User equipment, base station equipment, communication method, and computer-readable storage medium

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to user equipment, base station equipment, communication methods and computer readable storage media. Specifically, a first user equipment is provided, the first user equipment being associated with a cluster of devices, the first user equipment comprising processing circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to: perform, via a first link, a first transmission between the first user equipment and a second user equipment by a master user equipment of the cluster of devices; and perform, via a second link, a direct second transmission between the first user equipment and the second user equipment. Wherein the first transmission is performed using a contention-free resource, and the second transmission is performed using a contention resource.

Description

[0001] Priority Statement

[0002] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202010439319.X, filed on May 22, 2020, entitled “User Equipment, Base Station Equipment, Communication Method and Computer-Readable Storage Medium”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0003] This disclosure relates to the field of communications, and more specifically to user equipment, base station equipment, communication methods, and computer-readable storage media capable of providing ultra-reliable low-latency communication to a large number of users. Background Technology

[0004] 5G NR (New Radio) is one of the important development directions of wireless communication technology. Two typical application scenarios of 5G NR include Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) and Massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC). URLLC can provide highly reliable and low-latency communication to a small number of users, while mMTC can provide communication services to a massive number of users without latency limitations.

[0005] With the expansion of 5G NR application scenarios, future applications may include ultra-reliable low-latency communication scenarios for massive numbers of users. These scenarios may occur in areas such as drone networks, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) networks, and the industrial internet. In such scenarios, a large number of user devices need to communicate with each other to work collaboratively, and the communication services must have high reliability and low latency. This scenario creates a demand for URLLC-mMTC services.

[0006] A significant bottleneck in implementing URLLC-mMTC services is limited resources. When serving a large number of users with limited resources, users must compete for those resources. This is detrimental to ensuring communication reliability. Furthermore, users may not be allocated sufficient communication resources in a timely manner and must therefore wait for available resources. This can introduce latency, failing to meet the low-latency requirement. Existing technologies struggle to achieve ultra-reliable low-latency communication for massive numbers of users. Summary of the Invention

[0007] One aspect of this disclosure relates to a first user equipment. The first user equipment is associated with a cluster of devices and includes processing circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to: perform a first transmission between the first user equipment and a second user equipment via a first link through a primary user equipment of the cluster; and perform a direct second transmission between the first user equipment and the second user equipment via a second link; wherein the first transmission is performed using contention-free resources, while the second transmission is performed using contention-based resources.

[0008] Another aspect of this disclosure relates to a master user equipment (MPA). The MPA is associated with a device cluster, and the device cluster includes one or more first slave user equipments (SMAs). The MPA includes processing circuitry. This processing circuitry is configured to send resource allocation configuration information to each of the first slave user equipments. The resource allocation configuration information allocates contention-free resources to a first link between the MPA and each of the first slave user equipments in a schedule-free, pre-configured access manner, and allocates contention-free resources to at least a second link. The second links include intra-cluster second links between multiple first slave user equipments and / or inter-cluster second links between a first slave user equipment and a user equipment not belonging to the device cluster.

[0009] Another aspect of this disclosure relates to a base station device. The base station device includes processing circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to: divide a plurality of user equipments into one or more device clusters, each device cluster including an associated master user equipment and one or more slave user equipments; determine resource allocation, wherein the resource allocation allocates contention-free resources and contention resources in a scheduling-preset access manner, the contention-free resources being allocated to a first link between the master user equipment of the device cluster and the slave user equipment of the device cluster, and the contention resources being allocated to at least a second link, the second link including an intra-cluster second link between multiple slave user equipments within the same device cluster and / or an inter-cluster second link between user equipments belonging to different device clusters; and send resource allocation configuration information containing the resource allocation to the master user equipment and / or the slave user equipments.

[0010] Another aspect of this disclosure relates to a communication method for a first user equipment associated with a device cluster. The method includes the following operations performed by the first user equipment: performing a first transmission between the first user equipment and a second user equipment via a first link through a primary user equipment of the device cluster; and performing a direct second transmission between the first user equipment and the second user equipment via a second link; wherein the first transmission is performed using contention-free resources, while the second transmission is performed using contention-based resources.

[0011] Another aspect of this disclosure relates to a communication method for a master user equipment associated with a device cluster, wherein the device cluster includes one or more first slave user equipments. The method includes the following operations performed by the master user equipment: sending resource allocation configuration information to each first slave user equipment, the resource allocation configuration information allocating contention-free resources to a first link between the master user equipment and each first slave user equipment in a schedule-free, pre-configured access manner, and allocating contentionable resources at least to a second link, the second link including intra-cluster second links between multiple first slave user equipments and / or inter-cluster second links between a first slave user equipment and a user equipment not belonging to the device cluster.

[0012] Another aspect of this disclosure relates to a communication method, the method comprising a base station performing the following operations: dividing a plurality of user equipments into one or more device clusters, each device cluster including an associated master user equipment and one or more slave user equipments; determining resource allocation, the resource allocation allocating contention-free resources and contention resources in a scheduling-preset access manner, the contention-free resources being allocated to a first link between the master user equipment of the device cluster and the slave user equipment of the device cluster, and the contention resources being allocated to at least a second link, the second link including an intra-cluster second link between multiple slave user equipments of the same device cluster and / or an inter-cluster second link between user equipments belonging to different device clusters; and sending resource allocation configuration information including the resource allocation to the master user equipment and / or the slave user equipment.

[0013] Another aspect of this disclosure relates to a computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, which, when loaded and executed by a processor, is used to implement any of the methods involved in this disclosure.

[0014] The above overview is provided merely to offer a basic understanding of the various aspects of the subject matter described herein. Therefore, the technical features in the above solutions are merely illustrative and should not be construed as limiting the scope or spirit of the subject matter described herein in any way. Other features, aspects, and advantages of the subject matter described herein will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Attached Figure Description

[0015] A better understanding of this disclosure can be obtained by considering the following detailed description of the embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The same or similar reference numerals are used in the drawings to denote the same or similar parts and operations. Wherein:

[0016] Figure 1 A communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0017] Figure 2 A base station device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0018] Figure 3A A user equipment according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0019] Figure 3B A primary user equipment according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0020] Figure 3C A user equipment according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0021] Figure 4 A data flow diagram according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown, the data flow diagram relating to... Figure 1 Several exemplary configuration processes are associated with the configuration of the communication system.

[0022] Figure 5A An exemplary resource allocation according to an embodiment of this disclosure is shown.

[0023] Figure 5B A schematic diagram of a resource element according to this disclosure is shown.

[0024] Figure 6 A data flow diagram of intra-cluster communication under a hybrid access mode according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0025] Figure 7 A data flow diagram of cross-cluster communication under a hybrid access mode according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0026] Figures 8-10 One or more communication methods according to embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated.

[0027] Figure 11 This is a block diagram of a first example of a schematic configuration of a base station device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0028] Figure 12 This is a block diagram of a second example of a schematic configuration of a base station device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0029] Figure 13 This is a block diagram illustrating an example of a smartphone configuration according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0030] Figure 14 This is a block diagram illustrating an example of a car navigation device configuration according to embodiments of the present disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0031] The following describes specific examples of devices and methods, etc., according to this disclosure. These examples are described only to provide context and aid in understanding the described embodiments. Therefore, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the embodiments described below can be practiced without some or all of the specific details described. In other instances, well-known operations are not described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the described embodiments. Other applications are also possible, and the scope of this disclosure is not limited to these specific examples.

[0032] 1 system

[0033] Figure 1 A communication system 1000 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is illustrated. The communication system 1000 may include a base station device 2000 and one or more user equipments 3000. Figure 1 In the example, user equipment 3000 includes multiple user equipment 3000-1 to 3000-8.

[0034] According to embodiments of this disclosure, each user equipment 3000 can establish and / or maintain a link with the base station equipment 2000, thereby using the wireless communication services provided by the base station equipment 2000. As an example, the wireless communication service provided by the base station equipment 2000 may be a cellular communication service. Preferably, the cellular communication service may be a 5G NR communication service.

[0035] According to embodiments of this disclosure, each user equipment 3000 may also establish and / or maintain a direct link with another user equipment, thereby enabling direct communication between the two user equipments. Such a direct link between user equipments may be referred to as a D2D (Device-to-Device) direct link.

[0036] This disclosure recognizes that in communication systems comprising a large number of user equipment (UFOs), relying solely on direct links between two UFOs for communication may be problematic. The number of direct links increases significantly with the number of UFOs in the communication system. With limited resources available to the communication system, these limited resources may not be sufficient to meet the communication needs of all direct links. Links will compete for resources, making it difficult to guarantee communication reliability. Furthermore, many links may have to wait for idle resources, potentially leading to significant latency. Therefore, this may not meet the requirements of URLLC-mMTC scenarios.

[0037] To address this issue, according to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication system 1000 can be constructed as a multi-layer architecture. Based on this multi-layer architecture, multi-layer communication links and direct links between user equipment can be constructed. Different types of resources can be allocated to the multi-layer communication links and direct links. A hybrid access mode can be provided. In the hybrid access mode, users can collaboratively use the multi-layer communication links and direct links to achieve ultra-reliable and low-latency communication.

[0038] According to embodiments of this disclosure, multiple user equipments in the communication system 1000 can be divided into one or more device clusters. Each device cluster may include one or more user equipments. Figure 1 As shown, user equipment 3000-1 to 3000-8 can be divided into two equipment clusters, A and B, enclosed by the dashed box. Equipment cluster A may include user equipment 3000-1 to 3000-4, while equipment cluster B may include user equipment 3000-5 to 3000-8.

[0039] Furthermore, user equipment (UEs) within each device cluster can be designated as either a master UE or a slave UE, and links can be established between the master UE and each slave UE in that cluster. For example, in device cluster A, UE 3000-4 can be designated as the master UE, while UEs 3000-1, 3000-2, and 3000-3 can be designated as slave UEs. Accordingly, links can be established between the master UE 3000-4 and each of the slave UEs 3000-1, 3000-2, and 3000-3, respectively. Figure 1 The solid lines in the diagram represent links 101, 102, and 103. In device cluster B, user equipment 3000-8 can be designated as the primary user equipment, while user equipments 3000-5, 3000-6, and 3000-7 can be designated as secondary user equipments. Accordingly, links can be established between the primary user equipment 3000-8 and each of the secondary user equipments 3000-5, 3000-6, and 3000-7, as follows: Figure 1 The solid lines in the diagram represent links 105, 106, and 107.

[0040] According to embodiments of this disclosure, links between a slave user equipment and a master user equipment within the same device cluster can be classified as first links. For example, links 101, 102, 103, 105, 106, and 107 can be classified as first links. A first link can be part of a multi-layer communication link.

[0041] According to embodiments of this disclosure, direct links can also be established between a user equipment and other user equipments besides the primary user equipment within that user equipment; such links are classified as second links. Second links can be used for direct communication between two user equipments. For example, link 201 between user equipment 3000-1 and user equipment 3000-2, and link 205 between user equipment 3000-1 and user equipment 3000-5, can be classified as second links. Further, second links can be classified as intra-cluster second links and inter-cluster second links. For example, since user equipment 3000-1 and user equipment 3000-2 are within the same device cluster, link 201 can be classified as an intra-cluster second link. Since user equipment 3000-1 and user equipment 3000-5 belong to different device clusters, link 205 can be classified as an inter-cluster second link. One or more second links can be selectively established.

[0042] In the above manner, the communication system 1000 can be organized into a multi-layered architecture including multiple levels, such as... Figure 1 The horizontal dashed lines in the diagram indicate this. These multiple levels can include a base station level, a primary user level, and a secondary user level. The base station level can include base station equipment 2000. Base station equipment 2000 can be configured to identify and maintain various equipment clusters and determine resource allocation for each user equipment 3000 within the equipment cluster. The primary user level can include primary user equipment 3000-4 and 3000-8. Primary user equipment 3000-4 and 3000-8 can respectively manage and / or participate in the resource allocation of their associated equipment clusters. The secondary user level can include secondary user equipment 3000-1, 3000-2, 3000-3, 3000-5, 3000-6, and 3000-7. Each secondary user equipment can receive various configuration information from base station equipment 2000 and / or its corresponding primary user equipment and perform self-configuration accordingly.

[0043] According to embodiments of this disclosure, a multi-layer communication link between any two user equipments can be determined based on a multi-layer architecture. This multi-layer communication link may include a primary user equipment and / or a base station equipment acting as routing nodes.

[0044] As an example, for slave user equipment 3000-1 and 3000-2 belonging to the same device cluster, the constructed multi-layer communication link may include two parts, namely, first link 101 and first link 102. This multi-layer communication link only includes master user equipment 3000-4 as a routing node.

[0045] As another example, for slave user equipment 3000-1 and 3000-5 belonging to different device clusters, the constructed multi-layer communication link can include four parts: a first link 101 between slave user equipment 3000-1 and master user equipment 3000-4, a link 104 between master user equipment 3000-4 and base station equipment 2000, a link 108 between base station equipment 2000 and master user equipment 3000-8, and a first link 105 between master user equipment 3000-8 and slave user equipment 3000-5. This multi-layer communication link sequentially includes master user equipment 3000-4, base station equipment 2000, and master user equipment 3000-8 as routing nodes.

[0046] As another example, for slave user equipment 3000-1 and master user equipment 3000-8, which do not belong to the same equipment cluster, the constructed multi-layer communication link can include three parts: a first link 101 between slave user equipment 3000-1 and master user equipment 3000-4, a link 104 between master user equipment 3000-4 and base station equipment 2000, and a link 108 between base station equipment 2000 and master user equipment 3000-8. This multi-layer communication link sequentially includes master user equipment 3000-4 and base station equipment 2000 as routing nodes.

[0047] According to embodiments of this disclosure, a multi-layer communication link and a direct link between two user equipments can be used together for communication between the two user equipments. Furthermore, different types of communication resources can be allocated to the multi-layer communication link and the direct link between the two user equipments. Further details regarding resource allocation will be discussed in Sections 4-5.

[0048] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication system 1000 can be applied to various scenarios. For example, the communication system 1000 can be applied to a drone network, where each user device 3000 can be associated with a corresponding drone device. Alternatively, the communication system 1000 can be applied to a vehicle network, where each user device 3000 can be associated with a corresponding in-vehicle device. Alternatively, the communication system 1000 can be applied to the Industrial Internet, where user devices 3000 can be associated with multiple machines that need to collaborate. It is understood that the communication system 1000 can be applied to any scenario requiring multiple user devices to communicate with each other to collaborate.

[0049] It is important to note that Figure 1The number of user equipment 3000 and base station equipment 2000 in the illustrated communication system 1000 is merely exemplary. The communication system 1000 may include fewer user equipment 3000. In practical applications, the communication system 1000 may include more user equipment (e.g., dozens, hundreds, thousands, or more). When the user equipment 3000 spans multiple cells, the communication system 1000 may also include multiple base station equipment 2000 working collaboratively.

[0050] also, Figure 1 The device clustering shown is merely exemplary. According to other embodiments of this disclosure, multiple user devices in the communication system 1000 can be divided into more or fewer device clusters, and the number of user devices contained in each device cluster can be equal or unequal. Furthermore, Figure 1 The designation of the primary user equipment in this disclosure is merely exemplary. According to other embodiments of this disclosure, another user equipment in device cluster A (or device cluster B) may be designated as the primary user equipment, and the remaining user equipment may be designated as secondary user equipment. Further details regarding the partitioning of device clusters and the designation of the primary user equipment will be discussed in detail in Section 4.1.

[0051] 2 base station equipment

[0052] Figure 2 A base station device 2000 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. The base station device 2000 may be related to... Figure 1 An example of a base station device described.

[0053] According to embodiments of this disclosure, base station equipment 2000 can provide wireless communication services to user equipment. Preferably, base station equipment 2000 can provide cellular communication services. Base station equipment 2000 can include any type of base station, preferably, such as macro gNBs and small gNBs in the 3GPP 5G communication standard New Radio (NR) access technology. Small gNBs can be gNBs covering cells smaller than macro cells, such as pico gNBs, micro gNBs, and femtocell gNBs. Alternatively, base station equipment 2000 can be implemented as any other type of base station, such as NodeBs and Base Transceiver Stations (BTSs). Base station equipment 2000 can also include a main body configured to control wireless communication and one or more remote radio heads (RRHs) located at a different location from the main body. Base station equipment 2000 can also be a wireless communication module (such as an integrated circuit module comprising a single chip) installed in the various devices described above.

