Discontinuous Reception in Sidelink Communications

Abstract

Example embodiments of the present disclosure relate to methods, devices, and computer-readable storage media for discontinuous reception. The method includes determining, at a first device, a first set of resources for transmission of a first side link signal to a second device, the first side link information indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and sending a first message indicating the first set of resources to a second device in an active mode, so that the second device detects the first side link signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode. In this way, the power consumption of the terminal device can be significantly reduced, while improving the feasibility and flexibility of resource selection of the DRX scheme.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of telecommunications, and in particular to methods, apparatuses, and computer-readable storage media for a discontinuous reception (DRX) mechanism. Background Art

[0002] For vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communications in the fifth generation New Radio (NR) network, there are two resource allocation modes. In the first mode (hereinafter also referred to as NR V2X Mode 1 or Mode 1), one terminal device (e.g., user equipment) can perform V2X communication with another terminal device by using resources allocated by a network device such as a base station. In the second mode (hereinafter also referred to as NR V2X Mode 2 or Mode 2), one terminal device can perform V2X communication with another terminal device by using resources autonomously selected by the one terminal device in a resource pool. V2X communication and device-to-device (D2D) communication can be performed based on sidelink communication technology. To this end, a sidelink resource pool and a sidelink channel can be established for vehicles participating in such communication.

[0003] In some communication scenarios of NR networks, for example, in public safety and commercial wearable use cases, terminal devices are often sensitive to energy consumption, so energy-saving mechanisms may be particularly needed. The DRX scheme can work as an efficient energy-saving mechanism. For example, in sidelink communication, the terminal device does not always listen to or monitor the physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), but wakes up periodically and performs blind decoding on the PSCCH during the ON duration to monitor the PSCCH. Since the ON duration usually includes multiple time slots, performing blind decoding on the PSCCH is not energy-efficient. In this case, the feasibility and flexibility of resource selection of the DRX scheme are also poor. Summary of the invention

[0004] In general, example embodiments of the present disclosure provide a solution for a DRX scheme in sidelink communications.

[0005] In a first aspect, a first device is provided. The first device includes at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code; the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, enable the first device to at least: determine a first set of resources for transmission of a first side link signal to a second device, the first side link signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and send a first message indicating the first set of resources to the second device in an active mode, so that the second device detects the first side link signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode.

[0006] In a second aspect, a second device is provided. The second device includes at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code; the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, enable the second device to at least: receive a first message including a first set of resources for transmission of a first side link signal from a first device in an active mode, the first side link signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and detect the first side link signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode.

[0007] In a third aspect, a third apparatus is provided. The third apparatus comprises at least one processor; and at least one memory comprising computer program code; the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the third apparatus to at least: determine a resource allocation scheme indicating candidate resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal from a first apparatus to a second apparatus, the first sidelink signal indicating that the second apparatus remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and send the resource allocation scheme to the first apparatus and the second apparatus.

[0008] In a fourth aspect, a method is provided. The method includes: determining, at a first device, a first set of resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal to a second device, the first sidelink signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and sending a first message indicating the first set of resources to the second device in an active mode, so that the second device detects the first sidelink signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode.

[0009] In a fifth aspect, a method is provided. The method includes: receiving, at a second device in an active mode and from a first device, a first message indicating a first set of resources for transmission of a first side link signal, the first side link signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and detecting the first side link signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode.

[0010] In a sixth aspect, a method is provided. The method includes: determining, at a third device, a resource allocation scheme indicating candidate resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal from a first device to a second device, the first sidelink signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and sending the resource allocation scheme to the first device and the second device.

[0011] In a seventh aspect, a first device is provided. The first device includes: a component for determining, at the first device, a first set of resources for transmission of a first side link signal to a second device, the first side link signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and a component for sending a first message indicating the first set of resources to the second device in an active mode so that the second device detects the first side link signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode.

[0012] In an eighth aspect, a second device is provided. The second device includes: means for receiving, at the second device in an active mode and from a first device, a first message indicating a first set of resources for transmission of a first side link signal, the first side link signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and means for detecting the first side link signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode.

[0013] In a ninth aspect, a third device is provided. The third device includes: means for determining, at the third device, a resource allocation scheme indicating candidate resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal from the first device to the second device, the first sidelink signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and means for sending the resource allocation scheme to the first device and the second device.

[0014] In a tenth aspect, there is provided a computer readable medium having stored thereon a computer program which, when executed by at least one processor of a device, causes the device to perform the method according to the fourth aspect.

[0015] In an eleventh aspect, there is provided a computer readable medium having stored thereon a computer program which, when executed by at least one processor of a device, causes the device to perform the method according to the fifth aspect.

[0016] In a twelfth aspect, there is provided a computer readable medium having stored thereon a computer program which, when executed by at least one processor of a device, causes the device to perform a method according to the sixth aspect.

[0017] Other features and advantages of embodiments of the present disclosure will also be apparent from the following description of specific embodiments when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of embodiments of the present disclosure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] The embodiments of the present disclosure are presented in an exemplary sense, and their advantages will be explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which

[0019] Figure 1 An example environment is shown in which example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented;

[0020] Figure 2 shows an example time slot format of a side link channel between a transmitter terminal device and a receiver terminal device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0021] Figure 3 shows a signaling diagram illustrating a DRX procedure in sidelink communications according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0022] Figure 4 shows an example configuration of a DRX procedure according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0023] Figure 5A Another configuration of a DRX procedure according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown;

[0024] Figure 5B shows yet another configuration of a DRX procedure according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0025] Figure 6 A flowchart showing an example method for a DRX process according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown;

[0026] Figure 7 A flowchart showing an example method for a DRX process according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown;

[0027] Figure 8 A flowchart showing an example method for a DRX process according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown;

[0028] Fig. 9 shows a simplified block diagram of a device suitable for implementing an example embodiment of the present disclosure; and

[0029] Fig.10 A block diagram of an example computer-readable medium is shown in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0030] Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The principle of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to some example embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are described only to illustrate and help those skilled in the art to understand and implement the present disclosure, and do not represent any limitation on the scope of the present disclosure. The disclosure described herein can be implemented in various other ways except the way described below.

[0032] In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

[0033] In this disclosure, references to "one embodiment," "an embodiment," and "an example embodiment" indicate that the described embodiment may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but not every embodiment must include the particular feature, structure, or characteristic. In addition, such phrases do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. In addition, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in conjunction with an example embodiment, those skilled in the art believe that it is within the knowledge of those skilled in the art to affect such feature, structure, or characteristic in conjunction with other embodiments, whether or not explicitly described.

[0034] It should be understood that although the terms "first" and "second" etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish the functions of the various elements. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the listed terms.

[0035] The terms used herein are only used to describe specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the example embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" also include the plural forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It is further understood that the terms "comprises", "comprising", "has", "having", "includes", and / or "including" when used herein specify the presence of the features, elements, and / or components, etc., but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components, and / or combinations thereof.

[0036] As used in this application, the term "circuitry" may refer to one, more, or all of the following:

[0037] (a) a pure hardware circuit implementation (such as an implementation using only analog and / or digital circuitry), and

[0038] (b) a combination of hardware circuitry and software such as (where applicable):

[0039] (i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuits and software / firmware, and

[0040] (ii) any portion of a hardware processor(s) with software, including digital signal processor(s), software and memory(s), which work together to enable a device (such as a mobile phone or server) to perform various functions, and

[0041] (c) Hardware circuits and / or processor(s), such as microprocessor(s) or portions of microprocessor(s), that require software (e.g., firmware) to operate, but which may not be present when the software is not required for operation.

