bars arranged along the time axis 202, with their width representing the time allocation and their height representing the carrier frequency allocation. Although the frequency allocation at each time is Figure 2 202. The resource pools of FIG. 202 are shown as being identical (as indicated by the same frequency range), but each of these resource bars may comprise any suitable set of any number of any carrier frequencies. Each bar may occupy one or more time slots or time symbols along time axis 202. The time intervals between bars represent time periods when no time resources are allocated for sidelink data communications. To simplify the following description of the embodiments, each of these bars is referred to as a sidelink data communications resource.

[0028] Figure 2 Such a sidelink resource pool for a specific UE to use in sending or receiving sidelink data can be configured from the network side (e.g., from the WANN of the UE's serving cell). Specifically, a control message corresponding to the sidelink resource configuration can be sent from the WANN to the UE. Alternatively, the sidelink resource pool can be pre-configured. In some other embodiments, the UE can receive the sidelink communication resource configuration from another UE. The UE can be allocated multiple sidelink resource pools, each of which is specified by a corresponding sidelink resource configuration.

[0029] As an example, the sidelink resource pool 200 for the UE may be specified in a sidelink discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration sent to the UE. Figure 2As shown in FIG206 and FIG208 , the resource pool 200 configured by the DRX configuration may include sidelink resources in a repeating period, referred to as a sidelink resource period (SRP). Each period 206 and 208 represents a sidelink resource configuration period. The sidelink resource configuration may include one or more resource bitmaps to indicate the location of the allocated resources in the resource pool 200 in terms of time and frequency for the configuration period, and then repeats periodically from SRP to SRP.

[0030] exist Figure 2 The duration occupied by resources allocated for sidelink communication on timeline 202 in FIG. 2 may be referred to as the sidelink on-duration, as shown in 210. The time interval between the sidelink on-durations may be referred to as the sidelink off-duration, as shown in 212. When attempting to receive unicast, multicast, or broadcast sidelink data, the UE only needs to perform data monitoring for at most the sidelink on-duration, thereby reducing data monitoring power consumption. If the UE is configured with a sidelink resource pool, the time slots or symbols included in the sidelink resource pool constitute the sidelink on-duration. Alternatively, if the UE is configured with a sidelink DRX configuration, then in a DRX cycle, the DRX on-duration represents the sidelink on-duration. The sidelink on-duration may be indicated by one or more time bitmaps.

[0031] Various example embodiments described in greater detail below relate to configurations of resources for carrying sidelink control information and / or for carrying data information, as well as some exemplary constructions of sidelink control information that enable a UE to further reduce power consumption in sidelink communications.

[0032] First exemplary embodiment

[0033] In the various implementations of this embodiment described below, it is assumed that a first UE (UE1) and a second UE (UE2) have already established a connection for sidelink communication, for example, in unicast mode. UE1 represents the sidelink data transmitter, while UE2 represents the corresponding sidelink data receiver. The following implementations are designed to enable UE2 to further reduce its power consumption when monitoring and receiving data from UE1.

[0034] In one embodiment, UE1 and UE2 may first exchange capability information. Such capability information may include, but is not limited to, whether UE1 or UE2 supports the sidelink power saving function (SPSF). When UE1 determines that UE2 is a P-UE or supports SPSF, or the data to be sent by UE1 belongs to a data service whose destination identifier corresponds to a P-UE target service, UE2 may first send, for example, a DRX configuration of a sidelink resource pool to UE1, or alternatively send a configuration of a sidelink resource pool for a limited time range to UE1. Before sending such a sidelink resource configuration to UE2, UE1 may obtain the configuration from the network side (e.g., the WANN of its serving cell). In some other embodiments, UE2 may obtain such a configuration directly from its network side (e.g., the WANN of its serving cell) instead of sending the sidelink resource configuration from UE1 to UE2. This configuration may then be sent from UE2 to UE1 so that UE1 can determine the side communication resources used to send sidelink data to UE2. As Figure 2 As shown in 200, the side link resource configuration includes allocation of side link resources as a side link resource pool.

[0035] Once UE2 receives the sidelink resource configuration, it determines how Figure 2 The sidelink on duration for monitoring the sidelink data from UE1 is shown. Specifically, it only needs to perform active monitoring during the sidelink on period and go to sleep during the sidelink off period. For example, it can Figure 2 Monitor during all side link on durations marked as 1-11 in . Because UE1 may not send side link data during all these side link on durations, UE2 can be further controlled to actively monitor only during a subset of the side link on durations to further reduce monitoring power consumption. In some embodiments, the time range in which UE2 needs to monitor side link data can be divided into several time divisions, so that UE2 can be controlled to over-monitor in some time divisions. To achieve this, a corresponding side link wake-up control resource can be configured at the beginning of each time division. Side link wake-up control information or signal (referred to herein as wake-up control information or wake-up control signal) can be carried on the side link wake-up control resource and sent to the UE to indicate to the UE whether it is necessary to monitor the side link on duration in subsequent time divisions (after the first time point corresponding to the side link wake-up control resource until the second time point corresponding to the next wake-up control resource in time).

[0036] This scheme is Figure 2. Specifically, arrows W1-W6 (labeled 204) indicate the temporal location of the sidelink wakeup control resources. As an example, they divide the sidelink communication resources 200 (bars) into three time divisions for each SRP (e.g., SRP 206). The first time division includes Sidelink On Durations 1-3, while the second time division includes Sidelink On Durations 4-8, and the third time division includes Sidelink On Durations 9-12. Whether UE2 needs to monitor the Sidelink On Duration can be controlled from one time division to another.

[0037] When UE2 needs to monitor the physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) to receive wake-up control information or signals, one or more wake-up control resources 204 can be configured to indicate a time point (time slot or time symbol point). The wake-up control information or signal indicates whether the UE should monitor the sidelink on-duration during the time division following the wake-up control information / signal. The length of such a time division can be referred to as a configured time period, which is equal to the time length between the time point corresponding to the current wake-up control resource and the time point corresponding to the next wake-up control resource. For example, Figure 2 As shown, if UE2 receives wake-up control information or a signal at time point W1 indicating that UE2 needs to wake up to monitor sidelink data, UE2 wakes up after W1 but before W2 to monitor sidelink on durations 1, 2, and 3 to monitor and receive sidelink data. For another example, if UE2 monitors for wake-up control information or a signal at W2 and does not receive any wake-up control information or a signal (or it determines that the received wake-up control information or a signal indicates that UE2 does not need to wake up), UE2 does not need to wake up after W2 and before W3 to monitor sidelink on durations 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 for receiving sidelink data.

[0038] Figure 3 FIG. 3 shows an example logic flow 300 for information exchange between UE1 and UE2 according to the above embodiment. Figure 3As shown, the transmitting UE1 302 and the receiving UE2 304 may establish a sidelink connection as shown in 306. As shown in 308 and as described above, they may further exchange sidelink capabilities. To save power, a wakeup control resource configuration may be sent from UE1 to UE2 or from UE2 to UE1, as shown in 310. The exchange of the wakeup control resource configuration between UE1 and UE2 may be accomplished via, for example, a PC5-RRC (Radio Resource Control) channel and interface. The wakeup control resource configuration may be provided by the network. For example, the network of UE1 (e.g., the WAN of its serving cell) may provide such wakeup control resource configuration to UE1, and UE1 may obtain the wakeup control resource configuration from the network and then send the wakeup control resource configuration to UE2. Alternatively, the network of UE2 (e.g., the WAN of its serving cell) may provide such wakeup control resource configuration to UE2, and UE2 may obtain the wakeup control resource configuration from the network and then send the wakeup control resource configuration to UE1. To request the wakeup control resource configuration from the network, either UE1 or UE2 may first send sidelink UE information to the network. Such UE information may include at least one of the various items in List 1 below.