[0054] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the base station device 2000 may include a communication module 2010, a storage module 2020, and a processing circuit 2030.

[0055] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication module 2010 can be configured to perform communication between the base station device 2000 and other devices. This communication may include, but is not limited to, communication between the base station device 2000 and various user equipment 3000s (including primary user equipment and secondary user equipment). The communication module 2010 can be adapted to different wireless communication protocols, including but not limited to various cellular communications, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, etc. Preferably, the communication module 2010 can be adapted to the 5G NR communication protocol. Additionally, the communication module 2010 can also be adapted to wired communication protocols to provide necessary wired communication for the base station device 2000. The communication module 2010 can be used to receive radio signals transmitted by one or more user equipment 3000s, and can also perform processing on the received radio signals such as down-conversion and analog-to-digital conversion, and can provide information obtained from the radio signals to other parts of the base station device 2000 (e.g., memory 2020 or processing circuitry 2030). The communication module 2010 can also be used to transmit radio signals to one or more user equipment 3000s, and can perform processing on the radio signals such as digital-to-analog conversion and up-conversion before transmission. Information transmitted by the communication module 2010 can originate from other parts of the base station equipment 2000 (e.g., memory 2020 or processing circuitry 2030). The communication module 2010 can be implemented, for example, as a communication interface component such as an antenna device, radio frequency circuitry, and part of the baseband processing circuitry. The communication module 2010 is drawn with dashed lines because it can also be located within the processing circuitry 3030 or outside the base station equipment 2000.

[0056] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the memory 2020 of the base station device 2000 can store information generated by the processing circuit 3030, information received from other devices via the communication module 2010, programs, machine code, and data used for the operation of the base station device 2000, etc. The memory 2020 is drawn with dashed lines because it can be located within the processing circuit 2030 or outside the base station device 2000. The memory 2020 can be volatile memory and / or non-volatile memory. For example, the memory 2020 can include, but is not limited to, random access memory (RAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), read-only memory (ROM), and flash memory.

[0057] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the processing circuit 2030 can be used to implement various functions of the base station device 2000. The processing circuit 2030 may include a device cluster partitioning module 2031, a resource configuration module 2032, a link filtering module 2033, and a data relay module 2034. The device cluster partitioning module 2031, resource configuration module 2032, link filtering module 2033, and data relay module 2034 are drawn with dashed boxes because one or more of these modules are optional.

[0058] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the processing circuit 2030 may include a device cluster partitioning module 2031. The device cluster partitioning module 2031 may be configured to partition multiple user equipments in the communication system into one or more device clusters, each device cluster including a corresponding master user equipment and one or more slave user equipments.

[0059] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the device cluster partitioning module 2031 can collect information associated with multiple user devices, and partition the multiple user devices into one or more device clusters based on the collected information, and / or update the one or more device clusters.

[0060] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the device cluster partitioning module 2031 can also assign a primary user device to each device cluster based on the collected information. As a specific example, the device cluster partitioning module 2031 can determine the sum of the distances from each user device in each device cluster to other user devices in that device cluster, and select the user device with the smallest sum as the primary user device for that device cluster.

[0061] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the device cluster partitioning module 2031 can generate and maintain cluster partitioning information, and can send the cluster partitioning information to the primary user equipment and / or the secondary user equipment.

[0062] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the processing circuit 2030 may further include a resource configuration module 2032. The resource configuration module 2032 may be configured to determine resource allocation. The resource configuration module 2032 may also generate resource allocation configuration information indicating resource allocation and send the generated resource allocation configuration information to the primary user equipment and / or the secondary user equipment.

[0063] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the resource allocation generated by the resource allocation module 2032 can allocate contention-free resources and contention-free resources in a pre-configured access manner without scheduling. Contention-free resources can be allocated to a first link between a master user equipment (MEMB) and slave user equipment (SUE) of the same device cluster, and contention-free resources can be allocated to at least a second link. The second link includes intra-cluster second links between multiple SUEs within the same device cluster and / or cross-cluster second links between user equipment belonging to different device clusters.

[0064] According to embodiments of this disclosure, resource allocation module 2032 can be configured to determine contention-free resources specific to each device cluster. Optionally, resource allocation module 2032 can be configured to determine the size of the contention-free resources allocated to the device cluster based on the attributes of the device cluster. The attributes of the device cluster may include the number of user equipments in the device cluster or the channel busy rate (CBR).

[0065] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the resource allocation module 2032 can also be configured to adjust the size of allocated non-contention-free resources and contention-free resources based on the rate of change of the device cluster. For example, when the rate of change is greater than a threshold, the resource allocation module 2032 can reduce the amount of non-contention-free resources and increase the amount of contention-free resources.

[0066] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the processing circuit 2030 may further include a link filtering module 2033. The link filtering module 2033 may be configured to determine whether a link between any two user equipments among a plurality of user equipments is an active link.

[0067] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the link filtering module 2033 can be configured to determine whether a link is an active link based on the priority of the link between two user equipments. The link filtering module 2033 can determine links with higher priority as active links.

[0068] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the link filtering module 2033 can generate active link information. The link filtering module 2033 can then send this active link information to the resource configuration module 2032. The resource configuration module 2032 can allocate non-contention-free resources and / or contention-based resources only to the active links. This can significantly reduce the number of links participating in resource contention, thereby reducing the waiting latency of each link.

[0069] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the processing circuit 2030 may further include a data relay module 2034. According to embodiments of this disclosure, the data relay module 2034 may be configured to receive a first transmission from a first slave user equipment of a first device cluster within a plurality of device clusters, and to transmit the received first transmission to a second slave user equipment of a second device cluster within the plurality of device clusters via a second master user equipment of a second device cluster. By using the data relay module 2034, the base station device 2000 may act as a routing node in a multi-layer communication link associated with each slave user equipment.

[0070] Details regarding the functions and operation of base station equipment will become clearer in the following description.

[0071] 3 User Equipment

[0072] Figure 3A A block diagram of a user equipment 3000 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Examples of the user equipment 3000 may be as follows: Figure 1 The user equipment described is any one of 3000-1 to 3000-8. According to embodiments of this disclosure, user equipment 3000 may include a mobile device, an in-vehicle device, or a terminal performing machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, etc. The user equipment may also be a wireless communication module (such as an integrated circuit module comprising a single chip) installed in the aforementioned drone, in-vehicle device, or terminal.

[0073] According to embodiments of this disclosure, user equipment 3000 may include a communication module 3010, a storage module 3020, and a processing circuit 3030.

[0074] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication module 3010 can be configured to perform communication between the user equipment 3000 and other devices. This communication may include, but is not limited to, communication between the user equipment 3000 and the base station device 2000, communication with master and / or slave user equipment within the same device cluster, and communication with other user equipment in different device clusters, etc. Optionally, the communication module 3010 may include different sub-units to respectively implement communication with different devices. According to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication module 3010 can be applied to different wireless communication protocols, including but not limited to various cellular communications, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, etc. Preferably, the communication module 3010 can be applied to the 5G NR communication protocol. Additionally, the communication module 3010 can also be applied to wired communication protocols to provide necessary wired communication for the user equipment 3000. According to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication module 3010 can be used to receive radio signals transmitted by the base station device 2000 or another user equipment 3000, and can also perform processing on the received radio signals such as down-conversion and analog-to-digital conversion, and can provide information obtained from the radio signals to other parts of the user equipment 3000 (e.g., memory 3020 or processing circuitry 3030). The communication module 3010 can also be used to transmit radio signals to the base station device 2000 or another user equipment 3000, and can perform processing on the radio signals such as digital-to-analog conversion and up-conversion before transmission. The information transmitted by the communication module 3010 can come from other parts of the user equipment 3000 (e.g., memory 3020 or processing circuitry 3030). According to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication module 3010 can be implemented as a communication interface component such as an antenna device, radio frequency circuitry, and part of the baseband processing circuitry. The communication module 3010 is drawn with dashed lines because it can also be located within the processing circuitry 3030 or outside the user equipment 3000.

[0075] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the memory 3020 of the user equipment 3000 can store information generated by the processing circuit 3030, information received from other devices via the communication module 3010, programs, machine code, and data used for operation of the user equipment 3000, etc. The memory 3020 is drawn with dashed lines because it can be located within the processing circuit 3030 or outside the user equipment 3000. The memory 3020 can be volatile memory and / or non-volatile memory. For example, the memory 3020 can include, but is not limited to, random access memory (RAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), read-only memory (ROM), and flash memory.

[0076] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the processing circuit 3030 can be used to implement various functions of the user equipment 3000. According to embodiments of this disclosure, the user equipment 3000 can act as a primary user equipment in the communication system 1000 (e.g., regarding...). Figure 1 The described primary user equipment (3000-4 or 3000-8) or the user equipment (e.g., regarding...) Figure 1 The operations performed by the processing circuit 3030 may differ when the user equipment 3000 acts as a master user equipment and a slave user equipment, respectively. According to one embodiment of this disclosure, the processing circuit 3030 may determine whether the user equipment 3000 acts as a master user equipment or a slave user equipment based on external configuration or instructions, and perform different functions and operations accordingly. The functions of the slave user equipment and the master user equipment will be described below.

[0077] 3.1 Main User Equipment

[0078] According to embodiments of this disclosure, user equipment 3000 can be configured to act as a primary user equipment. Figure 3B A primary user equipment 3000 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0079] and Figure 3A compared to, Figure 3B The diagram further illustrates that the processing circuitry 3030 may include a resource allocation module 3031, a data routing module 3032, and a device cluster management module 3033. The resource allocation module 3031, data routing module 3032, and device cluster management module 3033 are drawn with dashed boxes because one or more of these modules are optional.

[0080] As an example, user equipment 3000 can be configured as Figure 1 The primary user equipment in the 3000-4. For clarity and convenience, this section will combine... Figure 1The following description uses primary user equipment 3000-4 as an example. It is understood that user equipment 3000 can also be any other primary user equipment. Figure 1 In the example, primary user equipment 3000-4 is associated with equipment cluster A, which also includes one or more user equipments 3000-1 to 3000-3. Primary user equipment 3000-4 can manage, maintain, and / or participate in the resource allocation of equipment cluster A.

[0081] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the resource allocation module 3031 of the processing circuit 3030 can perform resource allocation for device cluster A. Specifically, the resource allocation module 3031 can send resource allocation configuration information to each slave user equipment 3000-1 to 3000-3. This resource allocation configuration information can allocate contention-free resources to the first link between the master user equipment 3000-4 and each first slave user equipment of device cluster A in a scheduling-free preset access manner, and allocate contention-free resources at least to the second link, wherein the second link may include intra-cluster second links between multiple slave user equipments of device cluster A and / or cross-cluster second links between a slave user equipment and other user equipment not belonging to device cluster A.

[0082] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the resource allocation configuration information can be entirely determined by the base station device 2000. The resource allocation module 3031 can be configured to receive the resource allocation configuration information determined by the base station device 2000 and forward it to each slave user equipment 3000-1 to 3000-3. According to another embodiment of this disclosure, the resource allocation configuration information can be jointly determined by the base station device 2000 and the resource allocation module 3031 of the master user equipment 3000-4 of the device cluster. The resource allocation module 3031 can be configured to send the determined resource allocation configuration information to each slave user equipment 3000-1 to 3000-3.

[0083] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the processing circuit 3030 may further include a data routing module 3032. The data routing module 3032 may be configured to route first transmissions associated with each slave user equipment of device cluster A, such that the master user equipment 3000-4 can act as a routing node in a multi-layer communication link associated with the slave user equipments. The data routing module 3032 of the master user equipment 3000-4 may also route HARQ messages associated with the first transmission. For example, the data routing module 3032 may receive HARQ messages associated with the first transmission and send the HARQ messages to the slave user equipment from which the first transmission originated, thereby reducing redundant transmissions in the communication system.

[0084] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the processing circuit 3030 may further include a device cluster management module 3033. The device cluster management module 3033 can maintain cluster information for device cluster A. The device cluster management module 3033 can also collect information associated with each slave user equipment in device cluster A and update device cluster A based on the collected information. The device cluster management module 3033 can jointly manage device cluster A with the base station equipment 2000.

[0085] 3.2 From user equipment

[0086] According to embodiments of this disclosure, user equipment 3000 can be configured to act as a slave user equipment. Figure 3C A user equipment 3000 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

[0087] and Figure 3A compared to, Figure 3C The diagram further illustrates that the processing circuitry 3030 may include a transmission management module 3034, a resource management module 3035, and a data management module 3036. The transmission management module 3034, resource management module 3035, and data management module 3036 are drawn with dashed boxes because one or more of these modules are optional.

[0088] As an example, user equipment 3000 can be configured as follows: Figure 1 From user equipment 3000-1. For clarity and convenience, this section will combine... Figure 1 The description takes user equipment 3000-1 as an example. Figure 1 In the example, user equipment 3000-1 is associated with device cluster A. It is understood that user equipment 3000 could also be another user equipment associated with any device cluster.

[0089] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the transmission management module 3034 of the processing circuit 3030 can be configured for communication between user equipment 3000-1 and a second user equipment in the communication system 1000. Specifically, the transmission management module 3034 can be configured to perform a first transmission with the second user equipment via a first link through a primary user equipment 3000-4 of device cluster A, and to perform a direct second transmission with the second user equipment via a second link. The first transmission may be performed using contention-free resources, while the second transmission may be performed using contention-based resources. As further described below, the first link may be part of a multi-layer communication link between user equipment 3000-1 and the second user equipment. This multi-layer communication link is used to perform the first transmission. The second link may be a direct link between user equipment 3000-1 and the second user equipment, used to perform the second transmission.

[0090] According to embodiments of this disclosure, depending on whether the second user equipment belongs to the same device cluster A as the user equipment 3000-1, the multilayer communication link for performing the first transmission may include different paths.

[0091] When both the second user equipment and the slave user equipment 3000-1 are associated with equipment cluster A, the first transmission can be routed within the cluster via the master user equipment 3000-4 of equipment cluster A. In this case, performing the first transmission between the slave user equipment 3000-1 and the second user equipment may include: the slave user equipment 3000-1 sending the first transmission to the second user equipment via the master user equipment 3000-4 (with the slave user equipment 3000-1 as the sender); or the slave user equipment 3000-1 receiving the first transmission from the second user equipment via the master user equipment 3000-4 (with the slave user equipment 3000-1 as the target receiver).

[0092] When user equipment 3000-1 and user equipment 2 are associated with different equipment clusters, the first transmission between user equipment 3000-1 and user equipment 2 can be performed through primary user equipment 3000-4, base station equipment 2000, and the second primary user equipment associated with user equipment 2 as routing nodes. For example, when user equipment 3000-1 is the sender of the first transmission, it can send the first transmission to user equipment 2 sequentially via primary user equipment 3000-4, base station equipment 2000, and the second primary user equipment associated with user equipment 2. When user equipment 3000-1 is the target receiver of the first transmission, it can receive the first transmission originating from user equipment 2 via primary user equipment 3000-4, base station equipment 2000, and the second primary user equipment associated with user equipment 2.

[0093] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the processing circuit 3030 may further include a resource management module 3035. The resource management module 3035 may be configured to receive resource allocation configuration information from at least one of the base station device 2000 or the primary user equipment 3000-4 associated with the secondary user equipment 3000-1.

[0094] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the resource allocation configuration information can allocate resources in a pre-configured access manner without scheduling, so that the execution of the first and second transmissions does not require requesting scheduling from the base station equipment 2000 from the user equipment 3000-1. The resource allocation configuration information can also allocate different types of resources to different types of links. For example, the resource allocation configuration information can allocate contention-free resources to the first link for the first transmission, and allocate contention-ridden resources to at least the second link for the second transmission. Preferably, the contention-free resources can be specific to a device cluster. Optionally, the contention-ridden resources can include at least a portion specific to a device cluster.

[0095] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the resource management module 3035 can allocate corresponding resources for the first transmission and the second transmission based on resource allocation configuration information.

[0096] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the processing circuit 3030 may further include a data management module 3036. The data management module 3036 can manage transmissions sent and / or received from the user equipment 3000-1.

