Wireless communication methods and related devices

Abstract

A method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a UE (User Equipment). The UE operates on N in a first time-frequency resource. t1 The first RF signal is transmitted on each of the L1 antennas. The first RF signal carries the first reference signal for each of the L1 antenna ports. t1 L1 and N are positive integers. L1 is not greater than N. t1 The UE uses N on the second time-frequency resource. t2 A second RF signal is transmitted from one antenna. This second RF signal carries a second reference signal from the L2 antenna port. t2 L2 is a positive integer. L2 is not greater than N. t2 UE in N t1 One antenna and N t2 On each antenna, a third radio frequency (RF) signal is transmitted on the first time-frequency resource, and a fourth RF signal is transmitted on the second time-frequency resource. The third and fourth RF signals carry L-layer data. L is no greater than the sum of L1 and L2.

Description

[0001] Cross-referencing

[0002] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 253,576, filed on October 8, 2021, entitled “UPLINKSOUNDING METHODS FOR DISTRIBUTED MIMO SYSTEMS”, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Technical Field

[0003] This disclosure relates generally to communication systems, and more specifically to techniques for forming distributed multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmitters / receivers. Background Technology

[0004] The statements in this section provide only background information in relation to this disclosure and may not constitute prior art.

[0005] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide a variety of telecommunications services, such as telephone, video, data, messaging, and broadcasting. Typical wireless communication systems can employ multiple access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources. Examples of such multiple access technologies include Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) systems, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) systems, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) systems, Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) systems, Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) systems, and Time Division Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD-SCDMA) systems.

[0006] These multiple access technologies have been adopted in various telecommunications standards to provide a common protocol enabling different wireless devices to communicate at the municipal, national, regional, and even global levels. An example telecommunications standard is 5G New Radio (NR). 5G NR is part of the Continuous Evolution of Mobile Broadband program issued by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), designed to meet new requirements related to latency, reliability, security, scalability (e.g., the Internet of Things (IoT)), and other requirements. Some aspects of 5G NR may be based on the 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard. 5G NR technology requires further improvements. These improvements may also apply to other multiple access technologies and telecommunications standards that adopt them. Summary of the Invention

[0007] The following is a simplified summary of one or more aspects to provide a basic understanding of these aspects. This summary is not a comprehensive overview of all anticipated aspects, nor is it intended to identify key or critical elements of all aspects, nor to depict the scope of any or all aspects. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed descriptions that follow.

[0008] In one aspect of this disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a UE (User Equipment). The UE operates on a first time-frequency resource in N... t1 The first radio frequency (RF) signal is transmitted from each of the L1 antennas. This first RF signal carries the first set of reference signals for the L1 antenna ports. t1 L1 and N are positive integers. L1 is not greater than N. t1 The UE uses N on the second time-frequency resource. t2 A second RF signal is transmitted from one antenna. This second RF signal carries a second set of reference signals from the L2 antenna port. t2 L2 is a positive integer. L2 is not greater than N. t2 UE in N t1 One antenna and N t2 On each antenna, a third radio frequency (RF) signal is transmitted on the first time-frequency resource, and a fourth RF signal is transmitted on the second time-frequency resource. The third and fourth RF signals carry L-layer data. L is no greater than the sum of L1 and L2.

[0009] For the purposes described above and related, one or more aspects include the features fully described below and specifically pointed out in the scope of the claimed protection. Certain illustrative features of one or more aspects are set forth in detail in the following description and figures. However, these features represent only a few of the various ways in which the principles of these aspects can be employed, and this description is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. Attached Figure Description

[0010] Figure 1 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication system and access network.

[0011] Figure 2 This diagram illustrates communication between a base station and a UE in the access network.

[0012] Figure 3 The diagram illustrates an example logical architecture for a distributed access network.

[0013] Figure 4 The diagram illustrates an example physical architecture for a distributed access network.

[0014] Figure 5 This is a diagram representing an example of a time slot centered on DL.

[0015] Figure 6 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a time slot centered on UL.

[0016] Figure 7 This is a diagram illustrating distributed MIMO transmission.

[0017] Figure 8This is a diagram illustrating uplink probing techniques in a distributed advanced MIMO system based on the first method.

[0018] Figure 9 This is a diagram illustrating the uplink probing technique in a distributed high-rank MIMO system based on the second method.

[0019] Figure 10 This diagram illustrates the SRS resource sets corresponding to different antenna port groups based on the first method.

[0020] Figure 11 This is a flowchart of the uplink reference signal transmission method (processing).

[0021] Figure 12 This is a diagram illustrating an example of the hardware implementation used in a device employing a processing system. Detailed Implementation

[0022] The detailed description below, illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings, is intended as a description of various configurations and not as representing the only configuration in which the concepts described herein can be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details 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 specific details. In some cases, well-known structures and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid confusion with these concepts.

[0023] Several aspects of a telecommunications system will now be presented with reference to various apparatuses and methods. These apparatuses and methods will be described in detail below and illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively, “elements”). These elements can be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether these elements are implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the system as a whole.

[0024] For example, an element, any part of an element, or any combination of elements may be implemented as a “processing system” including one or more processors. Examples of processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, graphics processing units (GPUs), central processing units (CPUs), application processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processors, system-on-a-chip (SoCs), baseband processors, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gated logic, discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware configured to perform the various functions described throughout this disclosure. One or more processors in a processing system may execute software. Software should be interpreted broadly as instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subroutines, software components, application programs, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, threads of execution, procedures, functions, etc., whether referring to software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or others.

[0025] Therefore, in one or more example aspects, the described functionality can be implemented in hardware, software, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, these functions can be stored or encoded as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media. Storage media can be any available medium that is accessible to a computer. By way of example and not limitation, such computer-readable media may include random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), optical disc storage, magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storage devices, combinations of computer-readable media of the types described above, or any other medium that can be used to store computer-executable code in the form of computer-accessible instructions or data structures.

[0026] Figure 1 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication system and access network 100. The wireless communication system (also known as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) includes base station 102, UE 104, evolved packet core (EPC) 160, and another core network 190 (e.g., a 5G core (5GC)). Base station 102 may include macro cells (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cells (low-power cellular base stations). Macro cells include base stations. Small cells include femtocells, picocells, and microcells.

[0027] Base station 102 configured for 4G LTE (collectively referred to as Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN)) can interface with EPC 160 via backhaul link 132 (e.g., SI interface). Base station 102 configured for 5G NR (collectively referred to as Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN)) can interface with core network 190 via backhaul link 184. Among other functions, base station 102 can perform one or more of the following functions: user data transmission, radio channel encryption and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection establishment and release, load balancing, Non-Access Allocation Layer (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, Radio Access Network (RAN) sharing, Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS), user and equipment tracking, RAN Information Management (RIM), paging, location, and warning message delivery. Base stations 102 can communicate directly or indirectly with each other via backhaul link 134 (e.g., X2 interface) (e.g., via EPC 160 or core network 190). Backhaul link 134 can be wired or wireless.

