Channel access method, user equipment, and base station

Abstract

A user equipment (UE) performs a semi-static channel access method in a random access procedure in an unlicensed band. A base station transmits configuration information and downlink (DL) information to the UE in a fixed frame period (FFP) according to a set of FFP parameters associated with the base station. The UE determines whether to initiate a channel occupancy time (COT) in a FFP according to a set of FFP parameters associated with the UE based on one or more of: at least one condition in the configuration information, at least one condition in scheduling information, at least one condition in the downlink (DL) information, and a detection result of detecting the downlink (DL) information transmission. The base station determines whether to use a COT initiated by a UE from the UE.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of communication systems, and more specifically, to a channel access method, user equipment, and base station. Background Technology

[0002] Wireless communication systems, such as the standards and technologies for third-generation (3G) mobile phones, are well-known. These 3G standards and technologies were developed by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). Extensive development of third-generation wireless communication was undertaken to support megacellular mobile phone communication. Communication systems and networks have evolved into broadband and mobile systems. In cellular wireless communication systems, user equipment (UE) connects to the Radio Access Network (RAN) via radio links. The RAN comprises a set of base stations (BS) that provide radio links to UEs within cells covered by the base stations, and an interface to the core network (CN) that controls the overall network. It is understood that the RAN and CN each perform functions relevant to the entire network. The 3GPP developed the so-called Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, namely the Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunication System Territorial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), for mobile access networks, where a base station called an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB) supports one or more megacellular cells. Recently, LTE is further evolving into what is known as 5G or New Radio (NR) systems, where base stations called gNBs support one or more cells.

[0003] Technical issues:

[0004] Even though the UE can transmit anywhere within the remaining portion of the channel occupancy time (COT) initiated by the gNB, the limitation it imposes on the UE is that all uplink (DL) transmissions will depend on the gNB's Listen-Before-Talk (LBT) outcome and the detection of possible downlink DL transmissions in the FFP of the gNB-initiated COT. Simply supporting Ultra Reliable and Low Latency Communication (URLLC) operation for gNB-initiated COT is inefficient and can cause latency in uplink UL transmissions, especially for configured grant (CG) uplink UL transmissions. In gNB-initiated COT, the UE must confirm that the gNB has successfully acquired the COT at the front end of the FFP of the gNB-initiated COT before the UE can transmit UL data or signals. For example, the aforementioned UE can only transmit the Configured Grant-Physical uplink Shared Channel (CG-PUSCH) after successfully decoding the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) from the gNB. This introduces additional latency due to the gNB downlink DL transmission time and UE processing time. URLLC operations initiated by the gNB using the COT limit the flexibility of UL scheduling in the initial part of the FFP.

[0005] In the COT initiated by the gNB, in order to trigger uplink UL transmission, the gNB needs to retain the obtained COT and transmit DL signals or DL ​​channels in the front end of the FFP, even if the gNB has no downlink traffic to transmit, and even if the gNB does not know whether the UE intends to transmit uplink transmission under configuration authorization (CG).

[0006] NR-U supports multiple transport block (TB) transmissions and Configured Grant-Uplink Control Information (CG-UCI). CG-UCI is uplink control information transmitted in CG-PUSCH and is defined in TS 38.212. However, NR-U does not support segmentation of repetitive transmissions in URLLC, i.e., it does not support cross-slot bit resource allocation. If a repetitive transmission collides with one or more invalid symbols, the repetitive transmission will be abandoned. There is an urgent need for a method applicable to unlicensed spectrum to coordinate the UL configuration grant enhancements introduced in Rel-16 between NR-U and URLLC.

[0007] Technical solution

[0008] One object of this disclosure is to provide a method for accessing user equipment, base stations, and channels.

[0009] In a first aspect, one embodiment of the present invention provides a channel access method performed by a user equipment (UE), characterized in that it includes:

[0010] Receive configuration information sent from a base station;

[0011] The detection is based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station and downlink (DL) transmission within a fixed frame period (FFP).

[0012] Based on at least one of the conditions in the above configuration information and the detection result of the above downlink (DL) transmission, it is determined whether to initiate Channel Occupancy Time (COT) in an FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE.

[0013] If the determination result of whether to start the above COT is yes, after successfully listening first and then speaking, start the above COT in the above FFP based on the above set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE.