[0097] According to embodiments of this disclosure, when user equipment 3000-1 acts as the sender of the first transmission and / or the second transmission, data management module 3036 can be configured to allocate data with different requirements to the first transmission and the second transmission respectively. For example, data management module 3036 can allocate data with higher reliability requirements or higher priority to the first transmission. This is because the first link (specifically, a multi-layer communication link) used by the first transmission can have higher reliability. Additionally or alternatively, data management module 3036 can include part or all of the first transmission in the second transmission, making the first transmission and the second transmission redundant, to further ensure that the part or all of the data is successfully transmitted.

[0098] According to an embodiment of this disclosure, when the user equipment 3000-1 is the target receiver and the first transmission and the second transmission constitute redundant transmissions, the data management module 3036 can also be configured to send an acknowledgment message after successfully receiving and decoding one of the first transmission and the second transmission, so as to terminate the transmission of the other of the first transmission and the second transmission.

[0099] It should be noted that, although this section combines... Figure 1The primary user equipment 3000-4 and secondary user equipment 3000-1 are described separately, but user equipment 3000 can also be any other primary or secondary user equipment. Furthermore, although this section describes the functions and corresponding functional modules of primary user equipment 3000-4 and secondary user equipment 3000-1 separately, the primary and secondary user equipment can be the same type of user equipment, possessing both the functions of a primary user equipment and a secondary user equipment as described above. The user equipment can activate the corresponding functional modules based on its role in the device cluster (acting as a primary or secondary user equipment). Moreover, the user equipment can deactivate certain functional modules and activate others based on changes in its role. Activation of functional modules can include executing corresponding software, computer instructions, and / or enabling corresponding hardware.

[0100] Details regarding the functions and operation of the primary and secondary user equipment will become clear in a further description later.

[0101] It should be noted that the various units described in Sections 2 and 3 regarding base station equipment and user equipment are exemplary and / or preferred modules for implementing the processes described in this disclosure. These modules may be hardware units (such as central processing units, field-programmable gate arrays, digital signal processors, or application-specific integrated circuits) and / or software modules (such as computer-readable programs). The modules for implementing the various steps described below have not been described exhaustively above. However, wherever there is a step that performs a certain process, there may be corresponding modules or units (implemented by hardware and / or software) for implementing the same process. All combinations of the steps described below and the units corresponding to these steps are included in the disclosure of this disclosure, provided that the technical solutions they constitute are complete and applicable.

[0102] Furthermore, devices composed of various units can be incorporated as functional modules into hardware devices such as computers. In addition to these functional modules, a computer can, of course, have other hardware or software components.

[0103] 4 Exemplary Configuration Process

[0104] This section will primarily describe the various exemplary configuration procedures relevant to this disclosure.

[0105] Figure 4A data flow diagram 4000 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Data flow diagram 4000 may relate to multiple exemplary configuration processes associated with the configuration of communication system 1000, including device cluster partitioning processes, resource allocation configuration processes, link filtering processes, etc. Data flow diagram 4000 also relates to processes for updating these configurations of the communication system. It should be noted that each of these exemplary configuration processes may relate to one or more aspects of the present disclosure. One or more exemplary configuration processes can be performed independently as needed without depending on another exemplary configuration process.

[0106] Figure 4 Multiple user equipment units 3000-1, 3000-2, and 3000-4, as well as base station equipment 2000, are shown. As an example, Figure 4 It can have the same Figure 1 The same multi-layered structure is shown. However, for clarity and convenience, Figure 4 Only three user devices are shown, and other possible user devices are indicated by ellipses. Figure 4 The presentation is merely illustrative. Those skilled in the art will understand that... Figure 4 It can involve Figure 1 The diagram shows all user devices, and may include more or fewer user devices. About Figure 4 The described exemplary configuration procedures associated with the configuration of the communication system can be performed for individual user equipment, and are not limited to... Figure 4 Those shown.

[0107] The following sections will describe each exemplary configuration process.

[0108] 4.1 Device Cluster Partitioning Process

[0109] According to embodiments of this disclosure, base station equipment 2000 can divide multiple user equipments in communication system 1000 into one or more device clusters during the device clustering process. In this way, a multi-layered structure of user equipment can be constructed. The device clustering process can be executed, for example, by device clustering module 2031 of base station equipment 2000 in step S4110.

[0110] According to embodiments of this disclosure, base station equipment 2000 can collect information associated with multiple user equipments. The information collected by base station equipment 2000 can come from these user equipments. For example, each user equipment can send (e.g., broadcast) information associated with itself, including but not limited to its location, direction of movement, speed of movement, and functions performed. Figure 4As shown, user equipments 3000-1, 3000-2, and 3000-4 can transmit this information to base station equipment 2000 via data streams 4011, 4012, and 4013, respectively. Preferably, each user equipment can also collect information from one or more surrounding user equipments and transmit the collected information to base station equipment 2000.

[0111] Additionally or alternatively, the base station equipment 2000 may also collect information from control equipment associated with the user equipment. For example, the base station equipment 2000 may collect information associated with each UAV from the control equipment controlling the UAV array. The information associated with each UAV may include, but is not limited to, the UAV's real-time location, real-time direction of movement, real-time speed of movement, and expected movement plan, etc.

[0112] According to an embodiment of this disclosure, in step S4110, the base station device 2000 may divide multiple user equipments into one or more device clusters based on the collected information.

[0113] As a concrete example, base station equipment 2000 can determine and / or predict the distribution of multiple user devices based on collected information. Base station equipment 2000 can then group devices into clusters based on the distribution of multiple users. This grouping method is applicable to scenarios where user devices are mobile devices (e.g., drones, vehicle-mounted devices). For example, base station equipment 2000 can determine the distribution density of user devices, set the edge of each device cluster in a sparsely distributed area, and set the center of each device cluster in a densely distributed area, thereby roughly dividing the user devices into multiple device clusters. Furthermore, for user devices located at the edge of a device cluster, base station equipment 2000 can determine the device cluster to which it belongs based on the distance between the user device and the center of each device cluster. For example, if a user device located at the edge of a device cluster is closest to the center of a specific device cluster, then the user device can be assigned to that specific device cluster. In this way, multiple user devices can be divided into relatively concentrated device clusters, resulting in shorter communication distances between user devices within a device cluster.

[0114] As another concrete example, base station equipment 2000 can determine the function of each user equipment based on collected information and group equipment clusters based on the correlation of functions among multiple user equipments. For example, in an Industrial Internet encompassing multiple industrial processes, each user equipment may be associated with a specific industrial process (e.g., molding, painting, assembly, and inspection in the automotive industry). Base station equipment 2000 can group user equipments associated with the same industrial process into a single equipment cluster.

[0115] It should be noted that the specific examples above can be combined. In other embodiments, the base station device 2000 may group devices based on other factors, and is not limited to the specific examples given above.

[0116] According to embodiments of this disclosure, in step S4110, the base station device 2000 may further determine the primary user equipment for each device cluster. This determination may also be based on information collected by the base station device 2000 that is associated with multiple user equipments.

[0117] As a concrete example, base station equipment 2000 can determine the sum of the distances from each user equipment (UE) in each equipment cluster to the other UEs in that cluster, and select the UE with the smallest sum as the master UE of that cluster. In this way, the master UE of each equipment cluster can be determined as the UE located at the center of that cluster. This reduces the total communication distance of the master UE, thereby reducing its transmit power.

[0118] As another concrete example, base station equipment 2000 can identify a key device among multiple user devices in each device cluster and designate that key device as the primary user device of the device cluster. For instance, in the Industrial Internet, when each device cluster is associated with a specific industrial process, the primary user device of the device cluster can be selected as the key device for managing and / or monitoring that specific industrial process.

[0119] It should be noted that the specific examples above can be combined. In other embodiments, the base station device 2000 may select the primary user equipment for each device cluster based on other factors, and is not limited to the specific examples given above.

[0120] exist Figure 4 In the example, base station device 2000 can group user equipment 3000-1, 3000-2, and 3000-4 into the same device cluster (e.g., Figure 1 In device cluster A), user equipment 3000-4 is identified as the primary user equipment, which is consistent with... Figure 1 The examples are consistent.

[0121] According to embodiments of this disclosure, in step S4110, the base station device 2000 may further generate cluster partitioning information. This cluster partitioning information indicates various information associated with the one or more device clusters. For example, the cluster partitioning information may include cluster information for each device cluster. The cluster information for each device cluster may include an identifier for the device cluster, an identifier for the primary user equipment of the device cluster, identifiers for one or more secondary user equipments, the number of devices included in the device cluster, and so on. Optionally, the cluster information for each device cluster may also include the area covered by the device cluster. Optionally, the cluster information for each device cluster may also include one or more communication metrics (e.g., channel busy rate (CBR)) for the device cluster.

[0122] According to embodiments of this disclosure, base station device 2000 can store and maintain generated cluster partitioning information, for example, stored in memory 2020. Base station device 2000 can also send the cluster partitioning information to each user equipment. Figure 4 In the example, cluster partitioning information can be sent to user equipments 3000-1, 3000-2, and 3000-4 via data streams 4014, 4015, and 4016, respectively. Alternatively, base station equipment 2000 can send the cluster partitioning information to the master user equipment (e.g., 3000-4) of each device cluster, and the master user equipment can then send it to one or more slave user equipments (e.g., 3000-1, 3000-2) of the device cluster.

[0123] Upon receiving cluster partitioning information, each user equipment (UE) can store this information (e.g., in memory 3020) and perform self-configuration based on it. For example, according to the cluster partitioning information, each UE can know the device cluster to which it belongs, the master UE of that cluster, and each slave UE. Each UE can also determine its role within the device cluster (master or slave) based on the received cluster partitioning information and configure its own functions and operations accordingly. Figure 4 As shown, the self-configuration of user equipment can occur in step S4131. In step S4131, user equipment 3000-1 and 3000-2 can be configured as slave user equipment, user equipment 3000-4 can be configured as master user equipment, and all three user equipment can be associated with device cluster A.

[0124] By partitioning the device clusters, user equipment in a communication system can be organized into a multi-layered architecture. As further described later, this multi-layered architecture can be used to implement multi-layered communication links between two user devices.

[0125] 4.2 Link Filtering Process

[0126] According to embodiments of this disclosure, base station equipment 2000 can screen links between multiple user equipments during a link screening process to determine active links among the multiple user equipments. In the subsequent resource allocation configuration process, communication resources can be allocated only to active links, while resources are temporarily withheld from inactive links. The link screening process can, for example, be executed by the link screening module 2033 of base station equipment 2000 in step S4120.

[0127] As described earlier, for a communication system involving a large number of user devices, establishing and maintaining direct links between any two user devices would result in a huge number of links. These links would need to compete for limited resources, thus potentially leading to low reliability and latency.

[0128] According to embodiments of this disclosure, in step S4120, the base station device 2000 can determine whether a link between two user equipments in the communication system is an active link. The base station device 2000 can determine whether a link is active based on the priority of the link between the two user equipments. For example, the link priority can be based on communication urgency and / or reliability requirements. A link with high communication urgency can be considered to have a high priority. Alternatively or additionally, a link with higher reliability requirements can be considered to have a high priority. The base station device 2000 can determine a link with a high priority as an active link.

[0129] As a concrete example, in the use case of mobile user equipment (drone networks or vehicle-to-everything networks), two user equipments that are close to each other can be considered to have a high communication urgency. This could be, for example, to prevent collisions between mobile devices. In this case, when the distance between the two user equipments is less than a distance threshold, the base station device 2000 can determine the link between the two user equipments as an active link.

[0130] In this example, the distance threshold can be determined based on the user device's maximum speed and the URLLC time requirement. More specifically, if a URLLC communication requires time T... k Completed within the timeframe, and the maximum speed of the user device is V. max Then the distance threshold can be determined as 2T. k V max The distance threshold is in T. k At maximum speed V within a time period maxThe safe distance between two mobile devices moving in opposite directions will prevent a collision. If the distance between two user devices is less than this distance threshold, they may need to communicate to prevent a collision. Therefore, a direct link between the two devices can be identified as an active link. If the distance between the two user devices is greater than this distance threshold, the direct link between them can be identified as an inactive link. The distance threshold can also be determined in any other way.

[0131] As another concrete example, in the Industrial Internet, certain critical devices perform management or monitoring functions, and therefore may have high requirements for communication reliability. In this case, the base station device 2000 can determine the link associated with this critical device as an active link.

[0132] As an optional example, the link filtering process can refer to the cluster partitioning information obtained from the device cluster partitioning process. For example, the links between the master user equipment (MPE) and each slave user equipment (SUE) of each device cluster (i.e., the first links) can always be identified as active links to ensure communication between the MPE and its associated SUEs. Optionally, the links between SUEs within each device cluster (intra-cluster second links) can also be identified as active links. For cross-cluster second links, one or more of the determination methods described above can be applied.

[0133] It should be noted that the specific examples above can be combined. In other embodiments, the base station device 2000 may determine active links based on other factors, not limited to the specific examples given above.

[0134] According to embodiments of this disclosure, in step S4120, the base station device 2000 may further generate active link information. The active link information may include link identifiers for each active link. The link identifier may be determined, for example, based on the identifiers of the two user equipments connected to the link. The active link information may be provided to the resource allocation configuration process. Preferably, the active link information may be sent to each user equipment (e.g., via data streams 4014, 4015, 4016). Each user equipment may perform self-configuration in step S4131 based on the received active link information, thereby establishing active links without establishing inactive links.

[0135] By employing a link filtering process, only high-priority links can be retained in a communication system, while other links are excluded. This can significantly reduce the number of links between user equipment in the communication system without noticeably degrading communication quality. Reducing the number of links avoids excessive link contention for limited resources, thereby reducing latency. It should be noted that...

[0136] 4.3 Resource Allocation and Configuration Process

[0137] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the base station device 2000 can allocate contention-free resources and contention-free resources in a pre-configured access manner without scheduling during the resource allocation configuration process. The resource allocation configuration process can, for example, be executed by the resource configuration module 2032 of the base station device 2000 in step S4130.

[0138] According to embodiments of this disclosure, in order to determine resource allocation, the base station device 2000 may first classify the links between various user equipments. Specifically, the base station device 2000 may classify the links between the master user equipment and slave user equipment in each device cluster as first links, and classify the links between two user equipments other than the first links as second links. The second links may include links between multiple slave user equipments within the same device cluster (referred to as intra-cluster second links) and links between each slave user equipment and user equipment in another device cluster (referred to as inter-cluster second links). Here, the user equipment in the other device cluster may include the master user equipment and slave user equipment of that other device cluster. Figure 1 Examples of first links include links 101, 102, 103, 105, 106, and 107. Examples of intra-cluster second links may include direct links between slave user equipments of device cluster A, such as link 201. Examples of cross-cluster second links include direct links between slave user equipments of device cluster A and user equipments of device cluster B, such as link 205.

[0139] According to a preferred embodiment of this disclosure, the base station device 2000 can filter the first link and the second link by combining the active link information obtained from the link filtering process. For example, when allocating resources, the base station device 2000 can only consider the first and second links as active links, and ignore the first and second links as inactive links. That is, the base station device 2000 only allocates resources to the first link and the second link when they are active links. This can filter out a large number of inactive links and reduce resource contention. When the active link information is updated, the resource allocation can also be updated accordingly. In other embodiments, the base station device 2000 may also disregard the active link information.

[0140] According to embodiments of this disclosure, base station equipment 2000 can divide the resources available in the communication system into contention-bound resources and contention-free resources, and can allocate different types of resources to different types of links. Specifically, base station equipment 2000 can allocate contention-free resources to a first link between a master user equipment in a device cluster and each slave user equipment in that device cluster, and can allocate contention-bound resources to at least a second link, including intra-cluster second links and inter-cluster second links. Figure 4In the example, base station device 2000 can allocate contention-free resources for the first link between primary user equipment 3000-4 and each slave user equipment 3000-1 and 3000-2, while allocating contention-based resources for the intra-cluster second link between slave user equipment 3000-1 and 3000-2. Although Figure 4 Multiple device clusters are not shown, but competing resources can also be allocated to a second link across clusters.

[0141] Contention-free refers to a resource of a certain size being allocated to a small number of users (one or more), such that no contention occurs when these users share the resource, or the expected latency due to contention is below a threshold. The allocated resource is called a contention-free resource. In contrast, contention refers to a resource of a certain size being allocated to a large number of users (one or more), such that contention may occur when these users share the resource, or the expected latency due to contention is not below a threshold. The allocated resource is called a contention-competitive resource. Transmissions using contention-free resources have higher reliability. Furthermore, because there is no need to wait for idle resources, transmissions using contention-free resources also have lower latency.