[0028] Base station 102 can wirelessly communicate with UE 104. Each of base stations 102 can provide communication coverage for a corresponding geographic coverage area 110. Overlapping geographic coverage areas 110 may exist. For example, small cell 102' and macro base station 102 may have coverage areas 110' that overlap with the coverage areas 110 of one or more macro base stations 102. A network including small cells and macro cells can be referred to as a heterogeneous network. The heterogeneous network may also include home evolution node B (eNB) (HeNB), which can provide services to restricted groups referred to as closed subscriber groups (CSG). The communication link 120 between base station 102 and UE 104 may include uplink (UL) (also known as reverse link) transmission from UE 104 to base station 102 and / or downlink (DL) (also known as forward link) transmission from base station 102 to UE 104. The communication link 120 may use multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna technologies, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link may use one or more carriers. Base station 102 / UE104 can use up to X MHz (e.g., 5, 10, 15, 20, 100, 400 MHz) of spectrum allocated in carrier aggregation with a total bandwidth of up to Yx MHz (x component carriers). Each carrier is used for transmission in each direction. Carriers may or may not be adjacent to each other. Carrier allocation may be asymmetrical for DL ​​and UL (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated to DL than to UL). Component carriers may include primary component carriers and one or more secondary component carriers. The primary component carrier may be referred to as the primary cell (PCell) and the secondary component carrier may be referred to as the secondary cell (SCell).

[0029] Some UEs 104 can communicate with each other using device-to-device (D2D) communication link 158. D2D communication link 158 can use DL / UL WWAN spectrum. D2D communication link 158 can use one or more sidelink channels, such as Physical Sidelink Broadcast Channel (PSBCH), Physical Sidelink Discovery Channel (PSDCH), Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH), and Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH). D2D communication can be achieved through various wireless D2D communication systems, such as FlashLinQ, WiMedia, Bluetooth, ZigBee, Wi-Fi based on the IEEE 802.11 standard, LTE, or NR.

[0030] The wireless communication system may also include a Wi-Fi access point (AP) 150 that communicates with a Wi-Fi station (STA) 152 via a communication link 154 in the unlicensed 5 GHz spectrum. When communicating in the unlicensed spectrum, the STA 152 / AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) to determine channel availability before communication.

[0031] Small cell 102' can operate in licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in unlicensed spectrum, small cell 102' can employ NR and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum as Wi-Fi AP 150. Small cell 102' employing NR in unlicensed spectrum can extend the coverage of the access network and / or increase the capacity of the access network.

[0032] Base station 102, whether a small cell 102' or a large cell (e.g., a macro base station), can include an eNB, gNodeB (gNB), or other types of base stations. Some base stations, such as gNB 180, can operate in the conventional sub-6 GHz spectrum, millimeter wave (mmW) frequencies, and / or near-mmW frequencies for communication with UE 104. When gNB 180 operates in mmW or near-mmW frequencies, gNB 180 can be referred to as an mmW base station. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a radio frequency portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF ranges from 30 GHz to 300 GHz, with wavelengths between 1 mm and 10 mm. Radio waves in this band can be referred to as millimeter waves. Near-millimeter waves may extend down to frequencies of 3 GHz with wavelengths of 100 mm. The ultra-high frequency (SHF) band extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz and is also known as centimeter waves. Communication using millimeter wave / near-millimeter wave radio bands (e.g., 3 GHz–300 GHz) has extremely high path loss and short range. The mmW base station 180 can utilize the beamforming 182 of the UE 104 to compensate for extremely high path loss and short distance.

[0033] Base station 180 can transmit beamformed signals to UE 104 in one or more transmit directions 108a. UE 104 can receive beamformed signals from base station 180 in one or more receive directions 108b. UE 104 can also transmit beamformed signals to base station 180 in one or more transmit directions. Base station 180 can receive beamformed signals from UE 104 in one or more receive directions. Base station 180 / UE 104 can perform beamforming training to determine the optimal receive and transmit directions for each base station 180 / UE 104. The transmit and receive directions of base station 180 can be the same or different. The transmit and receive directions of UE 104 can be the same or different.

[0034] EPC 160 may include Mobility Management Entity (MME) 162, other MMEs 164, Serving Gateway 166, Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS) Gateway 168, Broadcast Multicast Service Center (BM-SC) 170, and Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway 172. MME 162 can communicate with Home Subscriber Server (HSS) 174. MME 162 is the control node that handles signaling between UE 104 and EPC 160. Typically, MME 162 provides bearer and connection management. All user Internet Protocol (IP) packets are transmitted through Serving Gateway 166, which is itself connected to PDN Gateway 172. PDN Gateway 172 provides UE IP address allocation and other functions. PDN Gateway 172 and BM-SC 170 are connected to IP Service 176. IP Service 176 may include the Internet, intranet, IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), PS streaming service, and / or other IP services. The BM-SC 170 provides functionality for MBMS user service provisioning and delivery. It serves as an entry point for content provider MBMS transmissions, authorizing and initiating MBMS bearer services within a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), and scheduling MBMS transmissions. The MBMS gateway 168 can allocate MBMS services to base station 102 within a Multicast-Broadcast Single Frequency Network (MBSFN) area belonging to a broadcast-specific service, and is responsible for session management (start / stop) and collecting billing information related to eMBMS.

[0035] The core network 190 may include Access and Mobility Management Functions (AMF) 192, other AMFs 193, Location Management Functions (LMF) 198, Session Management Functions (SMF) 194, and User Plane Functions (UPF) 195. AMF 192 can communicate with Unified Data Management (UDM) 196. AMF 192 is the control node that handles signaling between UE 104 and the core network 190. Typically, SMF 194 provides QoS flow and session management. All user Internet Protocol (IP) packets are transmitted through UPF 195. UPF 195 provides UE IP address allocation and other functions. UPF 195 connects to IP services 197. IP services 197 may include the Internet, intranet, IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), PS streaming services, and / or other IP services.

[0036] A base station may also be referred to as a gNB, Node B, evolved Node B (eNB), access point, base transceiver, radio base station, radio transceiver, transceiver function, Basic Services Set (BSS), Extended Services Set (ESS), Transmitter Receiver Point (TRP), or some other suitable terminology. Base station 102 provides UE 104 with access to EPC 160 or core network 190. Examples of UE 104 include cellular phones, smartphones, Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phones, laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), satellite radios, GPS devices, multimedia devices, video devices, digital audio players (e.g., MP3 players), cameras, game consoles, tablets, smart devices, wearable devices, vehicles, electricity meters, air pumps, large or small kitchen appliances, healthcare devices, implants, sensors / actuators, displays, or any other similarly functional devices. Some of UE 104 may be referred to as IoT devices (e.g., parking timers, gas pumps, toasters, vehicles, heart monitors, etc.). UE 104 may also be referred to as a station, mobile station, subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile subscriber station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, mobile phone, user agent, mobile client, client, or some other suitable term.

[0037] Although this disclosure may refer to 5G New Radio (NR), it may be applied to other similar fields, such as LTE, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Global Systems for Mobile Communications (GSM), or other wireless / radio access technologies.

[0038] Figure 2This is a block diagram of base station 210 communicating with UE 250 in the access network. In the DL, IP packets from EPC 160 can be provided to controller / processor 275. Controller / processor 275 implements Layer 3 and Layer 2 functions. Layer 3 includes the Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer, and Layer 2 includes the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, and Media Access Control (MAC) layer. The controller / processor 275 provides RRC layer functions related to broadcast system information (e.g., MIB, SIB), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter radio access technology (RAT), and measurement configuration for UE measurement reports; PDCP layer functions related to header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functions related to the transmission of upper-layer packet data units (PDUs), error correction via ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data-associated PDUs; and MAC layer functions related to mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs to transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction via HARQ, priority processing, and logical channel priority.

