Signaling for relaying before decoding

Abstract

Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques for signaling that a relay packet includes information generated prior to decoding (e.g., pre-decoded samples, such as log likelihood ratios (LLRs)). A method that may be performed by a first wireless node (e.g., a relay node (such as a relay user equipment (UE)), a network entity (such as an access point (AP), a base station (BS) or a next generation Node B (gNB), or another node)) includes determining that at least one first packet to be sent to a second node includes first information about pre-decoding of the second packet and providing an indication to the second node that the first packet includes the pre-decoded first information.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims priority to U.S. Application No. 17 / 322,846, filed on May 17, 2021, which claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 027,212, filed on May 19, 2020, which is hereby assigned to the assignee of this application and is expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety as if fully set forth below and for all applicable purposes. Technical Field

[0003] Aspects of the present disclosure relate to wireless communications, and more particularly, to techniques for signaling to a relay that a packet includes information generated prior to decoding (eg, pre-decoded samples such as log-likelihood ratios (LLRs)). Background Art

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

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

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

[0007] As demand for mobile broadband access continues to grow, further improvements to NR and LTE technologies are needed. These improvements should apply to other multi-access technologies and the telecommunication standards that adopt them. Summary of the invention

[0008] The systems, methods, and devices of the present disclosure each have several aspects, no single aspect of which is solely responsible for its desirable attributes. Without limiting the scope of the present disclosure as expressed by the appended claims, some features will now be briefly discussed. After considering this discussion, and particularly after reading the section entitled "Detailed Description of the Invention," one will understand how the features of the present disclosure provide advantages including improved communications in an integrated access and backhaul system.

[0009] Certain aspects provide a method of wireless communication by a first node (e.g., a wireless relay node). The method generally includes determining that at least one first packet to be sent to a second node includes pre-decoded first information about the second packet; and providing an indication to the second node that the first packet includes the pre-decoded first information.

[0010] Certain aspects provide a method of wireless communication by a first node (e.g., a wireless receiver node). The method generally includes decoding at least a first packet from a second node; obtaining an indication that the first packet includes pre-decoded first information about a second packet; and attempting to decode the second packet based on the pre-decoded first information.

[0011] Certain aspects may be implemented by a first node (e.g., a wireless relay node) in an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus may include at least one processor and a memory coupled to the at least one processor, the memory including instructions executable by the at least one processor to cause the apparatus to determine that at least one first packet to be sent to a second node includes pre-decoded first information about the second packet; and provide an indication to the second node that the first packet includes the pre-decoded first information.

[0012] Certain aspects may be implemented by a first node (e.g., a wireless receiver node) in an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus may include at least one processor and a memory coupled to the at least one processor, the memory including instructions executable by the at least one processor to cause the apparatus to decode at least a first packet from a second node; obtain an indication that the first packet includes pre-decoded first information about a second packet; and attempt to decode the second packet based on the pre-decoded first information.

[0013] Certain aspects may be implemented by a first node (e.g., a wireless relay node) in an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus may include means for determining that at least one first packet to be sent to a second node includes pre-decoded first information about the second packet; and means for providing an indication to the second node that the first packet includes the pre-decoded first information.

[0014] Certain aspects may be implemented by a first node (e.g., a wireless receiver node) in an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus may include means for decoding at least a first packet from a second node; means for obtaining an indication that the first packet includes pre-decoded first information about a second packet; and means for attempting to decode the second packet based on the pre-decoded first information.

[0015] Certain aspects may be implemented by a first node (e.g., a wireless relay node) in a non-transitory computer-readable medium for wireless communication. The non-transitory computer-readable medium may include computer-executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a processing system, cause the processing system to determine that at least one first packet to be sent to a second node includes pre-decoded first information about the second packet; and provide an indication to the second node that the first packet includes the pre-decoded first information.

[0016] Certain aspects may be implemented in a non-transitory computer-readable medium for wireless communication by a first node (e.g., a wireless receiver node). The non-transitory computer-readable medium may include computer-executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a processing system, cause the processing system to decode at least a first packet from a second node; obtain an indication that the first packet includes pre-decoded first information about a second packet; and attempt to decode the second packet based on the pre-decoded first information.

[0017] To achieve the foregoing and related ends, one or more aspects include features fully described below and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the accompanying drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative features of one or more aspects. However, these features are only indicative of some of the various ways in which the principles of the various aspects can be employed. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] In order to be able to understand in detail the manner in which the above-mentioned features of the present disclosure are achieved, a more specific description may be made with reference to the aspects, and briefly summarized above, some of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It should be noted, however, that the accompanying drawings illustrate only certain typical aspects of the present disclosure and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, as the description may admit of other equally effective aspects.

[0019] Figure 1 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating an example wireless communication system in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 2 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating an example architecture of a distributed radio access network (RAN) in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0021] Figure 3 Example components of an access point (AP) and user equipment (eg, a repeater) are shown in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0022] Figure 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example communication protocol stack in a RAN in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0023] Figure 5 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a frame format for New Radio (NR) in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0024] Figure 6 is a block diagram of an example wireless relay in which aspects of the present disclosure may be implemented.

[0025] Figure 7 Example operations for wireless communications performed by a wireless relay node are illustrated in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0026] Figure 8 Example operations for wireless communications by a wireless receiver node are shown in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0027] Fig. 9 is a call flow diagram illustrating a sample of pre-decoding of relay packets in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0028] Fig.10 A communication device according to certain aspects of the present disclosure is shown, which may include a device configured to perform Figure 7 Various components of the operation shown.

[0029] Fig.11 A communication device according to certain aspects of the present disclosure is shown, which may include a device configured to perform Figure 8 Various components of the operation shown.

[0030] To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures. It is contemplated that elements disclosed in one aspect may be beneficially utilized on other aspects without specific recitation. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] Aspects of the present disclosure provide apparatus, methods, processing systems, and computer-readable media that enhance the functionality of a relay node (a wireless device that relays directional wireless signals). As described in more detail below, by relaying pre-decoded samples of a packet, processing time can be reduced and packets can be relayed faster. The technology presented herein provides a mechanism for signaling that a relayed packet includes information generated prior to decoding (e.g., pre-decoded samples, such as log-likelihood ratios (LLRs)).

[0032] The following description provides examples and does not limit the scope, applicability or examples set forth in the claims. Without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the functions and arrangements of the elements discussed may be changed. Various examples may appropriately omit, replace or add various processes or components. For example, the described method may be performed in an order different from that described, and various steps may be added, omitted or combined. In addition, the features described with respect to some examples may be combined in some other examples. For example, any number of aspects set forth herein may be used to implement a device or practice method. In addition, the scope of the present disclosure is intended to cover such a device or method that is practiced using other structures, functions or structures and functions in addition to or different from the various aspects of the present disclosure set forth herein. It should be understood that any aspect of the disclosure disclosed herein may be embodied by one or more elements of the claims. The term "exemplary" used herein means "used as an example, instance or illustration". Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be interpreted as being more preferred or more advantageous than other aspects.

[0033] The technology described herein can be used for various wireless communication technologies, such as long term evolution (LTE), code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), single carrier frequency division multiple access (SCFDMA), time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) and other networks. The terms "network" and "system" are often used interchangeably. A CDMA network can implement radio technologies such as Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), cdma2000, etc. UTRA includes wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) and other variants of CDMA. cdma2000 covers IS-2000, IS-95 and IS-856 standards. A TDMA network can implement radio technologies such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM). An OFDMA network may implement a radio technology such as NR (e.g., 5G RA), Evolved UTRA (E-UTRA), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (WiFi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDMA, etc. UTRA and E-UTRA are part of Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS).

[0034] New Radio (NR) is an emerging wireless communication technology developed in conjunction with the 5G Technology Forum (5GTF). 3GPP LTE and LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) are versions of UMTS that use EUTRA. UTRA, E-UTRA, UMTS, LTE, LTE-A, and GSM are described in documents from an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership Project" (3GPP). CDMA2000 and UMB are described in documents from an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership Project 2" (3gpp 2). The techniques described herein can be used for the above-mentioned wireless networks and radio technologies as well as other wireless networks and radio technologies. For clarity, although terms commonly associated with 3G and / or 4G wireless technologies may be used herein to describe various aspects, various aspects of the present disclosure may be applied to other communication systems based on generations, such as 5G and later communication systems, including NR technologies.

[0035] NR access (e.g., 5G technology) can support various wireless communication services, such as enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) targeting wide bandwidth (e.g., 80 MHz or above), millimeter wave (mmW) targeting high carrier frequency (e.g., 25 GHz or above), massive machine type communication MTC (mMTC) targeting non-backward compatible MTC technology, and / or mission-critical communication targeting ultra-reliable low latency communication (URLLC). These services may include latency and reliability requirements. These services may also have different transmission time intervals (TTIs) to meet corresponding quality of service (QoS) requirements. In addition, these services can coexist in the same subframe.

[0036] The teachings herein may be incorporated into (eg, implemented therein or performed by) various wired or wireless devices (eg, nodes). In some aspects, a wireless node implemented in accordance with the teachings herein may comprise an access point or an access terminal.

[0037] An access point (“AP”) may include, be implemented as, or be referred to as a Node B, a radio network controller (“RNC”), an evolved Node B (eNB), a base station controller (“BSC”), a base transceiver station (“BTS”), a base station (“BS”), a transceiver function (“TF”), a radio router, a radio transceiver, a basic service set (“BSS”), an extended service set (“ESS”), a radio base station (“RBS”), an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node (e.g., an IAB donor node, an IAB parent node, and an IAB child node, or some other terminology.