[0042] This definition of circuitry applies to all uses of the term in this application, including in any claims. As another example, as used in this application, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of only a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or a portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its accompanying software and / or firmware. For example, if applicable to a particular claim element, the term circuitry also covers a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device, or a similar integrated circuit in a server, cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

[0043] As used herein, the term "communication network" refers to a network that complies with any suitable communication standard, such as a fifth generation (5G) system, long term evolution (LTE), advanced LTE (LTE-a), wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA), high speed packet access (HSPA), narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), etc. In addition, the communication between the terminal device and the network device in the communication network can be performed according to any suitable generation of communication protocols, including but not limited to the first generation (1G), second generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), 4.5G, future fifth generation (5G) new radio (NR) communication protocol, and / or any other protocol currently known or to be developed in the future. The embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to various communication systems. In view of the rapid development of communication, there will certainly be future types of communication technologies and systems that can embody the present disclosure. The scope of the present disclosure should not be limited to the above-mentioned systems.

[0044] As used herein, the term "network device" refers to a node in a communication network through which a terminal device accesses the network and receives services from the network. A network device may refer to a base station (BS) or an access point (AP), for example, a NodeB (NodeB or NB), an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB), a NR next-generation NodeB (gNB), a remote radio unit (RRU), a radio head (RH), a remote radio head (RRH), a relay, a low-power node (such as a femto, pico), etc., depending on the terminology and technology applied. It is allowed to define a network device as part of a gNB, for example in a CU / DU split, in which case the network device is defined as a gNB-CU or a gNB-DU.

[0045] The term "terminal device" refers to any terminal device capable of wireless communication. As an example and not limitation, a terminal device may also be referred to as a communication device, a user equipment (UE), a subscriber station (SS), a portable subscriber station, a mobile station (MS), or an access terminal (AT). The terminal device may include, but is not limited to, a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, a voice over IP (VoIP) phone, a wireless local loop phone, a tablet computer, a wearable terminal device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a portable computer, a desktop computer, an image capture terminal device (such as a digital camera), a game terminal device, a music storage and playback device, a vehicle-mounted wireless terminal device, a wireless endpoint, a mobile station, a laptop embedded device (LEE), a laptop vehicle-mounted device (LME), a USB dongle, a smart device, a wireless customer premises equipment (CPE), an Internet of Things (IoT) device, a watch or other wearable device, a head-mounted display (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, medical equipment and applications (e.g., remote surgery), industrial equipment and applications (e.g., robots and / or other wireless devices operating in the context of an industrial and / or automated processing chain), consumer electronic devices, devices operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, etc. The terminal device may also correspond to the mobile terminal (MT) part of an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node (also known as a relay node). In the following description, the terms "terminal device", "communication device", "terminal", "user equipment" and "UE" may be used interchangeably.

[0046] Although the functions described herein may be performed in fixed and / or wireless network nodes in various example embodiments, in other example embodiments, the functions may be implemented in a user equipment device (such as a mobile phone or tablet, a laptop or desktop computer, a mobile IoT device or a fixed IoT device). For example, the user equipment device may be appropriately equipped with corresponding capabilities as described in conjunction with (multiple) fixed and / or wireless network nodes. The user equipment device may be a user device and / or a control device, such as a chipset or processor, which is configured to control the user equipment when installed therein. Examples of such functions include a bootstrap server function and / or a home subscriber server, which may be implemented in the user equipment device by providing software to the user equipment device, the software being configured to cause the user equipment device to perform operations from the perspective of these functions / nodes.

[0047] In order to reduce power consumption, the terminal device can operate in DRX mode, in which the terminal device periodically experiences an active state and an inactive state in a DRX cycle. The DRX cycle includes an opportunity for DRX and an on-duration of DRX. During the opportunity for DRX, the terminal device operates in an inactive state and suppresses listening or monitoring channels, such as the PSCCH for the NR side link. During the on-duration, the terminal device operates in an active state and monitors data transmissions from other terminal devices or network devices. In the absence of suitable resources for a terminal device acting as a transmitter (hereinafter also referred to as a transmitter terminal device), the on-duration of DRX typically includes multiple time slots, however, the periodicity of the on-duration may not be efficient in terms of power consumption.

[0048] To further reduce energy consumption, a sidelink wake-up signal similar to the WUS at the Uu interface can be configured to wake up a terminal device acting as a receiver (hereinafter also referred to as a receiver terminal device). The sidelink wake-up signal is sent before the on-duration for monitoring the PSCCH. In this way, the receiver terminal device can periodically detect the sidelink wake-up signal with relatively low energy consumption instead of periodically experiencing active and inactive states in the DRX cycle. If the sidelink wake-up signal is successfully detected, the receiver terminal device is aware that potential control / data transmission can be sent on the PSCCH and the physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and then starts monitoring the corresponding sidelink channel during the subsequent on-duration. Otherwise, if the terminal device fails to detect the sidelink wake-up signal, it can remain in an inactive state instead of monitoring the PSCCH. Resources (e.g., time / frequency / code resources) for the sidelink wake-up signal can be assigned or coordinated by a network device (e.g., gNB). Such a scheme may be particularly suitable for mode 1 sidelink communications.

[0049] In 5G NR, a physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH) for sidelink communications is designated to carry hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback on the sidelink at the physical layer. The Zadoff-Chu sequence can be sent in one physical resource block (PRB) that is repeated over two OFDM symbols on the PSFCH, where the first symbol can be used for automatic gain control (AGC), near the end of the sidelink resources in the slot. The DRX signal can be configured to occupy the same position as the PSFCH in the slot and adopt a Zadoff-Chu sequence, for example, the Zadoff-Jhu sequence can be the same or different from the Zadoff-Zhu sequence sent on the PSFCH. This will reduce standardization work and thereby promote the above scheme.

[0050] For mode 2 sidelink communication, since most terminal devices can be in RRC idle state, more than one transmitter terminal device (whose corresponding receiver terminal device is in DRX mode) can select the same resource, which will cause a conflict. Therefore, an enhanced solution is needed to enable the DRX process for sidelink communication.

[0051] An embodiment of the present disclosure proposes an enhanced DRX scheme applicable to both mode 1 and mode 2 side link communications. In this scheme, one or more side link signals are defined to notify the receiver terminal device to remain in discontinuous reception mode and wake up to monitor the corresponding channel. In addition, candidate resources for side link signals can be pre-configured from a side link resource pool, for example, by a network device. Even for mode 2 side link communications, the transmitter terminal device can select unoccupied resources for the transmission of side link signals, and avoid resource conflicts by sensing the usage of candidate resources. In this way, the resource selection method and signaling mechanism in the proposed DRX scheme can be more flexible and feasible for both mode 1 and mode 2 side link communications. In addition, the proposed DRX scheme can meet the requirements and data characteristics of V2X communications while significantly reducing the power consumption of terminal devices.

[0052] Figure 1 An example environment 100 is shown in which example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented. Figure 1 As shown, the communication network 100 includes a first device 110, a second device 120, a third device 130, and a fourth device 140. The first device 110, the second device 120, and the fourth device 140 may be terminal devices, and the third device 130 may be a network device. The third device 130 may provide radio coverage, i.e., a cell 102, for serving one or more of the first device 110, the second device 120, and the fourth device 140. It should also be understood that Figure 1The numbers of network devices, terminal devices and service cells shown are given for illustrative purposes and do not imply any limitation.

[0053] In network 100, first device 110, second device 120, and fourth device 140 may communicate with each other, for example, via mode 1 or mode 2 side link communication. For discussion purposes, in the context of network 100, first device 110 is described as acting as a transmitter terminal device, second device 120 is described as acting as a receiver terminal device, and communication between first device 110, second device 120, and fourth device 140 is described as mode 2 side link communication. It should be understood that example embodiments are not limited to such specific communication scenarios, but may be applied to any communication scenarios including mode 1 side link communication and any other suitable D2D communication.