[0039] List 1

[0040]

[0041]

[0042] The network side (WANN and / or some other network node in the core network) uses the information elements in List 1 to determine the sidelink control resource allocation and configuration, including, for example, information related to the service type of the sidelink communication. The service type information may include, for example, a destination identifier (service type), a broadcast type (an indicator of the broadcast type such as unicast, multicast, or broadcast), and quality of service (QoS) information for the sidelink communication for which the wake-up control resources need to be determined. The QoS information may be represented, for example, by a QoS flow identifier (QFI) and / or a QoS profile corresponding to the sidelink communication. Some of these information elements may be optional, while others may be mandatory, and the above list is provided only as an example.

[0043] continue Figure 3 In the logic flow, when UE1 has side link data to send or its side link data buffer is not empty, as shown in 312, it first sends the side link data in the side link resource ( Figure 2 resource bar or wake-up control resource (e.g. Figure 2UE1 sends a wakeup control information or signal to UE2 on a sidelink control time resource W1 in the sidelink control time resource W2, for example, via a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) as shown in 314. UE2 monitors such a signal as shown in 316. UE2 receives the wakeup control information signal and determines that UE1 is about to send sidelink data and wakes up to monitor the sidelink on duration (e.g., Figure 2 ) to receive the sidelink data sent by UE1 (as shown in 318) until the time point corresponding to the next wake-up control resource (e.g., Figure 2 ) as shown in 320. Conversely, if there is no sidelink data that needs to be sent by UE1 or the sidelink data buffer at UE1 is empty, UE1 will not send any wakeup control information or signal (e.g., at W1). UE2 will monitor the wakeup control resource (at W1), but will not detect any wakeup control information or signal, and therefore will not wake up to monitor the sidelink resource for sidelink data communication ( Figure 2 Sidelink on durations 1, 2 and 3 in ).

[0044] In this example, reference Figure 2 Although UE1 may not use all of Sidelink On Durations 1, 2, and 3 to send sidelink data (e.g., UE1 may only use Sidelink On Duration 1 to send data), UE2 will monitor all of Sidelink On Durations 1, 2, and 3 after W1 receives the wake-up control information or signal until it determines at W2 whether to monitor Sidelink On Durations 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 during the next time division (between W2 and W3) (depending on whether the sidelink control information or signal at W2 indicates such a monitoring requirement). Alternatively, UE1 can be configured to transmit only within one sidelink On Duration after sending the wake-up control information or signal. In this way, UE2 may only need to monitor within one sidelink On Duration each time it receives the wake-up control information or signal.

[0045] The wake-up control information or signal described above for this embodiment may be, for example, a single-bit signal. For example, detecting such a signal indicates a need to monitor one or more side link on-durations during the next time division. Alternatively, the wake-up control information or signal may be sent in other forms of signals or messages.

[0046] Using the above solution, the receiving UE further reduces power consumption for monitoring the sidelink resource pool by dividing the sidelink resource pool into multiple time divisions (or regions) as indicated by the time points corresponding to the wakeup control resources specified in the wakeup control resource configuration. In this way, after receiving the wakeup control information or signal, the receiving UE only needs to monitor one or more sidelink on-durations within the time division, rather than monitoring the entire sidelink resource pool, further reducing power consumption for sidelink data monitoring.

[0047] The above-mentioned wake-up control resource configuration may include at least one of the example information items shown in the following list, which is used to specify and identify resources allocated for sending / receiving wake-up control information or signals.

[0048] List 2

[0049]

[0050] As shown in Example Listing 2, the wake-up control resource configuration may include a sequence of resource configurations. Each configuration may include a time offset to specify the time interval along which the wake-up control resource configurations are to be executed. Figure 2 The time position (time slot position or symbol position) of the corresponding wake-up control resource on the resource time axis. The wake-up control configuration may also include an identifier for the wake-up resource configuration, for example, for identifying the frequency resource for each wake-up control resource configuration. Specifically, the physical layer may allocate frequency resources for the wake-up control information, and such frequency resources may be provided with an identifier by a higher layer, and such identifier may be included in the wake-up control configuration. Alternatively or additionally, a PSCCH resource ID information item may be included for identifying the frequency allocation. A wake-up identifier may also be included to, for example, identify a sequence of wake-up control resource configurations. Optionally, and not shown in List 2 above, the wake-up control resource configuration may also include a source identifier or a service destination identifier to limit the applicability of a specific wake-up control resource configuration.

[0051] Second exemplary embodiment

[0052] The various implementations of the second embodiment described below are similar to those of the first embodiment described above. The following description focuses on the differences between them. Other aspects of the second embodiment not explicitly included under this current heading can be found in the description of the various implementations of the first embodiment above.

[0053] For this second example embodiment, it is also assumed that the first UE (UE1) and the second UE (UE2) have established a connection for sidelink communication in, for example, unicast mode. UE1 represents a sidelink data transmitter, while UE2 represents a corresponding sidelink data receiver. In this embodiment, the wake-up control information can be implemented as a sidelink control information (SCI) message, which is called a power-saving sidelink control information (PS-SCI) message. Unlike the simple wake-up signal (such as a single bit indicator signal) used for wake-up control information in the first embodiment, the PS-SCI message can be used to carry additional information. Like other SCI information, the PS-SCI message can be carried by, for example, a PC5 interface.

[0054] An example PS-SCI message may include at least one of the following information items.

[0055] - A wake-up indicator (e.g., a 1-bit indicator / signal) that indicates to the receiving UE whether to monitor the sidelink on-duration or sidelink resource pool for sidelink data after receiving the PS-SCI message until the next PS-SCI resource is available. This indicator provides a similar function to the wake-up control information in the first embodiment.

[0056] - A destination identifier (or service identifier) ​​for identifying the service corresponding to the sidelink communication. This information helps the receiving UE determine the destination identifier and service type and decide whether the service is of interest. If the service is not of interest, the receiving UE may forgo monitoring for sidelink data during one or more subsequent Sidelink On Durations.

[0057] - Secondary Cell (SCell) sleep indication information for multi-carrier scenarios. Specifically, in multi-carrier scenarios, with this indicator, the receiving UE only needs to monitor the PS-SCI control resources on one carrier to obtain wake-up control information for other carriers. This indicator can be provided as a carrier bitmap, where each bit of the bitmap corresponds to one of one or more SCell groups configured by higher layers of the wireless network, and the most significant bit (MSB) to the least significant bit (LSB) of the bitmap correspond to the first to last configured SCell groups.

[0058] A wake-up control resource configuration may be specified for a PS-SCI message used as wake-up control information to identify the control resources required for sending / receiving the PS-SCI message. This resource configuration is referred to as a PS-SCI resource configuration (corresponding to the wake-up control resource configuration described in the first embodiment). PS-SCI resource allocation for sidelink communication may be specified as a PS-SCI resource configuration, and each configuration may include at least one of the information items shown in List 3 below.