[0014] Transmit uplink (UL) clustering in one or more valid symbols within the region of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE; and

[0015] When the UE shares a COT initiated by the UE with the base station, it receives downlink DL transmissions from the base station in one or more valid symbols in the region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE.

[0016] In a second aspect, one embodiment of the present invention provides a channel access method that can be executed in a base station, comprising:

[0017] Transmit configuration information;

[0018] Downlink (DL) transmission is carried out within a fixed frame period (FFP) based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station;

[0019] To receive an uplink in one or more valid symbols within an area of ​​an FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with a user equipment (UE).

[0020] (UL) clusters; and

[0021] When the base station uses COT initiated by the UE, a downlink DL cluster is transmitted in one or more valid symbols in the region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE.

[0022] In a third aspect, one embodiment of the present invention provides a user equipment (UE) including a processor configured to invoke and execute a computer program stored in memory, so as to cause a device equipped with the above-described chip to perform the method of the present disclosure.

[0023] In a fourth aspect, one embodiment of the present invention provides a base station including a processor configured to invoke and execute a computer program stored in memory to cause a device equipped with the above-described chip to perform the methods of the present disclosure.

[0024] The disclosed methods can be programmed as computer-executable instructions stored on a non-transitory computer-readable medium. When loaded onto a computer, the non-transitory computer-readable medium instructs the computer's processor to execute the disclosed methods.

[0025] Non-transitory computer-readable media may include at least one of the following groups: hard disk, CD-ROM, optical storage device, magnetic storage device, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), and flash memory.

[0026] The disclosed methods can be programmed into a computer program product that enables a computer to perform the disclosed methods.

[0027] The disclosed methods can be programmed into a computer program that causes a computer to execute the disclosed methods.

[0028] Beneficial effects:

[0029] Some embodiments of this disclosure can be applied to URLLC and Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) to address issues related to unlicensed frequency bands. Frame-based equipment (FBE) supporting UE-initiated COT is crucial for improving uplink reliability and reducing latency, power consumption, and unnecessary overhead for the UE and gNB in ​​IIoT / URLLC applications. Some embodiments of this disclosure provide support for UE-initiated COT. UE-initiated COT for FBE allows a UE to transmit at the earliest possible time of the FFP without needing to detect DL channels / signals from the gNB.

[0030] If both gNB-initiated COT and UE-initiated COT are enabled, the aforementioned UE can have more uplink UL transmission flexibility and opportunities in either gNB-initiated FFP or UE-initiated FFP COT.

[0031] For various channel conditions, some embodiments of this disclosure support configurable coordination of the features and advantages between NR-U CG and URLLC CG. According to some embodiments of this disclosure, by coordinating the features of NR-U and URLLC, the aforementioned UE and base station can achieve reduced latency and enhanced reliability of CG-PUSCH transmission in unlicensed spectrum. Attached Figure Description

[0032] To more clearly illustrate the embodiments or related technologies of the present invention, the figures in each embodiment will be briefly described below. Obviously, the figures are merely some embodiments of the present invention, and those skilled in the art can obtain other figures based on these figures without being limited to the stated premises.

[0033] Figure 1 Provide a schematic diagram of a telecommunications system.

[0034] Figure 2A An example diagram illustrates one embodiment of a semi-static channel access method for unlicensed frequency bands.

[0035] Figure 2B An example diagram illustrates another embodiment of a semi-static channel access method for unlicensed frequency bands.

[0036] Figure 2C An example diagram illustrates another embodiment of a semi-static channel access method for unlicensed frequency bands.

[0037] Figure 3 An example diagram illustrating the use of a COT initiated by the base station (i.e., a COT initiated by the gNB) for FBE is shown.

[0038] Figure 4 An example diagram illustrating a COT initiated by the UE for FBE (i.e., a UE-initiated COT).

[0039] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a procedure used to configure the FFP parameters of a UE.

[0040] Figure 6 The example shown is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a procedure for configuring restricted uplink UL transmission.

[0041] Figure 7 An example diagram illustrating a procedure used to trigger the COT (Continuous Operation of the UE) startup is shown below.

[0042] Figure 8 An example diagram illustrating a procedure for determining the COT type during RACH is shown below.

[0043] Figure 9 The example shown is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of an uplink transmission procedure that overlaps with the idle period.

[0044] Figure 10 The example shown is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a procedure for a COT to perform downlink DL transmission using one of the other UEs.

[0045] Figure 11 The example shown illustrates an example of an uplink UL transmission procedure, including a schematic diagram of an isolated symbol caused by segmentation across time slot boundaries.

