Measuring power level of demodulation reference signal before blind decoding of associated physical downlink control channel

Abstract

A scheduled entity measures a power level of a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) before blindly decoding a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidate associated with the DMRS. If the power level is above a predetermined threshold, the scheduled entity blindly decodes the PDCCH candidate, or if the power level is below the predetermined threshold, the blind decoding is abandoned. A scheduling entity sends a blind decoding configuration setting to the scheduled entity. The scheduling entity enables, via the blind decoding configuration setting, a measurement, at the scheduled entity, of power levels of a plurality of DMRSs before blindly decoding a plurality of respective PDCCH candidates associated with the plurality of DMRSs. Blind decoding is performed only for PDCCH candidates associated with DMRSs having power levels above a predetermined threshold. A predetermined number of PDCCH candidates are scheduled for blind decoding. Blind decoding stops when the predetermined number is reached.

Description

[0001] Cross-references to related applications

[0002] This patent application claims priority and interest in pending non-provisional application No. 17 / 368,644 filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on July 6, 2021, and provisional application No. 63 / 049,779 filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on July 9, 2020, which have been assigned to the assignee of this application and are expressly incorporated herein by reference as if their entire contents were fully set forth below and used for all applicable purposes. Technical Field

[0003] The techniques discussed below generally relate to wireless communication systems, and more specifically, to improvements in blind decoding of various radio communication channels. Background Technology

[0004] Control information conveyed by communication channels (such as the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH)) is crucial for the proper allocation and decoding of data channels (such as the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH)). To access control information (e.g., Downlink Control Information (DCI)), the User Equipment (UE) must first decode the PDCCH. However, decoding the PDCCH is a relatively complex task. For example, the UE may need to determine the location of the PDCCH by identifying the index value of the Control Channel Element (CCE) that identifies the start position of the PDCCH. The UE may also need to determine the aggregation level, which informs the UE of the number of CCEs used to constitute the PDCCH. The UE may also need to determine whether and how the base station interleaves the control and data portions of the DCI, and whether a PDCCH candidate is associated with the UE's identifier. This information may not be provided to the UE in advance by the base station. The only thing the UE knows is information about the given range of CCEs that might carry the DCI on the PDCCH candidate.

[0005] When attempting to decode PDCCHs and DCIs carried within a given range (referred to as the search space), the UE may expend valuable resources. Currently, these attempts can be based on trial and error and can be called blind decoding. However, even when correctly decoded, some PDCCHs may have poor signal strength, resulting in poor channel quality and reliability. Testing or filtering PDCCH candidates to remove less desirable PDCCH candidates from the blind decoding process can improve the quality and reliability of the DCIs delivered on the PDCCHs. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The following is a simplified summary of one or more aspects of this disclosure to provide a basic understanding of these aspects. This summary is not a broad overview of all anticipated aspects of this disclosure, nor is it intended to identify key or essential elements of all aspects of this disclosure, nor to describe the scope of any or all aspects of this disclosure. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects of this disclosure in some form as a prelude to the more detailed description that follows.

[0007] The scheduled entity measures the power level of the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidate associated with the Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS) before blind decoding. If the power level is higher than a predetermined threshold, the scheduled entity performs blind decoding on the PDCCH candidate; otherwise, blind decoding is abandoned if the power level is lower than the predetermined threshold. The scheduling entity sends a blind decoding configuration setting to the scheduled entity. The scheduling entity enables the measurement of the power levels of the multiple DMRSs at the scheduled entity before blind decoding of the multiple corresponding PDCCH candidates associated with multiple DMRSs via the blind decoding configuration setting. Blind decoding is performed only on PDCCH candidates associated with DMRSs having power levels higher than the predetermined threshold. A predetermined number of PDCCH candidates are scheduled for blind decoding. When the predetermined number is reached, blind decoding stops.

[0008] In one example, a method for wireless communication at a scheduled entity is disclosed. The method includes: measuring the power level of a corresponding DMRS prior to blind decoding of a corresponding Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidate associated with a corresponding Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS), and at least one of the following: performing blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold, or abandoning blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is lower than the predetermined threshold.

[0009] In another example, a wireless communication device in a wireless communication network is disclosed. The wireless communication device includes a wireless transceiver, a memory, and a processor communicatively coupled to the wireless transceiver and the memory. In one aspect, the processor and the memory are configured to: measure the power level of a corresponding physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidate associated with a corresponding demodulation reference signal (DMRS) before blind decoding, and at least one of the following: if the corresponding power level is higher than a predetermined threshold, then blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate is performed; or if the corresponding power level is lower than a predetermined threshold, then blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate is abandoned.

[0010] In another example, a method for wireless communication at a scheduling entity is disclosed. The method includes: sending a blind decoding configuration setting to the scheduled entity, and enabling, via the blind decoding configuration setting, a measurement of the power levels of the plurality of DMRS at the scheduled entity prior to blind decoding of a plurality of Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidates, each associated with a plurality of demodulation reference signals (DMRS). The method further includes: scheduling a predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding by the scheduled entity based on the number of control channel elements (CCEs) in one or more bandwidth portions (BWPs) associated with one or more of the plurality of PDCCH candidates.

[0011] In another example, a wireless communication device in a wireless communication network is disclosed. The wireless communication device includes a wireless transceiver, a memory, and a processor communicatively coupled to the wireless transceiver and the memory. In one aspect, the processor and the memory are configured to: send blind decoding configuration settings to a scheduled entity, and via the blind decoding configuration settings to enable measurement of the power levels of the plurality of DMRS at the scheduled entity prior to blind decoding of a plurality of Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidates, each associated with a plurality of Demodulation Reference Signals (DMRS). The processor and the memory are configured to: schedule a predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding by the scheduled entity based on the number of Control Channel Elements (CCEs) in one or more Bandwidth Portions (BWPs) associated with one or more of the plurality of PDCCH candidates.

[0012] These and other aspects will be more fully understood after reading the following detailed description. Other aspects, features, and examples will become apparent to those skilled in the art after reading the following description of specific exemplary aspects in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Although features may be discussed below with respect to certain examples and drawings, all examples may include one or more of the advantageous features discussed herein. That is, while one or more examples may be discussed as having certain advantageous features, one or more of said features may also be used according to the various examples discussed herein. Similarly, although examples may be discussed below as examples of devices, systems, or methods, it should be understood that such examples may be implemented in various devices, systems, and methods. Attached Figure Description

[0013] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system based on some aspects of this disclosure.

[0014] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a radio access network (RAN) based on some aspects of this disclosure.

[0015] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the organization of radio resources in an air interface utilizing orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) in accordance with some aspects of this disclosure.

[0016] Figure 4 This is a block diagram illustrating a wireless communication system supporting multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication according to some aspects of this disclosure.

[0017] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the organization of radio resources in the OFDM air interface based on some aspects of this disclosure, and showing the location of physical resource blocks within the control channel element (CCE) and downlink control information (DCI).

[0018] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of an organization utilizing radio resources in the OFDM air interface according to some aspects of this disclosure.

[0019] Figure 7 This is a block diagram illustrating an example hardware implementation of a scheduled entity employing a processing system according to some aspects of this disclosure.

[0020] Figure 8 This is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary wireless communication process at a scheduled entity according to some aspects of this disclosure.

[0021] Figure 9 This is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary wireless communication process at a scheduled entity according to some aspects of this disclosure.

[0022] Figure 10 This is a block diagram illustrating an example hardware implementation of a scheduling entity employing a processing system according to some aspects of this disclosure.

[0023] Figure 11 This is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary wireless communication process at a scheduling entity according to some aspects of this disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0024] The specific embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are intended as descriptions of various configurations and are not intended to represent the only configuration in which the concepts described herein can be practiced. These specific embodiments include detailed descriptions intended to provide a thorough understanding of the various concepts. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts can be practiced without these detailed descriptions. In some cases, various structures and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring these concepts.

[0025] While aspects and examples have been described in this application through the illustration of a few examples, those skilled in the art will understand that other implementations and use cases can be realized in many different arrangements and scenarios. The innovations described herein can be implemented across many different platform types, devices, systems, shapes, sizes, and packaging arrangements. For example, aspects and / or uses can be implemented through integrated chip examples and other devices based on non-modular components (e.g., end-user devices, vehicles, communication devices, computing devices, industrial equipment, retail / purchasing devices, medical devices, AI-enabled devices, etc.). While some examples may or may not be specific to a particular use case or application, a wide variety of applicability to the described innovations is possible. Implementations can range from chip-level or modular components to non-modular, non-chip-level implementations, and further to aggregated, distributed, or original equipment manufacturer (OEM) devices or systems incorporating one or more aspects of the described innovations. In some practical settings, devices incorporating the described aspects and features will necessarily also include additional components and features for implementing and practicing the claimed and described examples. For example, the transmission and reception of wireless signals necessarily involve multiple components for analog and digital purposes (e.g., hardware components including antennas, radio frequency (RF) chains, power amplifiers, modulators, buffers, processors, interleavers, adders / summers, etc.). The innovations described herein are intended to be implemented in a wide variety of devices, chip-level components, systems, distributed arrangements, end-user equipment, etc., of different sizes, shapes, and constructions.

[0026] The Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) carries downlink control information (DCI) that may be needed for the proper assignment and decoding of data channels, such as the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH). Control Channel Elements (CCEs) carrying the PDCCH may include demodulation reference signals (DMRS) that can be used by the UE and base station to perform channel estimation and adaptation. For example, a CCE may include six Resource Element Groups (REGs). Each REG may include twelve subcarriers of one OFDM symbol. According to some examples, three subcarriers of a REG may be used for the DMRS, while the remaining nine subcarriers may be used for the PDCCH payload. The measured power level of the DMRS can be used for channel estimation and adaptation; however, the measured power level of the DMRS can also predict channel quality and reliability. For example, a received DMRS power level below a predetermined threshold (e.g., a power level less than, equal to, or less than or equal to a predetermined value) may predict that the PDCCH will not provide sufficient quality and / or reliability.

[0027] Typically, PDCCHs can be transmitted on CCEs defined in, for example, a downlink time-frequency resource grid. The UE may not know in advance how to decode the PDCCH. Therefore, the base station can establish a control resource set (CORESET) within the downlink frequency grid. PDCCHs can be scheduled within a CORESET. PDCCHs within a CORESET can be referred to as PDCCH candidates. To add further granularity, the base station can define and / or the UE can determine one or more search spaces within each CORESET. A search space can be defined by one or more CCEs capable of carrying PDCCHs. PDCCHs within a search space can be referred to as PDCCH candidates. The UE can attempt to decode PDCCH candidates that may exist in each search space, even if the base station has not yet scheduled PDCCHs in each search space.

[0028] However, the UE may not be configured with or may not be aware of all the parameters that the PDCCH candidates in the decoding search space might require. Accordingly, the UE may perform a trial-and-error process known as a blind decoding process to attempt to decode the PDCCH candidates in the search space. The blind decoding process is resource-intensive. Many combinations of parameters (e.g., CCE start index, aggregation value (i.e., the number of CCEs in the PDCCH), scrambling parameters, etc.) can be tried before the PDCCH can be decoded (if it exists). However, even if decoding is successful, the PDCCH may not be received with sufficient power to transmit the DCI carried by the PDCCH at an acceptable level of quality and / or reliability.

[0029] To eliminate PDCCH candidates with insufficient power levels during blind decoding, the UE can measure the power level of the DMRS of the PDCCH candidate before performing blind decoding on the candidate. According to the aspects discussed herein, the UE's measurement of the DMRS power level can occur before the UE performs blind decoding on the PDCCH candidate. If the DMRS power level of a given PDCCH candidate is below a predetermined threshold, blind decoding of that PDCCH candidate may not be necessary, and the UE can abandon (e.g., not perform, abandon, skip) the blind decoding of the given PDCCH candidate. Therefore, the measurement of the DMRS power level can be used to filter out PDCCH candidates associated with DMRS power levels that may be below a predetermined threshold before starting the relatively lengthy and resource-intensive blind decoding process. Testing or filtering PDCCH candidates using the measurement of the DMRS power level before performing blind decoding on PDCCH candidates associated with DMRS may be referred to herein as hybrid blind decoding or DMRS power level-filtered PDCCH blind decoding.

[0030] The various concepts presented throughout this disclosure can be implemented in a wide range of telecommunications systems, network architectures, and communication standards. References are now available. Figure 1 As a non-limiting illustrative example, reference is made to a wireless communication system 100 to illustrate various aspects of this disclosure. The wireless communication system 100 includes three interaction domains: a core network 102, a radio access network (RAN) 104, and a user equipment (UE) 106. With the aid of the wireless communication system 100, the UE 106 can perform data communication with an external data network 110 (such as, but not limited to, the Internet).

[0031] RAN 104 can implement any suitable (multiple) wireless communication technologies to provide radio access to UE 106. As an example, RAN 104 can operate according to the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) New Radio (NR) specification (commonly referred to as 5G). As another example, RAN 104 can operate under a hybrid of 5G NR and the Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (eUTRAN) standard (commonly referred to as Long Term Evolution (LTE)). 3GPP refers to this hybrid RAN as Next Generation RAN or NG-RAN. Of course, many other examples can be utilized within the scope of this disclosure.

[0032] As shown in the figure, RAN 104 includes multiple base stations 108. Broadly speaking, a base station is a network element in a radio access network responsible for transmitting radio signals to and receiving radio signals from a UE in one or more cells. In different technologies, standards, or contexts, a base station may be referred to by those skilled in the art as a base transceiver station (BTS), radio base station, radio transceiver, transceiver function, basic service set (BSS), extended service set (ESS), access point (AP), node B (NB), eNode B (eNB), gNode B (gNB), transmit and receive point (TRP), or some other suitable term. In some examples, a base station may include two or more TRPs that can be co-located or non-co-located. Each TRP may communicate on the same or different carrier frequencies within the same or different frequency bands. In an example where RAN 104 operates according to LTE and 5G NR standards, one base station may be an LTE base station, while another base station may be a 5G NR base station.

[0033] RAN 104, supporting wireless communication for multiple mobile devices, is further illustrated. In 3GPP standards, a mobile device may be referred to as a User Equipment (UE), but those skilled in the art may also refer to it as a Mobile Station (MS), User Station, Mobile Unit, User Unit, Radio Unit, Remote Unit, Mobile Device, Radio Equipment, Wireless Communication Equipment, Remote Equipment, Mobile Subscriber Station, Access Terminal (AT), Mobile Terminal, Radio Terminal, Remote Terminal, Handheld Device, Terminal, User Agent, Mobile Client, Client, or any other suitable term. A UE may be a device (e.g., a mobile device) that provides users with access to network services.