[0038] User equipment (UE) may include, be implemented as or be referred to as an access terminal, a subscriber station, a subscriber unit, a mobile station, a remote station, a remote terminal, a user terminal, a user agent, a user device, a user equipment, a user station or some other terms. In some embodiments, the access terminal may include a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a session initiation protocol ("SIP") phone, a wireless local loop ("WLL") station, a personal digital assistant ("PDA"), a handheld device with wireless connection capability, a station ("STA") or some other suitable processing devices (such as AR / VR consoles and headphones) connected to a wireless modem. Therefore, one or more aspects of the teachings herein may be incorporated into a phone (e.g., a cellular phone or a smart phone), a computer (e.g., a laptop computer), a portable communication device, a portable computing device (e.g., a personal data assistant), an entertainment device (e.g., a music or video device, or a satellite radio), a global positioning system device, or any other suitable device configured to communicate via a wireless or wired medium. In some aspects, the node is a wireless node. For example, such a wireless node may provide connectivity for or to a network (eg, a wide area network such as the Internet or a cellular network) via a wired or wireless communication link.

[0039] Example Wireless Communication System

[0040] Figure 1 An example wireless communication network 100 is shown in which various aspects of the present disclosure may be implemented. Figure 1 As shown, a user equipment (UE) 120r may act as a relay device or repeater. Such a relay device or repeater and / or a network entity, such as an access point (AP) 110 (e.g., a base station (BS) or a next generation node) may be configured to perform Figure 7 Operation 700 of 1000 may be performed to provide an indication that the relayed packet includes pre-decoded samples of the source packet. In some cases, a compression scheme may be used to compress the pre-decoded samples. A receiver node (e.g., UE 120 or AP 110) may be configured to perform Figure 8 The operations 800 are to receive and process relayed packets.

[0041] The wireless communication network 100 may be, for example, a New Radio (NR) or 5G network. Figure 1As shown, the wireless communication network 100 may include multiple access points (APs) 110 and other network entities. An AP may be a UE that communicates with a user equipment (UE). Each AP 110 may provide communication coverage for a specific geographic area. In 3GPP, the term "cell" may refer to the coverage area of ​​a Node B (NB) and / or a NB subsystem serving the coverage area, depending on the context in which the term is used. In NR systems, the terms "cell" and next generation NodeB (gNB or gNodeB), NR AP, 5G NB, or transmit receive point (TRP) may be interchangeable. In some examples, the cell is not necessarily stationary, and the geographic area of ​​the cell may move depending on the location of the mobile AP. In some examples, the APs may be interconnected to each other and / or to one or more other access points or network nodes (not shown) in the wireless communication network 100 via various types of backhaul interfaces (such as direct physical connections using any suitable transport networks, wireless connections, virtual networks, etc.).

[0042] Typically, any number of wireless networks can be deployed in a given geographic area. Each wireless network can support a specific radio access technology (RAT) and can operate on one or more frequencies. RAT can also be referred to as radio technology, air interface, etc. Frequency can also be referred to as carrier, subcarrier, channel, tone, subband, etc. Each frequency can support a single RAT in a given geographic area to avoid interference between wireless networks of different RATs. In some cases, NR or 5G RAT networks can be deployed.

[0043] An AP may provide communication coverage for macro cells, pico cells, femto cells, and / or other types of cells. A macro cell may cover a relatively large geographic area (e.g., a radius of several kilometers) and may allow unrestricted access to UEs with service subscriptions. A pico cell may cover a relatively small geographic area and may allow unrestricted access to UEs with service subscriptions. A femto cell may cover a relatively small geographic area (e.g., a home) and may allow restricted access to UEs associated with the femto cell (e.g., UEs in a closed subscriber group (CSG), UEs of users in a home, etc.). An AP for a macro cell may be referred to as a macro AP. An AP for a pico cell may be referred to as a pico AP. An AP for a femto cell may be referred to as a femto AP or a home AP. In Figure 1 In the example shown, APs 110a, 110b, and 110c may be macro APs for macro cells 102a, 102b, and 102c, respectively. AP 110x may be a pico AP for pico cell 102x. APs 110y and 110z may be femto APs for femto cells 102y and 102z, respectively. An AP may support one or more (e.g., three) cells.

[0044] The wireless communication network 100 may also include a relay UE 120r. The relay UE 120r is a UE that receives transmissions of data and / or other information from an upstream UE (e.g., AP 110 or UE 120) and sends transmissions of data and / or other information to a downstream UE (e.g., UE 120 or AP 110). The relay UE 120r may also be a UE that relays transmissions for other UEs 120. Figure 1 In the illustrated example, a relay UE 120r may communicate with the AP 110a and the UE 120s to facilitate communications between the AP 110a and the UE 120s. The relay UE 120r may also be referred to as an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, a relay AP, a relay, or the like.

[0045] The wireless communication network 100 may be a heterogeneous network that includes different types of APs 110, such as macro APs, pico APs, femto APs, relays, etc. These different types of APs 110 may have different transmit power levels, different coverage areas, and different effects on interference in the wireless communication network 100. For example, a macro AP may have a high transmit power level (e.g., 20 watts), while pico APs, femto APs, and relays may have lower transmit power levels (e.g., 1 watt).

[0046] The wireless communication network 100 may support synchronous or asynchronous operation. For synchronous operation, the APs may have similar frame timing, and transmissions from different APs may be approximately aligned in time. For asynchronous operation, the APs may have different frame timing, and transmissions from different APs may not be aligned in time. The techniques described herein may be used for both synchronous and asynchronous operation.

[0047] A network controller 130 may be coupled to a collection of APs and provide coordination and control for these APs. The network controller 130 may communicate with the APs 110 via a backhaul. The APs 110 may also communicate with each other (eg, directly or indirectly) via a wireless or wired backhaul.

[0048] UEs 120 (e.g., 120x, 120y, etc.) may be dispersed throughout the wireless communication network 100, and each UE may be fixed or mobile. As described above, UE 120 may also be referred to as a mobile station, a terminal, an access terminal, a subscriber unit, a station, a customer premises equipment (CPE), a cellular phone, a smart phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a wireless communication device, a handheld device, a laptop computer, a cordless phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a tablet computer, a camera, a gaming device, a netbook, a smartbook, an ultrabook, an appliance, a medical device or medical equipment, a biosensor / device, a wearable device such as a smart watch, smart clothing, smart glasses, a smart wristband, smart jewelry (e.g., a smart ring, a smart bracelet, etc.), an entertainment device (e.g., a music device, a video device, a satellite radio, etc.), a vehicle component or sensor, a smart meter / sensor, an industrial manufacturing device, a global positioning system device, or any other suitable device configured to communicate via a wireless or wired medium. Some UEs may be considered as machine type communication (MTC) devices or evolved MTC (eMTC) devices. MTC and eMTC UEs include, for example, robots, drones, remote devices, sensors, meters, monitors, location tags, etc. They may communicate with AP 110, another device (e.g., a remote device), or some other entity. For example, a wireless node may provide a connection to or to a network (e.g., a wide area network such as the Internet or a cellular network) via a wired or wireless communication link. Some UEs 120 may be considered as Internet of Things (IoT) devices, which may be narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) devices.

[0049] Some wireless networks (e.g., LTE) utilize orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) on the downlink (DL) and single carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the uplink (UL). OFDM and SC-FDM divide the system bandwidth into multiple (K) orthogonal subcarriers, which are also commonly referred to as tones, frequency bins, etc. Each subcarrier can be modulated with data. In general, modulation symbols are sent in the frequency domain using OFDM and in the time domain using SC-FDM. The spacing between adjacent subcarriers can be fixed, and the total number of subcarriers (K) can depend on the system bandwidth. For example, the spacing of the subcarriers can be 15kHz, and the minimum resource allocation (called a "resource block" (RB)) can be 12 subcarriers (or 180kHz). Therefore, for system bandwidths of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 megahertz (MHz), the nominal fast Fourier transform (FFT) size can be equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024, or 2048, respectively. The system bandwidth may also be divided into subbands. For example, a subband may cover 1.08 MHz (ie, 6 resource blocks (RBs)), and there may be 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 subbands for system bandwidths of 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, or 20 MHz, respectively.

[0050] Although aspects of the examples described herein may be associated with LTE technology, aspects of the present disclosure may be applicable to other wireless communication systems, such as NR. NR may utilize OFDM with CP on UL and DL, and include support for half-duplex operation using time division duplex (TDD). Beamforming may be supported, and the beam direction may be dynamically configured. Multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmissions with precoding may also be supported. The MIMO configuration in the DL may support up to 8 transmit antennas, up to 8 streams per UE, and multi-layer DL transmissions of up to 2 streams. Multi-layer transmissions of up to 2 streams per UE may be supported. Aggregation of multiple cells up to 8 serving cells may be supported.

[0051] In some examples, access to the air interface may be scheduled. A scheduling entity (e.g., AP 110) allocates resources for communications between some or all devices and equipment within its service area or cell. The scheduling entity may be responsible for scheduling, allocating, reconfiguring, and releasing resources for one or more subordinate entities. That is, for scheduled communications, subordinate entities utilize resources allocated by the scheduling entity. AP 110 is not the only entity that can serve as a scheduling entity. In some examples, UE 120 may serve as a scheduling entity, and may schedule resources for one or more subordinate entities (e.g., one or more other UEs 120), and other UEs 120 may utilize the resources scheduled by the UE for wireless communications. In some examples, UE 120 may serve as a scheduling entity in a peer-to-peer (P2P) network and / or a mesh network. In a mesh network example, UE 120 may communicate directly with each other in addition to communicating with the scheduling entity.

[0052] exist Figure 1 , a solid line with double arrows indicates a desired transmission between a UE 120 and a serving AP 110, which is an AP 110 that is designated to serve the UE 120 on the DL and / or UL. A thin dashed line with double arrows indicates an interfering transmission between the UE 120 and the AP 110.

[0053] Figure 2 An example architecture of a distributed radio access network (RAN) 200 is shown, which includes an example IAB network 250 that can be used in Figure 1 The wireless communication network 100 shown in FIG. Figure 2 As shown, the distributed RAN includes a core network (CN) 202 and an access node (AN) configured as an IAB donor 208 .