[0046] Figure 12 An example illustration shows a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0047] The technical aspects, structural features, objectives, and effects of embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Specifically, the terminology used in the embodiments of the present invention is for the purpose of describing a particular embodiment only, and is not intended to limit the present invention.

[0048] Reference Figure 1 The telecommunications system, including UE 10a, UE 10b, base station (BS) 20a and network entity equipment 30, performs the method disclosed according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1 The diagram is illustrative and not restrictive; the system may include additional UE, BS, and CN entities. Connections between devices and device components are shown as lines and arrows in the diagram. User equipment 10a may include a processor 11a, a memory 12a, and a transceiver 13a. User equipment 10b may include a processor 11b, a memory 12b, and a transceiver 13b. Base station 20a may include a processor 21a, a memory 22a, and a transceiver 23a. Network entity device 30 may include a processor 31, a memory 32, and a transceiver 33. Each of the processors 11a, 11b, 21a, and 31 may be configured to implement the functions, procedures, and / or methods described herein. The various layers of the radio interface protocol may be implemented in the processors 11a, 11b, 21a, and 31. Each of the memories 12a, 12b, 22a, and 32 may operatively store various programs and information to operate the connected processor. Each of the transceivers 13a, 13b, 23a, and 33 described above is operatively connected to a connected processor to transmit and / or receive radio or wired signals. The base station 20a described above may be one of an eNB, gNB, or other type of radio node, and may be configured with radio resources for the UEs 10a and 10b described above.

[0049] Each of the processors 11a, 11b, 21a, and 31 described above may include an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), other chipsets, logic circuits, and / or data processing devices. Each of the memories 12a, 12b, 22a, and 32 described above may include read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), flash memory, memory cards, storage media, and / or other storage devices. Each of the transceivers 13a, 13b, 23a, and 33 described above may include baseband circuitry and radio frequency (RF) circuitry to process radio frequency signals. When this embodiment is implemented in software, the techniques described herein can be implemented using modules, programs, functions, entities, etc., that perform the functions described herein. These modules may be stored in memory and executed by a processor. The memories described above may be implemented within the processor or external to the processor, wherein those memories may be communicatively coupled to the processor in various ways known in the art.

[0050] The aforementioned network entity device 30 can be a node in the CN. The CN can include an LTE CN or a 5G core (5GC), which includes User Plane Function (UPF), Session Management Function (SMF), Mobility Management Function (AMF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Policy Control Function (PCF), Control Plane (CP) / User Plane (UP) separation (CUPS), Authentication Server (AUSF), Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF), and Network Exposure Function (NEF).

[0051] The examples of UEs described above may include either UE 10a or UE 10b. The examples of base stations described above may include base station 20a. (Refer to...) Figures 2A to 2C In cases where, for example, the embodiment of UE 10 described above includes one of UE 10a or UE 10b, and the embodiment of gNB 20 includes the base station 20a described above. Although UE 10 and gNB 20 have been described in detail as examples above, the methods disclosed herein can be applied to other UEs and / or other base stations. Uplink (UL) control signal or data transmission can be a transmission operation from the UE to the base station. Downlink (DL) control signal or data transmission can be a transmission operation from the base station to the UE.

[0052] In the above Figure 2A This embodiment describes an implementation of a semi-static channel access method in an unlicensed frequency band by UE 10 and gNB 20. This embodiment is applicable to CG uplink UL transmission in an unlicensed frequency band. gNB 20 determines (S001) and transmits configuration information and scheduling information (S002) to one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10). UE 10 receives the configuration information and scheduling information from gNB 20 (S003) and detects downlink (DL) information transmission within a fixed frame period (FFP) based on a set of FFP parameters associated with gNB 20 (S004).

[0053] The UE 10 determines whether to initiate Channel Occupancy Time (COT) in an FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the UE, according to at least one condition in the configuration information, at least one condition in the scheduling information, and the detection result of the downlink DL information transmission. (S005)

[0054] If the determination result of whether to start the above-mentioned COT is yes, after the successful Listen-Before-Speak (LBT) process, the above-mentioned COT is started in the above-mentioned FFP based on the above-mentioned set of FFP parameters associated with the above-mentioned UE 10 (S006).