[0054] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, a sidelink DRX signal may be sent from the first device 110 to the second device 120 for guiding the DRX operation of the receiver terminal device. The sidelink DRX signal may include a first sidelink signal for indicating that the receiver terminal device remains in a discontinuous reception mode. In the case where the second device 120 is in the DRX mode and there is no data service to be sent to the second device, the first device 110 may send a first sidelink signal on a predetermined resource to keep the second device 120 in the discontinuous reception mode. From the perspective of the second device 120, if the first sidelink signal is successfully detected, the second device 120 may ignore the subsequent on-duration for monitoring the PSCCH and remain in an inactive state until the next opportunity for detection of the first sidelink signal. The first sidelink signal may also prompt other terminal devices (e.g., the fourth device 140) to sense the usage of resources used for the sidelink DRX signal. After sensing, the fourth device 140, which intends to initiate its own DRX process, may select an unused time / frequency / code resource to send a sidelink DRX signal.

[0055] In some example embodiments of the present disclosure, the sidelink DRX signal may further include a second sidelink signal, which is used to instruct the receiver terminal device to monitor data to be sent on the sidelink channel between the transmitter terminal device and the receiver terminal device. For example, in the case where there is control / data to be sent on the PSCCH / PSSCH, the first device 110 may send the second sidelink signal to the second device 120. Upon receiving the second sidelink signal, the second device 120 may start monitoring the control / data transmission on the PSCCH / PSSCH. This will be described in detail below.

[0056] It should be understood that although Figure 11 shows unicast communication between the first device 110 and the second device 120, but other communication modes are also applicable to the example embodiments of the present disclosure. For example, the example embodiments of the present application may involve multicast communication between a transmitter terminal device and multiple receiver terminal devices. The scope of the present disclosure is not limited to this.

[0057] The third device 130 can pre-configure candidate resources from the side link resource pool for transmission of the side link DRX signal. Specifically, the side link DRX signal can occupy the last symbol in the time slot, such as Figure 2 As shown. As shown in the figure, the sidelink DRX signal can be in the form of a Zadoff-Chu sequence and sent in multiple PRBs repeated over two OFDM symbols, and the first symbol therein can be used for AGC. The time resources for the sidelink DRX signal occur periodically, and the period (period) can be set to 50ms, which is suitable for VoIP services under public safety use cases. In addition, the third device 130 can (pre) configure the on-duration for monitoring the PSCCH to occur after the resources for the sidelink DRX signal, which occupies multiple time slots. This resource configuration for the sidelink DRX signal is flexible frequency division multiplexing and is applicable to existing specifications on transport block size (TBS).

[0058] Depending on the communication technology, network 100 can be a code division multiple access (CDMA) network, a time division multiple access (TDMA) network, a frequency division multiple access (FDMA) network, an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) network, a single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) network, etc. The communication discussed in network 100 can meet any suitable standard, including but not limited to new radio access (NR), long term evolution (LTE), LTE evolution, advanced LTE (LTE-A), wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA), code division multiple access (CDMA), cdma2000 and global system for mobile communications (GSM), etc. In addition, the communication can be performed according to any generation of communication protocols currently known or to be developed in the future. Examples of communication protocols include but are not limited to first generation (1G), second generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), 4.5G, fifth generation (5G) communication protocols. The technology described herein can be used for the above-mentioned wireless networks and radio technologies as well as other wireless networks and radio technologies. For clarity, certain aspects of the techniques are described below for LTE, and LTE terminology is used in much of the description below.

[0059] The following will refer to Figures 3 to 8 The principles and implementations of the present disclosure are described in detail. Figure 3 A signaling diagram of a DRX process 300 in sidelink communication according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. For ease of discussion, reference will be made to Figure 1 Process 300 is described. Process 300 may involve first device 110, second device 120, and third device 130.

[0060] As above combined Figure 1-Figure 2 As described, in some cases, for example, the first device 110 determines that there are fewer incoming packets to send to the second device 120 within a specific time period, and the second device 120 does not need to continuously monitor the sidelink channel. For power saving purposes, the first device 110 and the second device 120 may desire to operate in DRX mode.

[0061] A resource allocation scheme is used for sidelink communication between the first device 110 and the second device 120. The resource allocation scheme indicates at least candidate resources for transmission of the first sidelink signal. In some example embodiments, the resource allocation scheme may be determined by the third device 130. In these embodiments, the third device 130 may determine the candidate resources and send 305 to the first device 110 and the second device 120 a resource allocation scheme indicating the candidate resources. In other example embodiments, the resource allocation scheme or alternatively the candidate resources may be preconfigured or predefined at the first device 110 and the second device 120. Other terminal devices (such as the fourth device 140) assigned the same resource pool as the first device 110 and the second device 120 may also utilize the resource allocation scheme. In some example embodiments, the resource allocation scheme may further indicate a correspondence between a first group of resources selected from the candidate resources for transmission of the first sidelink signal and a second group of resources for transmission of the second sidelink signal. In some other embodiments, the correspondence between the first group of resources and the second group of resources may be predefined or preconfigured at the first device 110 and the second device 120. This aspect will be combined with Figure 4 , Figure 5A and Figure 5B Detailed description.

[0062] Since some of the candidate resources may have been occupied by other terminal devices, the first device 110 may determine the usage of the candidate resources before instructing the second device 120 to enter the DRX mode. Figure 3 In order to determine the usage of the candidate resources, the first device 110 may perform sensing on the candidate resources in a predetermined sensing window. In this way, the first device 110 may determine at least one unused resource from the candidate resources, and determine a first set of resources for transmission of the first side link signal to the second device 120 from the at least one unused resource.

[0063] The first device 110 determines 310 a first set of resources. For example, the first device 110 may determine the first set of resources from candidate resources indicated by a resource allocation scheme. The first device 110 sends 315 a first message indicating the first set of resources to the second device 120. The first message may cause the second device 120 to be in DRX mode and detect a first side link signal on the first set of resources. The first side link signal indicates that the second device 120 remains in DRX mode. In addition, the first side link signal may prompt a sensing-based resource selection performed by the terminal device. Once a first side link signal from another terminal device such as the fourth device 140 is sensed on a particular candidate resource, the first device 110 will ignore the resource and select from the remaining candidate resources.

[0064] It should be understood that the determination of the first group of resources by the first device 110 is described herein as an example implementation and should not be considered as imposing any limitation on the scope of the present disclosure. In some other example embodiments, the first group of resources may be determined by a receiver terminal device. In this case, the second device 120 determines the first group of resources from the candidate resources indicated by the resource allocation scheme. After determining the first group of resources, the second device 120 may notify the first device 110 of the first group of resources.

[0065] In other example embodiments, the first set of resources may be jointly determined by the transmitter terminal device and the receiver terminal device. In this case, the first apparatus 110 and the second apparatus 120 coordinate to determine the first set of resources from the candidate resources indicated by the resource allocation scheme.

[0066] Upon receiving the first message, the second device 120 in active mode may determine a first set of resources and enter 320 a DRX mode. In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may determine 325 that there is no data to send on the sidelink channel. In this case, the first device 110 sends 330 a first sidelink signal to the second device 120 on at least one of the resources in the first set.

[0067] The second device 120 detects 335 a first side link signal on the first group of resources in DRX mode. Once the first side link signal is successfully detected on at least one of the resources in the first group, the second device 120 knows that there is no data to send and remains 340 in DRX mode before the next DRX cycle. In other words, in this case, the second device 120 does not monitor PSCCH / PSSCH during the next on-duration and does not decode information sent on the corresponding channel.

[0068] In the case where the first device 110 determines 345 that there is data to be sent on the side link channel, the first device 110 may instruct the second device 120 to monitor the data to be sent on the side link channel. In order to select suitable resources from the resource pool for sending data on the side link channel, the first device 110 may sense data transmission from other terminal devices such as the fourth device 140. It should be understood that resource selection based on sensing is given herein as an example implementation, and many different resource selection mechanisms may also be applied to the example embodiments of the present disclosure. The scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard.

[0069] In some example embodiments, if there is data to be sent on the side link channel, the first device 110 may pause 350 transmission of the first side link signal on the first set of resources to instruct the second device 120 to monitor the side link channel, which will be discussed below in conjunction with Figure 4 discuss.