[0054] The IAB donor node 208 is a RAN node (e.g., an AP / gNB that terminates an NR NG interface with a core network (e.g., a next generation NG core)) and is typically connected to the CN 202 via a wired backhaul link. The CN 202 may host core network functions. The CN 202 may be centrally deployed. The functions of the CN 202 may be transferred (e.g., to Advanced Wireless Services (AWS)) in an effort to handle peak capacity. The CN 202 may include an access and mobility management function (AMF) 204 and a user plane function (UPF) 206. The AMF 204 and the UPF 206 may perform one or more core network functions.

[0055] The IAB donor 208 may communicate with the CN 202 (e.g., via a backhaul interface). The IAB donor 208 may communicate with the AMF 204 via an N2 (e.g., NG-C) interface. The IAB donor 208 may communicate with the UPF 206 via an N3 (e.g., NG-U) interface. The IAB donor 208 may include a central unit control plane (CU-CP) 210, one or more central unit user planes (CU-UP) 212, one or more distributed units (DU) 214-218, and one or more antenna / remote radio units (AU / RRU) (not shown). The CU and DU may also be referred to as gNB-CU and gNB-DU, respectively.

[0056] The IAB donor node 208 may also be referred to as an IAB anchor node and may include an IAB CU (e.g., an NR CU) or an IAB DU (e.g., an NR DU). The IAB network 250 also includes one or more non-donor IAB nodes (e.g., 220a-220e). Each IAB node (including the donor IAB node 208 and the non-donor IAB nodes 220a-220e) may serve one or more UEs (e.g., 222a-222c) connected to the IAB node. As shown, the IAB nodes including the donor IAB node 208 may be connected via a wireless backhaul link (e.g., an NR wireless backhaul link or a backup NR wireless backhaul link). Each IAB node is connected to the UE it serves via a corresponding access link.

[0057] Each IAB node is a RAN node (e.g., AP / gNB) that provides IAB functions with two roles including a data unit function (DU-F) and a mobile terminal function (MT-F). The DU-F of an IAB node is generally responsible for scheduling UEs (e.g., served by the IAB node) and other IAB nodes (e.g., connected to the IAB node as child nodes). The DU-F also controls access and backhaul links within its coverage. The MT-F of an IAB node is controlled and scheduled by an IAB donor node or another IAB node as its parent IAB node. In one aspect, the IAB donor node 208 includes only a DU-F and no MT-F.

[0058] The CU-CP 210 may be connected to one or more DUs 214-218. The CU-CP 210 and the DUs 214-218 may be connected via a wired interface using the F1-C protocol. Figure 2 As shown, CU-CP 210 can be connected to multiple DUs, but a DU can be connected to only one CU-CP. Figure 2Only one CU-UP 212 is shown, but the IAB donor 208 may include multiple CU-UPs. The CU-CP 210 selects appropriate (multiple) CU-UPs for the requested service (e.g., for the UE). The (multiple) CU-UPs 212 may be connected to the CU-CP 210. For example, the (multiple) CU-UPs 212 and the CU-CP 210 may be connected via an E1 interface. The (multiple) CU-UPs 212 may be connected to one or more DUs 214, 218. The (multiple) CU-UPs 212 and the DUs 214, 218 may be connected via an F1-U interface. Figure 2 As shown, the CU-CP 210 may be connected to a plurality of CU-UPs, but a CU-UP may be connected to only one CU-CP.

[0059] A DU such as DU 214 and / or 218 may host one or more TRPs (transmit / receive points, which may include edge nodes (ENs), edge units (EUs), radio heads (RHs), smart radio heads (SRHs), etc.). A DU may be located at the edge of a network with radio frequency (RF) capabilities. A DU may be connected to multiple CU-UPs, which are connected to (e.g., under the control of) the same CU-CP (e.g., for RAN sharing, radio as a service (RaaS), and service-specific deployments). A DU may be configured to provide services to a UE individually (e.g., dynamically selected) or jointly (e.g., joint transmission). Each DU 214, 218 may be connected to one of the AU / RRUs.

[0060] The CU-CP 210 may be connected to multiple DUs that are connected to (e.g., under the control of) the same CU-UP 212. The connection between the CU-UP 212 and the DU may be established by the CU-CP 210. For example, a bearer context management function may be used to establish the connection between the CU-UP 212 and the DU. Data forwarding between (multiple) CU-UPs 212 may be via an Xn-U interface.

[0061] The distributed RAN 200 can support fronthaul solutions across different deployment types. For example, the RAN 200 architecture can be based on transmission network capabilities (e.g., bandwidth, delay and / or jitter). The distributed RAN 200 can share features and / or components with LTE. For example, the IAB donor 208 can support dual connectivity with NR and can share a common fronthaul for LTE and NR. The distributed RAN 200 can, for example, implement collaboration between DUs 214 and 218 via CU-UP 212. The inter-DU interface may not be used.

[0062] Logical functions may be dynamically distributed in the distributed RAN 200. Figure 4Described in more detail, the radio resource control (RRC) layer, the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, the radio link control (RLC) layer, the medium access control (MAC) layer, the physical (PHY) layer and / or the radio frequency (RF) layer can be adaptively placed in the AN and / or the UE.

[0063] Figure 3 An AP 110 and a UE 120 (eg, a repeater) are shown. Figure 1 300) can be used to implement aspects of the present disclosure. For example, antenna 352, processors 366, 358, 364 and / or controller / processor 380 of UE 120 and / or antenna 334, processors 320, 330, 338 and / or controller / processor 340 of AP 110 can be used to perform the present disclosure. Figure 7 and / or Figure 8 Various techniques and methods are described.

[0064] At the AP 110, the transmit processor 320 may receive data from the data source 312 and control information from the controller / processor 340. The control information may be for a physical broadcast channel (PBCH), a physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH), a physical hybrid ARQ indicator channel (PHICH), a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), a group common PDCCH (GC PDCCH), etc. The data may be for a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), etc. The processor 320 may process (e.g., encode and symbol map) the data and the control information to obtain data symbols and control symbols, respectively. The processor 320 may also generate reference symbols, e.g., for a primary synchronization signal (PSS), a secondary synchronization signal (SSS), and a cell-specific reference signal (CRS). The transmit (TX) MIMO processor 330 may perform spatial processing (e.g., precoding) on ​​the data symbols, control symbols, and / or reference symbols (if applicable), and may provide output symbol streams to modulators (MODs) 332a to 332t. Each modulator 332 may process a corresponding output symbol stream (e.g., for OFDM, etc.) to obtain an output sample stream. Each modulator may further process (e.g., convert to analog, amplify, filter, and upconvert) the output sample stream to obtain a downlink signal. The DL signals from modulators 332a through 332t may be transmitted via antennas 334a through 334t, respectively.

[0065] At the UE 120, antennas 352a to 352r can receive DL signals from the AP 110 and can provide received signals to demodulators (DEMODs) in transceivers 354a to 354r, respectively. Each demodulator can condition (e.g., filter, amplify, downconvert, and digitize) a corresponding received signal to obtain input samples. Each demodulator can further process the input samples (e.g., for OFDM, etc.) to obtain received symbols. The MIMO detector 356 can obtain received symbols from all demodulators in the transceivers 354a to 354r, perform MIMO detection on the received symbols if applicable, and provide detected symbols. The receive processor 358 can process (e.g., demodulate, deinterleave, and decode) the detected symbols, provide decoded data for the UE 120 to the data sink 360, and provide decoded control information to the controller / processor 380.

[0066] On the uplink, at the UE 120, the transmit processor 364 may receive and process data from a data source 362 (e.g., for a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH)) and control information from the controller / processor 380 (e.g., for a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH)). The transmit processor 364 may also generate reference symbols for a reference signal (RS) (e.g., a sounding reference signal (SRS)). The symbols from the transmit processor 364 may be precoded by a TX MIMO processor 366, if applicable, further processed by a demodulator in the transceivers 354a through 354r (e.g., for SC-FDM, etc.), and transmitted to the AP 110. At the AP 110, the UL signal from the UE 120 may be received by the antenna 334, processed by the modulator 332, detected by the MIMO detector 356 (if applicable), and further processed by the receive processor 338 to obtain decoded data and control information transmitted by the UE 120. The receive processor 338 may provide the decoded data to a data sink 339 and may provide the decoded control information to the controller / processor 340 .

[0067] Controllers / processors 340 and 380 may direct the operation at AP 110 and UE 120, respectively. Processor 340 and / or other processors and modules at AP 110 may perform or direct the execution of processes for the techniques described herein. Memories 342 and 382 may store data and program codes for AP 110 and UE 120, respectively. Scheduler 344 may schedule UEs for data transmission on the DL and / or UL.

[0068] Figure 4A schematic diagram showing an example of implementing a communication protocol stack 400 in a RAN (e.g., such as RAN 200) according to aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The communication protocol stack 400 shown can be implemented by a device operating in a wireless communication system such as a 5G NR system (e.g., wireless communication network 100). In various examples, the layers of the protocol stack 400 can be implemented as independent modules of software, as part of a processor or ASIC, as part of a non-collocated device connected by a communication link, or various combinations thereof. For example, collocated and non-collocated implementations can be used in the protocol stack of a network access device or UE. As shown in FIG. Figure 4 As shown, the system can support various services through one or more protocols. One or more protocol layers of the protocol stack 400 can be composed of AN (e.g., Figure 2 AN 208, or Figure 1 and Figure 2 AP 110a) and / or UE (e.g., Figure 1 and Figure 2 This is achieved by using the UE 120 in the example.