[0034] In this disclosure, a “mobile” device does not necessarily have the ability to move and may be stationary. The term mobile device or mobile equipment refers to a wide variety of devices and technologies. A UE may include multiple hardware structural components that are sized, shaped, and arranged to facilitate communication; these components may include antennas, antenna arrays, RF chains, amplifiers, one or more processors, etc., electrically coupled to each other. For example, some non-limiting examples of mobile devices include a broad array of mobile devices, cellular phones, smartphones, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phones, laptops, personal computers (PCs), notebooks, netbooks, smartbooks, tablets, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and embedded systems, such as those corresponding to the “Internet of Things” (IoT).

[0035] Mobile devices can also include automobiles or other transport vehicles, remote sensors or actuators, robots or robotic equipment, satellite radio equipment, Global Positioning System (GPS) devices, object tracking devices, drones, multi-rotor aircraft, quadcopters, remote control devices, consumer and / or wearable devices such as glasses, wearable cameras, virtual reality devices, smartwatches, health or fitness trackers, digital audio players (e.g., MP3 players), cameras, game consoles, etc. Mobile devices can also include digital home or smart home devices such as home audio, video and / or multimedia equipment, appliances, vending machines, smart lighting, home security systems, smart meters, etc. Mobile devices can also include smart energy devices, security devices, solar panels or solar arrays, municipal infrastructure equipment controlling electricity (e.g., smart grids), lighting, water, etc., industrial automation and enterprise equipment, logistics controllers, and / or agricultural equipment, etc. Furthermore, mobile devices can provide connected medical or telemedicine support, such as remote healthcare. Remote healthcare devices may include remote healthcare monitoring devices and remote healthcare management devices, whose communications may be given priority processing or access compared to other types of information, for example, in terms of priority access for transmitting critical service data and / or in terms of relevant QoS for transmitting critical service data.

[0036] Wireless communication between RAN 104 and UE 106 can be described as utilizing an air interface. Transmissions over the air interface from a base station (e.g., base station 108) to one or more UEs (e.g., similar to UE 106) can be referred to as downlink (DL) transmissions. According to certain aspects of this disclosure, the term downlink can refer to point-to-multipoint transmissions initiated at a base station (e.g., base station 108). Another way to describe this scheme is to use the term broadcast channel multiplexing. Transmissions from a UE (e.g., UE 106) to a base station (e.g., base station 108) can be referred to as uplink (UL) transmissions. According to other aspects of this disclosure, the term uplink can refer to point-to-point transmissions initiated at a UE (e.g., UE 106).

[0037] In some examples, access to the air interface can be scheduled, where a scheduling entity (e.g., base station 108) allocates resources for communication between some or all devices and apparatuses within its service area or cell. In this disclosure, as further discussed below, the scheduling entity may be responsible for scheduling, allocating, reconfiguring, and releasing resources for one or more scheduled entities (e.g., UE 106). That is, for scheduled communication, multiple UEs 106 of the scheduled entities may utilize resources allocated by the scheduling entity 108.

[0038] Base station 108 is not the only entity that can be used as a scheduling entity. That is, in some examples, a UE can be used as a scheduling entity to schedule resources for one or more scheduled entities (e.g., one or more other UEs). For example, a UE can communicate directly with other UEs in a peer-to-peer or device-to-device manner and / or in a relay configuration.

[0039] like Figure 1 As shown, scheduling entity 108 can broadcast downlink service 112 to one or more scheduled entities (e.g., one or more UEs 106). Broadly speaking, scheduling entity 108 is a node or device responsible for scheduling services in a wireless communication network, including downlink service 112, and in some examples, uplink service 116 from one or more scheduled entities (e.g., one or more UEs 106) to scheduling entity 108. On the other hand, a scheduled entity (e.g., UE 106) is a node or device that receives downlink control information 114, which includes, but is not limited to, scheduling information (e.g., authorization), synchronization or timing information, or other control information from another entity in the wireless communication network (such as scheduling entity 108).

[0040] Additionally, uplink and / or downlink control information and / or service information can be transmitted on waveforms that can be time-divided into frames, subframes, time slots, and / or symbols. As used herein, a symbol can refer to a time unit in an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) waveform where each subcarrier carries a resource element (RE). A time slot can carry 7 or 14 OFDM symbols. A subframe can refer to a duration of 1 ms. Multiple subframes or time slots can be grouped together to form a single frame or radio frame. Within this disclosure, a frame can refer to a predetermined duration (e.g., 10 ms) for wireless transmission, where each frame comprises, for example, 10 subframes, each subframe having a duration of 1 ms. Of course, these definitions are not required, and any suitable scheme for organizing waveforms can be utilized, and various time divisions of the waveform can have any suitable duration.

[0041] Typically, base station 108 may include a backhaul interface for communicating with the backhaul section 120 of wireless communication system 100. Backhaul section 120 provides a link between base station 108 and core network 102. Furthermore, in some examples, the backhaul network may provide interconnection between the respective base stations 108. Various types of backhaul interfaces can be employed, using any suitable transport network, such as direct physical connections, virtual networks, etc.

[0042] The core network 102 may be part of the wireless communication system 100 and may be independent of the radio access technology used in the RAN 104. In some examples, the core network 102 may be configured according to a 5G standard (e.g., 5GC). In other examples, the core network 102 may be configured according to 4G Evolved Packet Core (EPC) or any other suitable standard or configuration.

[0043] Now for reference Figure 2 Schematic diagrams of a radio access network (RAN) 200 according to some aspects of this disclosure are provided by way of example and not limitation. In some examples, RAN 200 may be combined with the above-described and Figure 1 The same as RAN 104 shown in the figure.

[0044] The geographic area covered by RAN 200 can be divided into several cellular regions (cells), which can be uniquely identified by user equipment (UE) based on an identifier broadcast across the geographic area from an access point or base station. Figure 2Cells 202, 204, 206, and 208 are shown, each of which may include one or more sectors (not shown). A sector is a sub-area of ​​a cell. All sectors within a cell are served by the same base station. Radio links within a sector can be identified by a single logical identifier belonging to that sector. In a cell divided into sectors, multiple sectors within the cell can be formed by antenna groups, where each antenna is responsible for communicating with UEs in a portion of the cell.

[0045] Various base stations can be used for deployment. For example, in Figure 2 In the illustration, two base stations, base station 210 and base station 212, are shown in cells 202 and 204. A third base station (base station 214) is shown as a remote radio head (RRH) 216 controlling cell 206. That is, the base station may have an integrated antenna, or it may be connected to an antenna or RRH 216 via a feed cable. In the example shown, cells 202, 204, and 206 can be referred to as macro cells because base stations 210, 212, and 214 support cells with large sizes. Furthermore, base station 218 is shown in cell 208, which may overlap with one or more macro cells. In this example, cell 208 can be referred to as a small cell (e.g., microcell, picocell, femtocell, home base station, home node B, home eNode B, etc.) because base station 218 supports cells with relatively small sizes. Cell size design can be tailored to the system design and component constraints.

[0046] It should be understood that RAN 200 can include any number of radio base stations and cells. Furthermore, relay nodes can be deployed to extend the size or coverage area of ​​a given cell. Base stations 210, 212, 214, and 218 provide radio access points to the core network for any number of mobile devices. In some examples, base stations 210, 212, 214, and / or 218 can be connected to those described above and... Figure 1 The scheduling entity 108 shown is the same as or similar to that shown.

[0047] Figure 2 It also includes an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) 220, which can be a drone or a quadcopter. The UAV 220 can be configured to be used as a base station, or more specifically as a mobile base station. That is, in some examples, the cell may not necessarily be stationary, and the geographical area of ​​the cell may move depending on the location of a mobile base station such as the UAV 220.

[0048] Within RAN 200, a cell may include UEs capable of communicating with one or more sectors of each cell. Furthermore, each base station 210, 212, 214, 218, and 220 may be configured to provide access to the core network 102 (see [link to core network]) to all UEs within the corresponding cell. Figure 1Access points. For example, UEs 222 and 224 can communicate with base station 210; UEs 226 and 228 can communicate with base station 212; UEs 230 and 232 can communicate with base station 214 via RRH 216; UE 234 can communicate with base station 218; and UE 236 can communicate with mobile base station 220. In some examples, UEs 222, 224, 226, 228, 230, 232, 234, 236, 238, 240 and / or 242 can communicate with the access points described above and... Figure 1 The UE / scheduled entity 106 shown is the same or similar. In some examples, the UAV 220 (e.g., a quadcopter) can be a mobile network node and can be configured to act as a UE. For example, the UAV 220 can operate within cell 202 by communicating with base station 210.

[0049] In another aspect of RAN 200, sidelink signals can be used between UEs without relying on scheduling or control information from the base station. For example, sidelink communication can be utilized in device-to-device (D2D) networks, peer-to-peer (P2P) networks, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) networks, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) networks, and / or other suitable sidelink networks. For instance, two or more UEs (e.g., UEs 238, 240, and 242) can communicate with each other using sidelink signal 237 without relaying the communication through the base station. In another example, UEs 238, 240, and 242 can each act as a scheduling entity or transmitting sidelink device and / or a scheduled entity or receiving sidelink device to schedule resources and transmit sidelink signal 237 therebetween without relying on scheduling or control information from the base station. In other examples, two or more UEs (e.g., UEs 226 and 228) within the coverage area of ​​a base station (e.g., base station 212) may also transmit sidelink signals 227 on a direct link (sidelink) without passing the communication through base station 212. In this example, base station 212 may allocate resources for sidelink communication to UEs 226 and 228.

[0050] To achieve a low block error rate (BLER) while still maintaining a very high data rate for transmission over an air interface, channel coding can be used. That is, wireless communication can typically utilize appropriate error-correcting block codes. In typical block codes, an information message or sequence is broken down into code blocks (CBs), and an encoder (e.g., a codec) at the transmitting device then mathematically adds redundancy to this information message. Utilizing this redundancy in the encoded information message improves message reliability, making it possible to correct any bit errors that might occur due to noise.

[0051] Data encoding can be implemented in several ways. In early 5G NR specifications, quasi-cyclic low-density parity-check (LDPC) was used to encode user data using two different base maps: one base map for large code blocks and / or high code rates, and the other for other cases. Based on nested sequences, polar coding is used to encode control information and the physical broadcast channel (PBCH). For these channels, puncturing, shortening, and repetition are used for rate matching.

[0052] Various aspects of this disclosure can be implemented using any suitable channel code. Various implementations of the base station and UE may include appropriate hardware and capabilities (e.g., encoders, decoders, and / or codecs) to utilize one or more of these channel codes for wireless communication.

[0053] In RAN 200, the ability of a UE to communicate independently of its location while on the move is referred to as mobility. Various physical channels between the UE and RAN 200 are typically established, maintained, and released under the control of the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF). In some scenarios, the AMF may include the Security Anchor Function (SEAF) for performing authentication and the Security Context Management Function (SCMF). The SCMF can manage the security context for functions used in both the control plane and the user plane, either wholly or partially.

[0054] In various aspects of this disclosure, RAN 200 can utilize DL-based mobility or UL-based mobility to achieve mobility and handover (i.e., transferring the UE's connection from one radio channel to another). In a network configured for DL-based mobility, during a call with a scheduling entity, or at any other time, the UE can monitor various parameters of the signal from its serving cell and various parameters of neighboring cells. Depending on the quality of these parameters, the UE can maintain communication with one or more neighboring cells. During this time, if the UE moves from one cell to another, or if the signal quality from a neighboring cell exceeds the signal quality from the serving cell for a given amount of time, the UE can perform a handover or handover from the serving cell to a neighboring (target) cell. For example, UE 224 can move from the geographic area corresponding to its serving cell 202 to the geographic area corresponding to its neighboring cell 206. When the signal strength or quality from the neighboring cell 206 exceeds the signal strength or quality from its serving cell 202 for a given amount of time, UE 224 can send a report message indicating this condition to its serving base station 210. In response, UE 224 can receive a handover command and the UE can undergo a handover to cell 206.

[0055] In a network configured for UL-based mobility, the UL reference signal from each UE can be used by the network to select a serving cell for each UE. In some examples, base stations 210, 212, and 214 / 216 can broadcast a uniform synchronization signal (e.g., a uniform primary synchronization signal (PSS), a uniform secondary synchronization signal (SSS), and a uniform physical broadcast channel (PBCH)). UEs 222, 224, 226, 228, 230, and 232 can receive the uniform synchronization signal, derive the carrier frequency and time slot timing from the synchronization signal, and transmit uplink pilot or reference signals in response to the derived timing. The uplink pilot signal transmitted by a UE (e.g., UE 224) can be simultaneously received by two or more cells within RAN 200 (e.g., base stations 210 and 214 / 216). Each cell can measure the strength of the pilot signal, and the radio access network (e.g., one or more of base stations 210 and 214 / 216 and / or a central node within the core network) can determine the serving cell for UE 224. When UE 224 moves through RAN 200, RAN 200 can continue to monitor the uplink pilot signal transmitted by UE 224. When the signal strength or quality of the pilot signal measured by a neighboring cell exceeds the signal strength or quality of the pilot signal measured by the serving cell, RAN 200 can, with or without notification to UE 224, hand over UE 224 from the serving cell to a neighboring cell.

[0056] Although the synchronization signals transmitted by base stations 210, 212, and 214 / 216 can be unified, the synchronization signals do not need to identify a specific cell. Instead, they can identify an area of ​​multiple cells operating on the same frequency and / or at the same timing. Using areas in 5G networks or other next-generation communication networks implements an uplink-based mobility framework and improves the efficiency of both the UE and the network because it reduces the number of mobility messages that need to be exchanged between the UE and the network.

[0057] In various implementations, the air interface in the radio access network 200 can utilize licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or shared spectrum. Licensed spectrum provides exclusive use of a portion of the spectrum, typically due to a mobile network operator purchasing a license from a government regulatory agency. Unlicensed spectrum provides shared use of a portion of the spectrum without requiring a government-granted license. While access to unlicensed spectrum generally still requires compliance with some technical rules, access is typically available to any operator or device. Shared spectrum can fall between licensed and unlicensed spectrum, where access may require technical rules or restrictions, but the spectrum can still be shared by multiple operators and / or multiple radio access technologies (RATs). For example, a licensee for a portion of licensed spectrum can provide licensed shared access (LSA) to share the spectrum with other parties, for example, by utilizing conditions determined by the appropriate licensee.