[0142] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the contention-free resources allocated to the base station device 2000 can be device cluster-specific. That is, different contention-free resources can be allocated to different device clusters, ensuring that user equipment from different device clusters does not contend for the same contention-free resource. For example, Figure 1 Device cluster A and device cluster B can be allocated different non-contested resources.

[0143] According to embodiments of this disclosure, base station equipment 2000 can determine the size of contention-free resources allocated to a device cluster based on the attributes of the device cluster. The size of the resource can refer to the number of resource elements contained within the resource. For example, the size of contention-free resources specific to each device cluster can be determined based on at least one of the number of user equipments in each device cluster or the channel busy rate (CBR). For example, the size of contention-free resources specific to each device cluster can be proportional to the number of user equipments contained in the device cluster. Therefore, device clusters containing more user equipment can be allocated more contention-free resources. Additionally or alternatively, the size of contention-free resources specific to each device cluster can be positively correlated with the channel busy rate of the device cluster. The channel busy rate can indicate the level of communication congestion within a device cluster, so more contention-free resources can be allocated to device clusters with high channel busy rates.

[0144] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the contention resources allocated to the base station device 2000 may include a first contention resource and a second contention resource. The first contention resource may be shared only by intra-cluster second links within each device cluster, or referred to as an intra-cluster contention resource. That is, the first contention resource is also specific to the device cluster. The second contention resource may be a common contention resource, which can be shared by any link, including intra-cluster second links, cross-cluster second links, and even the first link. Preferably, the contention level of intra-cluster contention resources can be set lower than that of common contention resources. Specifically, intra-cluster contention resources of the same size can be shared by fewer users. This can, to some extent, guarantee high reliability and low latency of multi-layer communication links within the cluster. This is advantageous because multiple user devices belonging to the same device cluster typically have more urgent communication needs (e.g., drones within the same device cluster in a drone network are closer to each other).

[0145] According to embodiments of this disclosure, in step S4130, the base station device 2000 may further generate resource allocation configuration information. This resource allocation configuration information may include various resource allocations specified in the resource allocation configuration process. For example, the resource allocation configuration information may associate a resource identifier for each resource element with a corresponding link identifier, thereby instructing the user equipment to use one or more resource elements associated with that resource identifier when communicating through the link identified by that link identifier.

[0146] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the base station device 2000 can also send resource allocation configuration information to each user equipment. Figure 4 In the example, resource allocation configuration information can be sent to user equipment 3000-1, 3000-2, and 3000-4 via data streams 4014, 4015, and 4016, respectively. Alternatively, base station equipment 2000 can send the resource allocation configuration information to the master user equipment of each equipment cluster, and the master user equipment can then send it to one or more slave user equipments in the equipment cluster.

[0147] After receiving resource allocation configuration information, each user device can store the resource allocation configuration information and perform self-configuration based on it. For example... Figure 4As shown, the self-configuration of the user equipment can occur in step S4131. Specifically, the resource management unit of the user equipment can store the received resource allocation configuration information in its memory. When the transmission management unit of the user equipment needs to perform a first transmission and / or a second transmission, the resource management unit can retrieve the resource allocation configuration information. The resource management unit can provide information related to the retrieved corresponding resource to the transmission management unit, enabling the transmission management unit to use the corresponding resource to perform the transmission. The user equipment does not need to request scheduling from the base station equipment and / or the primary user equipment.

[0148] In the above embodiments, the resource allocation configuration information can be determined entirely by the base station device 2000. According to alternative embodiments of this disclosure, the resource allocation configuration information can also be jointly determined by the base station device 2000 and the master user equipment of each device cluster. The resource allocation configuration information of the device cluster can be jointly determined by the resource configuration module 2032 of the base station device 2000 and the resource allocation module 3031 of the master user equipment. For example, the base station device 2000 can first determine the division of contention-free resources and contention resources among the available resources of the communication system, and determine the allocation of resources among the various device clusters (i.e., determine the resources specific to each device cluster). The base station device 2000 can generate initial resource allocation configuration information indicating this allocation and send it to the master user equipment of each device cluster. The master user equipment of each device cluster can further specify the allocation of resources specific to that device cluster among the various links of the device cluster based on the received initial resource allocation configuration information. The master user equipment can generate final resource allocation configuration information and send the final resource allocation configuration information to each slave user equipment in the device cluster. This resource allocation method can reduce the communication overhead between primary user equipment and base station equipment, and can improve the flexibility of resource allocation.

[0149] By implementing a resource allocation and configuration process, scheduling-free pre-configured access is achieved. In conventional authorized access methods, user equipment (UE) needs to send a scheduling request to the base station before each communication. Furthermore, the UE can only use the allocated communication resources to complete transmission after the base station allocates communication resources and informs the UE. The scheduling process between the UE and the base station is complex and has excessively long scheduling delays, failing to meet the requirements of URLLC services. In contrast, in the scheduling-free pre-configured access method disclosed herein, the UE is pre-allocated resources, which are stored at the UE in the form of resource allocation configuration information. This resource allocation configuration information can remain stable for a period of time. As a result, when the UE needs to perform transmissions with other UEs, it does not need to send a scheduling request to the base station. Instead, it can complete the transmission using the pre-allocated resources (contention-free resources and / or contention-based resources) based on the existing resource allocation configuration information. Compared to conventional authorized access methods, scheduling-free pre-configured access significantly reduces the signaling overhead associated with resource allocation, thereby reducing UE latency.

[0150] Through the resource allocation and configuration process, different types of resources are allocated to different types of links. As part of a multi-layer communication link, each first link will be able to use contention-free resources. Because sufficient resources are allocated to the multi-layer communication link, it can have high reliability. However, due to the inclusion of multiple links, the multi-layer communication link may have some transmission latency. By allocating contention-free resources to the multi-layer communication link, waiting latency caused by waiting for idle resources can be avoided or reduced, thus limiting the total communication latency of the multi-layer communication link to a certain level. The second link is allocated contention-based resources, and its communication reliability may be lower than that of the multi-layer communication link. However, as a direct link, the second link has a short transmission latency, so its total latency can also be limited to a certain level. The multi-layer communication link and the second link have different characteristics and can be complementary. These two links can be combined for communication in a hybrid access mode to meet the requirements of high reliability and low latency.

[0151] It should be noted that, although Figure 4 The document describes the device cluster partitioning process, link filtering process, and resource allocation configuration process in sequence, but this is merely an example. These processes can be executed in different orders. For instance, the device cluster partitioning process and the link filtering process can be relatively independent. Therefore, the link filtering process can be performed before the device cluster partitioning process, or the two processes can be performed simultaneously.

[0152] Furthermore, although data streams 4014, 4015, and 4016 are used to represent the transmission of cluster partitioning information, active link information, and resource allocation configuration information from the base station device 2000 to each user equipment, it is understood that this information does not need to be transmitted together, but can be transmitted separately and at different times. Accordingly, the self-configuration of the user equipment described in step S4131 can also occur separately based on this information.

[0153] Through the aforementioned device clustering, link selection, and resource allocation configuration processes, multiple user equipments in a communication system can be constructed into a multi-layered structure. This multi-layered structure reduces the number of links, and different types of links within it are allocated different types of resources. Each user equipment in the multi-layered structure can communicate using multiple links, each utilizing different types of resources. This helps improve communication reliability and reduce communication latency. Section 6 further describes the various communication processes of the user equipment.

[0154] 4.4 Update Process

[0155] According to embodiments of this disclosure, update steps S4140, S4150, and S4160 can also be performed to update cluster partitioning information, active link information, and resource allocation configuration information, respectively. One or more of update steps S4140, S4150, and S4160 may be optional and are therefore shown in dashed boxes.

[0156] According to embodiments of this disclosure, update steps S4140, S4150, and S4160 can be performed based on the collected information about the user equipment. Figure 4 In the example, each slave user equipment 3000-1 and 3000-2 can send information associated with that user equipment to the master user equipment 3000-4 of the device cluster via data streams 4017 and 4018. The master user equipment 3000-4 can process the received data and send the processed information to the base station equipment 2000, as shown in data stream 4019. Data streams 4017, 4018, and 4019 can occur periodically at certain time intervals. Optionally, each slave user equipment can directly send information to the base station equipment 2000.

[0157] According to embodiments of this disclosure, in step S4140, the base station device 2000 (specifically, the device cluster partitioning module 2031) can update the cluster partitioning information. For example, based on information collected from each slave user equipment, the base station device 2000 can detect changes in the location of each slave user equipment and can partition slave user equipment with sufficiently large location changes into new device clusters. The base station device 2000 can update the cluster partitioning information and send the updated cluster partitioning information to each master user equipment. Each master user equipment can send the received updated cluster partitioning information to the corresponding slave user equipment.

[0158] According to an alternative embodiment of this disclosure, in step S4140, the cluster partitioning information can be jointly updated by the base station device 2000 (specifically, the device cluster partitioning module 2031) and the master user equipment (specifically, the device cluster management module 3033). For example, the master user equipment of a device cluster can determine the device change information of that device cluster (e.g., removal from the user equipment cluster). Specifically, based on information collected from each slave user equipment in the device cluster, the master user equipment of the device cluster can detect changes in the location of each slave user equipment and can remove user equipment with sufficiently large location changes from the device cluster. The master user equipment can report this removal as device change information to the base station device 2000, and the base station device 2000 can then determine a new device cluster for the removed slave user equipment. The base station device 2000 can update the cluster partitioning information and send the updated cluster partitioning information to each master user equipment. Each master user equipment can send the updated cluster partitioning information to the corresponding slave user equipment. In this way, the master user equipment only reports device change information instead of complete cluster information, thus saving communication overhead.

[0159] According to a preferred embodiment of this disclosure, the base station device 2000 may not send updated cluster partitioning information, but instead sends the difference between the updated cluster partitioning information and the previous cluster partitioning information, referred to as cluster change information. Each user equipment can determine the updated cluster partitioning information based on the stored previous cluster partitioning information and the cluster change information. This helps to save communication overhead in the communication system, especially for communication systems with frequent device cluster changes.

[0160] According to a preferred embodiment of this disclosure, when determining whether a user equipment (UE) has left a cluster, the primary UE and / or base station equipment can focus only on the location of slave UEs at the edge of the cluster, rather than the location of all slave UEs in the cluster. In URLLC-mMTC scenarios, even if the massive number of UEs served by the base station equipment are in a high-speed moving state, the relative position changes between UEs may be slow. Therefore, the clusters to which most slave UEs belong do not change frequently. Most of the cluster partitioning information may not need to be updated frequently. Only the clusters to which the slave UEs at the edge belong may change rapidly. Therefore, the primary UE and / or base station equipment can focus only on the location of the slave UEs at the edge, thereby using fewer computing resources to determine the update of the cluster partitioning information.

[0161] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the base station device 2000 can update the primary user equipment (MPE) of a device cluster after a significant change in the partitioning of the device cluster, and / or update the MPE in response to a change in the state of the MPE (e.g., battery level below a threshold). Preferably, when it is necessary to select a new MPE to replace the current MPE, the base station device 2000 can select a new MPE from the same device cluster as the current MPE, which can reduce changes in the multi-layer structure.

[0162] According to embodiments of this disclosure, in step S4150, the active link information can be updated by the base station device 2000 (specifically, the link filtering module 2033). For example, the base station device 2000 can re-execute the link filtering process described above to determine new active link information. The base station device 2000 can compare the differences between the new active link information and the previous active link information. When the difference exceeds a threshold (e.g., a threshold number of active links are reclassified as inactive links or a threshold number of inactive links are reclassified as active links), the base station device 2000 can send the new active link information to each primary user equipment. Each primary user equipment can send the new active link information to the corresponding secondary user equipment. Each user equipment can reconfigure itself based on the new active link information. In this way, updates can be performed only when the changes in active link information are sufficiently large, thereby maintaining the stability of the active link information.

[0163] According to embodiments of this disclosure, in step S4160, the resource allocation configuration information can be updated by the base station device 2000 (specifically, resource configuration module 2032) and / or the primary user equipment (specifically, resource allocation module 3031). For example, the base station device 2000 and / or the primary user equipment can update the resource allocation configuration information in response to changes in cluster partitioning information. The resource allocation configuration information can be updated based on changes in device clusters, thereby changing the resources allocated to the changed device clusters. The base station device 2000 and / or the primary user equipment can send only the changed portion of the updated resource allocation configuration information relative to the previous resource allocation configuration information, instead of sending the entire updated resource allocation configuration information.

[0164] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the relative sizes of allocated non-contention-free resources and contention-free resources can be determined based on the rate of change of device clusters. Specifically, the resource allocation module 2032 of the base station device 2000 can determine the rate of change of multiple device clusters. The rate of change can be based on the magnitude of change occurring per unit time (e.g., the number of device clusters changing per unit time, the magnitude of change for each device cluster, etc.). When the rate of change exceeds a threshold, it means that the multi-layer structure in the communication system may be unstable. Accordingly, the resource allocation module 2032 can allocate more of the available resources in the communication system as contention-free resources and allocate fewer resources as non-contention-free resources. This avoids a situation where non-contention-free resources are wasted while contention-free resources are insufficient.

[0165] According to embodiments of this disclosure, one or more of the update steps S4140, S4150, and S4144 can be executed periodically at certain time intervals, or in response to triggering conditions. It should be noted that, although... Figure 4 The update steps S4140, S4150, and S4144 are described in sequence, but this is merely an example. These steps can be independent of each other and executed in a different order. One or more of the update steps S4140, S4150, and S4144 can be performed.

[0166] 5 Exemplary Resource Allocation

[0167] Now go to Figures 5A-5B . Figure 5A An exemplary resource allocation 5000 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. This resource allocation 5000 may be determined by the base station device 2000 and / or the primary user equipment in steps S4130 and / or S4160, and is included in the resource allocation configuration information.

[0168] According to embodiments of this disclosure, resources used for communication between user equipment in a communication system can be represented as resource blocks F. Resource allocation 5000 can divide resource block F into M+1 main resource blocks, where M is the number of device clusters included in the communication system. This division can be made by base station equipment 2000. These M main resource blocks may include a common resource block and M device cluster-specific resource blocks. As shown in Figure 5, for Figure 1 In the exemplary communication system 1000, resource block F can be divided into 3 main resource blocks, namely, common resource block F. O Resource block F specific to device cluster A A and resource block F specific to device cluster B. B .

[0169] According to embodiments of this disclosure, resource block F A With resource block F B The size can be determined based on the number of user devices contained in device cluster A and device cluster B. For example, resource block F A With resource block F B The size can be proportional to the number of user devices contained in device cluster A and device cluster B, respectively. In this example, resource block F A With resource block F B The dimensions can be equal because Figure 1 Both device cluster A and device cluster B contain 4 user devices.

[0170] According to embodiments of this disclosure, each major resource block can be further subdivided. In one embodiment, resource block F specific to device cluster A... A It can be further divided into non-contested resource blocks F A1 Competing for resource block F within the cluster A2 This partitioning can be made by base station equipment 2000 and / or primary user equipment 3000-4 of equipment cluster A. Contention-free resource block F A1 It can include multiple resource elements e a1 to e an Intra-cluster competition for resource block F A2 It may also include one or more resource elements (not shown). Non-contested resource block F A1 This can be shared by the first link between user equipment 3000-1 to 3000-3 and the primary user equipment 3000-4 in device cluster A. Intra-cluster contention for resource block F. A2 It can be shared by the intra-cluster second links in device cluster A, from user equipment 3000-1 to 3000-3.

[0171] Similarly, resource block F specific to device cluster B BIt can be further divided into non-contested resource blocks F B1 Competing for resource block F within the cluster B2 (Not shown). This partitioning can be made by base station equipment 2000 and / or primary user equipment 3000-8 of equipment cluster B. Contention-free resource block F B1 This can be shared by the first link between user equipment 3000-5 to 3000-7 and the primary user equipment 3000-8 in device cluster B. Intra-cluster contention for resource block F. B2 It can be shared by the intra-cluster second links in device cluster B between user equipment 3000-5 and 3000-7.