[0069] like Figure 4 As shown, the protocol stack 400 is split in the AN. The RRC layer 405, the PDCP layer 410, the RLC layer 415, the MAC layer 420, the PHY layer 425, and the RF layer 430 may be implemented by the AN. For example, the CU-CP (e.g., Figure 2 210) and CU-UP (e.g., Figure 2 CU-UP 212 in the example) can each implement the RRC layer 405 and the PDCP layer 410. DU (e.g., Figure 2 DUs 214 and 218 in the DU may implement RLC layer 415 and MAC layer 420. However, DUs may also implement (multiple) PHY layers 425 and (multiple) RF layers 430 via AU / RRUs connected to the DU. PHY layer 425 may include a high PHY layer and a low PHY layer.

[0070] UE (e.g. Figure 2 The UE 222a-222c in the embodiment may implement the entire protocol stack 400 (eg, the RRC layer 405, the PDCP layer 410, the RLC layer 415, the MAC layer 420, the PHY layer(s) 425, and the RF layer(s) 430).

[0071] Figure 5is a schematic diagram showing an example of a frame format 500 for NR. The transmission timeline of each of DL and UL can be divided into units of radio frames. Each radio frame can have a predetermined duration (e.g., 10ms) and can be divided into 10 subframes, each subframe 1ms, with an index of 0 to 9. Depending on the subcarrier spacing, each subframe can include a variable number of slots. Depending on the subcarrier spacing (SCS), each slot can include a variable number of symbol periods (e.g., 7 or 14 symbols). The symbol period in each slot can be assigned an index. A micro slot, which can be referred to as a subslot structure, refers to a transmission time interval (TTI) with a duration less than one slot (e.g., 2, 3, or 4 symbols). Each symbol in a slot can indicate a link direction (e.g., DL, UL, or flexible) for data transmission, and the link direction of each subframe can be dynamically switched. The link direction can be based on the slot format. Each slot can include DL / UL data and DL / UL control information.

[0072] In NR, a synchronization signal block (SSB) is transmitted. SSB includes PSS, SSS and dual-symbol PBCH. SSB can be transmitted in fixed time slot positions, such as Figure 5 Symbols 0-3 shown. PSS and SSS can be used by UE for cell search and acquisition. PSS can provide half-frame timing, and SSS can provide CP length and frame timing. PSS and SSS can provide cell identity. PBCH carries some basic system information, such as DL system bandwidth, timing information within a radio frame, SS burst set period, system frame number, etc. SSB can be organized into SS bursts to support beam scanning. Other system information such as remaining minimum system information (RMSI), system information block (SIB), other system information (OSI) can be sent on the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) in certain subframes. For example, for millimeter waves (mmW), SSBs can be sent up to 64 times with up to 64 different beam directions. Up to 64 SSB transmissions are called SS burst sets. SSBs in an SS burst set are sent in the same frequency region, while SSBs in different SS burst sets can be sent at different frequency locations.

[0073] In some cases, two or more subordinate entities (e.g., UEs) may communicate with each other using sidelink signals. Real-world applications of such sidelink communications may include public safety, proximity services, UE-to-network relay, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, Internet of Everything (IoE) communications, IoT communications, mission-critical grids, and / or various other suitable applications. Generally, a sidelink signal may refer to a signal transmitted from one subordinate entity (e.g., UE1) to another subordinate entity (e.g., UE2) without relaying the communication through a scheduling entity (e.g., UE or AP), even though the scheduling entity may be utilized for scheduling and / or control purposes. In some examples, licensed spectrum may be used to transmit sidelink signals (unlike wireless local area networks (WLANs), which typically use unlicensed spectrum).

[0074] The UE may operate in various radio resource configurations, including a configuration associated with sending a pilot using a dedicated resource set (e.g., a radio resource control (RRC) dedicated state, etc.) or a configuration associated with sending a pilot using a common resource set (e.g., an RRC common state, etc.). When operating in the RRC dedicated state, the UE may select a dedicated resource set for sending a pilot signal to the network. When operating in the RRC common state, the UE may select a common resource set for sending a pilot signal to the network. In either case, the pilot signal sent by the UE may be received by one or more network access devices (such as an AN or DU or a portion thereof). Each receiving network access device may be configured to receive and measure a pilot signal sent on a common resource set, and also receive and measure a pilot signal sent on a dedicated resource set allocated to a UE, for which the network access device is a member of a monitoring set of the network access device of the UE. One or more receiving network access devices or (multiple) receiving CUs to which the network access device sends a measurement of a pilot signal may use the measurement to identify a serving cell of the UE, or initiate a change in a serving cell of one or more UEs.

[0075] The goal of next-generation (5G) wireless networks is to provide ultra-high data rates and support a wide range of application scenarios. The IAB system has been studied in 3GPP as a possible solution to help support these goals.

[0076] As mentioned above, in IAB, a wireless backhaul solution is adopted to connect cells (IAB nodes) to the core network (using wired backhaul). Some attractive features of IAB are support for multi-hop wireless backhaul, sharing the same technology (e.g., NR) and resources (e.g., frequency band) for access and backhaul links.

[0077] There are various possible architectures for IAB nodes, including Layer 2 (L2) and Layer 3 (L3) solutions. The specific architecture adopted may depend on which layers of the protocol stack are implemented in the intermediate node (IAB node). For example, an L2 relay may implement the PHY / MAC / RLC layers.

[0078] Certain aspects of the present disclosure relate to L1 relays (referred to as repeaters). L1 relays / repeaters have many attractive features. For example, such repeaters are relatively simple, low-cost, low-power, and wirelessly connected to a donor or another relay (e.g., a gNB).

[0079] Example signaling for relaying before decoding

[0080] Relays can often be deployed to provide coverage extension. For example, if the direct link between two nodes (e.g., link A->C between nodes A and C) is poor, a relay (node ​​B) can be used to provide a better path (A->B->C). Relays can also be used to provide diversity and / or robustness, for example, using both direct links (e.g., link A->C) and indirect links (A->B->C) so that if one path fails, another path is available. As described above, relays can also be applied in the context of integrated access and backhaul (IAB) relays and sidelink relays (relays between two UEs). A relay node can be, for example, a relay user equipment (UE).

[0081] Relays are generally classified as analog relays or decoded repeaters. Analog relays are relatively simple and cheap. Analog repeaters simply receive the waveform of a specific frequency band and then forward it as is.

[0082] On the other hand, a decode-and-forward relay typically has a receiver similar to the receiver of the destination node. A decode-and-forward relay decodes, re-encodes, and forwards a transmission (e.g., a packet) to the next node (e.g., a 3GPP Release 16 IAB relay). This forwarding can occur at Layer 1 (L1) (Physical (PHY)), Layer 2 (L2) (Media Access Control (MAC) / Radio Link Control (RLC)), or Layer 3 (L3) (Radio Resource Control (RRC)) layers, depending on the amount of further processing that occurs at the relay node between its receive and transmit functions.

[0083] Figure 6 is a block diagram of an example wireless relay in which various aspects of the present disclosure may be implemented. Figure 6As shown, in some cases, the relay can work between an analog relay and a decode-and-forward relay. With such a relay, some baseband processing may occur; however, the relay can begin before decoding. For example, as shown, the relay node can receive the original packet and forward the relayed packet with pre-decoded samples (e.g., log-likelihood ratios (LLRs)) taken from the waveform of the original packet.

[0084] Examples of such relaying can include forwarding in-phase / quadrature (IQ) samples at analog / digital (A / D) conversion, forwarding modulation symbols after an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) fast Fourier transform (FFT) or after equalization, forwarding LLR input to a decoder of a channel code (e.g., a low-density parity-check code (LDPC) decoder), or calculations by intermediate operations of a decoder prior to packet decoding.

[0085] In this manner, a transmitter node (node ​​A) (also referred to herein as a parent node) may send a first packet (e.g., a source packet) to a relay node (node ​​B) (also referred to herein as a relay). In some cases, the transmitter node (node ​​A) may be a network entity (e.g., a BS or a gNB). Node B may generate pre-decoded samples (e.g., LLRs, IQ samples, etc.) of the first packet and send a second packet with the pre-decoded samples to a receiver node (node ​​C) (also referred to herein as a child node). Node C may decode the second packet (e.g., a relayed packet) with the pre-decoded samples to recover the first packet.

[0086] In some cases, compression can be used to reduce the size of the relay packet. For example, if the pre-decoded samples are LLRs, each LLR can represent one information bit within the decoder. LLRs generally represent the likelihood that a signal is 0 or 1. A large positive LLR value indicates that the decoder believes that the information bit represented by the LLR value is 1, while a large negative LLR value indicates that the decoder believes that the information bit represented by the LLR value is 0. LLRs can take a range of values, and more bits (e.g., 8 bits) are required to represent 1 information bit. Without compression, a relay packet containing 8-bit LLRs may be 8 times larger.

[0087] The compression scheme used for the pre-decoded samples may be any suitable compression scheme. For example, the compression scheme may be Lempel-Ziff-Welch (LZW), Huffman coding, Burroughs-Wheeler scheme, or a standard implementation thereof, such as gzip or bzip2. In some cases, the compression scheme may be based on the properties of the LLRs. For example, the compression scheme may involve compressing N-bit LLR values ​​into fewer bits, such as by quantizing different LLRs to different precisions (e.g., number of bits).

[0088] By relaying pre-decoded samples, the relay can reduce the relay delay to the transmission destination (node ​​C in the above example) (e.g., by eliminating decoding time). Such a relay can also be used to implement cooperative decoding, for example, where the transmission destination is node B (which can send pre-decoded samples to another node for decoding).

[0089] In a system utilizing pre-decoded relays, it may be important to indicate to a relay node and / or a receiver node when the pre-decoded relay may be used. In other words, a relay node may need to know when to relay a packet having pre-decoded samples of a source packet, and a receiver node may need to know when a relayed packet includes pre-decoded samples.

[0090] Aspects of the present disclosure provide mechanisms for signaling to a relay that a packet includes an indication of information generated prior to decoding (eg, pre-decoded samples such as LLRs).