[0058] Devices communicating in the radio access network 200 can utilize one or more multiplexing techniques and multiple access algorithms to achieve simultaneous communication between various devices. For example, the 5G NR specification provides multiple access for UL transmissions from UEs 222 and 224 to base station 210 using Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) with a cyclic prefix (CP), as well as multiplexing DL transmissions from base station 210 to UEs 222 and 224. Additionally, for UL transmissions, the 5G NR specification provides support for Discrete Fourier Transform-Extended-OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) with CP (also known as Single-Carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA)). However, within the scope of this disclosure, multiplexing and multiple access are not limited to the above schemes, but can be provided using Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Sparse Code Multiple Access (SCMA), Resource Extended Multiple Access (RSMA), or other suitable multiple access schemes. In addition, time division multiplexing (TDM), code division multiplexing (CDM), frequency division multiplexing (FDM), orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), sparse code multiplexing (SCM) or other suitable multiplexing schemes can be used to provide multiplexing for DL ​​transmission from base station 210 to UEs 222 and 224.

[0059] Devices in the radio access network 200 can also utilize one or more duplex algorithms. Duplex refers to a point-to-point communication link where two endpoints can communicate with each other in both directions. Full-duplex means that two endpoints can communicate with each other simultaneously. Half-duplex means that only one endpoint can send information to the other endpoint at a time. Time division duplex (TDD) is frequently used to simulate half-duplex in wireless links. In TDD, time division multiplexing is used to separate transmissions in different directions on a given channel. That is, in some scenarios, the channel is dedicated to transmissions in one direction, while at other times, the channel is dedicated to transmissions in the other direction, where the direction can change very rapidly, for example, several times per time slot. In wireless links, full-duplex channels typically rely on physical isolation between the transmitter and receiver, as well as appropriate interference cancellation techniques. Full-duplex simulation of wireless links is often achieved by utilizing frequency division duplex (FDD) or space division duplex (SDD). In FDD, transmissions in different directions can operate at different carrier frequencies (e.g., within paired spectrum). In SDD, spatial division multiplexing (SDM) is used to separate transmissions in different directions on a given channel from each other. In other examples, full-duplex communication can be implemented in unpaired spectrum (e.g., within a single carrier bandwidth), where transmissions in different directions occur within different subbands of the carrier bandwidth. This type of full-duplex communication may be referred to herein as subband full-duplex (SBFD), also known as flexible duplex.

[0060] Reference Figure 3 The OFDM waveforms illustrated herein are used to describe various aspects of this disclosure. Those skilled in the art will understand that various aspects of this disclosure can be applied to SC-FDMA waveforms in substantially the same manner as described below. That is, although some examples of this disclosure may focus on OFDM links for clarity, it should be understood that the same principles can also be applied to SC-FDMA waveforms.

[0061] Now for reference Figure 3 The diagram shows an expanded view of an exemplary subframe 302 of frame 300, which illustrates the OFDM resource grid 304. However, as those skilled in the art will readily understand, the physical (PHY) transmission structure for any particular application can differ from the example described herein, depending on any number of factors. Here, time is in units of OFDM symbols in the horizontal direction; and frequency is in units of subcarriers of a carrier in the vertical direction.

[0062] Resource grid 304 can be used to schematically represent the time-frequency resources of a given antenna port. That is, in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) implementation with multiple available antenna ports, the corresponding multiple resource grids 304 can be used for communication. Resource grid 304 is divided into multiple resource elements (REs) 306. An RE, as 1 subcarrier × 1 symbol, is the smallest discrete part of the time-frequency grid and contains a single complex value representing data from a physical channel or signal. Depending on the modulation used in a particular implementation, each RE can represent one or more bits of information. In some examples, an RE block can be referred to as a physical resource block (PRB) or more simply as a resource block (RB) 308, which contains any suitable number of consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain. In one example, an RB can include 12 subcarriers, the number of which is independent of the digital scheme used. In some examples, depending on the digital scheme, an RB can include any suitable number of coherent OFDM symbols in the time domain. Within this disclosure, it is assumed that a single RB, such as RB 308, corresponds exactly to a single communication direction (transmission or reception for a given device).

[0063] A collection of contiguous or non-contiguous resource blocks may be referred to herein as a resource block group (RBG), subband, or bandwidth portion (BWP). A collection of subbands or BWPs can span the entire bandwidth. Scheduling a scheduled entity (e.g., a UE) for downlink, uplink, or sidelink transmission typically involves scheduling one or more resource elements 306 within one or more subbands or bandwidth portions (BWPs). Therefore, a UE typically utilizes only a subset of resource grids 304. In some examples, an RB may be the smallest resource unit available to be allocated to a UE. Therefore, the more RBs scheduled for a UE and the more sophisticated the modulation scheme selected for the air interface, the higher the UE's data rate. RBs can be scheduled by base stations (e.g., gNB, eNB, etc.) or can be self-scheduled by the UE implementing D2D sidelink communication.

[0064] In this figure, RB 308 is shown occupying less than the entire bandwidth of subframe 302, with some subcarriers shown above and below RB 308. In this given implementation, subframe 302 may have a bandwidth corresponding to any number of one or more RB 308s. Furthermore, in this figure, RB 308 is shown occupying less than the entire duration of subframe 302, although this is merely one possible example.

[0065] Each 1ms subframe 302 can consist of one or more adjacent time slots. Figure 3In the example shown, as an illustrative example, a subframe 302 includes four time slots 310. In some examples, time slots can be defined based on a specified number of OFDM symbols with a given cyclic prefix (CP) length. For example, a time slot may include 7 or 14 OFDM symbols with a nominal CP. Other examples may include micro-time slots with shorter durations (e.g., one to three OFDM symbols), sometimes referred to as shortened transmission time intervals (TTIs). In some cases, these micro-time slots or shortened transmission time intervals (TTIs) may be transmitted, consuming resources scheduled for ongoing time slot transmissions for the same or different UEs. Any number of resource blocks can be utilized within a subframe or time slot.

[0066] An expanded view of one of time slots 310 shows that time slot 310 includes a control region 312 and a data region 314. Typically, control region 312 can carry a control channel, and data region 314 can carry a data channel. Of course, a time slot can contain all DL, all UL, or at least one DL portion and at least one UL portion. Figure 3 The structure shown is merely exemplary and may utilize different time-slot structures, and may include one or more of each of the control region and data region.

[0067] Although not in Figure 3 As shown, each RE 306 within RB 308 can be scheduled to carry one or more physical channels, including control channels, shared channels, data channels, etc. Other REs 306 within RB 308 can also carry pilot or reference signals. These pilot or reference signals can be used by the receiving device to perform channel estimation for the corresponding channel, which enables coherent demodulation / detection of the control and / or data channels within RB 308.

[0068] In some examples, time slot 310 can be used for broadcast, multicast, unicast, or unicast communications. For example, broadcast, multicast, or unicast communications can refer to point-to-multipoint transmissions from one device (e.g., a base station, UE, or other similar device) to other devices. Here, broadcast communications are delivered to all devices, while multicast or unicast communications are delivered to multiple intended receiving devices. Unicast communications can refer to point-to-point transmissions from one device to a single other device.

[0069] In an example of cellular communication over a cellular carrier via the Uu interface, for DL ​​transmission, a scheduling entity (e.g., a base station) may assign one or more REs 306 (e.g., within control area 312) to one or more scheduled entities (e.g., UEs) to carry DL control information including one or more DL control channels (such as the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH)). The PDCCH carries downlink control information (DCI), including but not limited to power control commands (e.g., one or more open-loop power control parameters and / or one or more closed-loop power control parameters), scheduling information, grants, and / or assignment of REs for DL ​​and UL transmissions. The PDCCH may further carry HARQ feedback transmissions, such as acknowledgment (ACK) or negative acknowledgment (NACK). HARQ is a technique well known to those skilled in the art, in which the integrity of packet transmissions can be checked for accuracy at the receiving end, for example, using any suitable integrity checking mechanism such as checksums or cyclic redundancy check (CRC). If the integrity of the transmission is confirmed, an ACK can be sent, and if no acknowledgment is received, a NACK can be sent. In response to NACK, the transmitting device can send HARQ retransmissions, which can achieve soft combining, incremental redundancy, etc.

[0070] The base station can also allocate one or more REs 306 (e.g., in control area 312 or data area 314) to carry other DL signals, such as demodulation reference signals (DMRS); phase tracking reference signals (PT-RS); channel state information (CSI) reference signals (CSI-RS); and synchronization signal blocks (SSBs). SSBs can be broadcast at regular intervals based on periodicity (e.g., 5ms, 10ms, 20ms, 40ms, 80ms, or 160ms). SSBs include the primary synchronization signal (PSS), secondary synchronization signal (SSS), and physical broadcast control channel (PBCH). The UE can utilize the PSS and SSS to achieve radio frame, subframe, time slot, and symbol synchronization in the time domain, identify the center of the channel (system) bandwidth in the frequency domain, and identify the physical cell identifier (PCI) of the cell.

[0071] The PBCH in the SSB may also include a Master Information Block (MIB), which includes various system information and parameters for decoding the System Information Block (SIB). The SIB may be, for example, SystemInformationType1 (SIB1), which may include various additional system information. Together, the MIB and SIB1 provide the minimum system information (SI) for initial access. Examples of system information transmitted in the MIB may include, but are not limited to, subcarrier spacing (e.g., default downlink digital scheme), system frame number, PDCCH control resource set (CORESET) configuration (e.g., PDCCH CORESET0), cell prohibition indicator, cell reselection indicator, grid offset, and the search space of SIB1. Examples of residual minimum system information (RMSI) transmitted in SIB1 may include, but are not limited to, random access search space, paging search space, downlink configuration information, and uplink configuration information. The base station may also transmit other system information (OSI).

[0072] In UL transmissions, the scheduled entity (e.g., the UE) may utilize one or more RE 306s to carry UL control information (UCI) to the scheduling entity, including one or more UL control channels (such as the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH)). UCIs may include various packet types and categories, including pilots, reference signals, and information configured to enable or assist in decoding uplink data transmissions. Examples of uplink reference signals may include sounding reference signals (SRS) and uplink DMRS. In some examples, the UCI may include a scheduling request (SR), i.e., a request to the scheduling entity to schedule uplink transmissions. Here, in response to an SR transmitted on the UCI, the scheduling entity may send downlink control information (DCI) that can schedule resources for uplink packet transmissions. UCIs may also include HARQ feedback, channel state feedback (CSF) (such as CSI reports), or any other suitable UCI.

[0073] In addition to control information, one or more REs 306 can be allocated for data services (e.g., within data area 314). Such data services can be carried on one or more traffic channels, such as the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) for DL ​​transmissions, or the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) for UL transmissions. In some examples, one or more REs 306 within data area 314 can be configured to carry other signals, such as one or more SIBs and DMRS.

[0074] In an example of sidelink communication on a sidelink carrier via the Proximity Service (ProSe) PC5 interface, the control area 312 of time slot 310 may include a Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH), which includes sidelink control information (SCI) transmitted by an initiating (transmitting) sidelink device (e.g., a Tx V2X device or other Tx UE) to a set of one or more other receiving sidelink devices (e.g., Rx V2X devices or other Rx UEs). The data area 314 of time slot 310 may include a Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH), which includes sidelink data traffic transmitted by the initiating (transmitting) sidelink device within resources reserved on the sidelink carrier by the transmitting sidelink device via the SCI. Other information may also be transmitted on each RE 306 within time slot 310. For example, HARQ feedback information may be transmitted from the receiving sidelink device to the transmitting sidelink device in the Physical Sidelink Feedback Channel (PSFCH) within time slot 310. Additionally, one or more reference signals, such as lateral link SSB, lateral link CSI-RS, lateral link SRS, and / or lateral link positioning reference signal (PRS), can be transmitted within time slot 310.

[0075] These physical channels are typically multiplexed and mapped to transport channels for processing at the Medium Access Control (MAC) layer. The transport channel carries blocks of information called transport blocks (TBs). The transport block size (TBS), which corresponds to the number of information bits, can be a controlled parameter based on the modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and the number of redundancies (RBs) in a given transmission.

[0076] Figure 3 The channels or carriers shown are not necessarily all channels or carriers that can be used between devices, and those skilled in the art will recognize that other channels or carriers, such as other service, control, and feedback channels, may be used in addition to those shown.

[0077] In some aspects of this disclosure, the scheduling entity and / or the scheduled entity can be configured for beamforming and / or multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) techniques. Figure 4 An example of a wireless communication system 400 supporting beamforming and / or MIMO is shown. In the MIMO system, transmitter 402 includes multiple transmit antennas 404 (e.g., N transmit antennas), and receiver 406 includes multiple receive antennas 408 (e.g., M receive antennas). Therefore, there are N×M signal paths 410 from the transmit antennas 404 to the receive antennas 408. The multiple transmit antennas 404 and the multiple receive antennas 408 can each be configured in a single-panel or multi-panel antenna array. Each of transmitter 402 and receiver 406 can, for example, be configured in a single panel or multi-panel antenna array. Figure 1and / or the scheduling entity shown in Figure 2 (e.g., base station 108), such as Figure 1 Implemented within the scheduled entity shown in and / or 2 (e.g., UE 106), or any other suitable wireless communication device.

[0078] This multi-antenna technology enables the wireless communication system 400 to utilize the spatial domain to support spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and transmit diversity. Spatial multiplexing can be used to simultaneously transmit different data streams (also known as layers) on the same time-frequency resources. These data streams can be sent to a single UE to increase the data rate, or to multiple UEs to increase the overall system capacity, the latter being known as multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO). This is achieved by spatially precoding each data stream (i.e., multiplying the data stream with different weights and phase shifts) and then transmitting each spatially precoded stream on the downlink via multiple transmit antennas. The spatially precoded data streams arriving at the UE have different spatial signatures, which allows each UE to recover one or more data streams destined for that UE. On the uplink, each UE transmits spatially precoded data streams, which allows the base station to identify the source of each spatially precoded data stream.

[0079] The number of data streams or layers corresponds to the transmission rank. Typically, the rank of a MIMO system (e.g., a MIMO-enabled wireless communication system 400) is limited by the number of transmit antennas 404 or receive antennas 408 (whichever is lower). Additionally, channel conditions at the UE and other considerations (such as available resources at the base station) can also affect the transmission rank. For example, the rank assigned to a particular UE on the downlink (and therefore the number of data streams) can be determined based on a rank indicator (RI) sent from that UE to the base station. The RI can be determined based on the antenna configuration (e.g., the number of transmit and receive antennas) and the signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) measured on each receive antenna. The RI can indicate, for example, the number of layers that can be supported under the current channel conditions. The base station can use the RI, along with resource information (e.g., available resources and the amount of data to be scheduled for the UE), to assign a transmission rank to the UE.