[0039] Transmit (TX) processor 216 and receive (RX) processor 270 implement Layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1 includes a physical (PHY) layer, which may include error detection on the transport channel, forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding of the transport channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. TX processor 216 processes the mapping to the signal constellation based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The encoded and modulated symbols can then be split into parallel streams. Each stream can then be mapped to OFDM subcarriers, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., a pilot) in the time and / or frequency domains, and then combined using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a stream carrying time-domain OFDM symbols. The OFDM streams are spatially precoded to produce multiple spatial streams. The channel estimate from channel estimator 274 can be used to determine coding and modulation schemes, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimate can be derived from a reference signal transmitted by UE 250 and / or channel condition feedback. Each spatial stream can then be provided to a different antenna 220 via a separate transmitter 218TX. Each transmitter 218TX can modulate an RF carrier with the corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0040] At UE 250, each receiver 254RX receives signals through its respective antenna 252. Each receiver 254RX recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to the receive (RX) processor 256. The TX processor 268 and RX processor 256 implement Layer 1 functions related to various signal processing functions. The RX processor 256 can perform spatial processing on this information to recover any spatial stream destined for UE 250. If multiple spatial streams are destined for UE 250, they can be combined by the RX processor 256 into a single OFDM symbol stream. The RX processor 256 then uses a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) to transform the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain. The frequency domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols and reference signals on each subcarrier are recovered and demodulated by determining the most probable signal constellation points transmitted by base station 210. These soft decisions can be based on channel estimates calculated by channel estimator 258. The soft decision involves decoding and deinterleaving to recover the data and control signals originally transmitted by base station 210 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to controller / processor 259, which implements Layer 3 and Layer 2 functions.

[0041] Controller / processor 259 may be associated with memory 260, which stores program code and data. Memory 260 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In UL, controller / processor 259 provides demultiplexing, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing between transport and logical channels to recover IP packets from EPC 160. Controller / processor 259 is also responsible for error detection using ACK and / or NACK protocols supporting HARQ operation.

[0042] Similar to the functions described in the DL transmission description of base station 210, controller / processor 259 provides RRC layer functions associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functions associated with upper-layer PDU transmission, error correction via ARQ, concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs, resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functions associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs to TBs, demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction via HARQ, priority processing, and logical channel priority.

[0043] The TX processor 268 can use a reference signal transmitted from the base station 210 by the channel estimator 258 or a channel estimate derived from feedback to select an appropriate coding and modulation scheme and facilitate spatial processing. The spatial stream generated by the TX processor 268 can be provided to different antennas 252 via individual transmitters 254TX. Each transmitter 254TX can modulate an RF carrier with the corresponding spatial stream for transmission. UL transmission is processed at the base station 210 in a manner similar to that described in conjunction with the receiver function at the UE 250. Each receiver 218RX receives a signal through its respective antenna 220. Each receiver 218RX recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to the RX processor 270.

[0044] Controller / processor 275 may be associated with memory 276, which stores program code and data. Memory 276 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, controller / processor 275 provides demultiplexing, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing between transport and logical channels to recover IP packets from UE 250. IP packets from controller / processor 275 may be provided to EPC 160. Controller / processor 275 is also responsible for error detection using ACK and / or NACK protocols to support HARQ operation.

[0045] New radio (NR) can refer to a radio (IP) configured to operate under a new air interface (e.g., different from an air interface based on Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA)) or a fixed transport layer (e.g., different from the Internet Protocol). NR can use OFDM with a cyclic prefix (CP) on both the uplink and downlink, and can include support for half-duplex operation using Time Division Duplex (TDD). NR may include mission-critical applications for enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) services with wide bandwidth (e.g., exceeding 80 MHz), millimeter wave (mmW) services with high carrier frequencies (e.g., 60 GHz), massive MTC (mMTC) services with non-backward-compatible MTC technologies, and / or ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC) services.

[0046] It can support a single component carrier bandwidth of 100MHz. In one example, an NR resource block (RB) can span 12 subcarriers with a subcarrier spacing (SCS) of 60kHz and a duration of 0.25ms, or an SCS of 30kHz and a duration of 0.5ms (similarly, a 50MHz BW with a 15kHz SCS lasting 1ms). Each radio frame can consist of 10 subframes (10, 20, 40, or 80 NR slots) of 10ms in length. Each slot can indicate the link direction for data transmission (i.e., DL or UL), and the link direction of each slot can be dynamically switched. Each slot can include DL / UL data and DL / UL control data. The UL and DL slots used for NR can be as follows: Figure 5 , 6 To describe in more detail.

[0047] NR RAN can include a Central Unit (CU) and a Distributed Unit (DU). NR BS (e.g., gNB, 5G Node B, Node B, Transport Receive Point (TRP), Access Point (AP)) can correspond to one or more BSs. NR cells can be configured as Access Cells (ACells) or Data-Only Cells (DCells). For example, the RAN (e.g., a Central Unit or a Distributed Unit) can configure cells. A DCell may be a cell used for carrier aggregation or dual connectivity and may not be used for initial access, cell selection / reselection, or handover. In some cases, a DCell may not transmit a synchronization signal (SS), and in others, it may transmit an SS. NR BSs can transmit downlink signals indicating the cell type to the UE. Based on the cell type indication, the UE can communicate with the NR BS. For example, the UE can determine which NR BS to consider for cell selection, access, handover, and / or measurement based on the indicated cell type.

[0048] Figure 3An example logical architecture of a distributed RAN 300 according to aspects of this disclosure is illustrated. A 5G access node (abbreviated as 5G AN) 306 may include an access node controller (ANC) 302. The ANC may be the central unit (CU) of the distributed RAN. The backhaul interface to the next-generation core network (NG-CN) 304 may terminate at the ANC. The backhaul interface to the adjacent next-generation access node (NG-AN) 310 may terminate at the ANC. The ANC may include one or more TRPs 308 (also referred to as BS, NRBS, Node B, 5G NB, AP, or some other terminology). As mentioned above, TRP can be used interchangeably with "cell".

[0049] TRP 308 can be a distributed unit (DU). A TRP can be connected to one ANC (ANC 302) or more ANCs (not shown). For example, for RAN sharing, Radio as a Service (RaaS), and service-specific ANC deployments, a TRP can be connected to multiple ANCs. A TRP can include one or more antenna ports. A TRP can be configured to provide services to the UE individually (e.g., dynamically selected) or jointly (e.g., jointly transmitted).

[0050] The local architecture of the distributed RAN 300 can be used to illustrate the fronthaul definition. An architecture supporting fronthaul solutions across different deployment types can be defined. For example, the architecture can be based on transport network capabilities (e.g., bandwidth, latency, and / or jitter). This architecture can share features and / or components with LTE. Based on this architecture, the next-generation AN (NG-AN) 310 can support dual connectivity with NR. NG-AN can share a common fronthaul for both LTE and NR.

[0051] This architecture enables cooperation between TRPs 308. For example, cooperation can be pre-defined within and / or across TRPs via ANC 302. Depending on the aspect, inter-TRP interfaces may not be needed or may not exist.

[0052] Dynamic configuration of separate logical functions can exist within the architecture of a distributed RAN 300. PDCP, RLC, and MAC protocols can be adaptively placed at the ANC or TRP.