[0055] The UE 10 transmits an uplink UL cluster to the gNB 20 in one or more valid symbols within the FFP region based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE 10 (S007). The gNB 20 receives the uplink UL cluster in one or more valid symbols within the FFP region based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE 10 (S008). The uplink UL cluster may include transmissions of the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), or repeated transmissions of the PUSCH or the PUCCH. Repeated transmissions of the PUSCH may include repetitions of the PUSCH in PUSCH repetition type A or type B.

[0056] When the gNB 20 uses the Channel Occupancy Time (COT) initiated by the UE, the gNB 20 transmits a downlink DL cluster to the UE 10 in one or more valid symbols in the region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE 10 (S009). When the UE 10 shares the COT initiated by the UE with the base station, the gNB 20 receives a downlink DL cluster from the gNB 20 in one or more valid symbols in the region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE 10 (S010). For example, the downlink DL cluster may include Msg2, Msg4, or PDCCH for retransmission of Msg3.

[0057] The above Figure 2BThe above embodiment describes an example of UE 10 and gNB 20 performing a semi-static channel access method in an unlicensed frequency band. This embodiment is applicable to DG uplink UL transmission in one or more unlicensed frequency bands. gNB 20 generates (S011) and transmits (S012) configuration information to one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10), and transmits downlink (DL) information to UE 10 (S012). UE 10 receives the configuration information sent from gNB 20 (S013) and receives the downlink DL information sent from gNB 20 (S014).

[0058] The UE 10 determines, based on at least one condition in the configuration information and at least one condition in the downlink DL information, whether to initiate Channel Occupancy Time (COT) within a fixed frame period (FFP) based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the UE 10 (S015). If the determination result of whether to initiate the COT is yes, the UE 10 initiates a COT within the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE 10 after a successful listen-before-talk (LBT) (S016).

[0059] The UE 10 transmits an uplink UL cluster to the gNB 20 in one or more valid symbols within a region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE 10 (S017). The gNB 20 receives the uplink UL cluster in one or more valid symbols within a region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE 10 (S018). The uplink UL cluster may include the transmission of the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), or repeated transmissions of the PUSCH or the PUCCH. Repeated transmissions of the PUSCH may include repetitions of the PUSCH in PUSCH repetition type A or type B.

[0060] When gNB 20 uses the Channel Occupancy Time (COT) initiated by UE 10, gNB 20 transmits a downlink DL cluster to UE 10 in one or more valid symbols within the region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with UE 10 (S019). When UE 10 shares the COT initiated by UE 10 with gNB 20, it receives a downlink DL cluster from gNB 20 in one or more valid symbols within the region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with UE 10 (S020). For example, the downlink DL cluster may include Msg2, Msg4, or PDCCH for retransmission of Msg3.

[0061] In the above Figure 2C In this embodiment, UE 10 and gNB 20 perform a semi-static channel access method in an unlicensed frequency band. gNB 20 generates (S021) and transmits (S022) configuration information to one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10), and transmits downlink (DL) information to UE 10 (S022). UE 10 receives the configuration information sent from gNB 20 (S023) and detects downlink (DL) transmission within a fixed frame period (FFP) based on a set of FFP parameters associated with gNB 20 (S024).

[0062] The UE 10 determines whether to initiate Channel Occupancy Time (COT) in an FFP based on at least one condition in the configuration information and the detection result of the downlink (DL) transmission (S025).

[0063] If the determination result of whether to initiate the aforementioned COT is yes, after a successful Listen-After-Speak (LBT) process, the UE 10 initiates the aforementioned COT in the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the UE 10 (S026). The UE 10 transmits uplink (UL) bursts in one or more valid symbols in the area of ​​the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the UE 10 (S027). The gNB 20 receives the aforementioned uplink (UL) bursts in one or more valid symbols in an area of ​​an FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the UE 10 (S028). The aforementioned uplink UL bursts may include the transmission of the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), or the repeated transmission of the aforementioned PUSCH or the aforementioned PUCCH. The repeated transmission of the aforementioned PUSCH may include the repetition of the PUSCH in PUSCH repetition type A or type B.

[0064] When gNB 20 uses a COT initiated by UE 10, gNB 20 transmits a downlink DL cluster to UE 10 in one or more valid symbols within the region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with UE 10 (S029). When UE 10 shares a COT initiated by UE 10 with gNB 20, UE 10 receives a downlink DL cluster from gNB 20 in one or more valid symbols within the region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with UE 10 (S030). For example, the downlink DL cluster may include Msg2, Msg4, or a PDCCH for retransmission of Msg3.