[0059] List 3

[0060]

[0061] As shown in Example Listing 3, a PS-SCI resource configuration may include a sequence of PS-SCI control configurations, each of which corresponds to Figure 2 The example PS-SCI resource configuration may include a time offset to specify the time position of the corresponding PS-SCI resource carrying the PS-SCI message (used as wake-up control information). Other information items that may also be included in the PS-SCI resource configuration are shown and described in more detail in Listing 4 below.

[0062] List 4

[0063]

[0064] For example, the wake-up configuration indicator may optionally be included in the PS-SCI configuration, represented by slps-WakeUp in List 4 above. Although whether the receiving UE wakes up to monitor the subsequent side link on duration or side link resource pool is determined based on the wake-up indicator information or signal in the received PS-SCI message, the wake-up configuration indicator in the PS-SCI configuration may be designed to indicate to the UE whether to monitor the subsequent side link on duration or side link resource pool when no PS-SCI message is received at the time point of the corresponding resource allocated to the PS-SCI message. Specifically, when the wake-up configuration indicator is included in the PS-SCI configuration, the UE needs to monitor the side link data when no PS-SCI message is received, otherwise, if the wake-up configuration indication is not included in the PS-SCI configuration, the UE does not need to monitor the side link data. Alternatively, when the wake-up configuration indicator is not included in the PS-SCI configuration, the UE needs to monitor the side link data when no PS-SCI message is received, otherwise, if the wake-up configuration indicator is included in the PS-SCI configuration, the UE does not need to monitor the side link data. This configuration scheme will allow optional configuration parameters to force the UE to monitor sidelink data when the sent PS-SCI message is not received, so that sidelink data can still be received even if the corresponding PS-SCI message is sent but lost during its transmission.

[0065] For this second embodiment, Figure 4 An example logic flow 400 for information exchange between UE1 and UE2 is shown. The example logic flow 400 is similar to the first embodiment. Figure 3 The logic flow 300 is shown in FIG. 1 , except that the wakeup control resource configuration and the wakeup control information or signal are replaced by PS-SCI resource configuration and PS-SCI message, respectively. For example, the details of steps 406, 408, and 410 can be found in the description of steps 306, 308, and 310 above, respectively, and are not repeated here.

[0066] exist Figure 4 In the process, UE2 monitors the PS-SCI resources (eg, Figure 2 Once the PS-SCI message is detected, UE2 determines the wake-up indicator included therein to decide whether to monitor the subsequent side link on duration or side link resource pool until the next time point corresponding to the next PS-SCI resource ( Figure 2 Specifically, when indicated by the wake-up indicator, the UE continues to monitor the subsequent side link on duration or side link resource pool for side link data, otherwise it does not monitor. Figure 4 In addition, when configured as a PS-SCI resource (e.g. Figure 2 When W1-W6 of List 4 do not receive the PS-SCI message, whether UE2 needs to monitor the side link on duration or the side link pool is determined by the above-mentioned wake-up configuration indicator (for example, the slps-WakeUp indication of List 4).

[0067] In the first and second embodiments, the wake-up control information / signal or PS-SCI message is sent by UE 1 only when subsequent sidelink data is to be transmitted. Otherwise, the wake-up control information / signal or PS-SCI message is not sent. In addition, the UE is configured to always monitor the wake-up control resource configuration or PS-SCI resource configuration (e.g., Figure 2 Wake-up control resources or PS-SCI resources allocated and configured (W1-W6 resources in ).

[0068] Third exemplary embodiment

[0069] The various implementations below for the third example embodiment focus on the side link control resource configuration for multicast side link communication. Assume that a first UE (UE1) and a second UE (UE2) have established a connection for side link communication in multicast mode. UE1 represents a side link data transmitter, and UE2 represents a corresponding side link data receiver. UE1 and UE2 are among a group of UEs forming a multicast UE group, which may alternatively be referred to as a side link communication group. The side link communication group may also include a head UE (referred to as a group head), and the head UE is represented as UE3. The following implementations are designed to enable the UEs in the side communication group to reduce their power consumption when monitoring and receiving multicast side link data.

[0070] In some embodiments, if UE2 has power saving requirements (for example, if UE2 is a P-UE), after UE2 joins the sidelink communication group, UE3 (head UE) is notified via NAS layer signaling that there is at least one P-UE in the sidelink communication group and that a power saving policy / configuration needs to be initiated. Figure 2 The sidelink resource pool or sidelink DRX shown with limited sidelink on-duration may be allocated and configured for sidelink data communication for UEs (such as UE2) of the sidelink communication group.

[0071] In some implementations of this embodiment, similar to the implementation in the first embodiment described above, the time range in which UE2 is required to monitor sidelink data may be divided into a number of time minutes, and a corresponding sidelink wakeup control resource may be configured at the beginning of each time minute. Sidelink wakeup control information or signals may be carried on the sidelink wakeup control resource to indicate to UE2 whether UE2 needs to monitor the sidelink on-duration after a first time point corresponding to the sidelink wakeup control resource and until a second time point corresponding to a next time point associated with the next wakeup control resource.

[0072] Figure 5 A logic flow 500 is shown that illustrates information exchange between UE1 (502), UE2 (504) and the head UE3 (505) for sidelink control configuration of UE1 and UE2 and sidelink data communication from UE1 to UE2. Figure 5 As shown, at step 506, the transmitting UE1 502, the receiving UE2 504, and the head UE3 505 can establish a sidelink connection. As shown in 508 and as described above, the UE group members can further exchange sidelink capabilities. For example, this capability exchange will inform UE3 that UE2 has power saving requirements (e.g., UE2 is a P-UE).

[0073] In order to use sidelink time division to save power, UE3 can send power to UE1 and UE2 (and Figure 5 Other members of the group not shown in the figure) send a wake-up control resource configuration for the side link communication group, such as Figure 5 510 and 511 of . The wake-up control resource configuration can be transmitted via, for example, a PC5-RRC channel and interface. The wake-up control resource configuration can be provided by the network side. For example, the network side of UE3 (for example, the WANN of its serving cell) can provide such a wake-up control resource configuration, and UE3 can obtain the wake-up control resource configuration from the network side, and then send the wake-up control resource configuration to the members of the side link control group (such as UE1 and UE2). In order for UE3 to obtain such a configuration from its network side, UE3 can send a request containing side link UE information to its network side. For example, such side link UE information may include at least one of the various items in List 1 above. Such UE information may also optionally include group member information in the side link control group such as group member identification, number of group members, etc. In some other embodiments, the wake-up control resource configuration can be obtained by the group members from the network side instead of from the head UE.

[0074] The wake-up control resource configuration for the side link communication group may include at least one of the example information items shown in List 2 above. For example, the wake-up control resource configuration may include a sequence of resource configurations. Each configuration may include a time offset to specify the time interval along the side link communication group. Figure 2 The time position (time slot position or symbol position) of the corresponding wake-up control resource on the resource time axis. The wake-up control resource configuration may also include an identifier for the wake-up resource configuration, for example, used to identify the frequency resource for each wake-up control resource configuration. Specifically, the physical layer may allocate frequency resources for the wake-up control information, and such frequency resources may be provided with an identifier by a higher layer, and such an identifier may be included in the wake-up control configuration. Alternatively or additionally, a PSCCH resource ID information item may be included to identify the frequency allocation. A wake-up identifier may also be included to, for example, identify a sequence of wake-up control resource configurations. Optionally, and not shown in List 2 above, the wake-up control resource configuration may also include a source identifier or a service destination identifier to limit the applicability of a specific wake-up control resource configuration.