[0070] Figure 4 An example configuration 400 of a DRX process according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. As shown, the resource pool includes a plurality of frequency time resources {t i , f i}, represented as boxes of various patterns, where n is a positive integer, t i represents the time resource in the time domain, f i Specifically, the boxes of the grid pattern represent candidate resources indicated by the resource allocation scheme, and the boxes of the stripe pattern represent the first group of resources selected from the candidate resources for transmission of the first side link signal.

[0071] According to the configuration 400 of the resource pool, it is assumed that the first side link signal is periodically transmitted at a specific frequency before the corresponding on-duration, for example, at time slots t', t'+T, ... t'+(n-1)T, etc., where T represents the period for the transmission of the side link DRX signal. Once the first side link signal is successfully detected on the corresponding resource in the first group, the second device 120 will remain in the DRX mode and ignore the next on-duration 401, that is, the data transmission on the side link channel is not monitored during the on-duration 401. In the case where the first side link signal is not detected on the corresponding resource in the first group (for example, on the resource at time slot t'+(n-1)T), which indicates that there may be data to be sent on the side link channel, the second device 120 will wake up during the next on-duration 402 and monitor the data transmission on the side link channel. For example, the second device 120 can decode PSCCH / PSSCH during the on-duration 402.

[0072] like Figure 4 The first side link signal shown occupies the same number of PRBs as the subchannels which are the minimum resource units of the PSSCH. It should be understood that such an arrangement is given as an example implementation, and other arrangements for the first side link signal occupying a different number of PRBs than the subchannels are also applicable to embodiments of the present disclosure. The number of PRBs used for the first side link signal can be configured by a third device, such as a gNB.

[0073] Alternatively, in other example embodiments, if there is data to be sent on the side link channel, the first device 110 may send 355 a second side link signal to the second device 120 on the second set of resources, and the second side link signal is configured to instruct the second device 120 to monitor for data to be sent on the side link channel, which will be combined with Figure 5A and Figure 5B Discuss in detail.

[0074] In the above embodiment, the resource allocation scheme may further indicate that the first group of resources {t 1 , f 1 , c 1} and the second set of resources {t 2 , f 2 , c 2}, which can be expressed as {t 1 , f 1 , c 1}=f({t 2 , f 2 , c 2}), where t i represents the time resource in the time domain, f i represents the frequency resources in the frequency domain, c i In this way, the terminal device can further obtain a corresponding relationship from the resource allocation scheme, and determine a second group of resources from the candidate resources based on the corresponding relationship.

[0075] Figure 5A Another example configuration 510 of a DRX process according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. As shown, the resource pool includes a plurality of frequency / time / code resources {t i , f i , c i}, represented as boxes of various patterns. Similar to configuration 400, boxes of a grid pattern represent candidate resources indicated by the resource allocation scheme, and boxes of a bar pattern represent a first group of resources {t 1 , f 1 , c 1In addition, the dotted pattern box represents the second group of resources {t 2 , f 2 , c 2 According to configuration 510, the second set of resources may be determined as follows:

[0076] {t 2 , f 2 , c 2}={t 1 +(n-1)T,f 1 , c 2} (1)

[0077] Where n is a positive integer, and c 2 ≠c 1 .

[0078] As shown in configuration 510, the first side link signal and the second side link signal are configured to occupy the same frequency resources but different code resources. For example, the first side link signal and the second side link signal may use the same Zadoff-Chu sequence but different cyclic shifts, and the cyclic shift used by the second side link signal can be inferred from the cyclic shift used by the first side link signal. Figure 5A As shown, the second device 120 successfully detects the first side link signal on the first set of resources before the on-duration 501, and the second device 120 can remain in the DRX mode and ignore the on-duration 501. Subsequently, since the second device 120 fails to detect the first side link signal and successfully detects the second side link signal on the second set of resources before the on-duration 502, the second device 120 can know that there may be potential data to be sent on the side link channel and monitor the data sent on the side link channel during the on-duration 502 accordingly.

[0079] Figure 5B 5 shows another example configuration 520 of a DRX process according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown, the resource pool includes a plurality of frequency / time / code resources {t i , f i , c i}, represented as boxes of various patterns. Similar to configurations 400 and 510, boxes of a grid pattern represent candidate resources indicated by the resource allocation scheme, and boxes of a bar pattern represent a first set of resources {t 1 , f 1 , c 1 In addition, the dotted box represents the second group of resources {t 2 , f 2 , c 2According to configuration 520, the second set of resources may be determined as follows:

[0080] {t 2 , f 2 , c 2}={t 1 +(n-1)T,f 1 +mF,c 1} (2)

[0081] Where n is a positive integer, c 2 =c 1 , mF represents the frequency offset.

[0082] As shown in configuration 520, the first side link signal and the second side link signal occupy different frequency resources but have a fixed relationship, for example, m=3. Figure 5B As shown in , F represents the number of RBs occupied by the side link DRX signal. Figure 5B As shown, the second device 120 successfully detects the first side link signal on the first set of resources before the on-duration 503, and the second device 120 can remain in the DRX mode and ignore the on-duration 503. Subsequently, since the second device 120 fails to detect the first side link signal and successfully detects the second side link signal on the second set of resources before the on-duration 504, the second device 120 can know that there may be potential data to be sent on the side link channel and monitor the data sent on the side link channel during the on-duration 504 accordingly.

[0083] It should be understood that Figure 5A and Figure 5B The configurations 510 and 520 shown are described herein as example implementations and should not be considered to impose any limitation on the scope of the present disclosure. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that there are many different correspondences and configurations between the first side link signal and the second side link signal based on actual needs.

[0084] Still reference Figure 3 Based on the monitoring result, the second device 120 determines 360 that there is data to be sent on the side link channel, for example, represented as Figure 4 , Figure 5A and Figure 5B10. The second device 120 may enter an active mode and be ready to receive additional data from the first device 110. In some example embodiments, the second device 120 may send 365 a second message to the first device 110 indicating that the second device 120 is in active mode. The second message includes, but is not limited to, an acknowledgment (ACK) or a negative acknowledgment (NACK) for data transmission on a physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH). Resources for data transmission on the sidelink channel during the on-duration may be selected based on a sensing-based resource selection performed by the first device 110.

[0085] If the second message is received from the second device 120, the first device 110 may send 370 additional data to the second device 120 on the sidelink channel. Otherwise, if the first device 110 fails to receive the second message from the second device 120, the first device 110 may perform 375 retransmission of the second sidelink signal, e.g., until the second message is received from the second device 120. Then, data transmission between the first device 110 and the second device 120 may be performed 380, e.g., in a continuous reception manner.

[0086] In other example embodiments, instead of reception of the second message, the first device 110 may directly transmit data on the sidelink channel during a subsequent time slot.

[0087] The time offset from the time slot containing the second side link signal to the starting time slot of the subsequent on-Duration may be (pre)configured by the third device 130 , or preconfigured at the first device 110 and the second device 120 .

[0088] Alternatively, in other example embodiments, the first device 110 may rely on any suitable upper layer protocol to identify that the second device 120 has received the second side link signal and entered the active mode.

[0089] According to an example embodiment of the present disclosure, a period of a DRX process (including a time period during which the first device 110 transmits a sidelink DRX signal (e.g., a first sidelink signal and / or a second sidelink signal)) may be determined based on data service characteristics and latency requirements of the sidelink communication. Compared to a conventional DRX process, the period of the proposed DRX process may be negotiated between the first device 110 and the second device 120. In some example embodiments, the period of the DRX process may be the same as a period of resources for a sidelink DRX signal determined by a network device or preconfigured at a terminal device.

[0090] In some other example embodiments, the period of the DRX process may be different from the period of the resources used for the sidelink DRX signal. The period of the DRX process (e.g., 100 ms) may be a multiple of the period of the (pre)configured resources for the sidelink DRX signal (e.g., 50 ms). The period of transmission of the sidelink DRX signal at the first device 110 and the corresponding period of detection of the sidelink DRX signal at the second device 120 may follow the period of the DRX process (e.g., 100 ms), i.e., transmission and reception of the sidelink DRX signal are performed every 100 ms.