[0065] Embodiments of this disclosure provide solutions and corresponding procedures to address the aforementioned technical problem of Channel Occupancy Time (COT) during UE startup supporting frame-based equipment (FBE).

[0066] COT for FBE started by UE:

[0067] In a controlled environment for URLLC in unlicensed frequency bands, inter-ATA interference is not expected. The main challenge faced by URLLC is the unpredictable latency caused by failure to acquire a channel during the aforementioned channel access period. Rel-16 NR-U supports two channel access modes. The first channel access mode is load-based equipment (LBE), and the second is frame-based equipment (FBE). FBE is also known as a semi-static channel access mode. Unlike LBE, the frame period of FBE is fixed through configuration, called the fixed frame period (FFP). The FFP is limited to values ​​of 1ms, 2ms, 2.5ms, 4ms, 5ms, or 10ms. In FBE, the channel access is based on the frame structure of the FFP. The FFP period occurs, including the channel occupancy time (COT) starting from the beginning of the FFP. The COT is followed by an idle period at the end of the FFP.

[0068] Figure 3 Examples of COTs initiated by a base station (e.g., gNB) are shown. For simplicity, a COT initiated by a base station is referred to as a gNB-initiated COT, a BS-initiated COT, or a gNB COT. A COT initiated by a UE is referred to as a UE-initiated COT or a UE COT. In this description, according to embodiments of the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified, a gNB-initiated COT may be a base station (e.g., gNB 20); according to embodiments of the present disclosure, a UE-initiated COT may be a UE (e.g., UE 10 as described above); according to embodiments of the present disclosure, the gNB's FFP is based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station (e.g., gNB 220); and according to embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE's FFP is based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE (e.g., UE 10 as described above). The scheme where COT is initiated via the base station is called the gNB-initiated COT scheme or gNB-initiated COT function, while the scheme where COT is initiated via the UE is called the UE-initiated COT scheme or UE-initiated COT function. For simplicity, the above-mentioned gNB-initiated COT scheme can be referred to as gNB-initiated COT, and the above-mentioned UE-initiated COT scheme can be referred to as UE-initiated COT. Figure 3 In the previous examples, only the gNB, such as gNB 20 mentioned above, can act as the initiating device for initiating COT, while UE 10 acts as the responding device. At the start of the FFP, only downlink DL transmissions are permitted, while downlink DL or uplink UL transmissions are not permitted during the idle period. (See reference...) Figure 3FFP 310 includes a gNB-initiated COT 311 and an idle period 312, while FFP 320 includes a gNB-initiated COT 321 and an idle period 322. The UE 10 can receive downlink DL transmissions from the gNB 20 in the front-end portion 313 of the gNB-initiated COT 311 and the front-end portion 323 of the aforementioned gNB-initiated COT 321. The UE 10 can perform uplink UL transmissions to the gNB 20 in the remaining portion 314 of the gNB-initiated COT 311 and the remaining portion 324 of the UE-initiated COT 321. The front-end portion is the initial part of the COT. Technical Specification (TS) 37.213 specifies that the gNB (such as the gNB 20) can perform a one-time listen-before-speak (LBT) with a 9-microsecond detection slot duration during each idle period. If the LBT is successful, the gNB can occupy the COT of the next FFP. If the UE detects a DL signal / channel at the beginning of the FFP, the UE (e.g., UE 10) can share resources within the FFP. The gNB and UE can resume transmission at any point within the COT of the FFP. If the transmission gap between two transmissions is less than 16 microseconds (µs), LBT is not required. The FBE mode indicator and FFP configuration are in the remaining minimum system information (RMSI) (e.g., the first system information block, SIB1). The FFP can also be indicated by signaling via UE-specific radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

[0069] Even though the UE (such as UE 10 above) can transmit UL data or signals at any location within the remaining portion of the COT by sharing the COT initiated by the gNB, the above example imposes a limitation on the UE: all uplink UL transmissions depend on the gNB's LBT result and the detection of possible downlink DL transmissions at the start of the FFP. URLLC operation supporting only the gNB-initiated COT is inefficient and may introduce more latency for uplink UL transmissions (especially for configuration-authorized uplink UL transmissions). In the gNB-initiated COT example, the UE (such as UE 10 above) must confirm that the gNB has successfully acquired the COT at the start of the FFP so that the UE can transmit UL data or signals within the FFP during the gNB-initiated COT. For example, the UE can only transmit configuration-authorized physical uplink shared channels (CG-PUSCHs) if it has successfully decoded the PDCCH, introducing additional latency due to gNB downlink DL transmission time and UE processing time. The limitations imposed by the COT initiated by the gNB may restrict the flexibility of URLLC and hinder the aforementioned UEs in the initial part of FFP UL scheduling.