[0172] According to alternative embodiments of this disclosure, resource block F may also be omitted. A and / or resource block F B Further partitioning is performed. In this case, resource block F A All of them can be used as non-contested resource blocks, i.e., F A =F A1 Additional land, resource block F B All of them can also be used as non-contested resource blocks, i.e., F B =F B1

[0173] According to embodiments of this disclosure, public resource block F O It can be a contested resource block, which can be contested and used by any link. A public resource block F can also be used. O A link can include at least a cross-cluster second link. If the intra-cluster common resource blocks of a device cluster are insufficient to meet the needs of the intra-cluster second link, the intra-cluster second link can also compete for the use of common resource block F. O Even when the non-contention-free resources of a device cluster are insufficient to meet the needs of the first link in that device cluster, these first links can still compete for the use of the common resource block F. O .

[0174] According to a preferred embodiment of this disclosure, in order to enable the first link to use common resource block F O At this time, it may face lower competition, public resource block F O It can be further divided into the first public resource block F O1 Second common resource block F O2 First public resource block F O1 It can be configured to be used only for contention on the first link within each device cluster, while the second common resource block F O2 It can be configured for contention among various second links. Figure 5 illustrates resource block F as an example. O2 The included resource element e O1 to e OPFirst public resource block F O1 It can have a lower value than the second public resource block F. O2 Competition. This approach further ensures that the first link always has sufficient resources (even if there is competition for resources). This embodiment is preferred but not required.

[0175] Figure 5B Resource element e according to this disclosure is shown a1 and e O1 The diagram illustrates this. If a resource element can serve *s* communication links without interference, to ensure sufficient resources are allocated to the first links, no more than *s* first links will share a single resource element. Due to limited resources and a large number of second links, the number of second links served by each resource element will far exceed *s*, meaning some second links will not be able to access in real time and will need to wait for an idle resource element. For example... Figure 5B As shown, the resource elements shown can include non-contested resource blocks F. A1 A portion of the resource elements e a1 and as a competing resource block F O2 A portion of the resource elements e O1 Resource element e a1 and e O1 They can have the same size. Resource element e a1 It can be configured to be shared only by k links (specifically, the first link), while resource element e O1 It can be configured to be shared by q links. k can be less than or equal to s, such that resource element e a1 For the k links sharing it, there is no contention. q can be greater than s, such that resource element e... O1 It is contention for the q links that share it.

[0176] According to embodiments of this disclosure, resources are preferentially allocated to each first link, thereby ensuring reliable communication across a maximum number of multilayer communication links. Remaining resources can be allocated to each second link. In this way, at least one reliable transmission link (i.e., a multilayer communication link) can be guaranteed between two user equipments, thereby improving communication reliability. The second link, as a direct link between the two user equipments, can provide low-latency communication. It should be noted that... Figures 5A-5B The resource allocation shown is merely illustrative. Other resource allocations may be used in other embodiments.

[0177] 6 Exemplary Communication Process

[0178] Now go to Figure 6 and Figure 7 . Figure 6 and Figure 7 A hybrid access mode according to an embodiment of this disclosure is illustrated. Specifically, Figure 6 A data flow diagram of intra-cluster communication according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown, and Figure 7 A data flow diagram of cross-cluster communication according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Figure 6 and Figure 7 It is a combination Figure 1 The example of a multi-layered structure is shown to illustrate this.

[0179] 6.1 Intra-cluster communication

[0180] Figure 6 A data flow diagram 6000 of intra-cluster communication under a hybrid access mode according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Figure 6 The primary user equipment 3000-4 and secondary user equipment 3000-1 and 3000-2, belonging to the same equipment cluster A, are shown, and the base station equipment 2000 is also shown additionally.

[0181] exist Figure 6 In the example, slave user equipment 3000-1 of device cluster A can send one or more transmissions to another slave user equipment 3000-2 of device cluster A. The one or more transmissions may include a first transmission and a second transmission. The first transmission may be performed through a multi-layer communication link including a first link, and the second transmission may be performed through an intra-cluster second link between slave user equipment 3000-1 and slave user equipment 3000-2.

[0182] In step S6110, the user equipment 3000-1 can determine the resources used for the first transmission and the second transmission, respectively. This determination can be performed by the resource management module 3035 of the user equipment 3000-1 based on resource allocation configuration information. For example, the resource management module 3035 can determine the first link associated with the user equipment 3000-1 (e.g., Figure 1The resource management module 3035 can determine the link identifier of link 101 in the first link and the link identifier of the second link between user equipment 3000-1 and user equipment 3000-2. Then, the resource management module 3035 can retrieve resource allocation configuration information based on the determined two identifiers to obtain the resource identifiers of the resource elements corresponding to the first link and the resource elements corresponding to the second link. The resource management module 3035 can send the obtained resource identifiers to the transmission management module 3034 of user equipment 3000-1. The transmission management module 3034 can use the resource elements with the obtained resource identifiers to perform the first transmission and the second transmission. As mentioned above, the resource element allocated to the first transmission can be a contention-free resource, while the resource element allocated to the second transmission can be a contention-driven resource. It should be noted that it is not necessary to determine the resources used for the first transmission and the second transmission simultaneously, but rather they can be determined separately.

[0183] As shown in data stream 6011, user equipment 3000-1 can directly perform the second transmission via the second link between user equipment 3000-1 and user equipment 3000-2. This second link is, for example,... Figure 1 Link 201 is shown. This second transmission can be performed using the contention resource determined in step S6110. In some embodiments, the contention resource may be the intra-cluster contention resource block F described in FIG5. A2 Part of it. If there is currently competition for resource block F within the cluster. A2 If no free resources are available in the cluster, the second transmission can wait for contention for resource block F within the cluster. A2 The idle resources in the block. Alternatively, the second transfer can use the common resource block F. O If the current public resource block F O If there are no available free resources in the block, the second transmission can wait for the common resource block F. O The idle resources in the cluster. Once there is competition for resource block F within the cluster. A2 Or public resource block F O If a free resource becomes available, it can be used to perform a second transmission. In other embodiments, there may not be a cluster-specific intra-cluster contention resource block (e.g., F). A2 In this case, the contested resource allocated to the second transfer could be a public resource block F. O Part of it.

[0184] As can be seen, the second transmission is performed via a direct link between user equipment 3000-1 and user equipment 3000-2. This direct link has a short transmission path and requires no intermediate routing nodes. Therefore, the second transmission can have a short transmission delay.

[0185] As shown in data stream 6012, user equipment 3000-1 can also perform a first transmission via a first link between user equipment 3000-1 and master user equipment 3000-4, thereby sending the first transmission to master user equipment 3000-4. This first link is, for example,... Figure 1 Link 101 in the diagram. The first transmission can be performed using the contention-free resource determined in step S6110. This contention-free resource is, for example, the contention-free resource block F described in Figure 5. A1 Part of it.

[0186] The primary user equipment 3000-4, which receives the first transmission, can act as a routing node for the first transmission to send it to the target receiver. This function can be performed, for example, by the data routing module 3032 of the primary user equipment 3000-4.

[0187] In step S6120, the primary user equipment 3000-4 can determine the device cluster to which the target receiver of the first transmission belongs. Specifically, the primary user equipment 3000-4 can determine whether the target receiver is in the same device cluster (i.e., device cluster A) as the primary user equipment 3000-4. For example, the primary user equipment 3000-4 can retrieve the cluster information of device cluster A that it maintains to determine whether the cluster information includes the device identifier of the target receiver. If the primary user equipment 3000-4 determines that the target receiver is in device cluster A, then the primary user equipment 3000-4 can continue to execute step S6130. Figure 6 In the example, the target receiver is user equipment 3000-2, which is located in device cluster A. Therefore, Figure 6 The data flow diagram 6000 can continue to step S6130.

[0188] In step S6130, the primary user equipment 3000-4 can be used to determine resources for sending the first transmission to the secondary user equipment 3000-2. Similar to step S6110, the primary user equipment 3000-4 can base its decision on a first link associated with the secondary user equipment 3000-2 (e.g., ...). Figure 1 The link identifier and resource allocation configuration information of link 102 in the diagram determine the resources to be used. Since the first link will be used for transmission, the resources used can be contention-free resources. This contention-free resource is, for example, the contention-free resource block F described in Figure 5. A1 Part of it.

[0189] After determining the contention-free resource to be used, the data routing module 3032 of the primary user equipment 3000-4 can use the contention-free resource to send the first transmission to the secondary user equipment 3000-2 through the first link (link 102) between the primary user equipment 3000-4 and the secondary user equipment 3000-2, as shown in data flow 6013.

[0190] In step S6140, user equipment 3000-2 may perform information processing on the received first and / or second transmissions. Information processing may include analog and digital processing, such as demodulation and decoding. Preferably, after successfully decoding one or both of the first and second transmissions, user equipment 3000-2 may also send an acknowledgment message (not shown) to user equipment 3000-1.

[0191] It should be noted that for the first transmission indicated by arrows S6012 and S6013, the allocated non-contention-free resources (e.g., non-contention-free resource block F) can be used preferentially. A1 If the current non-contested resource block F... A1 If no free resources are available, the first transmission can wait for contention-free resource block F. A1 The available resources in the block. Alternatively, the first transfer can use the public resource block F. O For example, the first transmission can use public resource block F. O The first public resource block F reserved for the first link. O1 If the first public resource block F O1 If there are currently no available free resources in the middle, then the first transmission can also use the second common resource block F. O2 Once F A1 F O1 、 or F O2 If a free resource becomes available, it can be used to perform the first transfer. For the first transfer, each resource block F... A1 F O1 、 or F O2 The selection priority decreases sequentially, while the contention increases sequentially. In other embodiments, there may be no resource block F reserved for the first link. O1 .

[0192] exist Figure 6 In the example, intra-cluster communication is implemented via two links. This intra-cluster communication includes a first transmission from one user equipment 3000-1 to another user equipment 3000-2, and a second transmission. These two links include a multi-layer communication link (links 101 and 102) for the first transmission and a second link (link 201) for the direct second transmission. The multi-layer communication link for the first transmission uses only the primary user equipment (user equipment 3000-4) of the device cluster as the routing node.

[0193] It is important to note that Figure 6The examples are merely illustrative. As another example, the sender could be user equipment 3000-2, and the target receiver could be user equipment 3000-1. Furthermore, for one sender, there can be multiple target receivers. A single target receiver can also receive transmissions from multiple senders.

[0194] In addition, it should be noted that Figure 6 The order of data streams 6011, 6012, and 6013 shown does not necessarily mean that the second transmission must occur before the first transmission. The first and second transmissions can be executed in any order, and may even occur simultaneously. To distinguish between the first and second transmissions, Figure 6 The dashed lines used in the diagram represent the data stream of the second transmission.

[0195] It should be noted that if the primary user equipment 3000-4 determines in step S6120 that the target receiver is not within device cluster A, then it can execute the procedure regarding... Figure 7 The described cross-cluster communication. This will be combined below. Figure 7 Further description.

[0196] 6.2 Cross-cluster communication

[0197] Figure 7 A data flow diagram 7000 of cross-cluster communication under a hybrid access mode according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. Figure 7 The diagram shows a primary user equipment 3000-4 and a secondary user equipment 3000-1 belonging to equipment cluster A, a primary user equipment 3000-8 and a secondary user equipment 3000-5 belonging to equipment cluster B, and also shows a base station equipment 2000.

[0198] exist Figure 7 In the example, slave user equipment 3000-1 of device cluster A can send one or more transmissions to another slave user equipment 3000-5 of device cluster B. These one or more transmissions may include a first transmission and a second transmission. The first transmission can be performed via a multi-layer communication link including a first link, and the second transmission can be performed via a cross-cluster second link between slave user equipment 3000-1 and slave user equipment 3000-5.

[0199] In step S7110, resources for the first and second transmissions can be determined from user equipment 3000-1. Step S7110 can be similar to step S6110. The difference between step S7110 and S6110 is that, since the second link between user equipment 3000-1 and user equipment 3000-5 is a cross-cluster second link, the contested resources for the second transmission can belong to the common resource block F. O And will not belong to the cluster-competitive resource F A2 .

[0200] As shown in data stream 7011, the second transmission can be performed directly from user equipment 3000-1 via the second link between user equipment 3000-1 and user equipment 3000-5. This second link is, for example,... Figure 1 Link 205 is shown in the diagram. This second transmission can be performed using the contention resources determined in step S7110. Except for the resources determined for the second transmission and the second link used, the second transmission represented by data stream 7011 is similar to the second transmission represented by data stream 6011, and will not be described again here.

[0201] As shown in data stream 7012, user equipment 3000-1 can also perform a first transmission via the first link between user equipment 3000-1 and master user equipment 3000-4, thereby sending the first transmission to master user equipment 3000-4. The first transmission represented by data stream 7012 can be the same as the first transmission represented by data stream 6012.

[0202] The primary user equipment 3000-4, which receives the first transmission, can act as a routing node for the first transmission to send it to the target receiver. This function can be performed, for example, by the data routing module 3032 of the primary user equipment 3000-4.

[0203] In step S7120, the primary user equipment 3000-4 can determine the device cluster to which the target receiver of the first transmission belongs. Specifically, the primary user equipment 3000-4 can determine whether the target receiver is in the same device cluster (i.e., device cluster A) as the primary user equipment 3000-4. Similar to step S6120, the primary user equipment 3000-4 can retrieve the cluster information of device cluster A that it maintains to determine whether the cluster information includes the device identifier of the target receiver. If the primary user equipment 3000-4 determines that the target receiver is not in device cluster A, then the primary user equipment 3000-4 can send the first transmission to the base station device 2000 for further routing by the base station device 2000. Figure 7 In the example, the target receiver is user equipment 3000-5, which is located in device cluster B, a different cluster than device cluster A. Therefore, Figure 7 Data flow diagram 7000 can continue to data flow 7013. The primary user equipment 3000-4 routes the first transmission to the base station equipment 2000 via data flow 7013. The links traversed by data flow 7013 are, for example,... Figure 1 Link 104 in the middle.

[0204] Upon receiving the first transmission, the base station device 2000 can route the first transmission toward the target receiver. This function can be performed, for example, by the data relay module 2034 of the base station device 2000.

[0205] In step S7130, the base station device 2000 can determine the device cluster to which the target receiver of the first transmission belongs. For example, the base station device 2000 can retrieve its maintained cluster partitioning information to determine the device cluster to which the target receiver belongs, and can also determine the primary user equipment of that device cluster. Figure 7 In the example, base station device 2000 can determine that the target receiver (from user equipment 3000-5) belongs to device cluster B, and the primary user equipment of that device cluster is user equipment 3000-8. Accordingly, base station device 2000 can route the first transmission to primary user equipment 3000-8, as shown in data flow 7014. The link traversed by data flow 7014 is, for example,... Figure 1 Link 108 in the middle.

[0206] It should be noted that the links associated with data flows 7013 and 7014 belong to the links between the base station equipment 2000 and the user equipment, and are not part of the first or second links between user equipment. Optionally, the resources used for the links associated with the base station equipment can be allocated separately.

[0207] In step S7140, the primary user equipment 3000-8, having received the first transmission from the base station device 2000, can determine the resources used to send the first transmission to the secondary user equipment 3000-5. Similar to step S6130, the primary user equipment 3000-8 can base its transmission on a first link associated with the secondary user equipment 3000-5 (e.g., ...). Figure 1 The link identifier of link 105 in the first link and the resource allocation configuration information determine the resources to be used. Since the first link will be used for transmission, the resources used can be contention-free resources. Such contention-free resources are, for example, the contention-free resource block F described above. B1 Part of it.

[0208] After determining the contention-free resource to be used, the data routing module 3032 of the primary user equipment 3000-8 can use the contention-free resource to send the first transmission to the secondary user equipment 3000-5 through the first link (e.g., link 105) between the primary user equipment 3000-8 and the secondary user equipment 3000-5, as shown in data flow 7015.

[0209] In step S7150, user equipment 3000-5 may perform information processing on the received first and / or second transmissions. Information processing may include analog and digital processing, such as demodulation and decoding. Preferably, after successfully decoding one or both of the first and second transmissions, user equipment 3000-5 may also send an acknowledgment message (not shown) to user equipment 3000-1.

[0210] exist Figure 7 In the example, cross-cluster communication is implemented through two links. This cross-cluster communication includes a first transmission from one user equipment 3000-1 to another from one user equipment 3000-5, and a second transmission. These two links include a multi-layer communication link (links 101, 104, 108, and 105) for the first transmission and a second link (link 205) for the direct second transmission. The multi-layer communication link for the first transmission uses not only the primary user equipment (user equipment 3000-4) of device cluster A as a routing node, but also base station equipment 2000 and the primary user equipment (user equipment 3000-8) of device cluster B as routing nodes.