[0075] continue Figure 5 , the member UEs in the group such as UE2 and UE1 receive the wake-up control resource configuration from UE3, as shown in 510 and 511. In step 512, when UE1 has sidelink data to send or its sidelink data buffer is not empty, it first sends the sidelink data in the sidelink resource ( Figure 2 resource bar or wake-up control resource (e.g. Figure 2 UE1 transmits wakeup control information or signals to UE2 on a sidelink control time resource (e.g., a sidelink control channel (PSCCH)) as shown in 514, which is monitored by UE2 as shown in 516. UE2 receives the wakeup control information signal and determines that UE1 is about to transmit multicast sidelink data, and wakes up to monitor the sidelink on-duration to receive the sidelink data transmitted by UE1 (e.g., as shown in 518) until a time point corresponding to the next wakeup control resource, as shown in 520. Conversely, if UE1 does not need to transmit multicast sidelink data, or if UE1's sidelink data buffer is empty, UE1 will not transmit any wakeup control information or signals. UE2 will monitor the wakeup control resources, but will not detect any wakeup control information or signals, and therefore will not wake up to monitor the sidelink resources for sidelink data communication.

[0076] The contents of the wake-up control information or signal are similar to those of the first embodiment described above.

[0077] In a multicast sidelink application, member UEs in a sidelink communication group can share the same wakeup control resource specified in the wakeup control resource configuration described above. In this wakeup resource sharing scenario, after a UE sends wakeup control information or a signal and continues to send sidelink data, it may not be able to monitor the wakeup control resource for the wakeup control information or signal at the same time. In some embodiments, to avoid missing data reception, the transmitting UE can be configured to always monitor the sidelink data during the sidelink on duration or in the sidelink resource pool in the next time division after it sends wakeup control information and sidelink data in the previous time division.

[0078] Alternatively, the member UEs of the sidelink communication group can be configured with separate wakeup control resources rather than sharing wakeup control resources. For example, the group head UE3 can configure different wakeup control resources for each UE in the group. In this way, each wakeup control resource configuration in the sequence of wakeup control resource configurations of List 2 can be adapted to include a group member ID that indicates the group member of the sidelink communication group to which the particular wakeup control resource configuration applies. An example of a modified sequence of wakeup control resource configurations is shown in List 5 below.

[0079] List 5

[0080]

[0081]

[0082] The group wake-up control resource configuration of List 5 includes a sequence of wake-up control resource configurations, each of which is used for one of the group members. Each wake-up control resource configuration may include a set of time offsets to specify the time slot or symbol position of one or more wake-up control resources. The information item "wakeUpResrarchId or "PSCCH-ResourceId" is related to the identification of the frequency resource allocated for carrying wake-up control information or signals, and is the same as the corresponding information item in List 2, which will be explained in more detail in conjunction with the first embodiment. Each wake-up control resource configuration of List 5 specifically includes an identifier of the corresponding group member ("GroupMember ID") to indicate the member UE to which a specific wake-up control resource in the wake-up control resource configuration is allocated.

[0083] In some other embodiments, particularly when the number of group members is large and providing a different wake-up control resource configuration to each group member becomes impractical, a set of wake-up control resource configurations can be allocated, and one or more wake-up control resource configurations can be shared by more than one group member. For these embodiments, the "GroupMemberID" in List 5 for a particular wake-up control resource configuration described above may include a set of IDs of group members that share this particular wake-up control resource allocation (rather than a single group member ID). Alternatively, a group member bitmap can be implemented to indicate the group members that share this particular wake-up control resource allocation (e.g., bits 0 and 1 corresponding to members in the bitmap indicate that the member does and does not share this particular resource, respectively). A group member that shares a wake-up control resource with others can be configured to always monitor sidelink data during the Sidelink On Duration or in the sidelink resource pool in the next time division after it transmits sidelink data during the previous time division. A group member that does not share a wake-up control resource with others may not need to monitor sidelink data during the Sidelink On Duration or in the sidelink resource pool in the next time division after it transmits sidelink data during the previous time division. In this way, the wake-up control resource configuration may optionally include an indicator to indicate whether the UE should monitor the sidelink on-duration or the sidelink resource pool during the next time division after sending the wake-up control information or signal.

[0084] Other aspects not explicitly described with respect to the third embodiment can be found in the description with respect to the first embodiment.

[0085] Fourth embodiment

[0086] In conjunction with the second embodiment, various implementations of the fourth embodiment for the multicast side link described below are similar to the implementations described above for the third embodiment. Other aspects of this fourth embodiment not explicitly included below under the current heading can be found in the descriptions of the various implementations of the third and second embodiments above.

[0087] Similar to the third embodiment, for this fourth example embodiment, it is assumed that a first UE (UE1) and a second UE (UE2) have established a connection for sidelink communication in multicast mode. UE1 represents a sidelink data transmitter, while UE2 represents a corresponding sidelink data receiver. UE1 and UE2 are among a group of UEs forming a multicast UE group, which may alternatively be referred to as a sidelink communication group. The sidelink communication group may also include a head UE (referred to as a group head), and the head UE is represented as UE3. The following embodiments are designed to enable the UEs in the side communication group to reduce their power consumption when monitoring and receiving multicast sidelink data.

[0088] Various aspects of this fourth embodiment are similar to those of the third embodiment, with the wakeup control information being replaced by the PS-SCI message described in the second embodiment. The content of the PS-SCI message is similar to that described above in the second embodiment. Furthermore, the wakeup control resource configuration of the third embodiment is replaced by a PS-SCI resource configuration that can be implemented in a manner similar to that of the second embodiment.

[0089] Figure 6 6. The logic flow 600 shows the information exchange between UE1 (602), UE2 (604) and the head UE3 (605) for the sidelink control configuration of UE1 and UE2 and the sidelink data communication from UE1 to UE2. This example logic flow 600 is similar to the third embodiment. Figure 5 Similarly, the wake-up control resource configuration and the wake-up control information or signal are replaced by the PS-SCI resource configuration and the PS-SCI message, respectively. For example, the details of steps 606, 608, 610, and 611 can be found in the description of steps 506, 508, 510, and 511 above, respectively, and are not repeated here.

[0090] The PS-SCI resource configuration may include a sequence of PS-SCI control configurations that are similar to those specified in Listing 4 and described above for the second embodiment and are not described again here.

[0091] The PS-SCI resource sharing between group member UEs can be implemented similarly to that described above for the third embodiment. For example, members of the side link communication group can each be configured with a separate PS-SCI resource. Alternatively, one or more members can share the PS-SCI resource. This sharing can be indicated by an additional information item of the PS-SCI resource configuration, which shows the shared group members of a specific PS-SCI resource. In this embodiment, a UE that shares a PS-SCI resource with other UEs in the group can be configured to: after it sends a PS-SCI message and side link data during the previous time division, it always monitors the side link data during the side link open duration or in the side link resource pool in the next time division. A group member that does not share the PS-SCI resource with others can, after it sends a PS-SCI message and side link data during the previous time division, not need to monitor the side link data during the side link open duration or in the side link resource pool in the next time division. Thus, the PS-SCI resource configuration may optionally include an indicator to indicate whether the UE should monitor the sidelink on-duration or the sidelink resource pool during the next time division after sending the PS-SCI message and sidelink data. These optional information items that may be included in the PS-SCI resource configuration are similar to the corresponding optional information items for the wake-up control resource configuration in the third embodiment described above.