[0080] In Time Division Duplex (TDD) systems, UL and DL are reciprocal because they each use different time slots with the same frequency bandwidth. Therefore, in a TDD system, the base station can assign a rank for DL ​​MIMO transmission based on UL SINR measurements (e.g., based on a sounding reference signal (SRS) or other pilot signal transmitted from the UE). Based on the assigned rank, the base station can then transmit a Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) with a separate CSI-RS sequence for each layer to provide multi-layer channel estimation. According to the CSI-RS, the UE can measure channel quality across layers and resource blocks and feed back Channel Quality Indicator (CQI) and Rank Indicator (RI) values ​​to the base station for updating the rank and assigning REs for future downlink transmissions.

[0081] In one example, such as Figure 4 As shown, rank-2 spatial multiplexing transmission on a 2x2 MIMO antenna configuration will send a data stream from each transmit antenna 404. Each data stream arrives at each receive antenna 408 along a different signal path in signal path 410. The receiver 406 can then reconstruct the data stream using the received signals from each receive antenna 408.

[0082] Beamforming is a signal processing technique that can be used at transmitter 402 or receiver 406 to shape or manipulate an antenna beam (e.g., a transmit beam / receive beam) along a spatial path between transmitter 402 and receiver 406. Beamforming can be achieved by combining signals transmitted via antennas 404 or 408 (e.g., antenna elements of an antenna array) such that some signals experience constructive interference while others experience destructive interference. To create the desired constructive / destructive interference, transmitter 402 or receiver 406 can apply amplitude and / or phase shifts to the signals transmitted or received from or received by each of the antennas 404 or 408 associated with transmitter 402 or receiver 406.

[0083] In some examples, to select one or more serving beams for communication with the UE, the base station can transmit reference signals, such as synchronization signal blocks (SSBs), tracking reference signals (TRSs), or channel state information reference signals (CSI-RSs), in a beam-sweeping manner on each of multiple beams. The UE can measure the reference signal received power (RSRP) on each beam and send a beam measurement report to the base station indicating the Layer 1 (L-1 RSRP) of each measured beam. The base station can then select the serving beam for communication with the UE based on the beam measurement report. In other examples, when the channel is reciprocal, the base station can deduce the specific beam to communicate with the UE based on uplink measurements of one or more uplink reference signals, such as sounding reference signals (SRSs).

[0084] In 5G New Radio (NR) systems, particularly for systems above 6 GHz or millimeter-wave (mmWave), beamforming signals can be used for downlink channels, including the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) and the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH). Additionally, for UEs equipped with beamforming antenna array modules, beamforming signals can also be used for uplink channels, including the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) and the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH). However, it should be understood that beamforming signals can also be utilized by, for example, Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) gNBs used in sub-6 GHz systems.

[0085] Figure 5 This disclosure describes the organization of radio resources in an OFDM air interface based on certain aspects of the present disclosure, and illustrates the locations of multiple Physical Resource Blocks (PRBs) within a Control Channel Element (CCE) and a schematic diagram of Downlink Control Information (DCI). Figure 5 In this format, time is shown horizontally in OFDM symbols, and frequency is shown vertically in subcarrier or tone units. Figure 3 Similarly, frame 500 refers to a duration of 10 ms, where each frame 500 consists of 10 subframes, each of which is 1 ms long. An expanded view of OFDM resource grid 502 shows an exemplary first subframe 507 with one time slot and an exemplary second subframe 508 with four time slots.

[0086] and Figure 3 Similarly, resource grid 502 can be used to schematically represent the time-frequency resources of a given antenna port. That is, in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) implementation with multiple available antenna ports, the corresponding multiple resource grids 502 can be used for communication. Resource grid 502 is divided into multiple resource elements (REs) 504. RE 504 (which is 1 subcarrier × 1 symbol) is the smallest discrete part of the time-frequency grid and contains a single complex value representing data from a physical channel or signal. Depending on the modulation used in a particular implementation, each RE can represent one or more bits of information. Figure 5 In the examples, the RE block may be referred to as a Physical Resource Block (PRB) 506, which contains any suitable number of consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain. In one example, PRB 506 may include 12 subcarriers, the number of which is independent of the digital scheme used. In some examples, depending on the digital scheme, the PRB may include any suitable number of consecutive OFDM symbols in the time domain. Within the scope of this disclosure, it is assumed that a single PRB such as PRB 506 corresponds entirely to a single communication direction (transmission or reception for a given device).

[0087] exist Figure 5 In the illustrative example shown, the first subframe 507 includes one time slot, and the second subframe 508 includes four time slots. Figure 5 For illustrative purposes, a PRB 506 representing an OFDM symbol of the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) is shown in more detail than other PRBs illustrated. PRB 506 comprises 12 subcarriers and one OFDM symbol. Of the 12 subcarriers, 3 are used for the demodulation reference signal (DMRS), and 9 are used for the PDCCH payload. REs 504 carrying the DMRS are the first, fifth, and ninth REs 504 of PRB 506.

[0088] exist Figure 5 The diagram illustrates multiple PRBs 510 spanning a bandwidth larger (e.g., wider) than a single PRB 506. For example, multiple PRBs 510 include PRB 506 and a second PRB 512. A PRB (such as the second PRB 512) may be referred to as a Resource Element Group (REG). As shown, the second PRB 512 corresponds to REG 514. According to some aspects, a Control Channel Element (CCE) 516 may include six REGs. A CCE 516 may be the smallest unit of scheduled PDCCH transmissions. According to some examples, a set of 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 CCEs (such as CCE 516) (where the number 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 may be referred to as an aggregation level) may be referred to as Downlink Control Information (DCI) 518. A CCE may be a unit on which a search space for blind decoding of PDCCH candidates is defined. Figure 5 In some examples, such as DCI 518, control information can be carried for scheduling user data channels (e.g., PDSCH) on the downlink. Figure 5 In the example, DCI 518 can be carried by PDCCH.

[0089] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the organization of radio resources in the OFDM air interface according to some aspects of this disclosure. Figure 6 In this format, time is shown horizontally in OFDM symbols, and frequency is shown vertically in CCE units. For example, the vertical dimension of each main solid-line rectangle represents one CCE 602. Figure 6 Each CCE602 in the example includes 6 Resource Element Groups (REGs). Each REG consists of a Physical Resource Block (PRB) of 12 subcarriers multiplied by one OFDM symbol. The 6 REGs are each represented by a small dashed rectangle. A time slot 604 (e.g., 14 OFDM symbols) in the time domain is shown. This is illustrated in the downlink resource grid 600. Figure 6Time and frequency resources.

[0090] Figure 6 A bandwidth portion (BWP) 606 within a carrier bandwidth (CBW) 605 is shown. According to some aspects, BWP 606 is a set of contiguous physical resource blocks (PRBs) on a given carrier. Figure 6 In this context, a continuous set of PRBs is represented by a set of continuous CCEs 602 within BWP 606. For all resource grids in the frequency domain, BWP 606 can be offset by 607 frequencies from a common reference point. This common reference point can be referred to as "point A". Figure 6 An example of point A is shown. Point A can be the center of subcarrier 0 of the common resource block 0 of the lowest resource grid. Point A can be outside of a carrier BW assigned to or used by a specific device. Figure 6 In the example, BWP 606 corresponds to a set of 48 PRBs (i.e., 8 CCEs x 6 PRB / CCEs), which represents 576 subcarriers (i.e., 12 REs / REGs x 6 REGs / CCEs x 8 CCEs). Scheduling entities (e.g., base stations, eNBs, gNBs) can define common CCEs and scheduled entity-specific (e.g., UE-specific) CCEs.

[0091] exist Figure 6 For example, CORESET 0 608 includes 24 REGs (corresponding to 24 PRBs) in a set of four CCEs (where each CCE can be similar to CCE 602), configured as four CCEs in the frequency domain and as one OFDM symbol in the time domain. The four CCEs can be grouped into a first DCI (DCI 0 610) and a second DCI (DCI 1 612). Two CCEs exist in DCI 0 610, and two CCEs exist in DCI 1 612. Within CORESET 0 608, DCI 0 610 can be associated with a first scheduled entity (e.g., the first UE, UE1), and DCI 1 612 can be associated with a second scheduled entity (e.g., the second UE, UE2).

[0092] In another example, CORESET 1 614 includes two CCEs grouped as a third DCI (DCI 2 616) and four DCIs grouped as a fourth DCI (DCI 3 620). DCI 2 616 can be configured as one CCE in the frequency domain and two OFDM symbols in the time domain. DCI 2 616 can be associated with a third scheduled entity (e.g., a third UE, UE3). DCI 3 620 can be configured as two CCEs in the frequency domain and two OFDM symbols in the time domain. DCI 3 620 can be associated with a first scheduled entity (e.g., a first UE, UE1).

[0093] Three search spaces are identified in the downlink resource grid 600. The first search space 624 can be in CORESET0 608 and can correspond to the contours of DCI 0 610 and DCI 1 612. The second search space 626 and the third search space 628 can be in CORESET 1 614. The second search space 626 can correspond to the contour of DCI 3 620. The third search space 628 can correspond to the contour of DCI 2 616.

[0094] The search space can include several PDCCH candidates. A mapping can exist between the CORESET and the search space. For example, a CORESET can include multiple search spaces. Generally, the scheduled entity may attempt to blindly decode the PDCCH candidates in each search space, even if the scheduling entity has not scheduled a PDCCH in any given search space. A CORESET can be associated with a common search space, a search space specific to the scheduled entity, or a combination of both.

[0095] The following relationships between CORESET, BWP, and search space are established with reference to NR; however, these are exemplary and not limiting, and other relationships between CORESET, BWP, and search space (or their equivalents, such as in other radio technologies) are within the scope of this disclosure. Generally, up to three CORESETs may exist per BWP, including both public CORESETs and CORESETs specific to the scheduled entity. Up to four BWPs may exist per serving cell, with only one BWP active at any given time. Therefore, the maximum number of CORESETs per serving cell can be twelve (e.g., 3 CORESETs per BWP x 4 BWPs per serving cell). Resource elements of a CORESET may be mapped to one or more CCEs. One or more CCEs from a CORESET may be aggregated to form resources used by a PDCCH. Blind decoding of PDCCH candidates may be based on search space. The maximum number of search spaces per BWP can be ten. Multiple search spaces may use the time-frequency resources of a CORESET.

[0096] As an example, the scheduling entity can calculate the Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) of the DCI payload carried by the PDCCH. The CRC can be scrambled using a scheduled entity identifier. An example of such an identifier could be a Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI). Upon receiving the DCI, the scheduled entity can calculate the scrambled CRC of the DCI payload using the same procedure as the scheduling entity. The scheduled entity can then compare the scrambled CRC with the received CRC. If the CRCs are equal, the DCI is for the scheduled entity. If the payload is corrupted or the CRC is scrambled using the identifier of another scheduled entity, the CRC will not match, and the scheduled entity can ignore the DCI.

[0097] Just as the CRC of a given PDCCH candidate can be used to determine whether the PDCCH candidate is associated with a given scheduled entity identifier (e.g., C-RNTI), the CRC (or some other aspect of associating the scheduled entity with the PDCCH candidate) can be used to associate the demodulation reference signal (DMRS) power level of a given PDCCH candidate with the given scheduled entity. Accordingly, the DMRS power level of a PDCCH candidate can be evaluated before blind decoding of the PDCCH candidate. If the DMRS power level of a given PDCCH candidate for a given scheduled entity is below a predetermined threshold, blind decoding of that given PDCCH candidate may not be necessary. Therefore, before beginning the relatively lengthy blind decoding process, the measurement of the DMRS power level can be used to test or filter PDCCH candidates associated with unacceptable DMRS power levels. Using the measurement of the DMRS power level to test or filter PDCCH candidates before performing blind decoding of the PDCCH candidates is referred to herein as hybrid blind decoding.

[0098] In instances where the DMRS power level of a given PDCCH candidate is below a predetermined threshold, abandoning (e.g., not performing, abandoning, or skipping) blind decoding of that PDCCH candidate can have a beneficial effect on monitoring one or more other PDCCH candidates in the same or another search space. This beneficial effect can be achieved by discarding PDCCH candidates with DMRS power levels below the predetermined threshold (e.g., PDCCH candidates that do not meet or fail to meet the predetermined threshold DMRS power) against the maximum number of blind decodings allowed for a given scheduled entity. Therefore, discarding rules (e.g., rules relating to abandoning (e.g., not performing, abandoning, and / or skipping) blind decoding of PDCCH candidates with DMRS power below the predetermined threshold) can provide a positive effect related to counting blind decodings against a limit on the total number of blind decodings performed by the scheduled entity.

[0099] For example, a scheduled entity may be allocated (e.g., configured) a maximum number of blind decodings for PDCCH candidates. By abandoning (e.g., not performing) blind decoding of PDCCH candidates with insufficient DMRS power levels, the scheduled entity can reserve its resources for blind decoding of other PDCCH candidates that may have sufficient DMRS power levels. Accordingly, establishing drop rules (e.g., including rules relating to abandoning or discarding the execution of blind decoding of PDCCH candidates) allows the scheduled entity to avoid spending resources on blind decoding of potentially insufficient PDCCH candidates; thus, establishing drop rules can improve the overall performance of the scheduled entity. Such drop rules allow the scheduled entity to spend its limited number of blind decodings on PDCCH candidates with sufficient DMRS power levels. According to the implementation of a drop rule that allows abandoning blind decoding of PDCCH candidates with DMRS below a predetermined threshold, the CCEs associated with that PDCCH candidate can be removed from consideration of the maximum number of CCEs that can be allowed or allocated for blind decoding. Therefore, it can free up space for blind decoding of other PDCCH candidates.

[0100] According to another example, from the perspective of the base station, if the base station gives up scheduling PDCCH candidates in a given search space, the scheduled entity may give up counting the CCEs in the given search space against the number of CCEs allowed for blind decoding (e.g., quantity, configured maximum quantity or quantity).

[0101] According to another aspect, the base station can configure one or more scheduled entities to utilize (e.g., activate, adopt) hybrid blind decoding or to abandon (e.g., deactivate, stop adopting) hybrid blind decoding. As used herein, hybrid blind decoding can refer to the measurement of the power level of the DMRS before blind decoding of a PDCCH candidate corresponding to or associated with the DMRS, and the comparison of the measured power level of the DMRS with a predetermined threshold. Hybrid blind decoding can be used to filter out insufficient PDCCH candidates from the blind decoding process. The base station can dynamically utilize or abandon hybrid blind decoding based on a scheduled entity-specific configuration or a group common configuration. The configuration, activation, or deactivation can be performed dynamically. For example, the configuration, activation, or deactivation can be indicated to the scheduled entity via a scheduled entity-specific or group common DCI or Media Access Control-Control Element (MAC-CE) and / or during the configuration of the search space.