[0053] Figure 4An example physical architecture of the distributed RAN 400 according to this disclosure is described. A centralized core network unit (C-CU) 402 can host core network functions. The C-CU can be centrally deployed. C-CU functions may be offloaded (e.g., to Advanced Wireless Services (AWS)) to handle peak capacity. A centralized RAN unit (C-RU) 404 can host one or more ANC functions. Optionally, the C-RU can host core network functions locally. The C-RU may have a distributed deployment. The C-RU may be located closer to the network edge. A distributed unit (DU) 406 can host one or more TRPs. The DU may be located at the network edge with radio frequency (RF) capabilities.

[0054] Figure 5 This is a flow 500 illustrating an example of a DL-centric slot. The DL-centric slot may include a control section 502. The control section 502 may exist in the initial or beginning portion of the DL-centric slot. The control section 502 may include various scheduling and / or control information corresponding to different portions of the DL-centric slot. In some configurations, the control section 502 may be a physical DL control channel (PDCCH), such as... Figure 5 As shown. The DL center's time slot may also include a DL data portion 504. The DL data portion 504 may sometimes be referred to as the payload of the DL center's time slot. The DL data portion 504 may include communication resources for transmitting DL data from a scheduling entity (e.g., a UE or BS) to a subordinate entity (e.g., a UE). In some configurations, the DL data portion 504 may be a Physical DL Shared Channel (PDSCH).

[0055] The time slot of the DL center may also include a common UL section 506. The common UL section 506 may sometimes be referred to as a UL burst, a common UL burst, and / or various other suitable terms. The common UL section 506 may include feedback information corresponding to various other sections of the DL center's time slot. For example, the common UL section 506 may include feedback information corresponding to the control section 502. Non-limiting examples of feedback information may include ACK signals, NACK signals, HARQ indicators, and / or various other suitable types of information. The common UL section 506 may include additional or alternative information, such as information related to the Random Access Channel (RACH) procedure, scheduling requests (SR), and various other suitable types of information.

[0056] like Figure 5As shown, the end of the DL data section 504 can be separated in time from the start of the common UL section 506. This time separation may sometimes be referred to as a gap, protection period, protection interval, and / or various other suitable terms. This separation provides time for the switch from DL communication (e.g., the reception operation of a subordinate entity (e.g., the UE)) to UL communication (e.g., the transmission of a subordinate entity (e.g., the UE)). Those skilled in the art will understand that the above is merely one example of a DL-centric time slot, and alternative structures with similar characteristics may exist without departing from the spirit of the description herein.

[0057] Figure 6 This is a process 600 illustrating an example of a UL-centered time slot. The UL-centered time slot may include a control section 602. The control section 602 may be present in the initial or start portion of the UL-centered time slot. Figure 6 The control section 602 in the reference section can be similar to that in the reference section. Figure 5 The control portion 502 is described. The UL-centric time slot may also include a UL data portion 604. The UL data portion 604 may sometimes be referred to as the payload of the UL-centric time slot. The UL portion may refer to the communication resources used to transmit UL data from a lower-level entity (e.g., the UE) to a scheduling entity (e.g., the UE or the BS). In some configurations, the control portion 602 may be a physical DL control channel (PDCCH).

[0058] like Figure 6 As shown, the end of control section 602 can be time-separated from the start of UL data section 604. This time separation may sometimes be referred to as a gap, protection cycle, protection interval, and / or various other suitable terms. This separation provides time for switching from DL communication (e.g., receiving operations of a scheduling entity) to UL communication (e.g., transmissions of a scheduling entity). UL-centric time slots may also include a common UL burst section 606. Figure 6 The public UL part 506 can be similar to reference Figure 5 The common UL section 506 is described. Common UL section 606 may additionally or alternatively include information relating to channel quality indicators (CQI), sounding reference signals (SRS), and various other suitable types of information. Those skilled in the art will understand that the foregoing is merely one example of a UL-centric time slot, and that alternative structures with similar characteristics may exist without departing from the aspects described herein.

[0059] In some cases, two or more dependent entities (e.g., UEs) can communicate with each other using sidelink signals. Practical applications of such sidelink communication might include public safety, proximity services, UE-to-network relay, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication, Internet of Things (IoE) communication, Internet of Things (IoT) communication, mission-critical meshes, and / or various other suitable applications. Typically, a sidelink signal can refer to a signal transmitted from one dependent entity (e.g., UE1) to another dependent entity (e.g., UE2) without relaying the communication through a scheduling entity (e.g., UE or BS), even if the scheduling entity can be used for scheduling and / or control purposes. In some examples, licensed spectrum can be used to transmit sidelink signals (unlike wireless LANs that typically use unlicensed spectrum). In an uplink SU-MIMO scenario including one base station and one mobile terminal (MT), if the base station has N r Antenna, MT has N t If there are L layers of antennas and signals transmitted between them, then the maximum number of layers is limited so that:

[0060] 1≤L≤min(N t N r )

[0061] Typically, a base station has N antennas. r The number of antennas N is much greater than MT. t Therefore, in traditional configurations, base stations cannot use N. r The root antenna achieves maximum MIMO gain. This disclosure provides an uplink distributed SU-MIMO framework to improve MIMO gain. Note that the term "mobile terminal" is commonly used in the literature. In this disclosure, MT is not necessarily "mobile" and can also be a fixed wireless device, similar to a client device (CPE).

[0062] Figure 7 This illustration shows a distributed MIMO transmission process 700. This disclosure shows that multiple distributed low-rank mobile terminals (MTs), fixed client equipment (CPEs), or wireless devices can form a high-rank MIMO transmitter / receiver. Base station 702 and master MT 704 communicate with each other through one or more slave MTs 706, 708...710. Slave MTs, also called repeaters, can be wireless devices such as mobile phones, fixed CPEs, and wireless routers. In this example, there are K slave MTs (K is an integer, K≥1). Master MT 704 and the K slave MTs 706, 708,...710 are connected together to form a high-rank MIMO transmitter / receiver network to extend the channel rank. The term "mobile terminal" as used herein refers to any type of wireless device, including fixed wireless devices such as CPEs.

[0063] As described below, a repeater receives an RF signal in a first frequency band, shifts the RF carrier of the RF signal to a second frequency band, and then transmits the shifted RF signal in the second frequency band. Each frequency band is an interval in the frequency domain. Specifically, the repeater can be a frequency-converting repeater. The repeater can also be a time-delay repeater, which receives the RF signal and then retransmits the received RF signal after a certain time delay. Furthermore, the repeater can receive the RF signal in a first time-frequency resource, convert the received RF signal to a second time-frequency resource, and then transmit the converted RF signal. Specifically, the first time-frequency resource can be orthogonal to the second time-frequency resource.

[0064] In this invention, (f, t) represents time-frequency resources: (f, t)1 represents the time-frequency resources used by the base station for transmitting and receiving radio frequency signals. 2，k Indicates a specific repeater MT k (k is an integer, 1 ≤ k ≤ K) represents the resources used to receive RF signals. Therefore, (f, t) 2，1 This indicates the resource used by the master MT 704 (i.e., MT0) to transmit RF signals to the slave MT 706 (i.e., MT1); (f, t) 2，2 This indicates the resources used by the master MT 704 to transmit signals to the slave MT 708 (i.e., MT2), and so on. In some configurations, (f,t)1, (f,t) 2，1 (f, t) 2，2 , ... and (f, t) 2，K They are orthogonal. In particular, they do not overlap in the frequency domain. In some configurations, (f, t)1 might be associated with a {f, t) 2，k (k∈1,...K) are the same, while the rest are mutually orthogonal. Furthermore, (f,t)1 and (f,t) 2，k (1≤k≤K) can be a non-overlapping component carrier, a non-overlapping bandwidth portion (BWP), a non-overlapping frequency band, or a non-overlapping set within the same component carrier.