[0092] Other aspects not explicitly described with respect to the fourth embodiment can be found in the description with respect to the third and second embodiments.

[0093] Fifth embodiment

[0094] The embodiments provide various example implementations for configuring sidelink resources. In this embodiment, the sidelink resource configuration may be pre-configured for the UE, or may be obtained by the UE from the network side (e.g., the WAN of its serving cell). This resource configuration combines the configuration of sidelink resources for data transmission and sidelink control resources for power saving. The sidelink control resources may include the wake-up control resources or PS-SCI resources described above in the first and third embodiments.

[0095] For example, the sidelink resource configuration may include: Figure 2 The sidelink resource pool shown. The sidelink resource configuration may also include a wakeup control resource configuration, which indicates one or more wakeup control resources for sending wakeup control information or signals. The sidelink resource configuration may optionally include a power saving indicator to indicate that the sidelink resource pool included in the sidelink resource configuration can be used by a power-saving UE such as a P-UE.

[0096] Such sidelink resource configuration may be used, for example, in sidelink broadcasting. The receiving UE may be pre-configured with such sidelink resource configuration or obtain such sidelink resource configuration from its network side. The receiving UE may be configured to always monitor the wakeup control resource for wakeup control information or signals. When the receiving UE detects the wakeup control information or signal, it then wakes up to monitor the sidelink resource pool to receive sidelink data until a time point corresponding to the next wakeup control resource. If the receiving UE does not detect any wakeup control information or signal, the receiving UE does not need to wake up to monitor the sidelink resource pool for sidelink data. Reference Figure 2 For example, if the receiving UE receives wake-up control information or a signal at time point W1 indicating that the receiving UE needs to wake up to monitor sidelink data, it wakes up after W1 but before W2 to monitor the sidelink resource pool (sidelink resources 1, 2, and 3), thereby monitoring and receiving sidelink data. For another example, if the receiving UE monitors the wake-up control resource at W2 and does not receive any wake-up control information or a signal, the receiving UE does not need to wake up after W2 and before W3 to monitor the sidelink resource pool for receiving sidelink data (e.g., sidelink resources 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8).

[0097] The sending UE may also be pre-configured with such a side link resource configuration, or obtain such a side link resource configuration from its network side. When the sending UE determines that there is side link data to be sent (e.g., to be broadcast), it first sends the wake-up control information or signal on the wake-up control resource indicated in the wake-up control resource configuration. For example, the sending UE may use the next available wake-up control resource (in time) after determining that data needs to be sent. The sending UE then uses the side link resource pool to send side link data between the time point corresponding to the wake-up resource it used to send the wake-up control information / signal and the time point corresponding to the next wake-up control resource. In other words, the sending UE always sends the wake-up control information or signal on the wake-up control resource before sending the side link data on the side link resource pool. Reference Figure 2 For example, if the transmitting UE determines that it has sidelink data to send just before W1, it may first send the sidelink control information or signal at W1, and then send the sidelink data through the sidelink resources (1, 2, and 3) as needed. If the transmitting UE needs more sidelink resources than resources 1, 2, and 3 to send the sidelink data, it may further send another wake-up control information or signal at W2 and continue to use one or more of the sidelink resources 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 to send additional sidelink data.

[0098] Sixth embodiment

[0099] This embodiment provides various example implementations for configuring one or more sidelink resource pools to conserve power in sidelink communications.

[0100] One or more resource pools may be configured for sidelink connections. Some of these sidelink resource pools may be associated with power-saving purposes. For example, such a power-saving sidelink resource pool may be provided with a small time resource range offset by a large frequency resource range, so that a power-saving UE only needs to monitor such a sidelink resource pool for such sidelink data for a short duration.

[0101] In some embodiments, one or more power-saving side link resource pools can be further divided into side link resource time divisions. Each side link time division can be a portion of a side link resource pool, a side link resource pool, or multiple side link resource pools. For example, one or more power-saving side link resource pools can be divided into N side link resource time divisions. In some embodiments, the number N can be explicitly or implicitly indicated in one or more side link resource configurations corresponding to the one or more power-saving side link resource pools. The manner in which one or more power-saving side link resource pools are time-divided is described in various example embodiments below.

[0102] These side link resource time divisions can be selected by the UE for side link communication based on the service type. Such service types may include, but are not limited to, a service destination identifier, a broadcast type (broadcast, multicast, or unicast), and a QoS type (represented by, for example, a QFI or a QoS profile). For example, if a power-saving UE is interested in a side link broadcast service corresponding to a particular type of service, it may monitor the side link resource time divisions corresponding to that service type. For example, the UE may use such side link resource time divisions based on the destination identifier of the side link communication. As an example implementation only, for a side link broadcast service destination identifier = x, the broadcast UE may select the yth side link resource time division from the N time divisions based on y = MOD(X, N). For another example, assuming m = log2N, the broadcast UE may select the yth side link resource time division from the N time divisions based on y, where y is the value of the m most significant bits (MSB) or m least significant bits (LSB) of the service destination identifier. Other ways of mapping the destination identifier to the N time divisions of one or more side link resource pools are envisioned.

[0103] For side link resource configuration, UEs within the coverage of the serving cell can be configured by the WANN. UEs not covered by the serving cell can be pre-configured. Multiple side link resource pools can be configured. Each side link resource pool can correspond to a side link resource configuration. For a specific side link resource pool, the corresponding side link resource configuration may include a power saving indicator to indicate whether the side link resource pool is designated for power saving purposes (in some embodiments, the lack of such an indicator indicates that the resource pool is designated for normal rather than power saving purposes). The side link resource configuration may also optionally include a number N to indicate the number of resource time divisions of one or a group of power saving side link resource pools. The side link resource configuration may also optionally include a service type indicator, such as a service destination indicator, to indicate whether the side link resource pool allocated in the configuration will be used by the UE based on the service type of the side link communication. Various example embodiments for side link resource configuration are described in Figure 7-9 and described in further detail below.

[0104] like Figure 7 As shown, a particular sidelink resource pool 702 may be configured for sidelink communication. The corresponding sidelink resource configuration may include, for example, a resource bitmap 704 for indicating the sidelink resources included in the sidelink resource pool 702. The sidelink resource configuration may include a positive number N for indicating the number of sidelink resource time divisions of the sidelink resource pool 702, as shown in 706. In some embodiments, the sidelink resources may be divided in time in an interleaved manner. For example only, Figure 7 As shown, the time resource sequence of the side link resource pool is represented by 1, 2, ..., 10. These time resources are divided into N=5 time divisions including time resources (1, 6), (2, 7), (3, 8), (4, 9) and (5, 10). Other division rules are considered. Such division rules can be predefined. The side link resource configuration may also include a power saving indicator to indicate that the side link resource pool 702 can be used by a power-saving UE. Alternatively, the presence of a positive number N in the side link resource configuration may be used as such an indicator. The side link resource configuration may also optionally include a service type indicator to indicate the service type that the side link resource pool 702 can be used by the UE, including but not limited to a service destination identifier, a broadcast type and a QOS type, as described above.