[0091] Alternatively, the period for transmission of the sidelink DRX signal at the first device 110 may follow the (pre)configured period (e.g., 50 ms) of the resources for the sidelink DRX signal. The corresponding period for detection of the sidelink DRX signal at the second device 120 may also follow the period of the DRX process (e.g., 100 ms). In this way, the sensing of the resources occupied by the sidelink DRX signal at other terminal devices such as the fourth device 140 may be facilitated and accelerated.

[0092] According to an example embodiment of the present disclosure, a solution for a DRX process is provided. Through a sidelink DRX signal, either a separate first sidelink signal or a first sidelink signal and a second sidelink signal together, resource selection for the DRX process can be more flexible, and thus resource conflicts between different terminal devices can be avoided. In this way, the power consumption of the terminal device can be significantly reduced, while improving the feasibility and flexibility of resource selection for the DRX scheme.

[0093] Figure 6 600 for a DRX process according to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. The method 600 may be implemented at a terminal device, for example, referring to Figure 1 The method 600 may also involve the second device 120, the third device 130, and the fourth device 140. It should be understood that the method 600 may include additional actions not shown and / or may omit some of the actions shown, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard. In addition, it should be understood that although it is mainly shown as being executed serially herein, at least a portion of the actions of the process 600 may be performed in parallel. Figure 6 The actions shown may be performed simultaneously or in a different order.

[0094] At 610, the first device 110 determines a first set of resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal to the second device 120. The first sidelink signal indicates that the second device 120 remains in the DRX mode.

[0095] In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may determine the first set of resources from candidate resources indicated by the resource allocation scheme. In this case, the first device 110 may receive the resource allocation scheme from the third device 130. Alternatively, in other example embodiments, the resource allocation scheme indicating the candidate resources may be predefined or preconfigured at the first device 110. In addition, terminal devices assigned the same resource pool for sidelink communication may utilize the same resource allocation scheme to coordinate resource selection and avoid conflicts.

[0096] In some example embodiments, the first device 110 may determine at least one unused resource from the candidate resources by sensing on the candidate resources in the sensing window. For example, the first device 110 may sense a first side link signal sent by the fourth device 140 on a specific candidate resource, and thus, the unused candidate resource may be determined based on the sensing result. The first device 110 may then determine a first group of resources from the at least one unused resource.

[0097] At 620, the first device 110 sends a first message indicating a first set of resources to the second device 120 in active mode. Receipt of the first message causes the second device 120 to detect a first sidelink signal on the first set of resources in DRX mode.

[0098] In some example embodiments, first device 110 may determine whether there is data to be sent on a sidelink channel between first device 110 and second device 120. If first device 110 determines that there is no data to be sent to second device 120, first device 110 may send a first sidelink signal to second device 120 on at least one of the resources in the first group.

[0099] The first sidelink signal may be periodically transmitted to the second device 120. In some example embodiments, if the first device 110 determines that there is data to be transmitted on the sidelink channel, the first device 110 may suspend transmission of the first sidelink signal on the first set of resources.

[0100] Alternatively, in other example embodiments, if the first device 110 determines that there is data to be sent on the sidelink channel, the first device 110 may send a second sidelink signal on the second set of resources to the second device 120. The second sidelink signal is configured to instruct the second device 120 to monitor for data to be sent on the sidelink channel.

[0101] In some example embodiments, first device 110 may determine the second set of resources based on candidate resources for transmission of a side link signal and based on a correspondence between the first set of resources and the second set of resources. In this case, the side link signal includes a first side link signal and a second side link signal, and the second side link signal indicates that second device 120 monitors data to be sent on a side link channel between the first device and the second device.

[0102] In some example embodiments, first device 110 may determine the second set of resources based on a resource allocation scheme indicating candidate resources and corresponding relationships. As described above, the resource allocation scheme may be received from third device 130 or, alternatively, predefined at first device 110.

[0103] Upon detecting the absence of the first side link signal, or alternatively, upon receiving the second side link signal, the second device 120 knows that there may be data to be sent on the next on-duration. In this case, the second device 120 can monitor the potential control and data transmission on the PSCCH and PSSCH during the next on-duration. If the second device 120 determines that the data of interest is sent, for example by decoding the PSCCH and PSSCH, the second device 120 can send a second message to the first device 110, the second message being used to indicate that the second device 120 is in active mode and is ready to receive additional data from the first device 110. The second message may include an ACK or NACK for data transmission. In such an embodiment, upon receiving the second message, the first device 110 can send additional data to the second device 120 on the side link channel. Otherwise, if the first device 110 fails to receive the second message from the second device 120 within a predetermined time period, the first device 110 can perform a retransmission of the second side link signal.

[0104] Figure 7 1 shows a flowchart of an example method 700 for a DRX process according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. The method 700 may be implemented at a terminal device, for example, referring to Figure 1 For ease of discussion, reference will be made to the second device 120. Figure 1 The method 700 is described. The method 700 may also involve the first device 110, the third device 130, and the fourth device 140. It should be understood that the process 700 may include additional actions not shown and / or may omit some of the actions shown, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard. In addition, it should be understood that although primarily presented herein as being performed serially, at least a portion of the actions of the method 700 may be performed in parallel. Figure 7 The actions shown may be performed simultaneously or in a different order.

[0105] Initially, the second device 120 may be in an active mode. At 710, a first message is received from the first device 110, the first message indicating a first set of resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal. The first sidelink signal is configured to indicate that the second device 120 remains in a DRX mode.

[0106] Upon receiving the first message, at 720, the second device 120 detects a first side link signal on the first set of resources in DRX mode. In some example embodiments, in the event that the first side link signal is detected on at least one of the resources in the first set, the second device 120 remains in DRX mode. In the event that the first side link signal is not detected on the corresponding resource in the first set of resources, the second device 120 knows that there may be interesting data to be sent on the side link channel during the next on-duration. In this case, the second device 120 monitors the data sent on the side link channel for a preconfigured duration.

[0107] In some example embodiments, the resource allocation scheme is used to indicate candidate resources for transmission of a sidelink DRX signal including a first sidelink signal and a second sidelink signal, and a correspondence between a first group of resources and a second group of resources for transmission of the second sidelink signal. The second sidelink signal is configured to instruct the second device 120 to monitor the sidelink channel. In this case, the second device 120 may receive the resource allocation scheme from the third device 130. Alternatively, in other example embodiments, the resource allocation scheme may be predefined or preconfigured at the second device 120.

[0108] In the above embodiment, the second device 120 can determine the second set of resources for transmission of the second side link signal based on the candidate resources and based on the corresponding relationship. If the first side link signal is detected on at least one resource in the first group of resources, the second device 120 remains in the DRX mode. Otherwise, if the first side link signal is not detected on the corresponding resource in the first group of resources, the second device 120 knows that there may be interesting data to be sent on the side link channel during the next on-duration. In this case, the second device 120 detects the second side link signal on the second set of resources.

[0109] Figure 8 800 is a flowchart of an example method for a DRX process according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. The method 800 may be implemented at a network device, for example, referring to Figure 1 For ease of discussion, reference will be made to the third device 130. Figure 1The method 800 is described. The method 800 may also involve the first device 110 and the second device 120. It should be understood that the process 800 may include additional actions not shown and / or may omit some of the actions shown, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard. In addition, it should be understood that although primarily presented herein as being performed serially, at least a portion of the actions of the method 800 may be performed in parallel. Figure 8 The actions shown may be performed simultaneously or in a different order.

[0110] At 810, the third device 130 determines a resource allocation scheme indicating candidate resources for transmission of a first side link signal from the first device 110 to the second device 120. In an example embodiment, the first side link signal is configured to indicate that the second device 120 remains in the DRX mode. In some example embodiments, the third device 130 may determine a correspondence between the first set of resources and a second set of resources for transmission of a second side link signal to the second device 120. As described above, the second side link signal is configured to indicate that the second device 120 monitors a side link channel between the first device 110 and the second device 120, such as a PSCCH or / and a PSSCH. In such an embodiment, the third device 130 may determine a resource allocation scheme indicating the correspondence and the candidate resources.