[0102] According to another aspect, the base station may configure the scheduled entity to utilize hybrid blind decoding on a subset of PDCCH candidates. The subset of PDCCH candidates may be located in a search space. Generally speaking, and without limiting overview, the base station may, for example, dynamically configure (e.g., use or not use, activate or deactivate) hybrid blind decoding in scheduled entity specific or group common downlink control information (DCI), medium access control - control element (MAC - CE), radio resource control (RRC) signaling, or other control plane signaling. In some examples, the scheduled entity may be pre - configured (e.g., via a configuration stored in the memory of the scheduled entity) to utilize hybrid blind decoding in all cases or in certain predefined cases.

[0103] Parameters related to PDCCH blind decoding (e.g., non - hybrid blind decoding) and hybrid blind decoding (e.g., PDCCH blind decoding filtered by DMRS power level) as described herein may be defined in one or more wireless communication specifications. These parameters may be obtained by the scheduled entity, for example, from a scheduling entity (e.g., a base station or a wireless communication network node). In one example, the scheduling entity may configure the scheduled entity with a maximum number of blind decodings (e.g., the value “C” shown below). For example, a limit may be defined for the total number of CCEs covered by PDCCH candidates operated by two processes using non - hybrid blind decoding and hybrid blind decoding, where different weights may be applied to the two processes. By way of example and not limitation, an algebraic rule for establishing the maximum number of CCEs may be expressed as nA + mB < C, where “A” (e.g., the first quantity) may be the number of CCEs covered by non - hybrid blind decoding, n may be the first multiplier for weighting A, “B” may be the number of CCEs covered by hybrid blind decoding (e.g., the second quantity), m may be the second multiplier for weighting B, and C may be the maximum number of CCEs. In one example, the first quantity and / or the second quantity may be determined based on at least one of the following: per time slot, or per consecutive time slot group. The variables n, A, m, B, and C may all be positive integers. According to one example, n may be greater than m. In a non - limiting example, n = 4, m = 1, and C = 400.

[0104] Additionally, blind decoding constraints can be defined on a per-slot basis (e.g., defined for each slot) and / or on a group basis. For example, a first blind decoding constraint can be applied to each slot and / or a second blind decoding constraint can be applied to a group of consecutive slots (e.g., where the periodicity of the second blind decoding constraint can be given for a group of every r consecutive slots, or where the periodicity of the second blind decoding constraint can be given for a group of every r-th slot, where, for example, r = 4). According to some aspects, blind decoding constraints can depend on the subcarrier spacing. According to other aspects, the applicability of hybrid blind decoding can depend on, for example, the number of CCEs for a given PDCCH candidate, the number of OFDM symbols for a given CORESET or a given virtual CORESET, the subcarrier spacing, the frequency or frequency range of the BWP or carrier, or any combination thereof.

[0105] As illustrated herein, providing the scheduled entity and the scheduling entity with the option to employ hybrid blind decoding (e.g., measuring the power level of the DMRS before blind decoding of the PDCCH candidate and evaluating the measured power level relative to a predetermined threshold) allows the scheduled entity to save resources that would otherwise be spent on blind decoding of PDCCH candidates with potentially insufficient DMRS power levels, where insufficient DMRS power levels (e.g., power levels below a predetermined threshold) can be an indicator of a channel with insufficient quality and / or reliability.

[0106] Figure 7 This is a block diagram illustrating an example hardware implementation of a scheduled entity 700 employing a processing system 714 according to some aspects of this disclosure. For example, the scheduled entity 700 may be as follows: Figure 1 , Figure 2 and / or Figure 4 Any one or more of the user equipment (UE) shown.

[0107] According to various aspects of this disclosure, any element, any part of an element, or any combination of elements may be implemented using a processing system 714 including one or more processors (e.g., processor 704). Examples of processor 704 include microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors (DSPs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gated logic, discrete hardware circuitry, and other suitable hardware configured to perform the various functions described throughout this disclosure. In various examples, the scheduled entity 700 may be configured to perform any one or more of the functions described herein. That is, the processor 704 utilized in the scheduled entity 700 may be used to implement, for example, in Figure 8 and / or Figure 9 Any one or more methods or processes described and shown in the document.

[0108] In this example, the processing system 714 can be implemented using a bus architecture generally represented by bus 702. Bus 702 may include any number of interconnect buses and bridges, depending on the specific application and overall design constraints of the processing system 714. Bus 702 communicatively couples together various circuits including one or more processors (generally represented by processor 704), memory 705, and computer-readable media (generally represented by computer-readable media 706). Bus 702 may also link various other circuits, such as timing sources, peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and will therefore not be described further.

[0109] Bus interface 708 provides an interface between bus 702 and transceiver 710. Transceiver 710 may be a wireless transceiver. Transceiver 710 provides a unit for communicating with various other devices via a transmission medium (e.g., an air interface). Transceiver 710 may also be coupled to one or more antennas or antenna arrays 720. Bus interface 708 further provides an interface between bus 702 and user interface 712 (e.g., keypad, display, touchscreen, speaker, microphone, control features, etc.). In addition, bus interface 708 provides an interface between bus 702 and power supply 728.

[0110] One or more processors (such as processor 704) may be responsible for managing bus 702 and general processing, including executing software stored on computer-readable medium 706. Software should be interpreted broadly as representing instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subroutines, software modules, application programs, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable programs, threads of execution, procedures, functions, etc., whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or others. Software may reside on computer-readable medium 706 (e.g., on a non-transitory processor-readable storage medium). When executed by processor 704, the software may cause processing system 714 to perform the various processes and functions described herein for any particular device. That is, instructions stored on a non-transitory processor-readable storage medium, when executed by processing circuitry, may cause processing circuitry to perform the various processes and functions described herein for any particular device.

[0111] Computer-readable medium 706 may be a non-transitory computer-readable medium and may be referred to as a computer-readable storage medium or a non-transitory computer-readable medium. A non-transitory computer-readable medium may store computer-executable code (e.g., processor-executable code). Computer-executable code may include code for causing a computer (e.g., a processor) to perform one or more of the functions described herein. As examples, non-transitory computer-readable media include magnetic storage devices (e.g., hard disks, floppy disks, magnetic stripes), optical disks (e.g., compact discs (CDs) or digital versatile discs (DVDs)), smart cards, flash memory devices (e.g., card, stick, or key drives), random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), programmable ROM (PROM), erasable PROM (EPROM), electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM), registers, removable disks, and any other suitable medium for storing software and / or instructions that can be accessed and read by a computer. Computer-readable medium 706 may reside in processing system 714, be external to processing system 714, or be distributed across multiple entities including processing system 714. Computer-readable medium 706 may be, or may be included in, a computer program product or article of manufacture. As an example, the computer program product or article of manufacture may include a computer-readable medium within encapsulation material. In some examples, computer-readable medium 706 may be part of memory 705. Those skilled in the art will recognize how the functions presented throughout this disclosure are best implemented depending on the specific application and the overall design constraints imposed on the system. Computer-readable medium 706 and / or memory 705 may also be used to store data manipulated by processor 704 during software execution. For example, memory 705 may store the value of a first counter 746 for a first number of blind decodes performed on a first subset of a plurality of PDCCH candidates that do not have a power level measurement of DMRS prior to blind decoding. Memory 705 may also store the value of a second counter 745 for a second number of blind decodes performed on a second subset of a plurality of PDCCH candidates that have a power level measurement of DMRS above a predetermined threshold (measured) prior to blind decoding.

[0112] In some aspects of this disclosure, processor 704 may include communication and processing circuitry 741 configured for various functions, including, for example, communicating with a scheduling entity, a network core (e.g., a 5G core network), other scheduled entities, or any other entity (e.g., local infrastructure or an entity communicating with scheduled entity 700 via the Internet (e.g., a network provider)). Communication and processing circuitry 741 may be further configured to, for example, receive blind decoding configuration settings and, in response to these settings, enable measurement of the power level of the corresponding DMRS prior to blind decoding of the corresponding physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidate associated with the corresponding demodulation reference signal (DMRS). The blind decoding configuration settings may be determined based on at least one of the following: the number of control channel elements (CCEs) of the corresponding PDCCH candidate, a first number of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols of the control resource set (CORESET) associated with the first corresponding PDCCH candidate, a second number of OFDM symbols of the virtual CORESET associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate, subcarrier spacing, or a frequency range containing a portion of the bandwidth carrying the corresponding PDCCH candidate. In some examples, blind decoding configuration settings may identify the subset of PDCCH candidates to which the measurement of the power level of the corresponding DMRS is applied prior to blind decoding. This subset of PDCCH candidates may be included in a search space. In some examples, blind decoding configuration settings may enable the measurement of the power level of the first DMRS of the first PDCCH candidate prior to performing blind decoding on the first PDCCH candidate. Blind decoding configuration settings may enable (e.g., activate) or disable (e.g., deactivate) the measurement of the power level of the first DMRS of the first PDCCH candidate prior to performing blind decoding on the first PDCCH candidate.

[0113] In some examples, the communication and processing circuit 741 may include one or more hardware components that provide a physical structure for performing processes related to wireless communication (e.g., signal reception and / or signal transmission) and signal processing (e.g., processing received signals and / or processing signals for transmission). The communication and processing circuit 741 may include one or more hardware components that provide a physical structure for performing processes related to: for example, receiving blind decoding configuration settings, and, in response to the blind decoding configuration settings, enabling the measurement of the power level of the corresponding DMRS before performing blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate associated with the corresponding DMRS. The communication and processing circuit 741 may also include one or more hardware components that provide a physical structure for performing processes related to: for example, receiving blind decoding configuration settings, and enabling the measurement of the power level of the corresponding DMRS before performing blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate associated with the corresponding DMRS. Additionally, the communication and processing circuit 741 may be configured to receive and process downlink traffic and downlink control (e.g., similar to...). Figure 1 The communication and processing circuitry 741 can also process and transmit downlink services 112 and downlink control 114, as well as uplink services and uplink control (e.g., similar to uplink service 116 and uplink control 118). The communication and processing circuitry 741 can also be configured to execute communication and processing software 751 stored on a computer-readable medium 706 to implement one or more of the functions described herein.

[0114] In some aspects of this disclosure, processor 704 may include demodulation reference signal (DMRS) power level measurement circuitry 742, configured for various functions, including, for example, measuring the power level of a corresponding DMRS before blind decoding of a corresponding physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidate associated with the corresponding demodulation reference signal (DMRS). In some examples, DMRS power level measurement circuitry 742 may be configured for additional functions, including, for example, measuring the next power level of a next corresponding DMRS associated with a next corresponding PDCCH candidate. In some examples, if the corresponding PDCCH candidate is in a first search space, DMRS power level measurement circuitry 742 may also be configured to measure the second power level of a second DMRS associated with a second PDCCH candidate in a second search space different from the first search space. In some examples, the DMRS power level measurement circuit 742 may include one or more hardware components that provide the physical structure for performing the following related processes: measuring the power level of a corresponding DMRS prior to blind decoding of a corresponding PDCCH candidate associated with a corresponding DMRS, measuring the next power level of a next corresponding DMRS, and / or measuring the second power level of a second DMRS associated with a second PDCCH candidate in a second search space different from the first search space. The DMRS power level measurement circuit 742 may also be configured to execute DMRS power level measurement software 752 stored on a computer-readable medium 706 to implement one or more of the functions described herein.

[0115] In some aspects of this disclosure, processor 704 may include blind decoding circuitry 743 configured for various functions, including at least one of the following: performing blind decoding of a corresponding PDCCH candidate if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold, or abandoning blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is lower than a predetermined threshold (e.g., not performing blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate, abandoning the execution of blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate, or skipping the execution of blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate). In some examples, blind decoding circuitry 743 may be configured for additional functions, including, for example, performing a next blind decoding of the next corresponding PDCCH candidate if the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold (wherein, for example, this execution occurs after DMRS power level measurement circuitry 742 measures the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS associated with the next corresponding PDCCH candidate). In some examples, the blind decoding circuit 743 may be additionally configured to increment a counter recording the total number of blind decodes of PDCCH candidates only if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold. The corresponding PDCCH candidate may be in a first search space, and after discarding the blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate, the blind decoding circuit 743 may be configured for other functions, including, for example, measuring a second power level of a second DMRS associated with a second PDCCH candidate in a second search space different from the first search space.

[0116] In some examples, the blind decoding circuit 743 may include one or more hardware components that provide physical structures for performing processes related to: performing blind decoding of a corresponding PDCCH candidate if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold, or abandoning blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is lower than a predetermined threshold. The one or more hardware components may additionally provide physical structures for performing processes related to: incrementing a counter recording the total number of blind decodes of PDCCH candidates only when the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold, or measuring the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS associated with the next corresponding PDCCH candidate, and performing a next blind decode of the next corresponding PDCCH candidate if the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold, and / or measuring the second power level of the second DMRS associated with a second PDCCH candidate in a second search space different from the first search space. The blind decoding circuit 743 may be further configured to execute blind decoding software 753 stored on a computer-readable medium 706 to implement one or more of the functions described herein.

[0117] In some aspects of this disclosure, processor 704 may include blind decoding configuration setting circuitry 744, configured for various functions, including, for example, receiving blind decoding configuration settings, and, in response to the blind decoding configuration settings, enabling measurement of the power level of the corresponding DMRS prior to blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate. In some examples, blind decoding configuration setting circuitry 744 may include one or more hardware components providing a physical structure for performing the processes associated with: receiving blind decoding configuration settings, and enabling measurement of the power level of the corresponding DMRS prior to blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate in response to the blind decoding configuration settings. In some examples, blind decoding configuration settings may be determined based on at least one of the following: the number of control channel elements (CCEs) of the corresponding PDCCH candidate, a first number of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols of the control resource set (CORESET) associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate, a second number of OFDM symbols of the virtual CORESET associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate, subcarrier spacing, or a frequency range containing a portion of the bandwidth carrying the corresponding PDCCH candidate. In some examples, the blind decoding configuration settings can identify the subset of PDCCH candidates to which the measurement of the power level of the DMRS is applied. This subset of PDCCH candidates can be included in a search space. The blind decoding configuration setting circuit 744 can be further configured to execute blind decoding configuration setting software 755 stored on a computer-readable medium 706 to implement one or more of the functions described herein.