[0105] In some other embodiments, such as Figure 7As shown, a specific side link resource pool 802 can be configured for side link communication. The corresponding side link resource configuration can include, for example, N independent resource bitmaps 804, 806, ... and 808, which are used to indicate the time division of the side link resources in the side link resource pool 802. The side link resource configuration can optionally include a positive number N, which is used to indicate the time division of the side link resources. Alternatively, the positive number N may not be explicitly included in the configuration because it can be implicitly derived from the number of bitmaps 804, 806, ... and 808. The side link resource configuration can also include a power saving indicator to indicate that the side link resource pool 702 can be used by a power-saving UE. Alternatively, the presence of the positive number N or the presence of multiple bitmaps 804, 806, ... and 808 can be used as an indication that the side link resource pool 702 can be used for power saving. The sidelink resource configuration may also optionally include a traffic type indicator to indicate the traffic type that the sidelink resource pool 702 can use for the UE, including but not limited to a service destination identifier, a broadcast type, and a QoS type, as described above.

[0106] In some other embodiments, N side link resource pools may be configured together to form N time divisions. Figure 9 Shown are side link resource pools 902, 904, 906, and 908 that form N time divisions for power saving purposes. Each of the side link resource pools is used as a side link resource time division. Each of these pools is associated with a side link resource configuration. Each side link resource configuration may include a resource bitmap, as shown in 912, 914, 926, and 918. A set of side link resource pools 902, 904, 9076, and 908 can be selected for use by power saving UEs. The side link resource configuration for each of the side link resource pools (e.g., side link resource pool 902) may optionally include a positive number N to indicate the number of pools (or time divisions) participating in power saving use. The side link resource configuration may also include a power saving indicator to indicate that the side link resource pool 702 can be used by a power saving UE and to indicate that the side link resource pool corresponding to the side link resource configuration is part of a resource pool set that forms N time divisions. The sidelink resource configuration may also optionally include a traffic type indicator to indicate the traffic types that the sidelink resource pool 702 may be used by the UE, including but not limited to the service destination identifier, broadcast type, and QoS type, as described above. Thus, the power-saving sidelink resource pools 902, 904, 906, and 908 may be configured to be specific to a traffic type or to be universal for power-saving sidelink communications.

[0107] Using the various sidelink resource configurations and resource pool allocations described above, a transmitting (e.g., broadcast) UE can perform the following steps when transmitting sidelink data. The transmitting UE can first receive a sidelink resource configuration through pre-configuration or from its network (e.g., the WAN of its serving cell). When the transmitting UE needs to transmit sidelink data, it selects a time slot from the sidelink resources based on the service type of the sidelink communication. For example, the transmitting UE can select one or more of the N time slots of the sidelink resources for transmission based on the destination identifier of the sidelink communication.

[0108] Similarly, the receiving UE of the broadcast sidelink data can perform the following steps when receiving the sidelink data. The receiving UE can first receive the sidelink resource configuration by pre-configuration or from its network side (for example, the WANN of its serving cell). The receiver then monitors the sidelink resources of interest. For example, if the receiving UE is interested in a broadcast data service with a specific destination identifier, it selects one or more time divisions of the corresponding sidelink resources to monitor the sidelink data. According to the various schemes and implementations of the above-mentioned resource allocation and configuration, the sidelink data corresponding to the destination identifier of interest will be transmitted in one or more time divisions of the sidelink resources monitored by the receiving UE.

[0109] In some embodiments, if a UE receives a sidelink resource allocation from its serving WANN, the UE may use the following example process to obtain the sidelink resource configuration. The UE may first send a buffer status report (BSR) to the WANN to request a sidelink resource allocation. The BSR may include service type (e.g., service destination identification) information (e.g., as an index), a logical channel group (LCG) identifier, and a buffer size. The WANN may allocate sidelink resources based on these parameters in the BSR and send one or more sidelink resource configurations to the UE. The sidelink resource configuration may include an allocation of sidelink resources and a service type index. Then, according to the various embodiments described above, the UE may send data of that service type (e.g., service destination) on the sidelink resources.

[0110] Seventh embodiment

[0111] Various implementations of this embodiment combine the implementations of the fifth and sixth embodiments described above to embed sidelink resource configuration with additional wake-up control resource configuration, so as to further reduce the power consumption of the UE in sidelink communication.

[0112] For example, the wake-up control resource configuration described above in the fifth embodiment can be embedded in the various side link resource configurations described in the sixth embodiment. The wake-up control resource configuration indicates one or more wake-up control resources for sending wake-up control information or signals. The wake-up control information or signal can be sent by the UE before the side link data transmission to instruct the receiving UE to monitor the side link resource for side link data after a first time point corresponding to the wake-up control resource for sending the wake-up control information and before a second time point corresponding to the next wake-up control resource specified in the wake-up control configuration.

[0113] Each side link resource pool may be associated with a side link resource configuration. Each side link resource configuration may include one or more wake-up control resource configurations. Each wake-up control resource configuration may include one or more wake-up control resources.

[0114] According to this side link resource configuration, when the sending UE determines that there is side link data to be sent (for example, to be broadcast), it first sends wake-up control information or signals on the wake-up control resources indicated in the wake-up control resource configuration. For example, after determining that data needs to be sent, the sending UE can use the next available wake-up control resource. The sending UE then uses the side link resource pool to send side link data between the time point corresponding to the wake-up resource it uses to send the wake-up control information / signal and the time point corresponding to the next wake-up control resource. In other words, the sending UE always sends wake-up control information or signals on the wake-up control resources before sending the side link data on the side link resource pool. The selection of side link resources for sending side link data can be based on the various implementations described in the sixth embodiment. For example, the UE can use side link resources in the time division selected based on the service type of the side link communication.

[0115] The receiving UE can be configured to always monitor the wake-up control resources to obtain wake-up control information or signals. When the receiving UE detects the wake-up control information or signal, it will subsequently wake up to monitor the side link resource pool to receive side link data until the time point corresponding to the next wake-up control resource. If the receiving UE does not detect any wake-up control information or signal, the receiving UE does not need to wake up to monitor the side link resource pool for side link data. The selection of side link resources for monitoring side link data can be based on the various implementations described in the sixth embodiment. For example, the receiving UE can use the side link resources in the time division selected based on the service type of the side link communication (for example, the destination identifier corresponding to the side link broadcast service of interest to the receiving UE).

[0116] Eighth embodiment

[0117] This embodiment provides an example implementation for establishing a unicast sidelink connection between UEs in a power-saving manner.