[0211] It is important to note that Figure 7 The examples are merely illustrative. As an example, the target receiver could be the primary user equipment (e.g., primary user equipment 3000-8) of device cluster B. In this case, the data stream representing the first transmission could include 7012-7014 but not 7015. As another example, the sender could be user equipment 3000-5, and the target receiver could be user equipment 3000-1. Furthermore, for a single sender, there can be multiple target receivers. A single target receiver can also receive transmissions from multiple senders.

[0212] In addition, it should be noted that Figure 7 The order of data streams 7011 and 7012-7015 shown does not imply that the second transmission necessarily precedes the first transmission. The first and second transmissions can be executed in any order, and may even be executed simultaneously. To distinguish between the first and second transmissions, Figure 7 The dashed lines used in the diagram represent the data stream of the second transmission.

[0213] According to embodiments of this disclosure, in a hybrid access mode, whether it is intra-cluster communication or inter-cluster communication, the first transmission and the second transmission may contain associated data. For example, the first transmission and the second transmission may contain the same data. Preferably, the data contained in the first transmission and the data contained in the second transmission may also differ to some extent. The data allocated to the first transmission and the second transmission can be managed by the data management module 3036 of the slave user equipment 3000, which acts as the sender.

[0214] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the data management module 3036 can allocate data with different transmission requirements to the first transmission and the second transmission respectively. For example, the data management module 3036 can allocate data with higher reliability requirements or higher priority to the first transmission. This is because the first link (specifically, a multi-layer communication link) used by the first transmission can have higher reliability. Additionally or alternatively, the data management module 3036 can include part or all of the first transmission in the second transmission, making the first transmission and the second transmission redundant, to further ensure that the part or all of the data is successfully transmitted.

[0215] As an example, the data management module 3036 can include Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH) control information in a first transmission and Physical Sidelink Share Channel (PSSCH) service data in a second transmission. This PSSCH service data can correspond to the PSCCH control information. Compared to the PSSCH service data, the PSCCH control information has higher reliability requirements and therefore can be included in the first transmission, enabling reliable transmission using contention-free resources.

[0216] As another example, the data management module 3036 can include PSCCH control information in the first transmission and also include this PSCCH control information along with PSSCH service data in the second transmission. In this way, the first and second transmissions achieve redundant transmission of the PSCCH control information, further ensuring its successful transmission.

[0217] As an example, the data management module 3036 can include the first part of the PSSCH service data with high priority in the first transmission, and include the second part of the PSSCH service data with low priority in the second transmission.

[0218] As another example, the data management module 3036 can include the entire PSSCH service data in the second transmission, and include the high-priority first portion of the PSSCH service data in the first transmission. In this way, the first and second transmissions achieve redundant transmission of the high-priority first portion of the PSSCH service data, further ensuring that the first portion is successfully transmitted.

[0219] exist Figure 6 and Figure 7In the example, the slave user equipment 3000-1 sending the first transmission can specify the multi-layer communication link used for the first transmission. This can be performed by the transmission management module 3034 of the slave user equipment 3000-1. As an example, the transmission management module 3034 can include the identifier of the target receiver in the first transmission. This identifier can be, for example, the device identifier of the user equipment. In step S6120 or S7130, the identifier of the target receiver can be used by the master user equipment 3000-4 associated with the sender (user equipment 3000-1) to determine whether to forward the first transmission to the base station. As another example, the transmission management module 3034 of the slave user equipment 3000-1 can plan the complete multi-layer communication link based on the target receiver and cluster partitioning information. Since the cluster information can indicate the device cluster to which the target receiver belongs and the master user equipment of that device cluster, the transmission management module 3034 can directly determine the various routing nodes in the multi-layer communication link. The transmission management module 3034 can include the sequence of the determined various routing nodes (user equipment and / or base station) in the first transmission. Each node that receives the first transmission can check the next node to which the first transmission should be sent based on the sequence, and thus send the first transmission to that next node.

[0220] exist Figure 6 and 7 In the example, in information processing step S6140 or S7150, the user equipment acting as the target receiver can send an acknowledgment message to indicate successful decoding of at least one of the first and second transmissions. For example, when user equipment 3000-2 or 3000-5 is the target receiver and the first and second transmissions constitute redundant transmissions, the user equipment can be configured to send an acknowledgment message upon successful reception and decoding of one of the first and second transmissions to terminate the transmission of the other of the first and second transmissions. This function can be performed by the data management module 3036 of the user equipment.

[0221] Specifically, the data management module 3036 can be configured to send an acknowledgment message to the primary user equipment (PMA) via the first link between the target receiver and the PMA in response to receiving and successfully decoding the first transmission earlier than the second transmission. This acknowledgment message can be further forwarded by the PMA to the sender to instruct the sender to terminate the second transmission. Alternatively, in response to receiving and successfully decoding the second transmission earlier than the first transmission, the data management module 3036 can directly send an acknowledgment message to the sender via the second link between the target receiver and the sender, thereby instructing the sender to terminate the first transmission. Preferably, this acknowledgment message can be a Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) message.

[0222] 7 Exemplary Communication Methods

[0223] Figure 8 A flowchart of a communication method 8000 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. The communication method 8000 may be performed, for example, by a base station device 2000.

[0224] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication method 8000 may include at least steps S8010-S8030. In step S8010, the base station device 2000 may divide multiple user equipments into one or more device clusters, each device cluster may include an associated master user equipment and one or more slave user equipments. Step S8010 may be performed, for example, by the device cluster division module 2031 of the base station device 2000. In step S8020, the base station device 2000 may determine resource allocation. This resource allocation may allocate contention-free resources and contention resources in a scheduling-free preset access manner. Contention-free resources may be allocated to a first link between the master user equipment of a device cluster and the slave user equipment of that device cluster, and contention resources are allocated to at least a second link. The second link may include an intra-cluster second link between multiple slave user equipments of the same device cluster and / or a cross-cluster second link between user equipments belonging to different device clusters. In step S8030, the base station device 2000 may send resource allocation configuration information containing the resource allocation to the master user equipment and / or the slave user equipment. Steps S8020 and S8030 can be executed, for example, by the resource configuration module 2032 of the base station device 2000.

[0225] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication method 8000 may also include one or more operations described above with respect to the base station device 2000, which will not be repeated here.

[0226] Figure 9 A flowchart of a communication method 9000 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. The communication method 9000 may, for example, be provided by a master user equipment 3000 (e.g., Figure 1 The primary user equipment 3000-4 in device cluster A performs the following. The primary user equipment 3000 may be associated with a device cluster, and the device cluster may include one or more first slave user equipments.

[0227] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication method 9000 may include at least step S9010. In step S9010, the master user equipment 3000 may send resource allocation configuration information to each first slave user equipment in the device cluster. This resource allocation configuration information may allocate contention-free resources to a first link between the master user equipment and each first slave user equipment in a scheduling-free, pre-configured access manner, and allocate contention-free resources to at least a second link. The second link may include an intra-cluster second link between multiple first slave user equipments and / or an inter-cluster second link between a first slave user equipment and a user equipment not belonging to a device cluster. Step S9010 may, for example, be executed by the resource allocation module 3031 of the master user equipment 3000.

[0228] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication method 9000 may also include one or more operations described above with respect to the main user equipment 3000, which will not be repeated here.

[0229] Figure 10 A flowchart of a communication method 10000 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. The communication method 10000 may, for example, be transmitted from a user equipment 3000 (e.g., ...). Figure 1 The execution is performed by user device 3000-1 in device cluster A. User device 3000 can be associated with a device cluster.

[0230] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication method 10000 may include at least steps S10010-S10020. In step S10010, the user equipment 3000 may perform a first transmission between a first user equipment and a second user equipment via a first link through the master user equipment of the device cluster. In step S10020, the user equipment 3000 may perform a direct second transmission between the first user equipment and the second user equipment via a second link. Steps S10010 and S10020 may, for example, be performed by the transmission management module 3034 of the user equipment 3000, wherein the first transmission may be performed using contention-free resources, while the second transmission may be performed using contention-based resources.

[0231] According to embodiments of this disclosure, the communication method 10000 may also include one or more operations described above with respect to user equipment 10000, which will not be repeated here.

[0232] The system and method disclosed herein can be used in URLLC-mMTC scenarios. By filtering active links, the number of communication links is substantially reduced and the communication environment is simplified. Flexible resource allocation allows multiple links with different priorities to have different communication qualities. By enabling multiple links to work collaboratively in a hybrid access mode, it can adapt to communication scenarios with varying complexity and latency requirements. With limited resources, the method and system of this disclosure can improve communication reliability and reduce system latency, thus enabling the provision of URLLC services to a massive number of users.

[0233] 8 publicly available application examples

[0234] The technology disclosed herein can be applied to various scenarios and products.

[0235] The base station equipment can be any type of base station, preferably such as macro gNBs and small gNBs in the 3GPP 5G communication standard New Radio (NR) access technology. Small gNBs can be gNBs covering cells smaller than macro cells, such as pico gNBs, micro gNBs, and femtocell gNBs. Alternatively, the base station equipment can be implemented as any other type of base station, such as a NodeB and a Base Transceiver Station (BTS). The base station equipment may include: a main body configured to control wireless communication (also called base station-side equipment) and one or more Remote Radio Headers (RRHs) located in a different location from the main body.

[0236] User equipment can be implemented as a mobile terminal (such as a smartphone, tablet PC, laptop PC, portable gaming terminal, portable / dongle-type mobile router, and digital camera device) or an in-vehicle terminal (such as a car navigation device). User equipment can also be implemented as a terminal performing machine-to-machine (M2M) communication (also known as a machine-type communication (MTC) terminal). Furthermore, user equipment can be a wireless communication module (such as an integrated circuit module comprising a single chip) installed on each of the aforementioned terminals.

[0237] 8.1 Application Examples of Base Station Equipment

[0238] (First application example)

[0239] Figure 11 This is a block diagram illustrating a first example of a schematic configuration of a base station device to which the techniques of this disclosure can be applied. The base station device is shown as gNB 800. gNB 800 includes a plurality of antennas 810 and a base station device 820. The base station device 820 and each antenna 810 can be connected to each other via RF cables.

[0240] Each of the antennas 810 includes multiple antenna elements (such as multiple antenna array elements included in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna) and is used by the base station device 820 to transmit and receive wireless signals. Figure 11 As shown, the gNB 800 may include multiple antennas 810. For example, the multiple antennas 810 may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the gNB 800. Figure 11 An example is shown in which the gNB800 includes multiple antennas 810.

[0241] The base station device 820 includes a controller 821, a memory 822, a network interface 823, and a wireless communication interface 825.

[0242] The controller 821 can be, for example, a CPU or a DSP, and operates various higher-level functions of the base station device 820. For example, the controller 821 may include the processing circuitry 2030 described above, performing various operations as described above, or controlling various components of the base station device 2000. For example, the controller 821 generates data packets based on data in signals processed by the wireless communication interface 825, and transmits the generated packets via the network interface 823. The controller 821 can bundle data from multiple baseband processors to generate bundled packets and transmit the generated bundled packets. The controller 821 may have logical functions that perform controls such as radio resource control, radio bearer control, mobility management, admission control, and scheduling. This control can be performed in conjunction with nearby gNBs or core network nodes. The memory 822 includes RAM and ROM, and stores programs executed by the controller 821 and various types of control data (such as terminal lists, transmission power data, and scheduling data).

[0243] Network interface 823 is a communication interface for connecting base station device 820 to core network 824. Controller 821 can communicate with core network nodes or other gNBs via network interface 823. In this case, gNB 800 and core network nodes or other gNBs can be connected to each other via logical interfaces (such as S1 and X2 interfaces). Network interface 823 can also be a wired communication interface or a wireless communication interface for wireless backhaul. If network interface 823 is a wireless communication interface, it can use a higher frequency band for wireless communication compared to the frequency band used by wireless communication interface 825.

[0244] The wireless communication interface 825 supports any cellular communication scheme (such as LTE and LTE-Advanced) and provides wireless connectivity to terminals located in the cell of gNB 800 via antenna 810. The wireless communication interface 825 typically includes, for example, a baseband (BB) processor 826 and RF circuitry 827. The BB processor 826 can perform, for example, encoding / decoding, modulation / demodulation, and multiplexing / demultiplexing, and performs various types of signal processing at layers such as L1, Media Access Control (MAC), Radio Link Control (RLC), and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP). Instead of controller 821, the BB processor 826 may have some or all of the above-described logical functions. The BB processor 826 may be a memory storing communication control programs, or a module including a processor and associated circuitry configured to execute programs. Updates can change the functionality of the BB processor 826. The module may be a card or blade inserted into a slot in the base station device 820. Alternatively, the module may be a chip mounted on a card or blade. Meanwhile, the RF circuit 827 may include, for example, a mixer, a filter, and an amplifier, and transmits and receives wireless signals via the antenna 810.

[0245] like Figure 11 As shown, the wireless communication interface 825 may include multiple BB processors 826. For example, the multiple BB processors 826 may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the gNB 800. Figure 11 As shown, the wireless communication interface 825 may include multiple RF circuits 827. For example, the multiple RF circuits 827 may be compatible with multiple antenna elements. Although Figure 11 An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 825 includes multiple BB processors 826 and multiple RF circuits 827, but the wireless communication interface 825 may also include a single BB processor 826 or a single RF circuit 827.

[0246] exist Figure 11 In the gNB 800 shown, reference Figure 2One or more components included in the described processing circuitry 2030 may be implemented in the wireless communication interface 825. Alternatively, at least a portion of these components may be implemented in the controller 821. For example, the gNB 800 may include a portion (e.g., BB processor 826) or the entirety of the wireless communication interface 825, and / or a module including the controller 821, and one or more components may be implemented in the module. In this case, the module may store and execute a program that allows the processor to function as one or more components (in other words, a program that allows the processor to perform the operation of one or more components). As another example, a program that allows the processor to function as one or more components may be installed in the gNB 800, and the wireless communication interface 825 (e.g., BB processor 826) and / or the controller 821 may execute the program. As described above, the gNB 800, the base station device 820, or the module may be provided as a device including one or more components, and a program that allows the processor to function as one or more components may be provided. Additionally, a readable medium in which the program is recorded may be provided.

[0247] In addition, Figure 11 In the gNB 800 shown, reference Figure 2 The described communication unit 2010 can be implemented in a wireless communication interface 825 (e.g., RF circuit 827). Alternatively, the communication unit 2010 can be implemented in a controller 821 and / or a network interface 823.

[0248] (Second application example)

[0249] Figure 12 This is a block diagram illustrating a second example of a schematic configuration of a base station device to which the techniques of this disclosure can be applied. The base station device may be base station device 2000 according to embodiments of this disclosure. Base station device 2000 is shown as gNB 830. gNB 830 includes one or more antennas 840, a base station unit 850, and an RRH 860. The RRH 860 and each antenna 840 may be connected to each other via RF cables. The base station unit 850 and RRH 860 may be connected to each other via high-speed lines such as fiber optic cables.

[0250] Each of the antennas 840 includes one or more antenna elements (such as multiple antenna elements included in a MIMO antenna) and is used by the RRH 860 to transmit and receive wireless signals. Figure 12 As shown, the gNB 830 may include multiple antennas 840. For example, the multiple antennas 840 may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the gNB 830. Figure 12 An example is shown in which gNB 830 includes multiple antennas 840.

[0251] The base station device 850 includes a controller 851, a memory 852, a network interface 853, a wireless communication interface 855, and a connection interface 857. The controller 851, memory 852, and network interface 853 are connected to a reference... Figure 11 The controller 821, memory 822, and network interface 823 described are the same.

[0252] The wireless communication interface 855 supports any cellular communication scheme (such as LTE and LTE-Advanced) and provides wireless communication to terminals located in the sector corresponding to the RRH 860 via the RRH 860 and antenna 840. The wireless communication interface 855 may typically include, for example, a BB processor 856. In addition to the BB processor 856 being connected to the RF circuitry 864 of the RRH 860 via a connection interface 857, the BB processor 856 is connected to the reference... Figure 11 The described BB processor 826 is the same. Figure 12 As shown, the wireless communication interface 855 may include multiple BB processors 856. For example, the multiple BB processors 856 may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the gNB 830. Although Figure 12 An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 855 includes multiple BB processors 856, but the wireless communication interface 855 may also include a single BB processor 856.