[0065] In one example, the main MT 704 can have four physical antennas (i.e., physical antennas 1 to 4) and can transmit four layers of data (i.e., layers 1 to 4). Furthermore, each layer of data corresponds to one antenna port. In a first configuration, the main MT 704 maps specific layers to specific physical antennas. For example, layer 1 data is transmitted through physical antenna 1, layer 2 data through physical antenna 2, and so on. This is called incoherent mode. In a second configuration, in the main MT 704, at least one specific layer is mapped to at least two physical antennas, and at least one physical antenna is not mapped to at least one of the four data layers. For example, layer 1 data is transmitted through physical antennas 1 and 2, layer 2 data is transmitted through physical antennas 3 and 4, and so on. This is called partially coherent mode. In a third configuration, each layer of data is mapped to all physical antennas. This is called fully coherent mode.

[0066] Figure 8 This diagram illustrates a flow 800 of an uplink probing technique in a distributed high-rank MIMO system according to the first method. In this example, base station 802 has eight physical antennas 872-1 to 872-8. UE 804 has four physical antennas 876-1 to 876-4, which can operate on time-frequency resources (f, t). 2，1 and (f, t) 2，2 Signals are sent simultaneously. Furthermore, at (f, t)... 2，1 The four transmitting physical antennas 876-1 to 876-4 are considered to be the first group of physical antennas 810, in (f, t). 2，2 The same four physical antennas transmitting signals are considered the second group of physical antennas 812. That is, the first group of physical antennas 810 and the second group of physical antennas 812 transmit signals on different frequency resources. In this example, at (f, t) 2，1 and (f, t) 2，2 The same four transmit physical antennas 876-1 to 876-4 are shared to reduce the chip area cost of the UE 804. In other examples, the first set of physical antennas 810 and the second set of physical antennas 812 are (f, t) respectively. 2，1 and (f, t) 2，2 Different physical antennas on the same surface, and not shared physical antennas.

[0067] Repeater 806 and repeater 808 are placed between base station 802 and UE 804. Repeater 806 has four transmit physical antennas 883-1 to 883-4 and four receive physical antennas 882-1 to 882-4. Repeater 808 has four transmit physical antennas 887-1 to 887-4 and four receive physical antennas 886-1 to 886-4.

[0068] In this example, base station 802 transmits and receives signals on (f, t)1. Repeater 806 receives signals on (f, t). 2，1 The repeater 808 converts the signal on (f, t)1 (e.g., frequency shifts) and retransmits the signal on (f, t). 2，2 The signal is received, converted (e.g., frequency shifted), and retransmitted on (f, t)1.

[0069] In addition, UE 804 has eight antenna ports 862-1 to 862-8. Each of the eight antenna ports 862-1 to 862-8 can transmit SRS in the corresponding SRS resource set.

[0070] The SRS transmitted from the eight antenna ports 862-1 to 862-8, denoted as x1, x2, ..., x8, can be represented by a vector:

[0071]

[0072] In this first method, UE 804 divides the eight antenna ports 862-1 to 862-8 into two groups: a first group of antenna ports 862-1 to 862-4 and a second group of antenna ports 862-5 to 862-8. The SRS transmitted by the first group of antenna ports 862-1 to 862-4 is represented as follows:

[0073]

[0074] The SRS transmitted from the second group of antenna ports 862-5 to 862-8 is represented as follows:

[0075]

[0076] In this example, UE 804 passes through spatial filter F′ (1) 4×4 x (1) 4×1 Mapped to the first set of physical antennas 810 and generated S (1) 4×1 =F′ (4) 4×4 ·x (4) 4×1 In some configurations, F′ (1) 4×4 It is the identity matrix; therefore, x (1) 4×1 It is an uncoded 4-port SRS. In some configurations, F′ (1) 4×4 It is not an identity matrix; therefore, x (1) 4×1It is precoded SRS. UE 804 uses spatial filter F′ (2) 4×4 x (2) 4×1 Mapped to the second set of physical antennas 812 and generated S (2) 4×1 =F′ (2) 4×4 ·x (2) 4×1 Then UE 804 will S (1) 4×1 With time-frequency resources (f, t) 2，2 The RF carriers are mixed and the resulting RF signal is transmitted through the first set of physical antennas 810. Repeater 808 receives the RF signal through channel 820, which can be represented as H1.

[0077] Repeater 806 has four receiving physical antennas 882-1 to 882-4 and four transmitting physical antennas 883-1 to 883-4. The four receiving physical antennas 882-1 to 882-4 of repeater 806 receive time-frequency resources (f, t) through channel 830. 2，1 The RF signal transmitted by the second set of physical antennas 812 on the device can be represented as In repeater 806, if the baseband signal is extracted from the RF signal received at the antenna of repeater 806, it can be expressed as: Repeater 806 can amplify and forward received RF signals. The effect of amplification and forwarding on the baseband signal can be expressed as follows: Furthermore, repeater 806 will allocate resources used for signal forwarding from (f, t) 2，1 The time-frequency offset is shifted to (f, t)1. The effect of the time-frequency offset on the baseband signal can be represented as T2. Repeater 806 transmits RF signals on the time-frequency resource (f, t)1 of the four physical transmitting antennas 883-1 to 883-4. Thus, the RF signal transmitted by repeater 806 carries the baseband signal.

[0078]

[0079] Furthermore, the eight physical antennas 872-1 to 872-8 of base station 802 receive the radio frequency signals transmitted by repeater 806 through channel 832 on time-frequency resource (f, t)1, which can be represented as follows: Base station 802 obtains the baseband signal from the RF signal with time frequency (f, t) 1.

[0080] In this example, repeater 808 has four receive physical antennas 886-1 to 886-4 and four transmit physical antennas 887-1 to 887-4. Repeater 808 receives data from the first set of physical antennas 810 via channel 820 in time-frequency resources (f, t). 2，2 The transmitted radio frequency signal can be represented as In repeater 808, if the baseband signal is extracted from the RF signal received by the antenna of repeater 808, it can be expressed as: Repeater 808 amplifies and forwards received RF signals. The effect of amplification and forwarding on the baseband signal can be expressed as follows: Furthermore, repeater 808 will allocate resources used for signal forwarding from (f, t). 2，2 The time-frequency offset is shifted to (f, t)1. The effect of the time-frequency offset on the baseband signal can be expressed as T1. Repeater 808 transmits RF signals on the time-frequency resource (f, t)1 of the four antennas. Thus, the RF signal transmitted by repeater 806 carries the baseband signal.

[0081]

[0082] Furthermore, the eight physical antennas 872-1 to 872-8 of base station 802 receive the radio frequency signals transmitted by repeater 808 through channel 822 on time-frequency resource (f, t)1, which can be represented as follows: Base station 802 obtains the baseband signal from the RF signal with time frequency (f, t) 1.