[0111] At 820 , the third device 130 sends a resource allocation plan to the first device 110 and the second device 120 .

[0112] In some example embodiments, a first device (e.g., first device 110) capable of performing method 600 may include a component for performing the corresponding steps of method 600. The component may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the component may be implemented in a circuit system or a software module. The first device may be implemented as first device 110 or included in first device 110. In some embodiments, the component may include at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code. At least one memory and computer program code are configured to, together with at least one processor, enable the first device to perform.

[0113] In some example embodiments, the first device includes components for determining a first set of resources for transmission of a first side link signal to a second device, the first side link signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and components for sending a first message indicating the first set of resources to the second device in an active mode so that the second device detects the first side link signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode.

[0114] In some example embodiments, the means for determining the first set of resources comprises means for determining the first set of resources from candidate resources for transmission of at least one sidelink signal, the at least one sidelink signal comprising the first sidelink signal. In some example embodiments, the candidate resources are indicated by a resource allocation scheme received from a third device or predefined at the first device.

[0115] In some example embodiments, means for determining the first set of resources includes means for determining at least one unused resource from the candidate resources by sensing on the candidate resources in a sensing window; and means for determining the first set of resources from the at least one unused resource.

[0116] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus further comprises means for transmitting a first sidelink signal to the second apparatus on at least one of the resources in the first group based on determining that no data is to be transmitted on the sidelink channel between the first apparatus and the second apparatus.

[0117] In some example embodiments, the first sidelink signal is periodically transmitted to the second device, and the first device further comprises means for pausing transmission of the first sidelink signal on the first set of resources based on determining that data is to be transmitted on the sidelink channel between the first device and the second device.

[0118] In some example embodiments, the first device further includes: a component for determining a second set of resources from candidate resources for transmission of a side link signal based on a correspondence between the first set of resources and a second set of resources for transmission of a second side link signal, the side link signal including the first side link signal and the second side link signal, and the second side link signal instructs the second device to monitor data to be sent on a side link channel between the first device and the second device.

[0119] In some example embodiments, the means for determining the second set of resources includes means for determining the second set of resources based on a resource allocation scheme indicating the candidate resources and the corresponding relationship, the resource allocation scheme being received from the third apparatus or predefined at the first apparatus.

[0120] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus further comprises means for transmitting a second sidelink signal to the second apparatus on the second set of resources in response to determining that there is data to be transmitted on the sidelink channel.

[0121] In some example embodiments, the first device further includes: a component for sending additional data to the second device on the side link channel in response to receiving a second message from the second device, the second message including an acknowledgement or a negative acknowledgement of the transmission of the data; and a component for performing a retransmission of the second side link signal in response to failure to receive the second message from the second device within a predetermined time period.

[0122] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus is a terminal device, the second apparatus is a further terminal device, and the third apparatus is a network device.

[0123] In some example embodiments, a second device (e.g., second device 120) capable of performing method 700 may include a component for performing the corresponding steps of method 700. The component may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the component may be implemented in a circuit system or a software module. In some embodiments, the component may include at least one processor and at least one memory including a computer program code. The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, enable the second device to perform. The second device may be implemented as second device 120 or included in second device 120.

[0124] In some example embodiments, the second device includes a component for receiving a first message from the first device in an active mode, the first message indicating a first set of resources for transmission of a first side link signal, the first side link signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and a component for detecting the first side link signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode.

[0125] In some example embodiments, the second device further includes: a component for maintaining a discontinuous reception mode based on determining that a first side link signal is detected on at least one resource in the first group of resources; and a component for monitoring data sent on a side link channel between the first device and the second device for a preconfigured duration based on determining that the first side link signal is not detected on a corresponding resource in the first group of resources.

[0126] In some example embodiments, the second device further includes: a component for determining a second set of resources based on a correspondence between the first set of resources and a second set of resources for transmission of a second side link signal, wherein the second side link signal indicates that the second device monitors a side link channel between the first device and the second device.

[0127] In some example embodiments, means for determining the second set of resources includes means for determining the second set of resources from candidate resources for transmission of a sidelink signal from the first apparatus, the sidelink signal including the first sidelink signal and the second sidelink signal.

[0128] In some example embodiments, the candidate resources and the corresponding relationship are indicated by a resource allocation scheme received from the third device or predefined at the second device.

[0129] In some example embodiments, the second device also includes: a component for maintaining a discontinuous reception mode based on determining that the first side link signal is detected on at least one resource in the first group of resources; and a component for detecting a second side link signal on a second group of resources based on determining that the first side link signal is not detected on a corresponding resource in the first group of resources.

[0130] In some example embodiments, the second device also includes: a component for maintaining a discontinuous reception mode based on determining that a second side link signal is not detected on a corresponding resource in the second group of resources; and a component for monitoring data sent on the side link channel for a preconfigured duration based on determining that a second side link signal is detected on a corresponding resource in the second group of resources.

[0131] In some example embodiments, the second device further includes: a component for maintaining a discontinuous reception mode based on a determination based on a result of monitoring that no data is sent on the side link channel within a preconfigured duration; and a component for entering an active mode based on a determination based on a result of monitoring that data is sent on the side link channel within a preconfigured duration.

[0132] In some example embodiments, the second device further comprises means for sending a second message to the first device indicating that the second device is in active mode based on determining that data is sent on the sidelink channel, the second message comprising confirmation or negative confirmation of the transmission of the data.

[0133] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus is a terminal device, the second apparatus is a further terminal device, and the third apparatus is a network device.

[0134] In some example embodiments, a third device (e.g., third device 130) capable of performing method 800 may include a component for performing the corresponding steps of method 800. The component may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the component may be implemented in a circuit system or a software module. In some embodiments, the component may include at least one processor and at least one memory including a computer program code. At least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with at least one processor, enable the third device to perform. The third device may be implemented as a third device 130 or included in the third device 130.

[0135] In some example embodiments, the third device includes: a component for determining candidate resources for transmission of a first side link signal from the first device to the second device, the first side link signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; and a component for sending a resource allocation scheme indicating the candidate resources to the first device and the second device.

[0136] In some example embodiments, a component for determining a resource allocation scheme includes: a component for determining a correspondence between a first set of resources and a second set of resources for transmission of a second side link signal to a second device, the second side link signal indicating that the second device monitors a side link channel between the first device and the second device; and a component for determining a resource allocation scheme indicating the correspondence and candidate resources.

[0137] In some example embodiments, the first apparatus is a terminal device, the second apparatus is a further terminal device, and the third apparatus is a network device.

[0138] Fig. 9 900 is a simplified block diagram of a device suitable for implementing an embodiment of the present disclosure. The device 900 may be provided to implement a communication device, such as Figure 1 The first device 110, the second device 120, the third device 130 and the fourth device 140 are shown. As shown, the apparatus 900 includes one or more processors 910, one or more memories 920 coupled to the processors 910, and one or more communication modules 940 coupled to the processors 910.

[0139] The communication module 940 is used for two-way communication. The communication module 940 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication. The communication interface may represent any interface necessary to communicate with other network elements.

[0140] Processor 910 may be of any type suitable for the local technology network, and may include, as non-limiting examples, one or more of a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Device 900 may have multiple processors, such as application specific integrated circuit chips that are time slaved to a clock synchronized with a main processor.

[0141] The memory 920 may include one or more non-volatile memories and one or more volatile memories. Examples of non-volatile memories include, but are not limited to, read-only memory (ROM) 924, electrically programmable read-only memory (EPROM), flash memory, hard disk, compact disk (CD), digital video disk (DVD), and other magnetic storage and / or optical storage. Examples of volatile memories include, but are not limited to, random access memory (RAM) 922 and other volatile memories that do not persist during power outages.

[0142] The computer program 930 includes computer executable instructions executed by the associated processor 910. The program 930 may be stored in the ROM 920. The processor 910 may perform any suitable actions and processes by loading the program 930 into the RAM 922.