[0253] Connection interface 857 is an interface for connecting base station device 850 (wireless communication interface 855) to RRH 860. Connection interface 857 may also be a communication module for connecting base station device 850 (wireless communication interface 855) to the aforementioned high-speed line of RRH 860.

[0254] The RRH 860 includes a connectivity interface 861 and a wireless communication interface 863.

[0255] Connection interface 861 is an interface for connecting RRH 860 (wireless communication interface 863) to base station device 850. Connection interface 861 can also be a communication module for communication in the aforementioned high-speed line.

[0256] The wireless communication interface 863 transmits and receives wireless signals via antenna 840. The wireless communication interface 863 typically includes, for example, RF circuitry 864. RF circuitry 864 may include, for example, a mixer, a filter, and an amplifier, and transmits and receives wireless signals via antenna 840. Figure 12 As shown, the wireless communication interface 863 may include multiple RF circuits 864. For example, the multiple RF circuits 864 may support multiple antenna elements. Although Figure 12An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 863 includes multiple RF circuits 864, but the wireless communication interface 863 may also include a single RF circuit 864.

[0257] exist Figure 12 In the gNB 830 shown, reference Figure 2 One or more components included in the described processing circuitry 2030 may be implemented in the wireless communication interface 855. Alternatively, at least a portion of these components may be implemented in the controller 851. For example, the gNB 830 may include a portion (e.g., BB processor 856) or the entirety of the wireless communication interface 855, and / or a module including the controller 851, and one or more components may be implemented in the module. In this case, the module may store a program for allowing the processor to function as one or more components (in other words, a program for allowing the processor to perform the operation of one or more components), and may execute the program. As another example, a program for allowing the processor to function as one or more components may be installed in the gNB 830, and the wireless communication interface 855 (e.g., BB processor 856) and / or the controller 851 may execute the program. As described above, the gNB 830, the base station device 850, or the module may be provided as a means including one or more components, and a program for allowing the processor to function as one or more components may be provided. Additionally, a readable medium in which the program is recorded may be provided.

[0258] In addition, Figure 12 In the gNB 830 shown, reference Figure 2 The described communication unit 2010 can be implemented in a wireless communication interface 855 (e.g., BB circuit 856). Alternatively, the communication unit 2010 can be implemented in a controller 851 and / or a network interface 853.

[0259] 8.2 Application Examples of User Equipment

[0260] (First application example)

[0261] Figure 13 This is a block diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a smartphone 900 to which the technologies of this disclosure can be applied. The smartphone 900 may be a user equipment 3000 according to embodiments of this disclosure. The smartphone 900 includes a processor 901, a memory 902, a storage device 903, an external connection interface 904, a camera device 906, a sensor 907, a microphone 908, an input device 909, a display device 910, a speaker 911, a wireless communication interface 912, one or more antenna switches 915, one or more antennas 916, a bus 917, a battery 918, and an auxiliary controller 919.

[0262] The processor 901 can be, for example, a CPU or a system-on-a-chip (SoC), and controls the application layer and other functions of the smartphone 900. The memory 902 includes RAM and ROM, and stores data and programs executed by the processor 901. The storage device 903 can include storage media such as semiconductor memory and hard disks. The external connectivity interface 904 is an interface for connecting external devices, such as memory cards and Universal Serial Bus (USB) devices, to the smartphone 900.

[0263] The camera device 906 includes an image sensor (such as a charge-coupled device (CCD) and complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS)) and generates captured images. The sensor 907 may include a set of sensors, such as a measurement sensor, a gyroscope sensor, a magnetometer sensor, and an accelerometer. The microphone 908 converts sound input to the smartphone 900 into an audio signal. The input device 909 includes, for example, a touch sensor, keypad, keyboard, buttons, or switches configured to detect touches on the screen of the display device 910 and receives operations or information input from the user. The display device 910 includes a screen (such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) and an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display) and displays the output image of the smartphone 900. The speaker 911 converts the audio signal output from the smartphone 900 into sound.

[0264] The wireless communication interface 912 supports any cellular communication scheme (such as LTE and LTE-Advanced) and performs wireless communication. The wireless communication interface 912 typically includes, for example, a BB processor 913 and RF circuitry 914. The BB processor 913 can perform, for example, encoding / decoding, modulation / demodulation, and multiplexing / demultiplexing, and performs various types of signal processing for wireless communication. Meanwhile, the RF circuitry 914 can include, for example, a mixer, filters, and amplifiers, and transmits and receives wireless signals via an antenna 916. The wireless communication interface 912 can be a single chip module on which the BB processor 913 and RF circuitry 914 are integrated. Figure 13 As shown, the wireless communication interface 1512 may include multiple BB processors 1513 and multiple RF circuits 1514. Although Figure 13 An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 1512 includes multiple BB processors 1513 and multiple RF circuits 1514, but the wireless communication interface 1512 may also include a single BB processor 1513 or a single RF circuit 914.

[0265] In addition to cellular communication schemes, the wireless communication interface 912 can support other types of wireless communication schemes, such as short-range wireless communication schemes, near-field communication schemes, and wireless local area network (LAN) schemes. In this case, the wireless communication interface 912 may include a BB processor 913 and RF circuitry 914 for each wireless communication scheme.

[0266] Each of the antenna switches 915 switches the connection destination of the antenna 916 among multiple circuits (e.g., circuits for different wireless communication schemes) included in the wireless communication interface 912.

[0267] Each of the antennas 916 includes one or more antenna elements (such as multiple antenna array elements included in a MIMO antenna) and is used by the wireless communication interface 912 to transmit and receive wireless signals. Figure 13 As shown, the smartphone 900 may include multiple antennas 916. Although Figure 13 An example is shown in which the smartphone 900 includes multiple antennas 916, but the smartphone 900 may also include a single antenna 916.

[0268] Furthermore, the smartphone 900 may include an antenna 916 for each wireless communication scheme. In this case, the antenna switch 915 can be omitted from the configuration of the smartphone 900.

[0269] Bus 917 connects processor 901, memory 902, storage device 903, external connection interface 904, camera device 906, sensor 907, microphone 908, input device 909, display device 910, speaker 911, wireless communication interface 912, and auxiliary controller 919 to each other. Battery 918 supplies power to... Figure 13 The various blocks of the smartphone 900 shown are powered, and the feeders are partially shown as dashed lines in the figure. The auxiliary controller 919 operates the minimum necessary functions of the smartphone 900, for example, in sleep mode.

[0270] exist Figure 13 Among the smartphones shown in the image 900, refer to Figures 3A-3COne or more components included in the described processing circuitry 3030 may be implemented in the wireless communication interface 912. Alternatively, at least a portion of these components may be implemented in the processor 901 or the auxiliary controller 919. As an example, the smartphone 900 includes a portion (e.g., a BB processor 913) or the entirety of the wireless communication interface 912, and / or a module including the processor 901 and / or the auxiliary controller 919, and one or more components may be implemented in the module. In this case, the module may store a program that allows the processor to function as one or more components (in other words, a program that allows the processor to perform the operation of one or more components), and may execute the program. As another example, a program that allows the processor to function as one or more components may be installed in the smartphone 900, and the wireless communication interface 912 (e.g., the BB processor 913), the processor 901, and / or the auxiliary controller 919 may execute the program. As described above, the smartphone 900 or the module may be provided as an apparatus including one or more components, and a program that allows the processor to function as one or more components may be provided. Additionally, a readable medium in which the program is recorded may be provided.

[0271] In addition, Figure 13 In the smartphone 900 shown, for example, see reference 900 Figures 3A-3C The described communication unit 3010 can be implemented in the wireless communication interface 912 (e.g., RF circuit 914).

[0272] (Second application example)

[0273] Figure 14 This is a block diagram illustrating an example of a schematic configuration of a car navigation device 920 to which the technologies of this disclosure can be applied. The car navigation device 920 may be a user device 3000 according to an embodiment of this disclosure. The car navigation device 920 includes a processor 921, a memory 922, a Global Positioning System (GPS) module 924, a sensor 925, a data interface 926, a content player 927, a storage medium interface 928, an input device 929, a display device 930, a speaker 931, a wireless communication interface 933, one or more antenna switches 936, one or more antennas 937, and a battery 938.

[0274] The processor 921 can be, for example, a CPU or a SoC, and controls the navigation functions and other functions of the car navigation device 920. The memory 922 includes RAM and ROM, and stores data and programs executed by the processor 921.

[0275] GPS module 924 uses GPS signals received from GPS satellites to measure the location (such as latitude, longitude, and altitude) of car navigation device 920. Sensor 925 may include a set of sensors, such as a gyroscope sensor, a geomagnetic sensor, and an air pressure sensor. Data interface 926 is connected to, for example, an in-vehicle network 941 via a terminal not shown, and acquires data generated by the vehicle (such as vehicle speed data).

[0276] Content player 927 reproduces content stored on storage media (such as CDs and DVDs), which is inserted into storage media interface 928. Input device 929 includes, for example, a touch sensor, button, or switch configured to detect touch on the screen of display device 930, and receives operations or information input from the user. Display device 930 includes a screen such as an LCD or OLED display and displays images or reproduced content for navigation functions. Speaker 931 outputs sound for navigation functions or reproduced content.

[0277] The wireless communication interface 933 supports any cellular communication scheme (such as LTE and LTE-Advanced) and performs wireless communication. The wireless communication interface 933 typically includes, for example, a BB processor 934 and RF circuitry 935. The BB processor 934 can perform, for example, encoding / decoding, modulation / demodulation, and multiplexing / demultiplexing, and performs various types of signal processing for wireless communication. Meanwhile, the RF circuitry 935 can include, for example, a mixer, filters, and amplifiers, and transmits and receives wireless signals via an antenna 937. The wireless communication interface 933 can also be a chip module on which the BB processor 934 and RF circuitry 935 are integrated. Figure 14 As shown, the wireless communication interface 933 may include multiple BB processors 934 and multiple RF circuits 935. Although Figure 14 An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 933 includes multiple BB processors 934 and multiple RF circuits 935, but the wireless communication interface 933 may also include a single BB processor 934 or a single RF circuit 935.

[0278] In addition to cellular communication schemes, the wireless communication interface 933 can support other types of wireless communication schemes, such as short-range wireless communication schemes, near-field communication schemes, and wireless LAN schemes. In this case, for each wireless communication scheme, the wireless communication interface 933 may include a BB processor 934 and an RF circuit 935.

[0279] Each of the antenna switches 936 switches the connection destination of the antenna 937 among multiple circuits (such as circuits for different wireless communication schemes) included in the wireless communication interface 933.

[0280] Each of the antennas 937 includes one or more antenna elements (such as multiple antenna elements included in a MIMO antenna) and is used by the wireless communication interface 933 to transmit and receive wireless signals. Figure 14 As shown, the car navigation device 920 may include multiple antennas 937. Although Figure 14 An example is shown in which the car navigation device 920 includes multiple antennas 937, but the car navigation device 920 may also include a single antenna 937.

[0281] Furthermore, the car navigation device 920 may include an antenna 937 for each wireless communication scheme. In this case, the antenna switch 936 can be omitted from the configuration of the car navigation device 920.

[0282] Battery 938 via feeder to Figure 14 The various blocks of the car navigation device 920 shown are powered, and the feeders are partially shown as dashed lines in the figure. Battery 938 accumulates the power supplied from the vehicle.

[0283] exist Figure 14 In the car navigation device 920 shown, reference Figure 2 One or more components included in the processing circuitry 203 or 503 described in Figure 5 may be implemented in the wireless communication interface 933. Alternatively, at least a portion of these components may be implemented in the processor 921. As an example, the car navigation device 920 includes a portion (e.g., BB processor 934) or the entirety of the wireless communication interface 933, and / or a module including the processor 921, and one or more components may be implemented in the module. In this case, the module may store a program that allows the processor to function as one or more components (in other words, a program that allows the processor to perform the operation of one or more components), and may execute the program. As another example, a program that allows the processor to function as one or more components may be installed in the car navigation device 920, and the wireless communication interface 933 (e.g., BB processor 934) and / or the processor 921 may execute the program. As described above, the car navigation device 920 or the module may be provided as a device including one or more components, and a program that allows the processor to function as one or more components may be provided. Additionally, a readable medium in which the program is recorded may be provided.

[0284] In addition, Figure 14 In the car navigation device 920 shown, for example, reference Figures 3A-3C The described communication unit 3010 can be implemented in the wireless communication interface 933 (e.g., RF circuit 935).

[0285] The technology disclosed herein can also be implemented as an in-vehicle system (or vehicle) 940 comprising one or more of the following blocks: a car navigation device 920, an in-vehicle network 941, and a vehicle module 942. The vehicle module 942 generates vehicle data (such as vehicle speed, engine speed, and fault information) and outputs the generated data to the in-vehicle network 941.

[0286] Additionally, a readable medium in which the program is recorded may be provided. Therefore, this disclosure also relates to a computer-readable storage medium storing a program including instructions that, when loaded and executed by a processor, such as a processing circuit or controller, are used to implement the aforementioned communication method.

[0287] The solution disclosed herein can be implemented through the following example.

[0288] Clause 1. A first user equipment, wherein the first user equipment is associated with a cluster of devices, the first user equipment comprising: processing circuitry configured to: perform a first transmission between the first user equipment and a second user equipment via a first link through a primary user equipment of the cluster; and perform a direct second transmission between the first user equipment and the second user equipment via a second link; wherein the first transmission is performed using contention-free resources, and the second transmission is performed using contention-based resources.

[0289] Clause 2. The first user equipment as described in Clause 1, wherein: both the first user equipment and the second user equipment are associated with the equipment cluster; and performing the first transmission between the first user equipment and the second user equipment includes: the first user equipment sending the first transmission to the second user equipment through the primary user equipment; or the first user equipment receiving the first transmission from the second user equipment through the primary user equipment.

[0290] Clause 3. The first user equipment as described in Clause 1, wherein: the second user equipment is associated with a second device cluster different from the device cluster; and performing the first transmission between the first user equipment and the second user equipment includes: the first user equipment acting as the sender of the first transmission, sending the first transmission to the second user equipment through the primary user equipment, the base station and the second primary user equipment associated with the second device cluster; or the first user equipment acting as the target receiver of the first transmission, receiving the first transmission originating from the second user equipment through the primary user equipment, the base station and the second primary user equipment associated with the second device cluster.

[0291] Clause 4. The first user equipment according to Clause 1, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to: receive resource allocation configuration information from at least one of the base station or the primary user equipment, wherein the resource allocation configuration information allocates the contention-free resources to the first link in a pre-configured access manner without scheduling, and allocates the contention resources to at least the second link, so that the first user equipment can perform the first transmission and the second transmission without requesting scheduling resources from the base station.

[0292] Clause 5. The first user equipment as described in Clause 4, wherein: the contention-free resource is specific to the device cluster; and the contention resource includes at least a portion specific to the device cluster.

[0293] Clause 6. The first user equipment as described in any of Clauses 1, wherein the first transmission has higher reliability requirements or higher priority than the second transmission.

[0294] Clause 7. The first user equipment as described in Clause 6, wherein: (a) the first transmission includes physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) control information and the second transmission includes physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) service data; or (b) the first transmission includes physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) control information and the second transmission includes both the physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) control information and the physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) service data.

[0295] Clause 8. The first user equipment as described in Clause 6, wherein: (a) the first transmission includes a first portion of the Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH) service data with high priority, and the second transmission includes a second portion of the Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH) service data with low priority; or (b) the second transmission includes the Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH) service data, and the first transmission includes a portion of the Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH) service data in the second transmission with high priority.

[0296] Clause 9. The first user equipment as described in any one of Clauses 1-8, wherein at least one of the first transmission and the second transmission is an ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC).

[0297] Clause 10. The first user equipment as described in Clause 1, wherein the first transmission is a redundant transmission of the second transmission, and the first user equipment is the target receiver of the first transmission and the second transmission, the processing circuitry is further configured to: in response to receiving and successfully decoding the first transmission earlier than the second transmission, send an acknowledgment message to the primary user equipment via a first link, the acknowledgment message instructing the second user equipment to terminate the second transmission; and in response to receiving and successfully decoding the second transmission earlier than the first transmission, send an acknowledgment message to the second user equipment via a second link, the acknowledgment message instructing the second user equipment to terminate the first transmission.

[0298] Clause 11. The first user equipment as described in Clause 10, wherein the acknowledgment message is a HARQ message.