[0091] Figure 7 Example operations 700 are shown for wireless communications by a first wireless node (e.g., a relay node such as a relay user equipment (UE), a network entity such as an access point (AP), a base station (BS), or a next-generation Node B (gNB), or another node) in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0092] In some aspects, operations 700 may be performed, for example, by a processor acting as a repeater (e.g., Figure 1 , 2 and any relays shown in 3) may be performed by a UE. Operation 700 may be implemented as a processor (e.g., Figure 3 In addition, for example, the communication may be performed via one or more antennas (e.g., Figure 3 The repeater may transmit and receive signals in operation 700 by using antenna 352. In some aspects, the repeater may transmit and / or receive signals via one or more processors (e.g., Figure 3 This is implemented by a bus interface of the controller / processor 380).

[0093] In some aspects, operation 700 may be performed, for example, by a network entity (e.g., a base station (BS) / next generation Node B (gNB)). Operation 700 may be implemented as an application program executed on one or more processors (e.g., Figure 3 In addition, in operation 700, the network entity may transmit and receive signals, for example, through one or more antennas (e.g., Figure 3In some aspects, the transmission and / or reception of signals by the network entity may be via one or more processors (e.g., Figure 3 This is implemented by a bus interface of the controller / processor 340).

[0094] Operation 700 begins at block 702, where a first node determines that at least one first packet to be sent to a second node includes pre-decoded first information about the second packet. At block 704, the first node provides an indication to the second node that the first packet includes the pre-decoded first information. In some examples, the first node is a transmitter node (e.g., an AP, a BS, a gNB), and the indication is provided by the transmitter node. In some examples, the first node is a relay node (e.g., a UE acting as a relay), and the indication is provided by the relay node. In some examples, the first packet is sent by the relay node to the second node, and the second packet includes a source packet from the transmitter node.

[0095] Figure 8 Example operations 800 are illustrated for wireless communications by a first wireless node (eg, a receiver node), in accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.

[0096] Operation 800 may be performed, for example, by a wireless receiver node. In some aspects, the wireless receiver node may be Figure 1 , 2 3 for receiving and processing packets from a relay (e.g., a relay node performing operation 700). Operation 800 may be implemented as a process in one or more processors (e.g., Figure 3 In addition, for example, the communication may be performed via one or more antennas (e.g., Figure 3 The repeater may transmit and receive signals in operation 800 by using antenna 352. In some aspects, the transmission and / or reception of signals by the repeater may be performed via one or more processors (e.g., Figure 3 This is accomplished by a bus interface of a controller / processor 380).

[0097] In some aspects, a wireless receiver node may be Figure 1 , 2 and any BS / gNB shown in 3. Operation 800 may be implemented as an Figure 3 In addition, for example, the communication may be performed via one or more antennas (e.g., Figure 3The antenna 354 of the repeater in operation 800 can be used to implement the transmission and reception of signals by the repeater. In some aspects, the transmission and / or reception of signals by the network entity can be performed via one or more processors (e.g., Figure 3 This is implemented by a bus interface of the controller / processor 340).

[0098] Operations 800 begin at block 802 by decoding, by a first node (e.g., a wireless receiver node) at least a first packet from a second node. At block 804, the first node obtains an indication that the first packet includes pre-decoded first information about the second packet. At block 806, the first node attempts to decode the second packet based on the pre-decoded first information.

[0099] refer to Fig. 9 The call flow diagram 900 can be understood Figure 7 and 8 Operations 700 and 800, Fig. 9 shows how a wireless relay node (Node B) can relay source packets from a wireless transmitter node (Node A) to a wireless receiver node (Node C). In other words, Node B or gNB can perform Figure 7 Operation 700 of (to indicate that the relayed packet will include pre-decoded information), while node C performs Figure 8 Operation 800.

[0100] As shown, at 902, node A can send a source packet (e.g., a first packet) to node B. At 904, node B can generate a relay packet (e.g., a second packet) with pre-decoded samples (e.g., LLR, IQ samples, etc.), and at 906, a relayed packet with pre-decoded samples can be sent to node C. At 908, node C can decode the relayed packet and attempt to decode (recover) the source packet based on the pre-decoded sample. As described above, in some cases, node B can compress the pre-decoded sample before relaying. In such a case, node C can perform decompression of the pre-decoded sample before attempting to recover the source packet.

[0101] As described above, in order to implement the pre-decoded sample based relay scheme described herein, a wireless receiver node (e.g., node C) may need to have sufficient information to understand the content of the relayed packet (e.g., the type of pre-decoded sample) and the compression format (if compressed) so that the wireless receiver node can (decompress and) decode the pre-decoded samples to recover the underlying source packet.

[0102] like Fig. 9As shown, in some cases, at 910, the node may coordinate a relay transmission scheme used by a relay node (Node B) to compress the pre-decoded samples. The relay node may compress the pre-decoded samples of the first packet according to the coordinated compression scheme. The scheme may be set by nodes A, B, C or a coordinating central node (such as a gNB), or by a combination of these nodes working in coordination with each other.

[0103] For example, the nodes may coordinate via exchanged messages to determine the compression scheme via a Uu interface (referring to a link between a network entity and a UE), a sidelink (SL) master information block (MIB), a system information block (SIB), a radio resource control (RRC), a MAC control element (CE), a downlink control information (DCI), a sidelink control information (SCI), or a combination thereof. In some cases, a scheduling DCI (e.g., scheduling a relayed transmission), an SCI, or a MAC-CE included in a packet may indicate that the packet contains LLRs and the LLR format.

[0104] As described above, to a receiver node (e.g., Fig. 9 It is important that node C) in provides some indication as to whether the content of the (relayed) packet is pre-decoded or regular (post-decoded).

[0105] Because pre-decoded relays are typically used for low latency, RRC configuration may not be the most appropriate for dynamically indicating pre-decoded packets. However, RRC configuration may be useful for configuring a number of semi-static properties related to the nature of the pre-decoded packets. Examples of such semi-static properties may include, for example, the number of bits per sample (for IQ samples, LLRs, etc.).

[0106] In some cases, RRC signaling may also be used as the only form of indication. For example, a node may only send pre-decoded packets (e.g., for security reasons, the node may not be allowed to decode). In such a case, RRC signaling may be used to configure the receiving node to receive only pre-decoded packets. The configuration may be applied to all packets sent from the node, or to a restricted set of packets sent from the node. For example, the configuration may only be applied to packets sent over a specific frequency range, cell group, component carrier (CC), specific subband or bandwidth part (BWP), and / or the configuration may also only be applied to packets sent over a specific duration. In some cases, the configuration may indicate that all transmissions on a certain configuration grant (CG) (e.g., periodic uplink (UL) resources) are always pre-decoded.

[0107] In some cases, an indication of a pre-decoded packet may be provided via MAC signaling or a mechanism. For example, certain logical channel IDs (LCIDs) may always be associated with a pre-decoded relay. In such a case, for a node that sends both pre-decoded packets and regular packets, a mapping may be defined between (multiple) LCIDs and corresponding "regular" packet LCIDs.

[0108] In some cases, the MAC subheader may be extended to include an indication, or a new additional MAC subheader may be defined that explicitly includes a "pre-decoded relay" field for the corresponding MAC sub-protocol data unit (sub-PDU). In some cases, a new MAC-CE may be defined to include pre-decoded packet information for all other MAC sub-PDUs or MAC service data units (MAC-SDUs) included in a transport block (TB).

[0109] In some cases, an indication of a pre-decoded packet may be provided via L1 (PHY layer) signaling. For example, a DCI, SCI, and / or uplink control information (UCI) may indicate a pre-decoded packet. In some cases, the DCI, SCI, and / or UCI may include an explicit field. In some cases, the DCI, SCI, and / or UCI may include an indirect indication, such as an indication that an LCID is mapped to a pre-decoded relay (as in the MAC example above).

[0110] In each of the above cases, the indication of the pre-decoded packet may indicate that the packet content is only pre-decoded (e.g., "pure LLR") or contains a mixture of pre-decoded content and post-decoded content (e.g., a "mixed packet" with LLRs and post-decoded bits). In addition, different LLRs may be quantized to different precisions, and regular bits may be considered "hard-quantized LLRs." For example, LLRs may be sent for some code blocks / code block groups (CB / CBG) while regular bits are sent for other code blocks / code block groups.

[0111] Based on the indication that the packet is a pre-decoded packet, through any of the signaling mechanisms described above, the receiver node (e.g., Fig. 9 Node C in may decode the received packet and use the pre-decoded samples to attempt to decode the parent (source) packet.

[0112] For this decoding, the receiver node may need additional information related to the parent packet, including, for example, the TB size (TBS), etc. Another node (e.g., the parent (sender) node ( Fig. 9 Node A) or relay node ( Fig. 9The Node B in the relay node may be provided with this information in different ways (e.g., RRC configuration, DCI, or SCI grant). Depending on the type of pre-decoded information, the receiver node may not need all the information provided to the parent (sender) node. Therefore, in some cases, the parent node / relay node may repackage and provide only the relevant information to the receiver node, for example, via RRC signaling, MAC-CE, or DCI / SCI.

[0113] The child (receiver) node may also need information about the format / structure of the pre-decoded packet. Such information may include the number of bits for each pre-decoded sample (each LLR or each IQ sample), quantization, and / or the compression scheme used for the sample. This information may be different for different sample subsets. For example, the relayed packet may include LLRs for different CBs / CBGs corresponding to the parent packet, and hard-decoded (post-decoded) bits may be provided for other CBs / CBGs. For example, an indication of the number of iterations of the parent (transmitter) node decoder may be provided to the child (receiver) node, after which the LLR is sent in the pre-decoded packet. This information can be used to optimize the child (receiver) node decoding of the parent packet (e.g., when to perform early checks on cyclic redundancy check (CRC) transfers, etc.). This type of information may also be provided via RRC / MAC-CE / DCI together with or separately from the above-mentioned parent packet information.