[0118] In some aspects of this disclosure, the computer-readable medium 706 may have space reserved for a parameter storage device 756. The parameter storage device 756 may include one or more values ​​representing, for example, a first value (e.g., a first value "A") representing the number of CCEs covered by non-hybrid blind decoding (e.g., the amount of CCEs), a first multiplier for weighting the first value (e.g., a value "n" that can be used to weight the first value "A"), a second value (e.g., a second value "B") representing the number of CCEs covered by hybrid blind decoding, a second multiplier for weighting the second value (e.g., a value "m" that can be used to weight the second value "B"), and a third value (e.g., a third value "C") representing the maximum number of CCEs or the maximum number of blind decodes.

[0119] Figure 8 This is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary process 800 (e.g., method) of wireless communication at a scheduled entity (e.g., a UE) according to some aspects of this disclosure. As described below, in certain embodiments within the scope of this disclosure, some or all of the illustrated features may be omitted, and some illustrated features may not be required for all example embodiments. In some examples, process 800 may be... Figure 7 The scheduled entity 700 shown is used for execution. In some examples, process 800 may be executed by any suitable means or unit for performing the functions or algorithms described herein.

[0120] At box 802, the scheduled entity can measure the power level of the corresponding DMRS before blind decoding of the corresponding physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidate associated with the corresponding demodulation reference signal (DMRS). For example, in conjunction with the above... Figure 7 The DMRS power level measurement circuit 742 shown and described can provide a unit for measuring the power level of a corresponding DMRS before blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate associated with the corresponding DMRS.

[0121] At block 804, it can be determined whether the measured power level is higher than a predetermined threshold. Those skilled in the art will recognize that a measured power level higher than the predetermined threshold can be considered a power level that meets the predetermined threshold. Conversely, a measured power level lower than the predetermined threshold can be considered a power level that does not meet the predetermined threshold. Furthermore, those skilled in the art can determine, on a case-by-case or application-by-application basis, whether a measured power level equal to the predetermined threshold can be considered a power level that meets or does not meet the predetermined threshold. If it is determined at block 804 that the measured power level is lower than the predetermined threshold, then at block 806, if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is lower than the predetermined threshold, the scheduled entity can abandon (e.g., not perform, abandon, skip performance) blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate. In some examples, the above is combined... Figure 7 The communication and processing circuitry 741 and / or the DMRS power level measurement circuitry 742 shown and described may provide a unit for abandoning the blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate.

[0122] In box 808, the scheduled entity can (optionally) determine whether the next corresponding PDCCH candidate is available. For example, the above combined Figure 7 The communication and processing circuitry 741 shown and described provides a unit for determining whether the next corresponding PDCCH candidate is available. If it is determined at block 808 that the next corresponding PDCCH candidate is available, the process can proceed to block 810.

[0123] At box 810, the scheduled entity may (optionally) measure the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS associated with the next corresponding PDCCH candidate (before performing next blind decoding of the next corresponding PDCCH candidate if the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold). For example, combined with the above Figure 7The DMRS power level measurement circuit 742 shown and described can provide a unit for measuring the power level of the next corresponding DMRS associated with the next corresponding PDCCH candidate. This process can then return to block 804, where the scheduled entity can determine whether the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold. If the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS is higher than the predetermined threshold, the scheduled entity can perform the next blind decoding of the next corresponding PDCCH candidate, as described in conjunction with block 812.

[0124] Returning to box 804, if the scheduled entity determines that the measured power level of the corresponding DMRS (or the measured power level of the next corresponding DMRS) is higher than a predetermined threshold, the scheduled entity may perform blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate associated with the corresponding DMRS (or the next corresponding PDCCH candidate associated with the next corresponding DMRS) at box 812. For example, the above combined Figure 7 The blind decoding circuit 743 shown and described can provide a unit for performing blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate associated with the corresponding DMRS (or the next corresponding PDCCH candidate associated with the next corresponding DMRS).

[0125] Next, in block 814, the scheduled entity may (optionally) increment the counter recording the total number of blind decodes of PDCCH candidates only when the power level of the corresponding DMRS (and / or the next corresponding DMRS) is higher than a predetermined threshold. For example, communication and processing circuitry 741 may provide a unit for incrementing the counter recording the total number of blind decodes of PDCCH candidates only when the power level of the corresponding DMRS (and / or the next corresponding DMRS) is higher than the predetermined threshold. Examples of counters may include, but are not limited to, those combined as described above. Figure 7 The first counter 746 and / or the second counter 748 in the memory 705 are shown and described. The process can then return to box 808.

[0126] If, at box 808, the scheduled entity determines that the next appropriate PDCCH candidate is available, the process can continue to box 810, as previously described. However, if, at box 808, the scheduled entity determines that the next appropriate PDCCH candidate is unavailable (e.g., unavailable, or does not exist at this time), the process can terminate.

[0127] Figure 9This is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary process 900 (e.g., method) of wireless communication at a scheduled entity (e.g., a UE) according to some aspects of this disclosure. As described below, in certain embodiments within the scope of this disclosure, some or all of the illustrated features may be omitted, and some illustrated features may not be required for all example embodiments. In some examples, process 900 may be... Figure 7 The scheduled entity 700 shown is used for execution. In some examples, process 900 may be executed by any suitable means or unit for performing the functions or algorithms described herein.

[0128] In box 902, the scheduled entity may receive blind decoding configuration settings. Depending on some aspects, blind decoding configuration settings may be received from the scheduling entity (e.g., a base station, gNB, network access node). For example, the blind decoding configuration settings may be, for instance, a semi-persistent setting or a MAC-CE. In some examples, the blind decoding configuration settings may be determined based on at least one of the following: the number of control channel elements (CCEs) of the corresponding PDCCH candidate, a first number of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols of the control resource set (CORESET) associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate, a second number of OFDM symbols of the virtual CORESET associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate, subcarrier spacing, or a frequency range containing a portion of the bandwidth carrying the corresponding PDCCH candidate. In some examples, the blind decoding configuration settings may identify the subset of PDCCH candidates to which the measurement of the power level of the DMRS is applied. This subset of PDCCH candidates may be included in a search space.

[0129] At box 904, the scheduled entity can determine whether the blind decoding configuration setting is set to enable hybrid blind decoding (wherein, as described herein, hybrid blind decoding includes: measuring the power level of the corresponding demodulation reference signal (DMRS) associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate before performing blind decoding on the corresponding physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidate, and performing blind decoding on the corresponding PDCCH candidate only if the measured power level is higher than a predetermined threshold).

[0130] If, at box 904, the scheduled entity determines that the blind decoding configuration setting is not set to enabled (e.g., set to abstain) for hybrid blind decoding (or set to disable hybrid blind decoding), then at box 906, the scheduled entity can disable hybrid blind decoding (if hybrid blind decoding is currently enabled). The process can then return to the beginning and wait to receive the blind decoding configuration setting. Therefore, this process facilitates semi-persistent scheduling of the hybrid blind decoding configuration. Alternatively, the blind decoding setting can be enabled or disabled via MAC-CE.

[0131] If, at box 904, the scheduled entity determines that the blind decoding configuration setting is set to enable hybrid blind decoding, then at box 908, the scheduled entity may, in response to the blind decoding configuration setting, enable the measurement of the power level of the corresponding DMRS associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate before performing blind decoding on the corresponding PDCCH candidate.

[0132] At box 910, the scheduled entity can measure the power level of the corresponding DMRS. For example, this measurement can be performed to allow the scheduled entity to compare the measured power level of the corresponding DMRS with a predetermined threshold level.

[0133] At block 912, the scheduled entity can determine whether the measured power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold. Those skilled in the art will recognize that a measured power level higher than the predetermined threshold can be considered a power level that meets the predetermined threshold. Conversely, a measured power level lower than the predetermined threshold can be considered a power level that does not meet the predetermined threshold. Furthermore, those skilled in the art can determine, on a case-by-case or application-by-application basis, whether a measured power level equal to the predetermined threshold can be considered a power level that meets or does not meet the predetermined threshold. If the power level is higher than the predetermined threshold, the scheduled entity can perform blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate (as associated with the corresponding DMRS) at block 914. Optionally, at block 916, the scheduled entity can increment a counter (e.g., a value) recording the total number of blind decodes of the PDCCH candidates. According to some aspects, the scheduled entity can increment the counter recording the total number of blind decodes of the PDCCH candidates only if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than the predetermined threshold. Thereafter, process 900 can end (or be repeated for additional DMRS associated with additional corresponding PDCCH candidates until no additional corresponding PDCCH candidates are available).

[0134] Returning to box 912, if the power level is below a predetermined threshold, then in box 918, the scheduled entity may abandon (e.g., not perform, abandon, or skip) blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate. Optionally, in box 920, the scheduled entity may measure the power level of the next DMRS of the next PDCCH candidate before performing blind decoding of the next PDCCH candidate (if the next PDCCH candidate is available). Thereafter, process 900 may end (or be repeated for additional DMRS associated with additional corresponding PDCCH candidates until no additional corresponding PDCCH candidates are available).

[0135] At box 918, the abandonment (e.g., not performing, abandoning, skipping) of blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate can be used to maintain a counter (e.g., the counter associated with box 916) that records a quantity (e.g., amount) that is below the maximum number of blind decodes (e.g., the configured maximum). Maintaining this value below the maximum number of blind decodes allows measurement of the power level of the next DMRS associated with the next PDCCH candidate. In some examples, the next PDCCH candidate may be in a second search space different from the first search space (which may already include earlier corresponding PDCCH candidates).

[0136] According to another aspect, a method for wireless communication at a scheduled entity may include: receiving at the scheduled entity a blind decoding configuration setting (similar to box 902) that enables measurement of the power level of a first DMRS associated with a first physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidate (wherein this measurement occurs before blind decoding of the first PDCCH candidate is performed). The scheduled entity may then measure (similar to box 910) the power level of the first DMRS. The scheduled entity may subsequently abandon blind decoding of the first PDCCH candidate in response to the first DMRS power level falling below a predetermined threshold (similar to box 918). In one example, the scheduled entity may perform blind decoding of a next PDCCH candidate associated with a next DMRS power level in response to a next DMRS power level exceeding a predetermined threshold.

[0137] According to one aspect, the scheduled entity may establish (e.g., initialize and subsequently maintain a count) a first counter for a first number of blind decodes performed on a first subset of multiple PDCCH candidates that have been abandoned (e.g., not) before blind decoding to perform power level measurements of DMRS. Figure 7 The first counter 746 (e.g., non-hybrid blind decoding). The scheduled entity may further establish (e.g., initialize and maintain the count thereafter) a second counter (e.g., for a second subset of multiple PDCCH candidates whose power level measurements (measured) do indeed have a predetermined threshold above the DMRS before blind decoding) for a second number of blind decoding operations performed. Figure 7The second counter 748 (e.g., hybrid blind decoding). In one example, the scheduled entity can stop blind decoding when the sum of the first counter and the second counter is greater than a predetermined maximum number of blind decodes (e.g., a configured maximum number). Furthermore, the scheduled entity can obtain the maximum number of blind decodes, a first multiplier of the first counter, and a second multiplier of the second counter. Thereafter, the scheduled entity can stop blind decoding when the sum of the first counter weighted by the first multiplier and the second counter weighted by the second multiplier is greater than the maximum number of blind decodes. The scheduled entity can obtain at least one of the following from control plane signaling (e.g., RRC signaling) or, for example, from MAC-CE: the maximum number of blind decodes (e.g., a value representing the maximum number of blind decodes); the first multiplier; or the second multiplier. At least one of the following can be configured to the scheduled entity and / or stored, for example, in the parameter storage device of the scheduled entity (e.g., Figure 7 In 756): maximum number of blind decodes (e.g., a value representing the maximum number of blind decodes); first multiplier; or second multiplier.

[0138] Figure 10 This is a block diagram illustrating an example hardware implementation of a scheduling entity 1000 employing a processing system 1014 according to some aspects of this disclosure. For example, the scheduling entity 1000 may be as follows: Figure 1 , Figure 2 and / or Figure 4 Any one or more of the base stations, gNBs, or network access nodes shown.

[0139] Processing system 1014 can be with Figure 7 The processing system 714 shown is substantially the same as described above, including a bus interface 1008, a bus 1002, a memory 1005, a processor 1004, and a computer-readable medium 1006. According to various aspects of this disclosure, any element, any part of an element, or any combination of elements can be implemented using the processing system 1014, which includes one or more processors (e.g., processor 1004). Furthermore, the scheduling entity 1000 may include elements substantially similar to those described above. Figure 7 The user interface 1012, transceiver 1010, antenna or antenna array 1020, and power supply 1028 described herein are included. Transceiver 1010 may be a wireless transceiver. User interface 1012 (e.g., keypad, display, touchscreen, speaker, microphone, control features, etc.) may be optional and may be omitted in some examples. Processor 1004, as utilized in scheduling entity 1000, may be used to implement the features described herein and, for example, in... Figure 11 Any one or more processes shown in the diagram.

[0140] In some aspects of this disclosure, processor 1004 may include communication and processing circuitry 1041 configured for various functions, including, for example, communicating with a scheduled entity (e.g., a UE, a wireless communication device), a network core (e.g., a 5G core network), other scheduling entities, or any other entity (e.g., local infrastructure or an entity communicating with scheduling entity 1000 via the Internet, such as a network provider). Communication and processing circuitry 1041 (along with, for example, transceiver 1010 and antenna / antenna array 1020) may be further configured for various other functions, including, for example, sending blind decoding configuration settings to the scheduled entity. According to some examples, the scheduling entity may enable (e.g., permit or cause the processor of the scheduled entity to execute certain instructions) hybrid blind decoding at the scheduled entity via blind decoding configuration settings. As described herein, hybrid blind decoding includes measuring the power levels of multiple DMRSs at the scheduled entity prior to blind decoding of multiple physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates, each associated with a multiple demodulation reference signal (DMRS). In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry 1041 may include one or more hardware components that provide a physical structure for performing processes related to wireless communication (e.g., signal reception and / or signal transmission) and signal processing (e.g., processing received signals and / or processing signals for transmission). The one or more hardware components may further provide a physical structure for performing the following operations: sending blind decoding configuration settings to the scheduled entity, and enabling, via the blind decoding configuration settings, the measurement of power levels of the multiple DMRSs (at the scheduled entity) before (by the scheduled entity) blind decoding of multiple PDCCH candidates associated with the multiple DMRSs respectively. Additionally, the communication and processing circuitry 1041 may be configured to receive and process uplink traffic and uplink control messages (e.g., similar to antennas) via antenna or antenna array 1020 and transceiver 1010. Figure 1 The communication and processing circuitry 1041 can also be configured to execute communication and processing software 1051 stored on a computer-readable medium 1006 to perform one or more of the functions described herein. This includes processing and transmitting uplink service 116 and downlink control 118, as well as downlink service and downlink control messages (e.g., similar to downlink service 112 and downlink control 114).