[0143] The embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented by a program 930, so that the device 900 may execute the reference Figures 6 to 8 Any process of the present disclosure discussed. The embodiments of the present disclosure may also be implemented by hardware or by a combination of software and hardware.

[0144] In some embodiments, the program 930 may be tangibly contained in a computer-readable medium, which may be included in the device 900 (such as in the memory 920) or in other storage devices accessible to the device 900. The device 900 may load the program 930 from the computer-readable medium to the RAM 922 for execution. The computer-readable medium may include any type of tangible non-volatile memory, such as ROM, EPROM, flash memory, hard disk, CD, DVD, etc. Fig.10 An example of a computer readable medium 1000 is shown which may be in the form of a CD or DVD. The computer readable medium has a program 930 stored thereon.

[0145] Generally, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented using hardware or dedicated circuits, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented using hardware, while other aspects may be implemented using firmware or software that may be executed by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. Although various aspects of the embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated and described as block diagrams, flow charts, or using some other graphical representations, it should be understood that, as non-limiting examples, the blocks, devices, systems, techniques, or methods described herein may be implemented using hardware, software, firmware, dedicated circuits or logic, general-purpose hardware or controllers or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

[0146] The present disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer executable instructions, such as instructions included in a program module, which are executed in a device on a target real or virtual processor to perform the above referenced Figure 6-Figure 8 Any of the methods 600 to 800 described herein. Typically, a program module includes a routine, program, library, object, class, component, data structure, etc. that performs a specific task or implements a specific abstract data type. In various embodiments, the functions of the program modules can be combined or split between program modules as needed. The machine executable instructions of the program modules can be executed in a local or distributed device. In a distributed device, the program modules can be located in both local and remote storage media.

[0147] The program code for executing the method of the present disclosure can be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. These program codes can be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer or other programmable data processing device so that the program code is implemented when executed by the processor or controller in the flow chart and / or the block diagram. The program code can be executed completely on the machine, partially on the machine, as an independent software package, partially on the machine and partially on a remote machine, or completely on a remote machine or server.

[0148] In the context of the present disclosure, computer program codes or related data may be carried by any suitable carrier to enable a device, apparatus or processor to perform various processes and operations as described above. Examples of carriers include signals, computer readable media, etc.

[0149] The computer readable medium can be a computer readable signal medium or a computer readable storage medium. The computer readable medium can include, but is not limited to, electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared or semiconductor systems, devices or equipment, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. A more specific example of a computer readable storage medium will include an electrical connection with one or more wires, a portable computer floppy disk, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

[0150] In addition, although the operations are described in a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring such operations to be performed in the particular order shown or in order or performing all the operations shown to obtain the desired result. In some cases, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, although several specific implementation details are included in the above discussion, these should not be interpreted as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather descriptions of features that may be specific to a particular embodiment. Certain features described in the context of a separate embodiment may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. On the contrary, the various features described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented in multiple embodiments individually or in any suitable sub-combination.

[0151] Although the present disclosure has been described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological acts, it should be understood that the present disclosure defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Instead, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

1. A first device, comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory including computer program code; The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the first apparatus to at least: determining a first set of resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal to a second device, the first sidelink signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; as well as sending a first message indicating the first set of resources to the second device in the active mode so that the second device detects the first sidelink signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode; wherein the first apparatus is further caused to determine the first set of resources by: determining at least one unused resource by sensing on candidate resources in a sensing window; and determining the first set of resources from the at least one unused resource; The first side link signal is periodically sent to the second device, and the first device is further configured to: suspending the transmission of the first sidelink signal on the first set of resources based on determining that data is to be sent on the sidelink channel between the first device and the second device; Based on a correspondence between the first group of resources and a second group of resources for transmission of a second side link signal, the second group of resources is determined from candidate resources for transmission of a side link signal, the side link signal including the first side link signal and the second side link signal, and the second side link signal indicates that the second device monitors data to be sent on a side link channel between the first device and the second device.

2. The first apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first apparatus is caused to determine the first set of resources by: The first set of resources is determined from candidate resources for transmission of at least one sidelink signal including the first sidelink signal. 3 . The first device of claim 2 , wherein the candidate resources are indicated by a resource allocation scheme, the resource allocation scheme being received from a third device or being predefined at the first device.

4. The first device according to claim 1, wherein the first device is further configured to: Based on determining that there is no data to be sent on the sidelink channel between the first apparatus and the second apparatus, the first sidelink signal is sent to the second apparatus on at least one of the resources in the first group.

5. The first apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first apparatus is caused to determine the second set of resources by: The second set of resources is determined based on a resource allocation scheme indicating the candidate resources and the corresponding relationship, the resource allocation scheme being received from a third device or predefined at the first device.

6. The first device according to claim 1, wherein the first device is further configured to: Based on determining that data is to be sent on the sidelink channel, the second sidelink signal is sent to the second device on the second set of resources.

7. The first device according to claim 6, wherein the first device is further caused to: sending additional data to the second device on the sidelink channel in response to receiving a second message from the second device, the second message including an acknowledgement or a negative acknowledgement of the transmission of the data; and In response to failure to receive the second message from the second device within a predetermined time period, retransmission of the second sidelink signal is performed.

8. The first apparatus according to claim 3 or 5, wherein the first apparatus is a terminal device, the second apparatus is another terminal device, and the third apparatus is a network device.

9. A second device, comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory including computer program code; wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the second apparatus to at least: receiving, in active mode and from a first device, a first message indicating a first set of resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal, the first sidelink signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; as well as detecting the first sidelink signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode; Remaining in the discontinuous reception mode based on determining that the first sidelink signal is detected on at least one of the resources in the first group; monitoring data sent on a sidelink channel between the first apparatus and the second apparatus for a preconfigured duration based on determining that the first sidelink signal is not detected on a corresponding resource in the first set of resources; as well as The second set of resources is determined based on a correspondence between the first set of resources and a second set of resources used for transmission of a second sidelink signal, the second sidelink signal instructing the second apparatus to monitor a sidelink channel between the first apparatus and the second apparatus.

10. The second apparatus of claim 9, wherein the second apparatus is caused to determine the second set of resources by: The second set of resources is determined from candidate resources for transmission of a sidelink signal from the first apparatus, the sidelink signal comprising the first sidelink signal and the second sidelink signal. 11 . The second device according to claim 10 , wherein the candidate resources and the corresponding relationship are indicated by a resource allocation scheme, which is received from a third device or predefined at the second device.

12. The second device according to claim 9, wherein the second device is further caused to: Remaining in the discontinuous reception mode based on determining that the first sidelink signal is detected on at least one of the resources in the first group; and Based on determining that the first sidelink signal is not detected on corresponding resources in the first set of resources, the second sidelink signal is detected on the second set of resources.

13. The second device according to claim 12, wherein the second device is further caused to: Remaining in the discontinuous reception mode in response to determining that the second sidelink signal is not detected on a corresponding resource in the second set of resources; and Based on determining that the second sidelink signal is detected on a corresponding resource in the second set of resources, data transmitted on a sidelink channel is monitored for a preconfigured duration.

14. The second device according to claim 9 or 13, wherein the second device is further configured to: Remaining in the discontinuous reception mode in accordance with a determination based on the monitoring result that no data is sent on the sidelink channel within the preconfigured duration; and According to determining, based on the result of monitoring, that data is sent on the side link channel within the preconfigured duration, entering the active mode.

15. The second device according to claim 13, wherein the second device is further caused to: Based on determining that there is data to be sent on the sidelink channel, a second message is sent to the first device indicating that the second device is in the active mode, the second message including an acknowledgement or a negative acknowledgement of the transmission of the data. 16 . The second apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the first apparatus is a terminal device, the second apparatus is another terminal device, and the third apparatus is a network device.