[0083] Time-frequency (f, t) 2，2 and time-frequency (f, t) 2，1 They do not overlap in the frequency domain and are mutually orthogonal. Furthermore, (f, t) 2，2 and (f, t) 2，1 At least one of them does not overlap with or be orthogonal to (f, t)1. It is possible to predefine from (f, t)1. 2，2 The mapping from (f, t)1 and the mapping from (f, t)1 2，1 The mapping to (f, t)1 is either signaled by base station 802 or by UE 804 to repeater 806 and repeater 808.

[0084] Base station 802 receiver and Combined signals:

[0085]

[0086] matrix

[0087]

[0088] It has a rank of 8.

[0089] In this incoherent method, the SRS transmitted by the master MT is divided into K groups. The master MT uses time-frequency resources (f, t)... 2，k The system sends k sets of SRS (k is an integer, 1 ≤ k ≤ K). Transmissions between any two sets are incoherent. Transmissions of SRS within a set can be incoherent, partially coherent, or fully coherent.

[0090] In addition, base station 802 is known to have 8 ports SRS x 8×1 Base station 802 can measure the baseband signal extracted from the received RF signal to determine r. 8×1 Therefore, based on the equation r 8×1 =Q 8×8 ·x 8×1 Base station 802 can estimate Q 8×8 Base station 802 can perform corresponding x based on baseband signals. 8×1 Channel state measurement. Furthermore, in some configurations, UE 804 can transmit a capacity indicator to base station 802. This capacity indicator indicates that UE 804 can simultaneously transmit data from all eight antenna ports of UE 804 with the assistance of repeaters (e.g., repeaters 806 and 808). Therefore, as described above, UE 804 sends SRS to base station 802 from eight antenna ports 862-1 to 862-8. Therefore, base station 802 can further determine, based on r 8×1 This corresponds to the CSI of the eight antenna ports 862-1 to 862-8 of UE 804.

[0091] Figure 9 This is flowchart 900 of the uplink probing technique in a distributed high-rank MIMO system based on the second method. (See diagram 900.) Figure 8 As shown, UE 804 can be considered to operate the first set of physical antennas 810 and the second set of physical antennas 812. The first set of physical antennas 810 is configured to communicate with repeater 808 and the second set of physical antennas 812 is configured to communicate with repeater 806. The first set of physical antennas 810 and the second set of physical antennas 812 can be shared, or they can be two different sets of physical antennas.

[0092] As described above, UE 804 has eight antenna ports 862-1 to 862-8. Each of the eight antenna ports 862-1 to 862-8 can transmit SRS in the corresponding SRS resource set. In this example, UE 804 transmits SRS through spatial filter F. (1) 4×8 SRSx 8×1 Mapped to the first set of physical antennas 810 and generating signals s′1, s′2, ..., s′4 (i.e. It can be represented as: UE 804 also uses spatial filter F (2) 4×8 SRS x 8×1 Mapped to the second set of physical antennas 812 and generating signals s′5, s′6, ..., s′8 (i.e. It can be represented as:

[0093] In addition, UE 804 will With time-frequency resources (f, t) 2，2 The RF carrier is mixed in the first set of physical antennas 810 and the RF signal is transmitted to repeater 808. UE 804 mixes the RF carrier in the time and frequency resources. With RF carrier (f, t) 2，1 The obtained RF signal is transmitted to repeater 806 at the second set of physical antennas 812. Repeater 808 receives the time-frequency resource (f, t) from the first set of physical antennas 810 via channel 920. 2，2 The RF signal transmitted from the top, channel 920 can be represented as In repeater 808, the baseband signal can be represented as: like Figure 8 As shown, repeater 808 will transfer the resources for forwarding signals from (f, t). 2，2 The signal is transferred to (f, t)1. The RF signal sent by repeater 808 to base station 802 carries the baseband signal:

[0094]

[0095] Repeater 806 uses channel 930 in time-frequency resources (f, t) 2，1 The upper receiver receives the RF signal transmitted by the second set of physical antennas 812, which can be represented as: In repeater 806, the baseband signal can be represented as: like Figure 8 As shown, repeater 806 transfers the resources for forwarding signals from (f, t). 2，1 The signal is transferred to (f, t)1. The RF signal sent by repeater 806 to base station 802 carries the baseband signal:

[0096]

[0097] Furthermore, the eight physical antennas 872-1 to 872-8 of base station 802 receive the radio frequency signals transmitted by repeater 808 through channel 922 on time-frequency resource (f,t)1, which can be represented as follows: Base station 802 uses time-frequency (f, t) data. 2，1 Baseband signal obtained from RF signal

[0098]

[0099] The eight physical antennas 872-1 to 872-8 of base station 802 also receive radio frequency signals transmitted by repeater 806 through channel 932 on time-frequency resource (f, t)1, which can be represented as Base station 802 obtains the baseband signal from the RF signal with time frequency (f, t) 1.

[0100]

[0101] Time-frequency (f, t) 2，2 and time-frequency (f, t) 2，1 They do not overlap in the frequency domain and are mutually orthogonal. Furthermore, (f, t) 2，2 and (f, t) 2，1 At least one of them does not overlap with or be orthogonal to (f, t)1. It is possible to predefine from (f, t)1. 2，2 The mapping from (f, t)1 and the mapping from (f, t)1 2，1 The mapping to (f, t)1, or the signal notified to base station 802 by UE 804.

[0102] Base station 802 receiver and Combined signals:

[0103]

[0104] matrix

[0105]

[0106] It has a rank of 8.

[0107] In this coherent approach, from the perspective of the master MT, the SRS from each antenna port is jointly transmitted by all physical antenna groups on all time-frequency resources (e.g., (f, t)). 2，1 (f, t) 2，2 , ...(f,t) 2，k This is used by the master MT. In one example of this coherent method, the master MT instructs the network that it can ensure that the SRS from each antenna port is transmitted coherently.

[0108] In addition, base station 802 is known to have SRSx 8×1 Base station 802 can measure the baseband signal extracted from the received RF signal to determine r. 8×1 Therefore, based on the equation r 8×1 =Q 8×8 ·x 8×1 Base station 802 can estimate Q 8×8Base station 802 can perform corresponding x based on baseband signals. 8×1 Channel state measurement. Furthermore, in some configurations, UE 804 can transmit a capacity indicator to base station 802. This capacity indicator indicates that UE 804 can coherently transmit data from its eight antenna ports with the assistance of repeaters (e.g., repeaters 806 and 808). Therefore, as described above, UE 804 transmits SRS to base station 802 from its eight antenna ports 862-1 to 862-8. Thus, base station 802 can further determine, based on r 8×1 This corresponds to the CSI of the eight antenna ports 862-1 to 862-8 of UE 804.

[0109] To acquire Channel State Information (CSI) at the base station, the primary MT needs to transmit reference signals for N ports to be received at the base station. In some configurations, the N antenna ports are divided into K groups, each group corresponding to a subordinate MT or base station (for direct links). For the primary MT, the reference signals corresponding to the antenna ports in the same group k are in (f, t). 2，k Transmission occurs on k = 1, 2, ..., M, where M is no greater than the total number of slave MTs. Furthermore, reference signals corresponding to the direct link from the master MT are transmitted on (f, t)1. Slave MTs k In (f, t) 2，k The reference signal received is converted into a signal to be transmitted on (f, t)1.