[0118] For example, if UE1 has not established any sidelink connection with UE2 for unicast sidelink communication, it cannot communicate with UE2 according to the power saving scheme described in the previous embodiment. During this period, UE2 can monitor messages broadcast by UE1. For example, UE2 can monitor Direct Communication Request (DCR) messages from UE1. Because DCR messages are carried in broadcast signals, the scheme for broadcast sidelink communication in the above embodiment can be used for power saving. Specifically, because UE1 broadcasts the DCR message via PC5 using the source Layer-2 ID and the destination Layer-2 ID, the monitoring of the broadcast data can be based on the fifth, sixth, and seventh embodiments described above. In addition, because the DCR message also includes other information, including but not limited to optional information about Target User Info (for example, if the broadcasting UE can determine the Target User Info of the receiving UE, it can optionally include Target User Info; otherwise, it does not include Target User Info), and if the broadcast message does carry the Target User Info of the receiving UE2, it can use the Target User Info as a destination identifier to calculate the time position of the resource pool used for transmission, thereby determining the time position for sending the wake-up control information. The receiving UE2 can use its Application Layer ID as the destination identifier to calculate the time location of the resources used to receive the broadcast data. If the broadcast message does not carry the Target User Info of the receiving UE2, other information such as the initial Application Layer ID or V2X Service Info can be used as the destination identifier of UE1 to calculate the time location of the resources used to send the wake-up control information and the broadcast message. Accordingly, for UE2, if it is interested in this type of unicast service, it can use these parameters to calculate the time location of the resources.

[0119] Ninth embodiment

[0120] This embodiment provides an example implementation for establishing a multicast side link connection between UEs in a power-saving manner.

[0121] For example, the P-UE may be interested in services associated with multicast. The P-UE may not yet be a member of the group and has not yet established any PC5RRC group connection with the UEs in the group. If all UEs in the group support the power-saving side link function, the side link resource pool of the P-UE can be time-divided according to the service type such as the service destination identifier (as described in the sixth embodiment above). For example, the power-saving resource pool can be divided into N time divisions. For multicast data transmission with a destination identifier of x, the time division index y can be selected according to, for example, y=mod(x,N). For another example, assuming m=log2N, y is the value of the m most significant bits (MSB) or m least significant bits (LSB) of the service destination identifier. Accordingly, for each resource pool, wake-up or PS SCI control resources can be further configured. Then, if the UE needs to send a multicast message, it first sends the wake-up or PS SCI information or signal before sending the multicast message. For UEs covered by the serving cell, the power-saving side link resources can be configured by the WAN. For example, when configuring a resource pool for a P-UE, one or more indicators may be included in the configuration to indicate whether the resource pool supports power saving functionality. The number N may be included optionally. A service type indicator may also be included to indicate whether the resource pool can be used based on service type. For each resource pool, a wakeup or PS-SCI resource configuration may also be included to indicate wakeup or PS-SCI resources.

[0122] In addition, and as described in the second embodiment, if the PS-SCI method is used, the PS-SCI message may also carry a service type, such as a service destination identifier, to indicate which service / traffic will be sent in the next sidelink resource. UEs interested in this type of service or traffic type will then wake up and monitor the sidelink resource for sidelink data. The UE also calculates a time division index y based on the traffic type, such as the destination identifier. Different y can correspond to different PS-SCIs, further reducing the number of wakeups. If a wakeup signal is used instead, the wakeup control resource can be determined by calculating y based on the traffic type, such as the destination identifier, thereby reducing the number of wakeups.

[0123] If different wake-up or PS-SCI resources are configured in different serving cells, the sending and receiving UEs may misunderstand each other. This configuration may require coordination between serving cells. This coordination may involve the OAM (operation, administration, and maintenance) functions of the wireless network.

[0124] If a P-UE also needs to receive data from a legacy sidelink UE (a UE that does not support power saving) that does not send a wake-up control signal, the P-UE may miss monitoring the sidelink data (because it does not receive any wake-up control signals). To avoid this, the transmission and reception resources of legacy UEs and P-UEs can be separated. Transmission resources for legacy UEs and reception resources for P-UEs can be configured separately.

[0125] Throughout the specification and claims, terms may have slightly different meanings suggested or implied by context, in addition to their explicitly stated meanings. Similarly, phrases such as "in one embodiment / implementation" used herein do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, and phrases such as "in another embodiment / implementation" used herein do not necessarily refer to different embodiments. For example, it is intended that claimed subject matter include all or part of the combination of the example embodiments.

[0126] In general, terms can be understood at least in part from their usage in context. For example, terms used herein, such as "and," "or," and "and / or," can include multiple meanings that can depend at least in part on the context in which the terms are used. Typically, "or," if used in connection with a list, such as A, B, or C, is intended to mean A, B, and C used herein in an inclusive sense, as well as A, B, or C used herein in an exclusive sense. In addition, the term "one or more," as used herein, can be used to describe any feature, structure, or characteristic in a singular sense, or can be used to describe a combination of features, structures, or characteristics in a plural sense (depending at least in part on the context). Similarly, terms such as "a," "an," or "the" can be understood to convey singular usage or to convey plural usage, again depending at least in part on the context. In addition, the term "based on" can be understood to not necessarily be intended to convey a set of exclusive factors, but can allow for the presence of additional factors that are not necessarily explicitly described, again depending at least in part on the context.

[0127] References throughout this specification to features, advantages, or similar language do not imply that all features and advantages that can be achieved with the present solution should be included in, or are included in, any single embodiment thereof. Rather, language referring to features and advantages is understood to mean that a specific feature, advantage, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present solution. Thus, discussions of features and advantages, and similar language, throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, refer to the same embodiment.

[0128] Furthermore, the described features, advantages, and characteristics of the present solution may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. One of ordinary skill in the relevant art will recognize, based on the description herein, that the present solution may be implemented without one or more of the specific features or advantages of a particular embodiment. In other cases, additional features and advantages may be recognized in certain embodiments that may not be present in all embodiments of the present solution.

Claims

1. A method for controlling wireless sidelink communications, comprising: Determining, by a first user equipment UE, a radio resource configuration specifying a first set of radio resources for transmitting a plurality of sidelink control information in a sidelink resource period; as well as Before transmitting a set of sidelink data on one of the second set of radio resources within the sidelink resource period, the first UE transmits sidelink control information from the plurality of sidelink control information on one of the first set of radio resources, wherein the second set of radio resources being allocated for sidelink communication and comprising one or more sidelink on-durations within the sidelink resource period, and the first set of radio resources corresponding to sidelink control information at a plurality of points in time; One of the plurality of sidelink control information is transmitted via a first wireless carrier at a first time point among the plurality of time points; and The sidelink control information includes a wake-up indicator, which is used to indicate to the second UE whether to wake up to monitor one or more sidelink on-durations of the second set of radio resources during a time period after receiving one of the multiple sidelink control information at the first time point and before receiving another one of the multiple sidelink control information at a next time point among the multiple time points.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The wake-up indicator comprises a single information bit.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein The radio resource configuration includes different resource time offsets for respectively specifying the multiple time points relative to a reference time point.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein: The radio resource configuration includes at least one of the following: a first identifier for the first set of radio resources; a second identifier configured for the radio resource; a sidelink wake-up configuration for, when no sidelink control information is detected at one of the plurality of time points, indicating to the second UE whether to monitor the second set of radio resources allocated for sidelink communication after the one of the time points until before a next one of the time points; A Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI) value used to scramble a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) of the plurality of sidelink control information; or The sidelink reference signal received power SL-RSRP report indication is used to instruct the second UE to transmit a periodic SL-RSRP report when the sidelink on duration timer is not started.