[0114] Various information about the parameters of the parent packet may also be transmitted for relaying the LLRs. For example, each coded bit in the parent packet may be mapped to an LLR that has been identified by the child (receiver) node (e.g., after decompression, interpreting the quantizer format, identifying hard bit / CB pair LLRs). Various other information may also be provided, such as the coding scheme, indicating LDPC / Polar coding, the number of information bits (#infobits) of the parent packet, the CRC size, the basemap used, etc.

[0115] For Uu downlink (DL) transmissions, the parent (transmitter) node can determine the TBS using the resource block (RB) allocation and modulation coding scheme (MCS) indicated in the grant and the number of demodulation reference signals (#DMRS, which depends on the RRC parameters). The LDPC basemap can be based on the TBS and the coding rate indicated by the MCS index (in the grant).

[0116] The parent (transmitter) node / relay node may need MCS and allocation to extract modulation symbols, demodulate, demap and calculate LLRs. A child (receiver) node that only receives LLRs may not need parent node MCS and allocation as long as it has TBS and basemap. Therefore, the above example of repackaging related information can be used to indicate TBS and basemap only to the child (receiving) node.

[0117] If IQ samples or modulation symbols are relayed, the child (receiver) node can reconstruct the received resource elements (REs) by interpreting the received pre-decoded packets. In such a case, the child (receiver) node may need to know information such as which REs correspond to data, which REs correspond to DMRS, which REs correspond to unfilled symbols (e.g., based on rate matching configuration), and whether any REs in the grid are not included in the pre-decoded packets. The child (receiver) node may then need to arrange the REs in the RB grid (e.g., indicating the number of OFDM symbols or #RE / OFDM symbol). The child (receiver) node may not need to know the exact position of the REs in "absolute" time and frequency, but the information may be relative to the slot boundary / point A. The parent (transmitter) node may need to know the size and position, so the indication can be bundled (e.g., the start and length indicator vector or SLIV can indicate the time allocation based on the starting position and the length). As described above, in some cases, only the relevant information can be repackaged (e.g., instead of indicating the SLIV, the length L can be provided based on the number of OFDM symbols).

[0118] In some cases, multiple child pre-decoded packets may be sent for the same parent packet. For example, the pre-decoded packets may be larger than their corresponding decoded packets. In such a case, the parent packet may have only information bits, while the pre-decoded packets have, for example, N-bit LLRs for each coded bit of the parent packet. Therefore, the parent packet may need to be divided into multiple pre-decoded packets.

[0119] Even in the case where only a single packet has all LLRs and is received by a child (receiver) node, another such packet with updated LLRs may be sent. Some parent information may be common across multiple packets (e.g., TBS), while some information may be different (e.g., CB / CBG indexes including pre-decoded information).

[0120] In some cases, multiple pre-decoded packets subject to common information can be linked instead of duplicating the common information. For example, similar to the concept of special MCS values ​​(e.g., 26, 27, 28) used on Uu to indicate the same MCS used previously, similar concepts can be applied to parent packets. In some cases, the link can be implicit so that the common information is the same as the most recently received or confirmed packet indicated to be pre-decoded. In other cases, the link can be explicit, such as an explicit indication in a packet, whose authorization (physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) / physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH)) or allocation (physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) / physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH)) is received in a time-frequency resource, or its authorization has an indicated attribute (e.g., hybrid automatic repeat request process ID (HARQprocessID)). For example, in the case of information loss of the first packet, the use of such a linking method may result in the risk of wasting the second packet. For example, by waiting for the confirmation (ACK) of the first packet (or the ACK for its authorization) before sending the second packet, this risk can be mitigated.

[0121] As described herein, by relaying pre-decoded samples to a receiver node, relay latency can be reduced. In addition, by compressing the pre-decoded samples, payload size can be managed. Such relaying techniques can also be used to implement collaborative decoding, for example, where the transmission destination is a repeater (which can send pre-decoded samples to another node for decoding) (e.g., Fig. 9 In the case of node B).

[0122] Example Wireless Communication Device

[0123] Fig.10 An example communication device 1000 is depicted that includes various components operable, configured, or adapted to perform operations of the techniques disclosed herein, such as with respect to Figure 7 and Fig. 9 In some examples, the communication device 1000 may be a user equipment (UE) acting as a relay or as, for example, a Figure 1 , 2 , 3 and 6 described network entities (e.g., base station (BS) / next generation Node B (gNB)).

[0124] The communication device 1000 includes a processing system 1002 coupled to a transceiver 1008 (e.g., a transmitter and / or a receiver). The transceiver 1008 is configured to transmit (or send) and receive signals, such as the various signals described herein, for the communication device 1000 via an antenna 1010. The processing system 1002 may be configured to perform processing functions for the communication device 1000, including processing signals received and / or transmitted by the communication device 1000.

[0125] The processing system 1002 includes one or more processors 1004 coupled to a computer readable medium / memory 1012 via a bus 1006. In some aspects, the computer readable medium / memory 1012 is configured to store instructions (e.g., computer executable code) that, when executed by the one or more processors 1004, cause the one or more processors 1004 to perform Figure 7 and Fig. 9 The operations shown in , or other operations for performing the various techniques for relaying discussed in this article.

[0126] In certain aspects, the computer readable medium / memory 1012 stores code 1014 for determining; and code 1016 for providing.

[0127] In some cases, the code for determining 1014 may include code for determining that at least one first packet to be sent to the second node includes pre-decoded first information about the second packet. In some cases, the code for providing 1016 may include code for providing an indication to the second node that the first packet includes the pre-decoded first information.

[0128] In certain aspects, the one or more processors 1004 include circuitry configured to implement code stored in the computer-readable medium / memory 1012 , including circuitry 1024 for determining; and circuitry 1026 for providing.

[0129] In some cases, the circuitry 1024 for determining may include circuitry for determining that at least one first packet to be sent to the second node includes pre-decoded first information about the second packet. In some cases, the circuitry 1026 for providing may include circuitry for providing an indication to the second node that the first packet includes pre-decoded first information.

[0130] In some cases, Figure 7 The operations shown and other operations described herein may be implemented by one or more means-plus-function components. For example, in some cases, such operations may be implemented by means for determining and means for providing.

[0131] In some cases, the means for determining and the means for providing include a processing system, which may include one or more processors, such as Figure 3 The receive processor 358 (or receive processor 338), the transmit processor 364 (or transmit processor 320), the TX MIMO processor 366 (TX MIMO processor 330) and / or the controller / processor 380 (controller / processor 340) and / or the UE (e.g., relay) 120 shown in FIG. Fig.10 The processing system 1002 of the communication device 1000 in FIG.

[0132] In some cases, the means for determining and the means for providing include a processing system, which may include one or more processors, such as Figure 3 The receive processor 338, transmit processor 320, TX MIMO processor 330 and / or controller / processor 340 and / or the access point (AP) 110 shown in FIG. Fig.10 The processing system 1002 of the communication device 1000 in FIG.

[0133] The transceiver 1008 may provide a means for receiving or transmitting information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, SR-related information, etc.). The information may be communicated to other components of the communication device 1000. The antenna 1010 may correspond to a single antenna or a set of antennas. The transceiver 1008 may provide a means for transmitting signals generated by other components of the communication device 1000.

[0134] The means for receiving or the means for obtaining may include Figure 3 The receiver (such as the receive processor 338) or the antenna(s) 334 of the AP 110 shown, or the receive processor 358 or the antenna(s) 352 of the UE 120. The means for transmitting or the means for outputting may include Figure 3 1. The transmitter (e.g., transmit processor 320) or antenna(s) 334 of AP 110 or the transmit processor 364 or antenna(s) 352 of UE 120 shown in FIG.

[0135] It is worth noting that Fig.10 Using just one example, many other examples and configurations of the communication device 1000 are possible.

[0136] Fig.11 An example communication device 1100 is depicted that includes various components operable, configured, or adapted to perform operations of the techniques disclosed herein, such as with respect to Figure 8 and Fig. 9In some examples, the communication device 1100 may be a UE or a Figure 1 , 2 , 3 and 6 described network entities (e.g., BS / gNB).

[0137] The communication device 1100 includes a processing system 1102 coupled to a transceiver 1108 (e.g., a transmitter and / or a receiver). The transceiver 1108 is configured to transmit (or send) and receive signals, such as the various signals described herein, for the communication device 1100 via an antenna 1110. The processing system 1102 may be configured to perform processing functions for the communication device 1100, including processing signals received and / or to be transmitted by the communication device 1100.

[0138] The processing system 1102 includes one or more processors 1104 coupled to a computer-readable medium / memory 1112 via a bus 1106. In some aspects, the computer-readable medium / memory 1112 is configured to store instructions (e.g., computer-executable code) that, when executed by the one or more processors 1104, cause the one or more processors 1104 to perform Figure 8 and Fig. 9 The operations shown in , or other operations for performing the various techniques for relaying discussed in this article.

[0139] In certain aspects, the computer readable medium / memory 1112 stores code for decoding 1114; code for obtaining 1116; and code for attempting to decode 1118.

[0140] In some cases, code for decoding 1114 may include code for decoding at least a first packet from a second node. In some cases, code for obtaining 1116 may include code for obtaining an indication that the first packet includes pre-decoded first information about a second packet. In some cases, code for attempting to decode 1118 may include code for attempting to decode the second packet based on the pre-decoded first information.

[0141] In certain aspects, the one or more processors 1104 include circuitry configured to implement code stored in the computer-readable medium / memory 1112 , including circuitry 1124 for decoding; circuitry 1126 for obtaining; and circuitry 1128 for attempting to decode.

[0142] In some cases, the circuitry for decoding 1124 may include circuitry for decoding at least a first packet from the second node. In some cases, the circuitry for obtaining 1126 may include circuitry for obtaining an indication that the first packet includes pre-decoded first information about the second packet. In some cases, the circuitry for attempting to decode 1128 may include circuitry for attempting to decode the second packet based on the pre-decoded first information.