[0110] In the first approach, transmission between any two sets of antenna ports (associated with different k) is incoherent. The transmission layer within a set can be incoherent, partially coherent, or fully coherent. The master MT can be configured with multiple SRS resource sets, each corresponding to a specific set of antenna ports. Furthermore, each SRS resource set can be associated with a corresponding TCI state or spatial relation to indicate a spatial filter used for transmission.

[0111] In one example, (f, t)1 is component carrier #0; (f, t) 2，k Let k be a component carrier, where k = 1, 2. Each group has 4 antenna ports and is assigned a corresponding SRS resource set. In other words, two 4-port SRS resource sets are used, corresponding to component carrier #1 and component carrier #2, respectively.

[0112] In the second method, transmissions between any two sets of antenna ports (associated with different k) can be coherent. The master MT can configure sets of SRS resources allocated across groups to the antenna ports. SRS from these antenna ports can be transmitted coherently.

[0113] In one example, (f, t)1 is component carrier #0; (f, t)2，k Let k be a component carrier, where k = 1, 2. An SRS resource set is shared by 8 antenna ports. SRS from the 8 antenna ports are transmitted coherently, even though SRS from different antenna ports may be transmitted on different component carriers.

[0114] To avoid mutual interference between the SRS of different antenna ports after time-frequency conversion of the slave MT, the master MT can be configured with different SRS resource sets used by different groups, so that after time-frequency conversion, 1) the SRS corresponding to different antenna port groups do not overlap or 2) some SRS overlap but the overlapping SRS are associated with different spreading codes or orthogonal coverage codes (OCC).

[0115] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram representing the SRS resource set corresponding to a different antenna port group than either the first or second method. As mentioned earlier, UE 804 in (f, t) 2，1 and (f, t) 2，2 The UE 804 sends SRS to base station 802 via repeaters 806 and 808. In this example, UE 804 is at (f, t) 2，1 The UE 804 transmits SRS from antenna port group 1 in SRS resource set #1; UE 804 is at (f, t) 2，2 The SRS is transmitted from antenna port group 2 in SRS resource set #2. In this example, SRS resource sets #1 and #2 are each allocated one OFDM symbol. SRS resource set #1 is allocated resource elements (REs) 0 to 3 in a combo-8 structure. SRS resource set 2 is allocated resource elements REs 4 to 7 in a combo-8 structure. Furthermore, SRS from each of the first group of antenna ports (i.e., antenna ports 0 to 3) occupies the corresponding REs in REs 0 to 3. SRS from each of the second group of antenna ports (i.e., antenna ports 4 to 7) occupies the corresponding REs in REs 4 to 7.

[0116] After time-frequency conversion, the SRS from different antenna ports still occupy different REs in the comb-8 structure. That is, the SRS from different antenna ports do not overlap on (f,t)1.

[0117] Figure 11This is a flowchart of process 1100 for a method (procedure) for transmitting uplink reference signals. This method can be performed by a UE (e.g., UE 804). In operation 1102, the UE obtains resource conversion rules that map first and second time-frequency resources to reference time-frequency resources. In operation 1104, the UE determines a first baseband time-frequency resource allocation for a first set of reference signals on the first time-frequency resource. In operation 1106, the UE determines a second baseband time-frequency resource allocation for a second set of reference signals on the second time-frequency resource. The baseband time-frequency resources allocated from the first set of reference signals mapped from the first baseband time-frequency resource according to the resource conversion rules do not overlap with or orthogonal to the baseband time-frequency resources allocated from the second set of reference signals mapped from the second baseband time-frequency resource according to the resource conversion rules.

[0118] In operation 1108, the UE is on N in the first time-frequency resource. t1 The first RF signal is transmitted from one antenna. This first RF signal carries the first set of reference signals from the L1 antenna port. t1 L1 and N are positive integers. L1 is not greater than N. t1 In operation 1110, the UE is on the second time-frequency resource in N. t2 A second RF signal is transmitted from one of the antennas. This second RF signal carries the reference signal for the second set of L2 antenna ports. t2 L2 is a positive integer. L2 is not greater than N. t2 In operation 1112, the UE is in N t1 One antenna and N t2 A third RF signal is transmitted on a first time-frequency resource, and a fourth RF signal is transmitted on a second time-frequency resource. The third and fourth RF signals carry L-layer data. L is not greater than the sum of L1 and L2.

[0119] In some configurations, N t1 Antenna and N t2The antennas share at least one identical antenna. In some configurations, the first and second time-frequency resources are in two non-overlapping frequency bands or carriers. In some configurations, the first and second time-frequency resources do not overlap. In some configurations, the first and second sets of reference signals are SRS. In some configurations, the first set of reference signals is in a first SRS resource set allocated to the baseband time-frequency resources. The second set of reference signals is in a second SRS resource set allocated to the baseband time-frequency resources. In some configurations, reference signals from at least two ports of the L1 antenna are coherently transmitted, or reference signals from at least two ports of the L2 antenna are coherently transmitted. In some configurations, reference signals from at least one port of the L1 antenna and reference signals from at least one port of the L2 antenna are coherently transmitted. In some configurations, reference signals from each port of the L1 antenna are incoherently transmitted, or reference signals from each port of the L2 antenna are incoherently transmitted. In some configurations, the first set of reference signals from the L1 antenna ports is coherently mapped to N. t1 One antenna, and the second set of reference signals from the L2 antenna port is incoherently mapped to N. t2 There are two antennas. In some configurations, the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals reside in a single SRS resource set allocated by baseband time-frequency resources. In some configurations, the first set of reference signals resides in a single SRS resource allocated by baseband time-frequency resources, and the second set of reference signals resides in another SRS resource allocated by baseband time-frequency resources. In some configurations, the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals are associated with two TCI states or a shared TCI state, respectively.

[0120] Figure 12 This is an example diagram illustrating a hardware implementation 1200 for a device 1202 employing a processing system 1214. Device 1202 may be a UE (e.g., UE 804). The processing system 1214 may be implemented using a bus architecture typically represented by a bus 1224. The bus 1224 may include any number of interconnect buses and bridges, depending on the specific application and overall design constraints of the processing system 1214. The bus 1224 links various circuits together, including one or more processors and / or hardware components, represented by one or more processors 1204, receiving components 1264, transmitting components 1270, time-frequency transmission control components 1276, SRS generation components 1278, and computer-readable medium / memory 1206. The bus 1224 may also link various other circuits, such as timing sources, peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits.

[0121] The processing system 1214 may be coupled to a transceiver 1210, which may be one or more transceivers 354. The transceiver 1210 may be coupled to one or more antennas 1220, which may be communication antennas 352.

[0122] Transceiver 1210 provides a means for communicating with various other devices via a transmission medium. Transceiver 1210 receives signals from one or more antennas 1220, extracts information from the received signals, and provides the extracted information to processing system 1214, particularly receiving component 1264. Furthermore, transceiver 1210 receives information 1214 from processing system 1214, particularly transmission component 1270, and generates signals to be applied to one or more antennas 1220 based on the received information.

[0123] Processing system 1214 includes one or more processors 1204 coupled to computer-readable medium / memory 1206. The one or more processors 1204 are responsible for general processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium / memory 1206. When executed by the one or more processors 1204, the software causes processing system 1214 to perform the various functions described above for any particular device. Computer-readable medium / memory 1206 can also be used to store data manipulated by the one or more processors 1204 while the software is being executed. Processing system 1214 also includes at least one of a receiving component 1264, a transmitting component 1270, a time-frequency transmission control component 1276, and an SRS generation component 1278. These components may be software components running in the one or more processors 1204, resident / stored in the computer-readable medium / memory 1206, one or more hardware components coupled to the one or more processors 1204, or some combination thereof. The processing system 1214 may be a component of the UE 350 and may include at least one of memory 360 and / or TX processor 368, RX processor 356 and communication processor 359.