[0141] In some aspects of this disclosure, processor 1004 may include physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidate scheduling circuitry 1042, configured for various functions, including, for example, scheduling a predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding by a scheduled entity. In some examples, the predetermined number of PDCCH candidates may be based on at least one of the following: the number of CCEs included in at least one of a plurality of PDCCH candidates; a first number of OFDM symbols of a control resource set (CORESET) associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates; a second number of OFDM symbols of a virtual CORESET associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates; a subcarrier spacing; or a frequency range comprising one or more bandwidth portions carrying one or more of the plurality of PDCCH candidates. In some examples, PDCCH candidate scheduling circuitry 1042 may include one or more hardware components providing a physical structure for performing a process related to scheduling a predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding by a scheduled entity. One or more hardware components may also provide a physical structure for performing a process related to determining a predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding based on at least one of the following: the number of CCEs included in at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates, a first number of OFDM symbols of a control resource set (CORESET) associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates, a second number of OFDM symbols of a virtual CORESET associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates, a subcarrier spacing, or a frequency range comprising one or more bandwidth portions carrying one or more of the plurality of PDCCH candidates. The PDCCH candidate scheduling circuit 1042 may also be configured to execute PDCCH candidate scheduling software 1052 stored on a computer-readable medium 1006 to implement one or more of the functions described herein.

[0142] Depending on some aspects, the PDCCH candidate scheduling circuit 1042 can also be configured for various functions, including, for example, dynamically indicating blind decoding configuration settings based on at least one of the following: a scheduled entity-specific basis, a group-of-scheduled-entities common basis, or a Media Access Control-Control Element (MAC-CE) basis. Other functions may include identifying, in the blind decoding configuration settings, the subset of PDCCH candidates to which measurements of power levels for multiple DMRSs are applied. In some examples, this subset of PDCCH candidates may be included in a search space.

[0143] According to other aspects, the PDCCH candidate scheduling circuit 1042 may be further configured for various functions, including, for example, sending instructions to the scheduled entity to compare a configured maximum number of blind decodes with a sum of: a first number of channel estimated CCEs determined without measuring the power level of the DMRS before the PDCCH candidate blind decoding performed by the scheduled entity, and a second number of channel estimated CCEs determined with measuring the power level of the DMRS before the PDCCH candidate blind decoding performed by the scheduled entity, and stopping blind decoding when the sum is greater than the configured maximum number of blind decodes. In some examples, the first and / or second number may be determined based on at least one of: a per-slot basis, or a per-group of consecutive slots.

[0144] Figure 11 This is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary process 1100 (e.g., a method) of wireless communication at a scheduling entity (e.g., a base station, gNB, network access node) according to some aspects of this disclosure. As described below, in certain embodiments within the scope of this disclosure, some or all of the illustrated features may be omitted, and some illustrated features may not be required for all example embodiments. In some examples, process 1100 may be... Figure 10 The scheduling entity 1000 shown is used to execute this process. In some examples, process 1100 may be executed by any suitable means or unit for performing the functions or algorithms described herein.

[0145] At box 1102, the scheduling entity can send blind decoding configuration settings to the scheduled entity. For example, combined with the above... Figure 10 The communication and processing circuitry 1041, transceiver 1010, and / or antenna array 1020 shown and described may provide units for sending blind decoding configuration settings to the scheduled entity.

[0146] Additional processes that may occur before or after transmission at box 1102 may include, for example, dynamically indicating blind decoding configuration settings based on at least one of the following: a scheduled entity-specific basis, a scheduled entity group common basis, or a Media Access Control-Control Element (MAC-CE) basis. Other additional processes may include, for example, identifying in the blind decoding configuration settings the subset of PDCCH candidates to which power level measurements for multiple DMRSs are applied. For example, the blind decoding configuration settings may be semi-persistent settings, or they may be configured for scheduled entities using MAC-CE. In some examples, this subset of PDCCH candidates may be included in a search space. As described above... Figure 10 The PDCCH candidate scheduling circuit 1042 shown and described provides a unit for performing these additional processes.

[0147] At box 1104, the scheduling entity can enable, via blind decoding configuration settings, the measurement of power levels of multiple DMRSs at the scheduled entity prior to blind decoding of multiple Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidates associated with multiple demodulation reference signals (DMRSs). That is, at box 1104, the scheduling entity can enable hybrid blind decoding at the scheduled entity via blind decoding configuration settings. For example, as described above in conjunction with... Figure 10 The communication and processing circuitry 1041 shown and described may provide a unit for configuring via blind decoding such that the power level of multiple DMRSs can be measured at the scheduled entity prior to blind decoding of multiple physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates, each associated with a multiple demodulation reference signal (DMRS).

[0148] At box 1106, the scheduling entity may schedule a predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding by the scheduled entity. For example, the scheduling entity may determine the predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding based on at least one of the following: the number of CCEs included in at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates; a first number of OFDM symbols in the control resource set (CORESET) associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates; a second number of OFDM symbols in the virtual CORESET associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates; the subcarrier spacing; or a frequency range comprising one or more bandwidth portions carrying one or more of the plurality of PDCCH candidates. For example, as combined above... Figure 10 The PDCCH candidate scheduling circuit 1042 shown and described provides a unit for scheduling a predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding by the scheduled entity. As described above... Figure 10 The PDCCH candidate scheduling circuit 1042 shown and described may provide a unit for determining a predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding based on at least one of the following: the number of CCEs included in at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates, a first number of OFDM symbols of a control resource set (CORESET) associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates, a second number of OFDM symbols of a virtual CORESET associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates, a subcarrier spacing, or a frequency range that includes one or more bandwidth portions carrying one or more of the plurality of PDCCH candidates.

[0149] According to some aspects, additional procedures that the scheduling entity can perform may include, for example, sending an instruction to the scheduled entity to compare the configured maximum number of blind decodes with the sum of: a first number of CCEs with channel estimates determined when the power level of the DMRS is not measured before the PDCCH candidate blind decoding performed by the scheduled entity (e.g., non-hybrid blind decoding), and a second number of CCEs with channel estimates determined when the power level of the DMRS is measured before the PDCCH candidate blind decoding performed by the scheduled entity (e.g., hybrid blind decoding as described herein). The instruction may also instruct the scheduled entity to stop blind decoding if the sum is greater than the configured maximum number of blind decodes. According to some aspects, the first and / or second number may be determined based on at least one of: per time slot, or per group of consecutive time slots. For example, as combined above. Figure 10 The PDCCH candidate scheduling circuit 1042 shown and described may also provide units for performing these additional processes.

[0150] Of course, in the above examples, the circuitry included in processors 704 and / or 1004 is provided merely as an example, and other units for performing the described functions may be included within various aspects of this disclosure, including but not limited to instructions stored in computer-readable media 706 and / or 1006, or in Figure 1 , 2 The descriptions in any of 4, 7, and / or 10, and the use of, for example, this article regarding Figure 8 , Figure 9 and / or Figure 11 Any other suitable device or unit for the described process and / or algorithm.

[0151] The following provides an overview of various aspects of this disclosure:

[0152] Aspect 1: A method for wireless communication, the method comprising, at a scheduled entity: measuring the power level of a corresponding physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidate associated with a corresponding demodulation reference signal (DMRS) before blind decoding, and at least one of the following: performing blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold, or abandoning blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is lower than a predetermined threshold.

[0153] Aspect 2: The method according to aspect 1 further includes at least one of the following: incrementing the count of a counter recording the total number of blind decodes of PDCCH candidates only when the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold, or measuring the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS associated with the next corresponding PDCCH candidate, and performing the next blind decode of the next corresponding PDCCH candidate if the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS is higher than the predetermined threshold.

[0154] Aspect 3: The method according to aspect 1 or 2, wherein the corresponding PDCCH candidate is in a first search space, the method further comprising: measuring a second power level of a second DMRS associated with a second PDCCH candidate in a second search space different from the first search space.

[0155] Aspect 4: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 3 further includes: receiving a blind decoding configuration setting, and in response to the blind decoding configuration setting, enabling the measurement of the power level of the corresponding DMRS prior to blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate.

[0156] Aspect 5: According to the method of aspect 4, wherein the blind decoding configuration setting is determined based on at least one of the following: the number of control channel elements (CCEs) of the corresponding PDCCH candidate, a first number of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols of the control resource set (CORESET) associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate, a second number of OFDM symbols of the virtual CORESET associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate, subcarrier spacing, or a frequency range that includes a bandwidth portion carrying the corresponding PDCCH candidate.

[0157] Aspect 6: According to the method of aspect 4, wherein the blind decoding configuration setting identifies the subset of PDCCH candidates to which the power level measurement of the DMRS is applied.

[0158] Aspect 7: According to the method of aspect 6, wherein the PDCCH candidate subset is included in a search space.

[0159] Aspect 8: A scheduled entity in a wireless communication network, comprising: a wireless transceiver, a memory, and a processor communicatively coupled to the wireless transceiver and the memory, wherein the processor and the memory are configured to: measure the power level of a corresponding physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidate associated with a corresponding demodulation reference signal (DMRS) before blind decoding, and at least one of the following: if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold, perform blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate, or if the power level of the corresponding DMRS is lower than a predetermined threshold, abandon blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate.

[0160] Aspect 9: The scheduled entity according to aspect 8, wherein the processor and the memory are further configured to perform at least one of the following: incrementing the count of a counter recording the total number of blind decodes of PDCCH candidates only when the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold, or measuring the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS associated with the next corresponding PDCCH candidate, and performing the next blind decode of the next corresponding PDCCH candidate if the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS is higher than the predetermined threshold.

[0161] Aspect 10: The scheduled entity according to aspect 8 or 9, wherein the corresponding PDCCH candidate is in a first search space, and the processor and the memory are further configured to: measure a second power level of a second DMRS associated with a second PDCCH candidate in a second search space different from the first search space.

[0162] Aspect 11: The scheduled entity according to any one of Aspects 8 to 10, wherein the processor and the memory are further configured to: receive a blind decoding configuration setting, and in response to the blind decoding configuration setting, enable the measurement of the power level of the corresponding DMRS prior to blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate.

[0163] Aspect 12: The scheduled entity according to aspect 11, wherein the blind decoding configuration setting is determined based on at least one of the following: the number of control channel elements (CCEs) of the corresponding PDCCH candidate, a first number of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols of the control resource set (CORESET) associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate, a second number of OFDM symbols of the virtual CORESET associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate, subcarrier spacing, or a frequency range that includes a bandwidth portion carrying the corresponding PDCCH candidate.

[0164] Aspect 13: The scheduled entity according to aspect 11, wherein the blind decoding configuration setting identifies the subset of PDCCH candidates to which the power level measurement of the DMRS is applied.

[0165] Aspect 14: The scheduled entity according to aspect 13, wherein the PDCCH candidate subset is included in a search space.

[0166] Aspect 15: A method for wireless communication, the method comprising, at a scheduling entity: sending a blind decoding configuration setting to a scheduled entity, and via the blind decoding configuration setting, enabling at the scheduled entity to measure the power levels of a plurality of physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates, each associated with a plurality of demodulation reference signals (DMRS), prior to blind decoding; and scheduling a predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding by the scheduled entity.

[0167] Aspect 16: The method according to aspect 15 further includes: determining the predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding based on at least one of the following: the number of CCEs included in at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates, a first number of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols of a control resource set (CORESET) associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates, a second number of OFDM symbols of a virtual CORESET associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates, a subcarrier spacing, or a frequency range comprising one or more bandwidth portions carrying one or more of the plurality of PDCCH candidates.

[0168] Aspect 17: The method according to aspect 15 or 16 further includes: dynamically indicating the blind decoding configuration settings based on at least one of the following: a scheduled entity-specific basis, a scheduled entity group common basis, or a Media Access Control-Control Element (MAC-CE) basis.

[0169] Aspect 18: The method according to any one of aspects 15 to 17 further includes: identifying, in the blind decoding configuration settings, the subset of PDCCH candidates to which the measurement of the power level of the plurality of DMRSs is applied.

[0170] Aspect 19: The method according to aspect 18, wherein the PDCCH candidate subset is included in a search space.

[0171] Aspect 20: The method according to any one of aspects 15 to 19 further includes: sending to the scheduled entity an instruction for comparing a configured maximum number of blind decodes with the sum of: a first number of channel-estimated CCEs determined without measuring the power levels of the plurality of DMRSs prior to PDCCH candidate blind decoding performed by the scheduled entity, and a second number of channel-estimated CCEs determined with measuring the power levels of the plurality of DMRSs prior to PDCCH candidate blind decoding performed by the scheduled entity, and stopping blind decoding when the sum is greater than the configured maximum number of blind decodes.

[0172] Aspect 21: The method according to aspect 20, wherein the first quantity and / or the second quantity are determined based on at least one of the following: on a per-slot basis, or on a per-sequence group of time slots.

[0173] Aspect 22: A scheduling entity in a wireless communication network, comprising: a wireless transceiver, a memory, and a processor communicatively coupled to the wireless transceiver and the memory, wherein the processor and the memory are configured to: send a blind decoding configuration setting to a scheduled entity, and via the blind decoding configuration setting to enable measurement of the power levels of the plurality of DMRS at the scheduled entity prior to blind decoding of a plurality of physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates associated with a plurality of demodulation reference signals (DMRS); and schedule a predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding by the scheduled entity.

[0174] Aspect 23: The scheduling entity according to aspect 22, wherein the processor and the memory are further configured to determine the predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding based on at least one of the following: the number of CCEs included in at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates, a first number of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols of the control resource set (CORESET) associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates, a second number of OFDM symbols of the virtual CORESET associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates, a subcarrier spacing, or a frequency range comprising one or more bandwidth portions carrying one or more of the plurality of PDCCH candidates.