[0143] In some cases, Figure 8 The operations shown and other operations described herein may be implemented by one or more means-plus-function components. For example, in some cases, such operations may be implemented by means for determining and means for providing.

[0144] In some cases, the means for decoding, the means for obtaining, and the means for attempting to decode include a processing system, which may include one or more processors, such as Figure 3 The receive processor 358 (or receive processor 338), the transmit processor 364 (or transmit processor 320), the TX MIMO processor 366 (TX MIMO processor 330) and / or the controller / processor 380 (controller / processor 340) and / or the UE (e.g., relay) 120 shown Fig.11 The processing system 1102 of the communication device 1100 in FIG.

[0145] In some cases, the means for decoding, the means for obtaining, and the means for attempting to decode include a processing system, which may include one or more processors, such as Figure 3 The receive processor 338, transmit processor 320, TX MIMO processor 330 and / or controller / processor 340 and / or the access point (AP) 110 shown in FIG. Fig.11 The processing system 1102 of the communication device 1100 in FIG.

[0146] The transceiver 1108 may provide a means for receiving or transmitting information such as packets, user data, or control information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels, data channels, and SR-related information, etc.). The information may be delivered to other components of the communication device 1100. The antenna 1110 may correspond to a single antenna or an antenna set. The transceiver 1108 may provide a means for transmitting signals generated by other components of the communication device 1100.

[0147] The means for receiving or the means for obtaining may include Figure 3The receiver (e.g., receive processor 338) or antenna(s) 334 of the AP 110, or the receive processor 358 or antenna(s) 352 of the UE 120 are shown. The means for transmitting or the means for outputting may include Figure 3 1. The transmitter (e.g., transmit processor 320) or antenna(s) 334 of AP 110 or the transmit processor 364 or antenna(s) 352 of UE 120 shown in FIG.

[0148] It is worth noting that Fig.11 Using just one example, many other examples and configurations of the communication device 1100 are possible.

[0149] Sample Clauses

[0150] Implementation examples are described in the following numbered clauses:

[0151] Article 1. A method of wireless communication by a first node, comprising: determining that at least one first packet to be sent to a second node includes first information about pre-decoding of the second packet; and providing an indication to the second node that the first packet includes the pre-decoding first information.

[0152] Clause 2. The method of clause 1, wherein: the first packet is sent by the relay node to the second node; and the second packet comprises a source packet from the sender node.

[0153] Clause 3. A method as recited in clause 1 or 2, further comprising providing a configuration for a packet including pre-decoded information via radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

[0154] Clause 4. The method of clause 3, wherein the configuration indicates at least one of a plurality of bits per pre-decoded sample.

[0155] Clause 5. The method of clause 3 or 4, wherein the first node is a sender node and the indication is provided via the configuration.

[0156] Clause 6. The method of any of clauses 1-5, wherein the first packet further indicates second information that assists in decoding the second packet.

[0157] Clause 7. The method of clause 6, wherein the second information indicates formatting information of the pre-decoded first information.

[0158] Clause 8. The method of clause 7, wherein the formatting information comprises at least one of a bit width or a compression scheme of the pre-decoded first information.

[0159] Clause 9. The method of clause 7 or 8, wherein the first node is a relay node, and wherein: the pre-decoded first information comprises log likelihood ratios (LLRs) and the formatted information comprises a number of decoder iterations after which the LLRs were generated.

[0160] Clause 10. A method as described in any of clauses 6-9, wherein: the first packet is sent to the second node via a sender node; and the second information indicates a subset of information explicitly or implicitly provided to the sender node.

[0161] Clause 11. The method of clause 10, wherein the subset of information depends on the formatting of the pre-decoded first information.

[0162] Article 12. A method according to clause 10 or 11, wherein the subset of information includes at least one of the following: transport block size (TBS), channel coding scheme, low-density parity check (LDPC) base map index, time domain allocation, frequency domain allocation, demodulation reference signal (DMRS) configuration or rate matching configuration.

[0163] Clause 13. A method according to any of clauses 6-12, wherein: the subset of the second information is derived from third information indicated for the second packet, the third information also comprising information about pre-decoding of the second packet.

[0164] Clause 14. The method of any of clauses 1-13, wherein the indication indicates whether the first packet includes a combination of pre-decoded information and decoded information.

[0165] Article 15. A method of wireless communication by a first node, comprising: decoding at least a first packet from a second node; obtaining an indication that the first packet includes pre-decoded first information about a second packet; and attempting to decode the second packet based on the pre-decoded first information.

[0166] Clause 16. The method of clause 15, wherein: the first packet is received from a relay node; and the second packet comprises a source packet received by the relay node from the sender node.

[0167] Clause 17. A method as described in clause 15 or 16, comprising receiving a configuration of a packet including pre-decoded information via radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

[0168] Clause 18. The method of Clause 17, wherein the configuration indicates at least one of a plurality of bits per pre-decoded sample.

[0169] Clause 19. The method of clause 17 or 18, wherein the first node is a receiver node, the indication is obtained by the receiver node from a sender node via the configuration, and the first packet is received by the receiver node from a relay node.

[0170] Clause 20. The method of any of clauses 15-19, wherein: the first packet further indicates second information; and the first node uses the second information to assist in decoding the second packet.

[0171] Clause 21. The method of clause 20, wherein the second information indicates formatting information of the pre-decoded first information.

[0172] Clause 22. The method of clause 21, wherein the formatting information comprises at least one of a bit width or a compression scheme of the pre-decoded first information.

[0173] Clause 23. The method of clause 21 or 22, wherein: the pre-decoded first information comprises log likelihood ratios (LLRs); and the formatted information comprises a number of decoder iterations after the LLRs were generated.

[0174] Clause 24. The method of any of clauses 20-23, wherein: the second information indicates a subset of information provided explicitly or implicitly to the second node.

[0175] Clause 25. The method of clause 24, wherein the subset of information depends on a format of the pre-decoded first information.

[0176] Article 26. A method according to clause 24 or 25, wherein the subset of information includes at least one of the following: transport block size (TBS), channel coding scheme, low-density parity check (LDPC) base map index, time domain allocation, frequency domain allocation, demodulation reference signal (DMRS) configuration or rate matching configuration.

[0177] Clause 27. A method according to any one of Clauses 20-26, wherein: the subset of the second information is derived from third information indicated for the second packet, the third information also comprising information about pre-decoding of the second packet.

[0178] Clause 28. The method of any of clauses 15-27, wherein the indication indicates whether the first packet includes a combination of pre-decoded information and decoded information.

[0179] Clause 29. An apparatus comprising: at least one processor; a memory coupled to the at least one processor, the memory comprising instructions executable by the at least one processor to cause the apparatus to perform a method based at least in part on any of Clauses 1-28.

[0180] Clause 30. An apparatus comprising means for performing a method based at least in part on any of clauses 1-28.

[0181] Clause 31. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the device to perform a method based at least in part on any of Clauses 1-28.

[0182] Other examples of considerations

[0183] The preceding description is provided to enable those skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. It will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications to these aspects, and that the general principles defined herein may be applicable to other aspects. Therefore, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but to conform to the full scope consistent with the language claims, wherein, unless otherwise specifically stated, references to elements in the singular form are not intended to represent "one and only one", but rather "one or more". Unless otherwise specified, the term "some" refers to one or more. All structural and functional equivalents of elements throughout the various aspects described in this disclosure known or to be known by those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be covered by the claims. In addition, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public, regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly stated in the claims. Unless the element is explicitly described using the phrase "parts for...", or in the case of a method claim, the element is described using the phrase "steps for...", otherwise any claim element should not be interpreted according to the provisions of the sixth paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112.

[0184] The various operations of the above methods may be performed by any suitable component capable of performing the corresponding functions. The component may include various hardware and / or (multiple) software components and / or (multiple) modules, including but not limited to circuits, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) or processors. Generally, where operations are shown in the accompanying drawings, those operations may have corresponding corresponding means plus function components.

[0185] As used herein, the term "determine" encompasses a wide variety of actions. For example, "determine" may include calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, searching (e.g., searching in a table, a database, or another data structure), ascertaining, etc. In addition, "determine" may include receiving (e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g., accessing data in a memory), etc. In addition, "determine" may include resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing, etc.

[0186] As used herein, a phrase referring to "at least one" of a list of items refers to any combination of those items, including single members. For example, "at least one of a, b, or c" is intended to cover a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, and abc, as well as combinations including multiples of one or more members (aa, bb, and / or cc).

[0187] The various exemplary logical blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the present disclosure may be implemented or performed with a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device (PLD), discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but alternatively, the processor may be any commercially available processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, a combination of one or more microprocessors and a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

[0188] The steps of the method or algorithm described in conjunction with the present disclosure may be directly embodied in hardware, a software module executed by a processor, or a combination of the two. The software module may reside in any form of storage medium known in the art. Some examples of storage media that may be used include random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disks, removable disks, CD-ROMs, etc. A software module may include a single instruction or multiple instructions and may be distributed over several different code segments, distributed in different programs, and across multiple storage media. A storage medium may be coupled to a processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Alternatively, the storage medium may be part of the processor.

[0189] The method disclosed herein includes one or more steps or actions for implementing the method. Without departing from the scope of the claims, the method steps and / or actions can be interchangeable with each other. In other words, unless a specific order of steps or actions is specified, the order and / or use of specific steps and / or actions can be modified without departing from the scope of the claims.

[0190] The means for associating, the means for determining, the means for monitoring, the means for deciding, the means for providing, the means for detecting, the means for performing and / or the means for setting may include a processing system, which may include one or more processors, such as Figure 3The receive processor 338 / 358, transmit processor 320 / 364, TX MIMO processor 330 / 366, or controller 340 / 380 of the AP 110 and UE 120 shown in FIG.