[0299] Clause 12. A primary user equipment, wherein the primary user equipment is associated with a device cluster, the device cluster including one or more first slave user equipments, the primary user equipment including: a processing circuit configured to: send resource allocation configuration information to each first slave user equipment, the resource allocation configuration information allocating contention-free resources to a first link between the primary user equipment and each first slave user equipment in a pre-configured access manner without scheduling, and allocating contention-free resources to at least a second link, the second link including intra-cluster second links between a plurality of first slave user equipments and / or inter-cluster second links between a first slave user equipment and a user equipment not belonging to the device cluster.

[0300] Clause 13. The primary user equipment as described in Clause 12, wherein: the contention-free resource is specific to the device cluster; and the contention resource includes at least a portion specific to the device cluster.

[0301] Clause 14. The primary user equipment as described in Clause 12, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to: receive from a first secondary user equipment a first transmission associated with another user equipment; send the first transmission to the other user equipment when the other user equipment is associated with the equipment cluster; and send the first transmission to a base station when the other user equipment is not associated with the equipment cluster.

[0302] Clause 15. The primary user equipment as described in Clause 12, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to: receive from a base station a first transmission associated with a first secondary user equipment, the first transmission originating from another user equipment in a second device cluster different from the device cluster; and send the first transmission to the specific first secondary user equipment.

[0303] Clause 16. The primary user equipment as described in Clause 14 or 15, wherein the first transmission is associated with a second transmission, the second transmission is performed via a second link between the first secondary user equipment and the other user equipment without passing through the primary user equipment, and the second transmission is performed using the contention resource.

[0304] Clause 17. The primary user equipment as described in Clause 14 or 15, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to: receive a HARQ message associated with the first transmission; and send the HARQ message to the user equipment from which the first transmission originated.

[0305] Clause 18. The primary user equipment as described in Clause 12, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to: collect information associated with the one or more first slave user equipments; and update the device cluster based on the collected information.

[0306] Clause 19. A base station device, comprising: a processing circuit configured to: divide a plurality of user equipments into one or more device clusters, each device cluster including an associated master user equipment and one or more slave user equipments; determine resource allocation, wherein the resource allocation allocates contention-free resources and contention resources in a pre-configured access manner without scheduling, the contention-free resources being allocated to a first link between the master user equipment of the device cluster and the slave user equipment of the device cluster, and the contention resources being allocated to at least a second link, the second link including an intra-cluster second link between multiple slave user equipments of the same device cluster and / or an inter-cluster second link between user equipments belonging to different device clusters; and send resource allocation configuration information including the resource allocation to the master user equipment and / or the slave user equipment.

[0307] Clause 20. The base station equipment according to Clause 19, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to collect information associated with the plurality of user equipments, and based on the information: classify the plurality of user equipments into the one or more equipment clusters; and / or update the one or more equipment clusters.

[0308] Clause 21. The base station equipment according to Clause 19, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to: determine the sum of the distances of each user equipment in each equipment cluster to other user equipment in the equipment cluster; and select the user equipment having the smallest sum as the master user equipment of the equipment cluster.

[0309] Clause 22. For the base station equipment described in Clause 19, determining resource allocation includes: determining a contention-free resource block specific to each equipment cluster; and the size of the contention-free resource block is determined based on at least one of the number of user equipment in the equipment cluster or the channel busy rate (CBR).

[0310] Clause 23. The base station equipment according to Clause 19, wherein determining resource allocation includes: determining the rate of change of the plurality of equipment clusters; and when the rate of change is greater than a threshold, reducing the amount of the non-contention-free resources and increasing the amount of the contention-based resources.

[0311] Clause 24. The base station equipment according to Clause 19, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to: determine whether a link between any two user equipments among the plurality of user equipments is an active link; and allocate the contention-free resource and / or the contention resource only to the active link.

[0312] Clause 25. The base station equipment according to Clause 24, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to determine whether a link is an active link based at least on the priority of the link between two user equipments.

[0313] Clause 26. The base station equipment according to Clause 25, wherein the priority of the link is based at least on the distance between the two user equipments, and the processing circuitry is configured to determine a link between two user equipments whose distance is less than a threshold as an active link.

[0314] Clause 27. The base station equipment according to Clause 19, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to: receive a first transmission from a first slave user equipment of a first device cluster in the one or more device clusters; and transmit the received first transmission to a second slave user equipment of a second device cluster in the second device cluster through a second master user equipment of a second device cluster in the one or more device clusters.

[0315] Clause 28. A communication method, wherein the method is for a first user equipment associated with a device cluster, the method comprising: by the first user equipment: performing a first transmission between the first user equipment and a second user equipment via a first link through a primary user equipment of the device cluster; and performing a direct second transmission between the first user equipment and the second user equipment via a second link; wherein the first transmission is performed using contention-free resources, while the second transmission is performed using contention-based resources.

[0316] Clause 29. A communication method, wherein the method is used for a master user equipment associated with a device cluster, the device cluster including one or more first slave user equipments, the method comprising: the master user equipment sending resource allocation configuration information to each first slave user equipment, the resource allocation configuration information allocating contention-free resources to a first link between the master user equipment and each first slave user equipment in a pre-configured access manner without scheduling, and allocating contention-free resources to at least a second link, the second link including an intra-cluster second link between a plurality of first slave user equipments and / or an inter-cluster second link between a first slave user equipment and a user equipment not belonging to the device cluster.

[0317] Clause 30. A communication method, wherein the method comprises: a base station performing the following operations: dividing a plurality of user equipments into one or more device clusters, each device cluster including an associated master user equipment and one or more slave user equipments; determining resource allocation, the resource allocation allocating contention-free resources and contention resources in a non-scheduling preset access manner, the contention-free resources being allocated to a first link between the master user equipment of the device cluster and the slave user equipment of the device cluster, and the contention resources being allocated to at least a second link, the second link including an intra-cluster second link between multiple slave user equipments of the same device cluster and / or an inter-cluster second link between user equipments belonging to different device clusters; and sending resource allocation configuration information including the resource allocation to the master user equipment and / or the slave user equipment.

[0318] Clause 31. A computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, wherein the computer program, when loaded and executed by a processor, is used to implement the method according to any one of Clauses 29-30.

[0319] Furthermore, while the description of this disclosure includes descriptions of one or more embodiments, configurations, or aspects, certain variations and modifications, other variations, combinations, and modifications are also within the scope of this disclosure, for example, which may be within the scope of the technology and knowledge of those skilled in the art after understanding this disclosure. This disclosure is intended to provide a right that includes alternative embodiments, configurations, or aspects within the permissible scope, including alternative, interchangeable, and / or equivalent structures, functions, scopes, or steps to those claimed, regardless of whether such alternative, interchangeable, and / or equivalent structures, functions, scopes, or steps are specifically described herein. This document is not intended to publicly contribute any patentable technical solutions.

Claims

1. A first user equipment, characterized in that, The first user equipment is associated with a cluster of equipment, and the first user equipment includes: Processing circuit, the processing circuit being configured to: A first transmission is performed between the first user equipment and the second user equipment via the primary user equipment of the device cluster through the first link; and A second direct transmission between the first user equipment and the second user equipment is performed via the second link; The second transmission includes a portion or all of the first transmission; and The first transmission is performed using contention-free resources, while the second transmission is performed using contention-based resources.

2. The first user equipment according to claim 1, wherein: Both the first user equipment and the second user equipment are associated with the device cluster; and Performing the first transmission between the first user equipment and the second user equipment includes: The first transmission is sent from the first user equipment to the second user equipment through the primary user equipment; or The first user equipment receives a first transmission from the second user equipment through the primary user equipment.

3. The first user equipment according to claim 1, wherein: The second user equipment is associated with a second device cluster that is different from the device cluster described above; and Performing the first transmission between the first user equipment and the second user equipment includes: The first user equipment acts as the sender of the first transmission, and transmits the first transmission to the second user equipment through the primary user equipment, the base station, and the second primary user equipment associated with the second equipment cluster; or The first user equipment acts as the target receiver of the first transmission, and receives the first transmission originating from the second user equipment through the primary user equipment, the base station, and the second primary user equipment associated with the second equipment cluster.

4. The first user equipment according to claim 1, wherein, The processing circuit is further configured to: The resource allocation configuration information is received from at least one of the base station or the primary user equipment. The resource allocation configuration information allocates the contention-free resources to the first link in a pre-configured access manner without scheduling, and allocates the contention resources to at least the second link, so that the first user equipment can perform the first transmission and the second transmission without requesting scheduling resources from the base station.

5. The first user equipment according to claim 4, wherein: The non-contested resources are specific to the device cluster; and The competing resources include at least a portion specific to the cluster of devices.

6. The first user equipment according to claim 1, wherein, The first transmission has higher reliability requirements or higher priority than the second transmission.

7. The first user equipment according to claim 6, wherein: The first transmission includes Physical Sidechain Control Channel (PSCCH) control information, and the second transmission includes both the Physical Sidechain Control Channel (PSCCH) control information and Physical Sidechain Shared Channel (PSSCH) service data.

8. The first user equipment according to claim 6, wherein: The second transmission includes Physical Sidechain Shared Channel (PSSCH) service data, and the first transmission includes a high-priority portion of the Physical Sidechain Shared Channel (PSSCH) service data in the second transmission.

9. The first user equipment according to any one of claims 1-8, wherein, At least one of the first and second transmissions belongs to Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication (URLLC).

10. The first user equipment according to claim 1, wherein, The first user equipment is the target receiver of the first and second transmissions, and the processing circuit is further configured to: In response to receiving and successfully decoding the first transmission earlier than the second transmission, an acknowledgment message is sent to the primary user equipment via the first link, the acknowledgment message instructing the second user equipment to terminate the second transmission; and In response to receiving and successfully decoding the second transmission earlier than the first transmission, an acknowledgment message is sent to the second user equipment via the second link, the acknowledgment message instructing the second user equipment to terminate the first transmission.

11. The first user equipment according to claim 10, wherein, The confirmation message is a HARQ message.

12. A primary user equipment, wherein, The primary user equipment is associated with a device cluster, the device cluster including one or more first slave user equipments, and the primary user equipment includes: Processing circuit, the processing circuit being configured to: Resource allocation configuration information is sent to each first slave user equipment. The resource allocation configuration information allocates non-contention-free resources to the first link between the master user equipment and each first slave user equipment in a pre-configured access manner without scheduling, and allocates contention-free resources to at least the second link. The second link includes intra-cluster second links between multiple first slave user equipment and / or cross-cluster second links between a first slave user equipment and a user equipment that does not belong to the device cluster. The contention-free resources are only allocated to the second link between two user equipments that are less than a distance threshold from each other.

13. The primary user equipment according to claim 12, wherein: The non-contested resource is specific to the device cluster; and the contested resource includes at least a portion specific to the device cluster.

14. The primary user equipment according to claim 12, wherein, The processing circuit is further configured to: Receive a first transmission associated with another user equipment from the first user equipment; When the other user equipment is associated with the device cluster, the first transmission is sent to the other user equipment; as well as When the other user equipment is not associated with the equipment cluster, the first transmission is sent to the base station.

15. The primary user equipment according to claim 12, wherein, The processing circuit is further configured to: Receive a first transmission associated with a first user equipment from a base station, the first transmission originating from another user equipment in a second device cluster different from the device cluster; as well as The first transmission is sent to the first slave user equipment.

16. The primary user equipment according to claim 14 or 15, wherein, The first transmission is associated with a second transmission, which is performed via a second link between the first slave user equipment and the other user equipment without passing through the master user equipment. The second transmission is performed using the contention resources.

17. The primary user equipment according to claim 14 or 15, wherein, The processing circuit is further configured to: Receive the HARQ message associated with the first transmission; and The HARQ message is sent to the user equipment from which the first transmission originated.

18. The primary user equipment according to claim 12, wherein, The processing circuit is further configured to: Collect information associated with the one or more first slave user devices; and The device cluster is updated based on the collected information.

19. A base station device, characterized in that, include: Processing circuit, the processing circuit being configured to: Multiple user equipments are divided into one or more device clusters, and each device cluster includes an associated master user equipment and one or more slave user equipments; The resource allocation is determined, wherein the resource allocation is to allocate non-contention-free resources and contention-free resources in a manner that avoids scheduling and pre-configured access. The non-contention-free resources are allocated to a first link between the master user equipment of a device cluster and the slave user equipment of the same device cluster, and the contention-free resources are allocated to at least a second link. The second link includes an intra-cluster second link between multiple slave user equipments of the same device cluster and / or an inter-cluster second link between user equipments belonging to different device clusters. The contention-free resources are only allocated to the second link between two user equipments that are less than a distance threshold from each other. as well as The resource allocation configuration information, which includes the resource allocation, is sent to the primary user device and / or the secondary user device.

20. The base station equipment according to claim 19, wherein, The processing circuit is also configured to collect information associated with the plurality of user equipments, and based on the information: Divide the plurality of user equipment into one or more device clusters; and / or Update the one or more device clusters.

21. The base station equipment according to claim 19, wherein, The processing circuit is further configured to: Determine the sum of the distances from each user equipment in each device cluster to other user equipment in that cluster; The user equipment with the smallest sum is selected as the primary user equipment of the device cluster.

22. The base station equipment according to claim 19, wherein determining resource allocation includes: Determine cluster-specific, contention-free resource blocks for each device cluster; as well as The size of the contention-free resource block is determined based on at least one of the number of user equipment in the device cluster or the channel busy rate (CBR).

23. The base station equipment according to claim 19, wherein, Determining resource allocation includes: Determine the rate of change of the plurality of device clusters; and When the rate of change exceeds a threshold, the amount of the non-contested resources is reduced, and the amount of the contested resources is increased.

24. The base station equipment according to claim 19, wherein, The processing circuit is further configured to: Determine whether the link between any two user equipments among the plurality of user equipments is an active link; and The non-contention-free resources and / or contention-based resources are allocated only to active links.

25. The base station equipment according to claim 24, wherein, The processing circuitry is configured to determine whether a link is active based on the priority of the link between at least two user equipments.

26. The base station equipment according to claim 25, wherein, The priority of the link is based at least on the distance between the two user equipments, and the processing circuit is configured to determine the link between two user equipments whose distance is less than a threshold as an active link.

27. The base station equipment according to claim 19, wherein, The processing circuit is further configured to: A first transmission is received from a first slave user equipment of a first device cluster in one or more device clusters; as well as The received first transmission is sent to the second slave user equipment of the second device cluster through the second master user equipment of the second device cluster in the one or more device clusters.

28. A communication method, characterized in that, The method is used for a first user equipment associated with a device cluster, the method comprising: From the first user equipment: A first transmission is performed between the first user equipment and the second user equipment via the primary user equipment of the device cluster through the first link; and A second direct transmission between the first user equipment and the second user equipment is performed via the second link; The second transmission includes a portion or all of the first transmission; and The first transmission is performed using contention-free resources, while the second transmission is performed using contention-based resources.

29. A communication method, characterized in that, The method is used for a primary user equipment associated with a device cluster, the device cluster including one or more first slave user equipments, the method comprising: By the main user equipment: Resource allocation configuration information is sent to each first slave user equipment. The resource allocation configuration information allocates non-contention-free resources to the first link between the master user equipment and each first slave user equipment in a pre-configured access manner without scheduling, and allocates contention-free resources to at least the second link. The second link includes intra-cluster second links between multiple first slave user equipment and / or cross-cluster second links between a first slave user equipment and a user equipment that does not belong to the device cluster. The contention-free resources are only allocated to the second link between two user equipments that are less than a distance threshold from each other.

30. A communication method, characterized in that, The method includes: The base station performs the following operations: Multiple user equipments are divided into one or more device clusters, and each device cluster includes an associated master user equipment and one or more slave user equipments; Resource allocation is determined, wherein the resource allocation uses a pre-configured access method to allocate contention-free resources and contention-based resources. Contention-free resources are allocated to a first link between a master user equipment (MEMB) and slave user equipment (SUE) of the same device cluster, and contention-based resources are allocated at least to a second link. The second link includes intra-cluster second links between multiple SUEs within the same device cluster and / or cross-cluster second links between user equipment belonging to different device clusters. Contention-based resources are only allocated to the second link between two user equipments whose distance to each other is less than a distance threshold. The resource allocation configuration information, which includes the resource allocation, is sent to the primary user device and / or the secondary user device.

31. A computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, wherein, The computer program, when loaded and executed by a processor, is used to implement the method according to any one of claims 29-30.

Images