[0175] Aspect 24: The scheduling entity according to aspect 22 or 23, wherein the processor and the memory are further configured to dynamically indicate the blind decoding configuration settings based on at least one of the following: a scheduled entity-specific basis, a scheduled entity group common basis, or a Media Access Control-Control Element (MAC-CE) basis.

[0176] Aspect 25: A scheduling entity according to any one of Aspects 22 to 24, wherein the processor and the memory are further configured to: identify, in the blind decoding configuration settings, the subset of PDCCH candidates to which the measurement of the power level of the plurality of DMRSs is applied.

[0177] Aspect 26: The scheduling entity according to aspect 25, wherein the PDCCH candidate subset is included in a search space.

[0178] Aspect 27: A scheduling entity according to any one of Aspects 22 to 26, wherein the processor and the memory are further configured to: send instructions to the scheduled entity for comparing a configured maximum number of blind decodes with the sum of: a first number of channel-estimated CCEs determined without measuring the power levels of the plurality of DMRSs prior to PDCCH candidate blind decoding performed by the scheduled entity, and a second number of channel-estimated CCEs determined with measuring the power levels of the plurality of DMRSs prior to PDCCH candidate blind decoding performed by the scheduled entity, and stopping blind decoding when the sum is greater than the configured maximum number of blind decodes.

[0179] Aspect 28: The scheduling entity according to aspect 27, wherein the first quantity and / or the second quantity are determined based on at least one of the following: on a per-slot basis, or on a per-consecutive-slot group basis.

[0180] Several aspects of wireless communication networks have been presented with reference to exemplary embodiments. As will be readily understood by those skilled in the art, the various aspects described throughout this disclosure can be extended to other telecommunications systems, network architectures, and communication standards.

[0181] For example, various aspects can be implemented within other systems defined by 3GPP, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE), Evolved Packet System (EPS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), and / or Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM). These aspects can also be extended to systems defined by 3GPP2, such as CDMA2000 and / or Evolved Data Optimized (EV-DO). Other examples can be implemented within systems employing IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Ultra Wideband (UWB), Bluetooth, and / or other suitable systems. The actual telecommunications standards, network architecture, and / or communication standards employed will depend on the specific application and the overall design constraints imposed on the system.

[0182] In this disclosure, the term “exemplary” is used to mean “serving as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any implementation or aspect described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or superior to other aspects of this disclosure. Similarly, the term “aspect” does not require that all aspects of this disclosure include the features, advantages, or modes of operation discussed. The term “coupling” is used herein to refer to direct or indirect coupling between two objects. For example, if object A is in physical contact with object B, and object B is in contact with object C, then objects A and C can still be considered coupled to each other—even if they are not in direct physical contact with each other. For example, even if the first object never has direct physical contact with the second object, the first object can still be coupled to the second object. The terms “circuit” and “circuit system” are used broadly and are intended to include hardware implementations of electrical devices and conductors, as well as software implementations of information and instructions, which, when connected and configured, are capable of implementing the functions described in this disclosure without limitation on the type of electronic circuit, and which, when executed by a processor, are capable of implementing the functions described in this disclosure.

[0183] Figure 1-11 One or more of the components, steps, features, and / or functions shown may be rearranged and / or combined into a single component, step, feature, or function, or embodied as several components, steps, or functions. Additional elements, components, steps, and / or functions may also be added without departing from the novel features disclosed herein. Figure 1-11 The apparatus, devices, and / or components shown can be configured to perform one or more of the methods, features, or steps described herein. The novel algorithms described herein can also be efficiently implemented in software and / or embedded hardware.

[0184] It should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of the steps in the disclosed method is an illustration of an exemplary process. Based on design preferences, it is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of the steps in the method may be rearranged. The appended method claims present the elements of the various steps in an exemplary order and are not intended to limit one to the presented specific order or hierarchy, unless specifically indicated herein.

[0185] The preceding description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Therefore, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but should be given the full scope consistent with the language of the claims, wherein reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean “one and only one”, but rather “one or more” unless specifically stated otherwise. Unless otherwise specifically stated, the term “some” means one or more. The phrase “at least one” in the list of references to items means any combination of these items, including a single member. For example, “at least one of a, b, or c” is intended to cover: a; b; c; a and b; a and c; b and c; and a, b, and c. The phrases A and / or B are intended to cover A and B, as well as A and B. All structural and functional equivalents of the elements of the various aspects described throughout this disclosure that are known to or subsequently learned by those skilled in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be covered by the claims. Furthermore, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be offered to the public, whether or not such disclosure is expressly stated in the claims.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication, the method comprising, at a scheduled entity: receive a blind decoding configuration setting that identifies a first subset of physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates among PDCCH candidates to be blindly decoded, wherein For the first PDCCH candidate subset, the power level of the demodulation reference signal (DMRS) is measured before blind decoding, and wherein the PDCCH candidates to be blind decoded also include a second PDCCH candidate subset, wherein for the second PDCCH candidate subset, the power level of the DMRS is not measured before blind decoding. In response to the blind decoding configuration setting, for the first subset of PDCCH candidates, the power level of the corresponding DMRS is measured prior to blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate associated with the corresponding DMRS; The power level of the corresponding DMRS is measured before blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate associated with the corresponding DMRS; and One of the following: If the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold, then blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate is performed, or If the power level of the corresponding DMRS is lower than the predetermined threshold, then the blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate is abandoned.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising at least one of the following: The counter for recording the total number of blind decodes of PDCCH candidates is incremented only when the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than the predetermined threshold, or Measure the next power level of the next response DMRS associated with the next response PDCCH candidate, and If the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS is higher than the predetermined threshold, then the next blind decoding of the next corresponding PDCCH candidate is performed.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein, The corresponding PDCCH candidate is in the first search space, and the method further includes: Measure the second power level of the second DMRS associated with the second PDCCH candidate in a second search space different from the first search space.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein, The blind decoding configuration settings are dynamically indicated based on at least one of the following: The specific basis of the scheduled entity; The common foundation of the scheduled entity group; or Media Access Control - Control Element (MAC-CE) Basics.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein, The blind decoding configuration settings are determined based on at least one of the following: The number of control channel elements (CCEs) for the corresponding PDCCH candidates. The first number of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols in the control resource set (CORESET) associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate. The second number of OFDM symbols of the virtual CORESET associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate. Subcarrier spacing, or The frequency range that includes the bandwidth portion carrying the corresponding PDCCH candidate.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The scheduled entity establishes a first counter for the first number of blind decodes performed on the second PDCCH candidate subset for which no power level measurement of DMRS is performed prior to the blind decoding; The scheduled entity establishes a second counter for a second number of blind decodes performed on a third subset of PDCCH candidates with a power level of DMRS higher than the predetermined threshold prior to the blind decoding; as well as The scheduled entity stops blind decoding when the sum of the first counter and the second counter is greater than the maximum number of blind decodes.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein, The first PDCCH candidate subset is included in a search space.

8. A scheduled entity in a wireless communication network, comprising: Wireless transceiver; Memory; as well as A processor, communicatively coupled to the wireless transceiver and the memory, wherein the processor and the memory are configured to: The system receives blind decoding configuration settings, which identify a first subset of physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates to be blind decoded, wherein a power level measurement of the demodulation reference signal (DMRS) is performed for the first subset of PDCCH candidates before blind decoding, and wherein the PDCCH candidates to be blind decoded also include a second subset of PDCCH candidates, wherein a power level measurement of the DMRS is not performed for the second subset of PDCCH candidates before blind decoding. In response to the blind decoding configuration setting, for the first subset of PDCCH candidates, the power level of the corresponding DMRS is measured prior to blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate associated with the corresponding DMRS; The power level of the corresponding DMRS is measured before blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate associated with the corresponding DMRS; and One of the following: If the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than a predetermined threshold, then blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate is performed, or If the power level of the corresponding DMRS is lower than the predetermined threshold, then the blind decoding of the corresponding PDCCH candidate is abandoned.

9. The scheduled entity of claim 8, wherein, The processor and the memory are also configured to perform at least one of the following: The counter for recording the total number of blind decodes of PDCCH candidates is incremented only when the power level of the corresponding DMRS is higher than the predetermined threshold, or Measure the next power level of the next response DMRS associated with the next response PDCCH candidate, and If the next power level of the next corresponding DMRS is higher than the predetermined threshold, then the next blind decoding of the next corresponding PDCCH candidate is performed.

10. The scheduled entity according to claim 8, wherein, The corresponding PDCCH candidate is in the first search space, and the processor and the memory are further configured as follows: Measure the second power level of the second DMRS associated with the second PDCCH candidate in a second search space different from the first search space.

11. The scheduled entity according to claim 8, wherein, The blind decoding configuration settings are dynamically indicated based on at least one of the following: The specific basis of the scheduled entity; The common foundation of the scheduled entity group; or Media Access Control - Control Element (MAC-CE) Basics.

12. The scheduled entity according to claim 8, wherein, The blind decoding configuration settings are determined based on at least one of the following: The number of control channel elements (CCEs) for the corresponding PDCCH candidates. The first number of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols in the control resource set (CORESET) associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate. The second number of OFDM symbols of the virtual CORESET associated with the corresponding PDCCH candidate. Subcarrier spacing, or The frequency range that includes the bandwidth portion carrying the corresponding PDCCH candidate.

13. The scheduled entity according to claim 8, wherein, The processor and the memory are further configured to: Establish a first counter for the first number of blind decodes performed on the second PDCCH candidate subset for which no DMRS power level measurement is performed prior to the blind decoding; Establish a second counter for a third number of blind decodes performed on a second subset of PDCCH candidates with power levels above the predetermined threshold prior to the blind decode; as well as The blind decoding stops when the sum of the first counter and the second counter exceeds the maximum number of blind decodes.

14. The scheduled entity according to claim 8, wherein, The first PDCCH candidate subset is included in a search space.

15. A method for wireless communication, the method comprising, at a scheduling entity: A blind decoding configuration setting is sent to the scheduled entity, the blind decoding configuration setting identifying a first subset of PDCCH candidates among the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates to be blind decoded, wherein... For the first PDCCH candidate subset, the power level of the demodulation reference signal (DMRS) is measured before blind decoding, and wherein the PDCCH candidates to be blind decoded also include a second PDCCH candidate subset, wherein for the second PDCCH candidate subset, the power level of the DMRS is not measured before blind decoding. The blind decoding configuration setting enables the measurement of the power levels of the multiple DMRS at the scheduled entity, for the first subset of PDCCH candidates, prior to blind decoding of the multiple PDCCH candidates associated with the multiple DMRS respectively; and A predetermined number of PDCCH candidates are scheduled for blind decoding by the scheduled entity.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising: The predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding is determined based on at least one of the following: The number of CCEs included in at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates. A first number of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols in the control resource set (CORESET) associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates. A second number of OFDM symbols of the virtual CORESET associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates. Subcarrier spacing, or A frequency range that includes one or more bandwidth portions carrying one or more of the plurality of PDCCH candidates.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising: The blind decoding configuration settings are dynamically indicated based on at least one of the following: The specific basis of the scheduled entity, The common foundation of the group of scheduled entities, or Media Access Control - Control Element (MAC-CE) Basics.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising: Configure the scheduled entity using the maximum number of blind decodes.

19. The method according to claim 15, wherein, The PDCCH candidate subset is included in a search space.

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising: Send an instruction to the scheduled entity to compare the configured maximum number of blind decodes with the sum of the following: A first number of control channel elements (CCEs) for channel estimation determined without measuring the power levels of the plurality of DMRSs prior to PDCCH candidate blind decoding performed by the scheduled entity, and A second number of CCEs for the channel estimation determined after measuring the power levels of the plurality of DMRSs prior to the PDCCH candidate blind decoding performed by the scheduled entity; as well as Blind decoding stops when the total number of results exceeds the configured maximum number of blind decodes.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein, The first quantity and / or the second quantity are determined based on at least one of the following: Based on each time slot, or Based on each consecutive time slot group.

22. A scheduling entity in a wireless communication network, comprising: Wireless transceiver; Memory; as well as A processor, communicatively coupled to the wireless transceiver and the memory, wherein the processor and the memory are configured to: A blind decoding configuration setting is sent to the scheduled entity, the blind decoding configuration setting identifying a first subset of physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates to be blind decoded, wherein a power level measurement of the demodulation reference signal (DMRS) is performed for the first subset of PDCCH candidates before blind decoding, and wherein the PDCCH candidates to be blind decoded also include a second subset of PDCCH candidates, wherein a power level measurement of the DMRS is not performed for the second subset of PDCCH candidates before blind decoding; The blind decoding configuration setting enables measurement of the power levels of the multiple DMRSs at the scheduled entity, for the first subset of PDCCH candidates, prior to blind decoding of the multiple PDCCH candidates associated with the multiple DMRSs respectively; and A predetermined number of PDCCH candidates are scheduled for blind decoding by the scheduled entity.

23. The scheduling entity according to claim 22, wherein, The processor and the memory are further configured to: The predetermined number of PDCCH candidates for blind decoding is determined based on at least one of the following: The number of CCEs included in at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates. A first number of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols in the control resource set (CORESET) associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates. A second number of OFDM symbols of the virtual CORESET associated with at least one of the plurality of PDCCH candidates. Subcarrier spacing, or A frequency range that includes one or more bandwidth portions carrying one or more of the plurality of PDCCH candidates.

24. The scheduling entity according to claim 22, wherein, The processor and the memory are further configured to: The blind decoding configuration settings are dynamically indicated based on at least one of the following: The specific basis of the scheduled entity, The common foundation of the group of scheduled entities, or Media Access Control - Control Element (MAC-CE) Basics.

25. The scheduling entity according to claim 22, wherein, The processor and the memory are further configured to: Configure the scheduled entity using the maximum number of blind decodes.

26. The scheduling entity according to claim 22, wherein, The PDCCH candidate subset is included in a search space.

27. The scheduling entity according to claim 22, wherein, The processor and the memory are further configured to: Send an instruction to the scheduled entity to compare the configured maximum number of blind decodes with the sum of the following: A first number of CCEs for channel estimation determined without measuring the power levels of the plurality of DMRSs prior to PDCCH candidate blind decoding performed by the scheduled entity, and A second number of CCEs for the channel estimation determined after measuring the power levels of the plurality of DMRSs prior to the PDCCH candidate blind decoding performed by the scheduled entity; as well as Blind decoding stops when the total number of results exceeds the configured maximum number of blind decodes.

28. The scheduling entity according to claim 27, wherein, The first quantity and / or the second quantity are determined based on at least one of the following: Based on each time slot, or Based on each consecutive time slot group.

Images