[0191] In some cases, a device may have an interface to output frames to be sent (an output method) rather than actually sending frames. For example, a processor may output frames to a radio frequency (RF) front end via a bus interface for transmission. Similarly, rather than actually receiving frames, a device may have an interface to obtain frames received from another device (an acquisition method). For example, a processor may obtain (or receive) frames from an RF front end via a bus interface for reception.

[0192] The functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in hardware, an example hardware configuration may include a processing system in a wireless node. The processing system may be implemented using a bus architecture. Depending on the specific application and overall design constraints of the processing system, the bus may include any number of interconnecting buses and bridges. The bus may link together various circuits including a processor, a machine-readable medium, and a bus interface. The bus interface may be used to connect a network adapter, etc., to the processing system via the bus. The network adapter may be used to implement the signal processing functions of the PHY layer. In the UE 120 (see Figure 1 ), a user interface (e.g., keyboard, display, mouse, joystick, etc.) may also be connected to the bus. The bus may also link various other circuits, such as timing sources, peripheral devices, voltage regulators, power management circuits, etc., which are well known in the art and will not be described further.

[0193] The processor may be responsible for managing the bus and general processing, including the execution of software stored on the machine-readable medium. The processor may be implemented with one or more general and / or special processors. Examples include microprocessors, microcontrollers, DSP processors, and other circuits that can execute software. Software should be broadly interpreted as instructions, data, or any combination thereof, whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or other. For example, the machine-readable medium may include RAM (random access memory), flash memory, ROM (read-only memory), PROM (programmable read-only memory), EPROM (erasable programmable read-only memory), EEPROM (electrically erasable programmable read-only memory), registers, disks, optical disks, hard disks, or any other suitable storage medium, or any combination thereof. The machine-readable medium may be included in a computer program product. The computer program product may include packaging materials.

[0194] In a hardware implementation, the machine-readable medium may be part of a processing system separate from the processor. However, as will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art, the machine-readable medium or any portion thereof may be external to the processing system. For example, the machine-readable medium may include a transmission line, a carrier modulated by data, and / or a computer product separate from the wireless node, all of which may be accessed by the processor via a bus interface. Alternatively or additionally, the machine-readable medium or any portion thereof may be integrated into the processor, such as in the case of a cache and / or general register file.

[0195] The processing system may be configured as a general purpose processing system having one or more microprocessors providing processor functionality and external memory providing at least a portion of the machine-readable medium, all linked together with other support circuits via an external bus architecture. Alternatively, the processing system may be implemented with an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) having a processor, bus interface, user interface in the case of an access terminal), support circuits, and at least a portion of the machine-readable medium integrated into a single chip, or with one or more FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Arrays), PLDs (Programmable Logic Devices), controllers, state machines, gating logic, discrete hardware components, or any other suitable circuits, or any combination of circuits that can perform the various functions described throughout this disclosure. Those skilled in the art will recognize that how best to implement the described functions of the processing system depends on the specific application and the overall design constraints imposed on the entire system.

[0196] The machine-readable medium may include multiple software modules. The software modules include instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the processing system to perform various functions. The software modules may include a sending module and a receiving module. Each software module may reside in a single storage device or be distributed across multiple storage devices. For example, when a triggering event occurs, the software module may be loaded from a hard disk into a RAM. During the execution of the software module, the processor may load some instructions into a cache to increase access speed. Then, one or more cache lines may be loaded into a general register file for execution by the processor. When the functions of a software module are mentioned below, it will be understood that such functions are implemented by the processor when executing instructions from the software module.

[0197] If implemented in software, these functions can be stored or sent to a computer-readable medium as one or more instructions or codes. Computer-readable media include computer storage media and communication media including any medium that is convenient for transferring a computer program from one place to another. Storage media can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. As an example and not limitation, such a computer-readable medium may include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, disk storage or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program codes in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer. Similarly, any connection is properly referred to as a computer-readable medium. For example, if software is sent from a website, server or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL) or wireless technologies such as infrared (IR), radio and microwaves, then coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio and microwaves are included in the definition of medium. Disks and optical disks used herein include compact discs (CDs), laser optical disks, optical disks, digital versatile discs (DVDs), floppy disks and blue-ray discs, wherein disks usually reproduce data magnetically, and optical discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Thus, in some aspects, computer-readable media may include non-transitory computer-readable media (e.g., tangible media). In addition, for other aspects, computer-readable media may include transient computer-readable media (e.g., signals). The above combinations should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0198] Thus, some aspects may include a computer program product for performing the operations presented herein. For example, such a computer program product may include a computer-readable medium having stored (and / or encoded) thereon instructions that may be executed by one or more processors to perform the operations described herein. For some aspects, the computer program product may include packaging materials.

[0199] In addition, it should be understood that the modules and / or other appropriate components for performing the methods and techniques described herein can be downloaded and / or obtained by the UE and / or access point (if applicable). For example, such a device can be coupled to a server to facilitate the transfer of components for performing the methods described herein. Alternatively, the various methods described herein can be provided via a storage component (e.g., RAM, ROM, a physical storage medium such as a compact disk (CD) or a floppy disk), so that the UE and / or access point can obtain the various methods when the storage device is coupled to the device or provided to the device. In addition, any other suitable technology for providing the methods and techniques described herein to the device can be utilized.

[0200] It is to be understood that the claims are not limited to the precise configuration and components described above. Various modifications, changes and variations may be made in the arrangement, operation and details of the methods and apparatus described above without departing from the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication by a first node, comprising: generating a relay packet without decoding a source packet, wherein the relay packet includes pre-decoded samples of the source packet and information to assist in decoding the pre-decoded samples of the source packet; providing an indication to a second node that the relay packet includes a pre-decoded sample of the source packet; and The relay packet is sent to the second node.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first node is a relay node; and The source packets include source packets from a sender node.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising providing a configuration for a packet including pre-decoded samples via radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein: The configuration indicates at least one of a plurality of bits for each pre-decoded sample.

5. The method according to claim 3, wherein: The first node is a sender node; and The indication is provided via the configuration.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The indication indicates formatting information of the pre-decoded samples of the source packet.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein: The formatting information comprises at least one of a bit width or a compression scheme of the pre-decoded samples of the source packet.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein: The first node is a relay node, and wherein: The pre-decoded samples of the source packets include log-likelihood ratios (LLRs); and The formatting information includes a number of decoder iterations after which the LLRs are generated.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The relay packet is sent to the second node via a sender node; and The indication indicates a subset of information provided explicitly or implicitly to the sender node.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The subset of information depends on the pre-decoding formatting of the source packets.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The subset of information includes at least one of the following: transport block size (TBS), channel coding scheme, low density parity check (LDPC) base map index, time domain allocation, frequency domain allocation, demodulation reference signal (DMRS) configuration or rate matching configuration.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein: The subset of information indicated in the indication is derived from second information indicated for the source packets, the second information also comprising information about pre-decoding of the source packets.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The indication indicates whether the relay packet includes a combination of pre-decoded samples and decoded samples.

14. A method for wireless communication by a second node, comprising: decoding at least a relay packet from a first node without decoding a source packet, wherein the relay packet includes pre-decoded samples of the source packet and information to assist in decoding the pre-decoded samples of the source packet; obtaining an indication that the relay packet includes a pre-decoded sample of the source packet; and Attempting to decode the source packet based on the pre-decoded samples of the source packet and using the indicated information.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein: The first node is a relay node; and The source packets include source packets received by the relay node from a sender node.

16. The method of claim 14, comprising receiving a configuration of a packet including pre-decoded samples via radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein: The configuration indicates at least one of a plurality of bits for each pre-decoded sample.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein: The first node is a receiver node; The indication is obtained by the receiver node from the sender node via the configuration; and The second is a relay node.

19. The method according to claim 14, wherein: The indication indicates formatting information of the pre-decoded samples of the source packet.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein: The formatting information includes at least one of a bit width or a compression scheme of the pre-decoded first information.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein: The pre-decoded samples of the source packets include log-likelihood ratios (LLRs); and The formatting information includes a number of decoder iterations after which the LLRs are generated.

22. The method of claim 14, wherein: The indication indicates a subset of information provided explicitly or implicitly to the second node.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein: The subset of information depends on the formatting of the pre-decoded samples of the source packets.

24. The method according to claim 22, wherein: The subset of information includes at least one of the following: transport block size (TBS), channel coding scheme, low density parity check (LDPC) base map index, time domain allocation, frequency domain allocation, demodulation reference signal (DMRS) configuration or rate matching configuration.

25. The method of claim 14, wherein: The subset of information indicated in the indication is derived from second information indicated for the source packets, the second information also comprising information about pre-decoding of the source packets.

26. The method of claim 14, wherein: The indication indicates whether the relay packet includes a combination of pre-decoded samples and decoded samples.

27. An apparatus for wireless communication by a first node, comprising: at least one processor; as well as a memory coupled to the at least one processor, the memory comprising instructions executable by the at least one processor to cause the apparatus to: generating a relay packet without decoding a source packet, wherein the relay packet includes pre-decoded samples of the source packet and information to assist in decoding the pre-decoded samples of the source packet; providing an indication to a second node that the relay packet includes a pre-decoded sample of the source packet; The relay packet is sent to the second node.

28. An apparatus for wireless communication by a second node, comprising: at least one processor; as well as a memory coupled to the at least one processor, the memory comprising instructions executable by the at least one processor to cause the apparatus to: decoding at least a relay packet from a first node without decoding a source packet, wherein the relay packet includes pre-decoded samples of the source packet and information to assist in decoding the pre-decoded samples of the source packet; obtaining an indication that the relay packet includes a pre-decoded sample of the source packet; and Attempting to decode the source packet based on the pre-decoded samples of the source packet and using the indicated information.

29. A computer readable medium having program code recorded thereon, wherein the program code is executed by one or more processors to cause the processors to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 26.

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