17. A third device, comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory including computer program code; The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the third device to at least: determining candidate resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal from a first device to a second device, the first sidelink signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; as well as sending a resource allocation scheme indicating the candidate resources to the first device and the second device; determining a correspondence between a first set of resources and a second set of resources for transmission of a second sidelink signal to the second device, the second sidelink signal instructing the second device to monitor a sidelink channel between the first device and the second device; wherein the first set of resources is determined by the first device from the candidate resources; The third device is configured to send the resource allocation scheme by: sending the resource allocation scheme indicating the corresponding relationship and the candidate resources.

18. The third apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the first apparatus is a terminal device, the second apparatus is another terminal device, and the third apparatus is a network device.

19. A method comprising: At the first device, determining a first set of resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal to a second device, the first sidelink signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; sending a first message indicating the first set of resources to the second device in the active mode so that the second device detects the first sidelink signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode; Wherein determining the first group of resources comprises: determining at least one unused resource by sensing on candidate resources in a sensing window; and determining the first group of resources from the at least one unused resource; Wherein the first side link signal is periodically sent to the second device, and the method further comprises: suspending the transmission of the first sidelink signal on the first set of resources based on determining that data is to be sent on the sidelink channel between the first device and the second device; Based on a correspondence between the first group of resources and a second group of resources for transmission of a second side link signal, the second group of resources is determined from candidate resources for transmission of a side link signal, the side link signal including the first side link signal and the second side link signal, and the second side link signal indicates that the second device monitors data to be sent on a side link channel between the first device and the second device.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein determining the first set of resources comprises: The first set of resources is determined from candidate resources for transmission of at least one sidelink signal including the first sidelink signal.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the candidate resources are indicated by a resource allocation scheme, the resource allocation scheme being received from a third device or predefined at the first device.

22. The method of claim 19, further comprising: Based on determining that there is no data to be sent on the sidelink channel between the first apparatus and the second apparatus, the first sidelink signal is sent to the second apparatus on at least one of the resources in the first group.

23. The method of claim 19, wherein determining the second set of resources comprises: The second set of resources is determined based on a resource allocation scheme indicating the candidate resources and the corresponding relationship, the resource allocation scheme being received from a third device or predefined at the first device.

24. The method of claim 19, further comprising: Based on determining that data is to be sent on the sidelink channel, the second sidelink signal is sent to the second device on the second set of resources.

25. The method according to claim 24, further comprising: sending additional data to the second device on the sidelink channel in response to receiving a second message from the second device, the second message including an acknowledgement or a negative acknowledgement of the transmission of the data; and In response to failure to receive the second message from the second device within a predetermined time period, retransmission of the second sidelink signal is performed.

26. The method according to claim 21 or 23, wherein the first device is a terminal device, the second device is another terminal device, and the third device is a network device.

27. A method comprising: receiving, at a second device in an active mode and from a first device, a first message indicating a first set of resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal, the first sidelink signal indicating that the second device remain in a discontinuous reception mode; as well as detecting the first sidelink signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode; Remaining in the discontinuous reception mode based on determining that the first sidelink signal is detected on at least one of the resources in the first group; monitoring data sent on a sidelink channel between the first apparatus and the second apparatus for a preconfigured duration based on determining that the first sidelink signal is not detected on a corresponding resource in the first set of resources; as well as The second set of resources is determined based on a correspondence between the first set of resources and a second set of resources used for transmission of a second sidelink signal, the second sidelink signal instructing the second apparatus to monitor a sidelink channel between the first apparatus and the second apparatus.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein determining the second set of resources comprises: The second set of resources is determined from candidate resources for transmission of a sidelink signal from the first apparatus, the sidelink signal comprising the first sidelink signal and the second sidelink signal.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the candidate resources and the corresponding relationship are indicated by a resource allocation scheme, the resource allocation scheme being received from a third device or predefined at the second device.

30. The method of claim 27, further comprising: Remaining in the discontinuous reception mode based on determining that the first sidelink signal is detected on at least one of the resources in the first group; as well as Based on determining that the first sidelink signal is not detected on corresponding resources in the first set of resources, the second sidelink signal is detected on the second set of resources.

31. The method according to claim 30, further comprising: Remaining in the discontinuous reception mode based on determining that the second side link signal is not detected on a corresponding resource in the second set of resources; as well as Based on determining that the second sidelink signal is detected on a corresponding resource in the second set of resources, data transmitted on a sidelink channel is monitored for a preconfigured duration.

32. The method according to claim 27 or 31, further comprising: Remaining in the discontinuous reception mode in accordance with determining that no data is sent on the sidelink channel within the preconfigured duration based on the monitoring result; as well as According to determining, based on the result of monitoring, that data is sent on the side link channel within the preconfigured duration, entering the active mode.

33. The method of claim 32, further comprising: Based on determining that there is data to be sent on the sidelink channel, a second message is sent to the first device indicating that the second device is in the active mode, the second message including an acknowledgement or a negative acknowledgement of the transmission of the data.

34. The method of claim 29, wherein the first device is a terminal device, the second device is another terminal device, and the third device is a network device.

35. A method comprising: determining, at a third device, candidate resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal from the first device to the second device, the first sidelink signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; as well as sending a resource allocation scheme indicating the candidate resources to the first device and the second device; determining a correspondence between the first set of resources and a second set of resources for transmission of a second sidelink signal to the second device, the second sidelink signal instructing the second device to monitor a sidelink channel between the first device and the second device; wherein the first group of resources is determined by the first device from the candidate resources; as well as The sending of the resource allocation scheme comprises: The resource allocation scheme indicating the corresponding relationship and the candidate resources is sent.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein the first device is a terminal device, the second device is another terminal device, and the third device is a network device.

37. A first device, comprising: means for determining, at the first device, a first set of resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal to a second device, the first sidelink signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; means for sending a first message indicating the first set of resources to the second apparatus in active mode so that the second apparatus detects the first sidelink signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode; The means for determining the first set of resources comprises: means for determining at least one unused resource from the candidate resources by sensing on the candidate resources in the sensing window; and means for determining the first set of resources from the at least one unused resource; The first device also includes: means for pausing transmission of a first sidelink signal on the first set of resources based on determining that data is to be sent on a sidelink channel between the first device and the second device; and A component for determining a second set of resources from candidate resources for transmission of a side link signal based on a correspondence between the first set of resources and a second set of resources for transmission of a second side link signal, the side link signal comprising the first side link signal and the second side link signal, and the second side link signal instructs the second device to monitor data to be sent on a side link channel between the first device and the second device.

38. A second device, comprising: means for receiving, at the second device in active mode and from a first device, a first message indicating a first set of resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal, the first sidelink signal instructing the second device to remain in a discontinuous reception mode; means for detecting the first sidelink signal on the first set of resources in the discontinuous reception mode; means for determining a second set of resources based on a correspondence between the first set of resources and a second set of resources for transmission of a second sidelink signal, the second sidelink signal instructing the second device to monitor a sidelink channel between the first device and the second device; means for monitoring data transmitted on a sidelink channel between the first device and the second device for a preconfigured duration based on determining that the first sidelink signal is not detected on a corresponding resource in the first set of resources; as well as Means for determining a second set of resources based on a correspondence between the first set of resources and a second set of resources for transmission of a second sidelink signal, the second sidelink signal instructing the second device to monitor a sidelink channel between the first device and the second device.

39. A third device, comprising: means for determining, at the third device, candidate resources for transmission of a first sidelink signal from the first device to the second device, the first sidelink signal indicating that the second device remains in a discontinuous reception mode; as well as sending a resource allocation scheme indicating the candidate resources to the first device and the second device; The component for determining the resource allocation scheme includes: a component for determining a correspondence between a first group of resources and a second group of resources for transmission of a second side link signal to a second device, the second side link signal instructing the second device to monitor a side link channel between the first device and the second device; wherein the first group of resources is determined by the first device from the candidate resources; and A component for determining a resource allocation scheme indicating a correspondence relationship and candidate resources.

40. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to at least perform the method according to any one of claims 19 to 26.

41. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to at least perform the method according to any one of claims 27 to 34.

42. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to at least perform the method according to any one of claims 35 to 36.

Images