5. The method according to claim 3, wherein the sidelink control information further includes at least one of the following: a destination identifier for identifying the set of sidelink data; or An SCell dormancy indicator bitmap, wherein each bit in the bitmap corresponds to one of the SCell groups configured by a higher layer, and the most significant bit to the least significant bit in the bitmap correspond to the first configured SCell group to the last configured SCell group.

6. The method according to claim 3, further comprising: The first UE transmits the radio resource configuration to the second UE before transmitting the sidelink control information.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein: The first UE obtains the radio resource configuration from its serving cell.

8. The method according to claim 7, before the first UE obtains the radio resource configuration, further comprising: Send its sidelink UE information to its serving cell to request the radio resource configuration.

9. The method according to claim 3, wherein: The first UE obtains the radio resource configuration from the second UE.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The second UE obtains the radio resource configuration from its serving cell.

11. The method according to claim 3, wherein: The first UE and the second UE belong to a multicast UE group; and The first UE receives the radio resource configuration from a third UE in the multicast UE group.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein The first UE is configured to monitor sidelink data throughout at least one sidelink on-duration after the first UE transmits the sidelink control information.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein Each UE in the multicast UE group is configured to always monitor the sidelink data within at least one sidelink on-duration after the UE transmits the sidelink control information.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein The radio resource configuration includes group member identifier information, where the group member identifier information indicates at least one group member in the multicast UE group.

15. The method according to claim 11, wherein The wireless resource configuration also includes a group member indicator, which identifies at least one group member in the multicast UE group, and the at least one group member in the multicast UE group always monitors the side link data within at least one side link on duration after it transmits the side link control information.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein The group membership indicator comprises a bitmap.

17. The method according to claim 15, wherein: The group member indicator includes a group member identifier of the at least one group member of the multicast UE group.

18. The method according to claim 11, wherein Each UE in the multicast UE group is associated with one of a set of radio resource configurations, which are used to specify a conflict-free timing for transmitting sidelink control information between the multicast UE group.

19. The method according to claim 11, wherein The third UE obtains the radio resource configuration from its serving cell.

20. According to the method of claim 19, before the third UE obtains the wireless resource configuration, the third UE is configured to: send at least one of its sidelink UE information or the sidelink UE information of the multicast UE group to its serving cell to request the wireless resource configuration.

21. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 20, further comprising: Before the first UE transmits the sidelink control information, one of the first UE, the second UE or the third UE sends transmission capability information to the other, wherein the transmission capability information indicates whether the first UE, the second UE or the third UE supports sidelink power saving.

22. The method according to any one of claims 1-20, further comprising establishing a sidelink connection between the first UE and the second UE before determining the radio resource configuration by the first UE.

23. A method for controlling wireless sidelink communications, comprising: Determining, by a first user equipment UE, a radio resource configuration specifying a first set of radio resources for receiving a plurality of sidelink control information in a sidelink resource period; During the sidelink resource period, monitoring, by the first UE, the first set of radio resources for sidelink control information from the second UE; as well as After receiving sidelink control information from the second UE, monitoring a second set of radio resources for a set of sidelink data from the second UE during a configured time period within the sidelink resource cycle, wherein the second set of radio resources being allocated for sidelink communication and comprising one or more sidelink on-durations within the sidelink resource period, and the first set of radio resources corresponding to sidelink control information at a plurality of points in time; One of the plurality of sidelink control information is transmitted via a first wireless carrier at a first time point among the plurality of time points; and The sidelink control information includes a wake-up indicator, which is used to indicate to the first UE whether to wake up to monitor one or more sidelink on-durations of the second set of radio resources during a time period after receiving one of the multiple sidelink control information at the first time point and before receiving another one of the multiple sidelink control information at a next time point among the multiple time points.

24. The method according to claim 23, wherein The wake-up indicator comprises a single information bit.

25. The method according to claim 23, wherein The radio resource configuration includes different resource time offsets for respectively specifying the multiple time points relative to a reference time point.

26. The method according to claim 25, wherein The radio resource configuration includes at least one of the following: a first identifier for the first set of radio resources; a second identifier configured for the radio resource; a sidelink wake-up configuration for, when no sidelink control information is detected at one of the plurality of time points, indicating to the first UE whether to monitor the second set of radio resources allocated for sidelink communication after the one of the time points until before a next one of the time points; A Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI) value used to scramble a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) of the plurality of sidelink control information; or The sidelink reference signal received power SL-RSRP report indication is used to instruct the second UE to transmit a periodic SL-RSRP report when the sidelink on duration timer is not started.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the sidelink control information further comprises at least one of the following: a destination identifier for identifying the set of sidelink data; or An SCell dormancy indicator bitmap, wherein each bit in the bitmap corresponds to one of the SCell groups configured by a higher layer, and the most significant bit to the least significant bit in the bitmap correspond to the first configured SCell group to the last configured SCell group.

28. The method of claim 25, further comprising: The second UE transmits the radio resource configuration to the first UE before transmitting the sidelink control information.

29. The method according to claim 28, wherein The second UE obtains the radio resource configuration from its serving cell.

30. The method according to claim 29, before the second UE obtains the radio resource configuration, further comprising: Send its sidelink UE information to its serving cell to request radio resource configuration.

31. The method of claim 25, wherein: The second UE obtains the radio resource configuration from the first UE.

32. The method according to claim 31, wherein The first UE obtains the radio resource configuration from its serving cell.

33. The method of claim 25, wherein: The first UE and the second UE belong to a multicast UE group; and The second UE receives the radio resource configuration from a third UE in the multicast UE group.

34. The method according to claim 33, wherein The second UE is configured to monitor sidelink data throughout at least one sidelink on-duration after the second UE transmits the sidelink control information.

35. The method of claim 33, wherein: Each UE in the multicast UE group is configured to monitor the sidelink data all the time within at least one sidelink on-duration period after the UE transmits the sidelink control information.

36. The method of claim 33, wherein: The radio resource configuration includes group member identifier information, where the group member identifier information indicates at least one group member in the multicast UE group.

37. The method of claim 33, wherein: The wireless resource configuration also includes a group member indicator, which identifies at least one group member in the multicast UE group, and the at least one group member in the multicast UE group always monitors the side link data within at least one side link on duration after it transmits the side link control information.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein: The group membership indicator comprises a bitmap.

39. The method of claim 37, wherein: The group member indicator includes a group member identifier of the at least one group member of the multicast UE group.

40. The method of claim 33, wherein Each UE in the multicast UE group is associated with one of a set of radio resource configurations, which are used to specify a conflict-free timing for transmitting sidelink control information between the multicast UE group.

41. The method of claim 33, wherein: The third UE obtains the radio resource configuration from its serving cell.

42. According to the method of claim 41, before the third UE obtains the wireless resource configuration, the third UE is configured to: send its sidelink UE information or at least one of the sidelink UE information of the multicast UE group to its serving cell to request the wireless resource configuration.

43. The method according to any one of claims 33 to 42, further comprising: Before the second UE transmits the sidelink control information, one of the first UE, the second UE or the third UE sends transmission capability information to the other, wherein the transmission capability information indicates whether the first UE, the second UE or the third UE supports sidelink power saving.

44. The method according to any one of claims 23-42, further comprising establishing a sidelink connection between the first UE and the second UE before determining the radio resource configuration by the first UE.

45. An apparatus comprising a memory and at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor is configured to read computer code from the memory to cause the at least one processor to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 44.

46. ​​A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 44.

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