[0124] In one configuration, the wireless communication device 1202 includes components for performing... Figure 11 The means for each operation. The means may be one or more of the aforementioned components of the means 1202 and / or the processing system 1214 of the means 1202, which are configured to perform the functions listed above.

[0125] As described above, the processing system 1214 may include a TX processor 368, an RX processor 356, and a communication processor 359. Therefore, in one configuration, the above-described apparatus may be the TX processor 368, the RX processor 356, and the communication processor 359. The communication processor 359 is configured to perform the functions described above.

[0126] It should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the disclosed process / flowchart is an illustration of exemplary methods. Based on design preferences, it is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the process / flowchart can be rearranged. Furthermore, some blocks can be combined or omitted. The scope of the appended method claim, which presents the elements of various blocks in a sample order, is not intended to limit it to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

[0127] The foregoing description is provided to enable those 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 scope of the claim is not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but is to be consistent with the full scope of the language of the claim, wherein elements referred to in the singular are not intended to mean “one and only one,” unless specifically stated otherwise, but rather “one or more.” The word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “example, instance, or illustration.” Any aspect described herein as “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as superior to or superior to other aspects, unless otherwise expressly stated. The term “some” means one or more. Combinations such as “at least one of A, B, or C,” “one or more of A, B, or C,” “at least one of A, B, and C,” “one or more of A, B, and C,” and “A, B, C, or any combination thereof” include any combination of A, B, and / or C, and may include multiples of A, multiples of B, or multiples of C. Specifically, combinations such as "at least one of A, B, or C", "one or more of A, B, or C", "at least one of A, B, and C", "at least one of A, B, or C", "A, B, and C", and "A, B, C, or any combination thereof" can be only A, only B, only C, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A and B and C, wherein any such combination may contain one or more members of A, B, or C. All structural and functional equivalents of the elements of the various aspects described in this disclosure are known or will be known hereafter by those skilled in the art and are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be covered by the claimed scope. Furthermore, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be offered to the public, whether or not such disclosure is expressly stated in the claimed scope. The words "module", "mechanism", "element", "device", etc., cannot replace the word "means". Therefore, no element of the claimed scope should be construed as means plus function unless the element is expressly referenced using the phrase "means for".

Claims

1. A method of wireless communication of a user equipment (UE), comprising: In the first time-frequency resource, in N t1 The first radio frequency signal is transmitted from the antenna, and the first radio frequency signal carries the first set of reference signals for L1 antenna ports, N t1 L1 is a positive integer, and L1 is not greater than N. t1 ; In the second time-frequency resource, in N t2 The second radio frequency signal is transmitted from the first antenna. The second radio frequency signal carries the second set of reference signals for the L2 antenna ports, N t2 L2 is a positive integer, and L2 is not greater than N. t2 ;as well as In N t1 antennas and N t2 antennas, a third radio frequency signal is transmitted on a first time-frequency resource, and a fourth radio frequency signal is transmitted on a second time-frequency resource, the third radio frequency signal and the fourth radio frequency signal carrying L layers of data, L being not greater than the sum of L1 and L2. wherein the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals are received by a base station on third time-frequency resources, the first time-frequency resources and the second time-frequency resources map to the third time-frequency resources.

2. The method of wireless communication of claim 1, wherein, The N t1 antennas and the N t2 antennas share at least one same antenna.

3. The method of wireless communication of claim 1, wherein, the first time-frequency resources and the second time-frequency resources are within two non-overlapping frequency bands or carriers.

4. The method of wireless communication of claim 1, wherein, the first time-frequency resources do not overlap with the second time-frequency resources.

5. The method of wireless communication of claim 1, wherein, further comprising obtaining a resource conversion rule mapping the first time-frequency resources and the second time-frequency resources to reference time-frequency resources; determining a first baseband time-frequency resource allocation for the first set of reference signals on the first time-frequency resources; and determining a second baseband time-frequency resource allocation for the second set of reference signals on the second time-frequency resources, wherein the baseband time-frequency resource allocation for the first set of reference signals on reference time-frequency resources mapped from the first baseband time-frequency resources according to the resource conversion rule does not overlap or is orthogonal with the baseband time-frequency resource allocation for the second set of reference signals on reference time-frequency resources mapped from the second baseband time-frequency resources according to the resource conversion rule.

6. The method of wireless communication according to claim 1, wherein, the reference signals of at least two ports of the L1 antenna ports are coherently transmitted, or the reference signals of at least two ports of the L2 antenna ports are coherently transmitted.

7. The method of wireless communication of claim 1, wherein, the reference signals of at least one port of the L1 antenna ports and at least one port of the L2 antenna ports are coherently transmitted.

8. The method of wireless communication of claim 1, wherein, the reference signals of each port of the L1 antenna ports are non-coherently transmitted, or the reference signals of each port of the L2 antenna ports are non-coherently transmitted.

9. The method of wireless communication of claim 1, wherein, A first set of reference signals from L1 antenna ports are coherently mapped to N t1 antennas, and a second set of reference signals from L2 antenna ports are non-coherently mapped to N t2 antennas.

10. The method of wireless communication of claim 1, wherein, the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals are sounding reference signals (SRS).

11. The method of wireless communication of claim 10, wherein, the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals are in a single SRS resource set of the baseband time-frequency resource allocation.

12. The method of wireless communication of claim 10, wherein, the first set of reference signals are in a single SRS resource of the baseband time-frequency resource allocation, and the second set of reference signals are in another SRS resource of the baseband time-frequency resource allocation.

13. The method of wireless communication of claim 1, wherein, the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals are respectively associated with two transmission configuration indicator (TCI) states, or a shared TCI state. 14.An apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus being a user equipment (UE), comprising: a memory; and at least one processor coupled to the memory and configured to: On the first time-frequency resource, on the N t1 antennas, the first radio frequency signal carrying a first set of reference signals of L1 antenna ports, N t1 and L1 are positive integers, L1 is not greater than N t1 ; transmit a second radio frequency signal on the second time-frequency resource on the N t2 antennas, the second radio frequency signal carrying a second set of reference signals of L2 antenna ports, N t2 and L2 are positive integers, L2 is not greater than N t2 ; and On the N t1 antennas and the N t2 antennas, a third radio frequency signal is transmitted on the first time-frequency resource, and a fourth radio frequency signal is transmitted on the second time-frequency resource, the third radio frequency signal and the fourth radio frequency signal carrying L layers of data, L being not greater than the sum of L1 and L2. wherein the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals are received by a base station on third time-frequency resources, the first time-frequency resources and the second time-frequency resources map to the third time-frequency resources.

15. The apparatus for wireless communication of claim 14, wherein, The N t1 antennas and the N t2 antennas share at least one same antenna.

16. The apparatus for wireless communication of claim 14, wherein, the first time-frequency resources and the second time-frequency resources are within two non-overlapping frequency bands or carriers.

17. The apparatus for wireless communication of claim 14, wherein, the first time-frequency resources do not overlap with the second time-frequency resources.

18. The apparatus for wireless communication of claim 14, wherein, the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals are sounding reference signals (SRS).

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