[0070] Alternatively, a COT initiated by a UE using FBE allows the UE (such as UE 10 described above) to transmit at the earliest time in the FFP without detecting the DL signal from the gNB described above. (See reference) Figure 4 FFP 410 includes a UE-initiated COT 411 and an idle period 412, while FFP 420 includes a UE-initiated COT 421 and an idle period 422. The UE 10 can perform uplink UL transmissions to the gNB 20 in the front-end portion 413 of the UE-initiated COT 411 and the front-end portion 423 of the UE-initiated COT 421. The UE 10 can receive downlink DL transmissions from the gNB 20 in the remaining portion 414 of the UE-initiated COT 411 and the remaining portion 424 of the UE-initiated COT 421. Using the UE-initiated COT, uplink channels can be transmitted at the beginning (e.g., the aforementioned front-end portion 413 or front-end portion 423) of each FFP associated with the UE (e.g., FFP 310 or 320) without waiting for the gNB-initiated COT to share uplink UL resources.

[0071] In a UE-initiated COT, to trigger an uplink UL transmission, even if the gNB has no downlink traffic to transmit and is unaware of whether the UE intends to transmit under a so-called Configuration Grant (CG) condition, the gNB needs to retain the acquired COT and transmit DL signals or DL ​​channels in the front-end of the FFP. Using a UE-initiated COT reduces unnecessary DL signaling overhead and is more energy-efficient from the gNB's perspective. For CG uplink UL transmissions, no explicit dynamic signaling is available; the UE needs to implicitly determine whether the COT in the FFP is initiated by detecting downlink DL transmissions in the aforementioned FFP. From the UE's perspective, this leads to excessive complexity and power consumption.

[0072] UE 10 using the UE-initiated COT does not need to consider the possibility of LBT failure on the gNB 20, but it does consider the possibility of DL signal detection failure. LBT failure or DL ​​signal detection failure may be caused by channel overload or poor channel conditions of the gNB 20 or UE 10. These two factors affect the reliability of URLLC transmission. If the gNB 20 cannot acquire the channel, both the gNB 20 and UE 10 must abandon transmission within the FFP. If UE 10 cannot detect the DL signal in the FFP from the gNB 20, it will lose the uplink UL transmission opportunity. Both of these situations introduce additional latency to uplink UL transmission. If both gNB-initiated COT and UE-initiated COT are activated simultaneously, UE 10 can gain more uplink UL transmission flexibility and opportunities by utilizing a shared COT from either the gNB-initiated FFP or the UE-initiated FFP.

[0073] Therefore, the aforementioned FBE support for UE-initiated COT is crucial for improving the reliability of the FBE uplink transmission, reducing latency and power consumption in IIOT / URLLC applications, and minimizing unnecessary overhead for the UE and gNB.

[0074] In this disclosure, some embodiments provide support for COT initiated by the UE when one or more UEs are operating as FBEs in unlicensed spectrum.

[0075] UL configuration enhancements for unlicensed frequency bands:

[0076] In Rel-16eURLLC, to support reduced latency, multiple CG configurations can be initiated independently, published individually or jointly. Two types of PUSCH repetition are defined, applicable to dynamic grants (DG) and configured grants (CG), respectively. One of the multiple repetitions is a redundant version (RV) of the PUSCH transmission. Multiple repetitions of PUSCH achieve the repeated transmission of PUSCH described above. In PUSCH repetition type A, slot-level repetition using the same start and length indicator (SLIV) across K consecutive slots is defined. In PUSCH repetition type B, intra-slot and inter-slot repetitions are introduced, including segmentation schemes that cross slot boundaries or cross one or more invalid symbols, dynamically indicating the number of repetitions, and PUSCH frequency hopping on multiple nominal repetitions. In addition, a new time domain resource assignment (TDRA) table is introduced to indicate SLIVs and some back-to-back repetitions.

[0077] To ensure high reliability of retransmissions, the ability to initiate a transmission from any redundant version of the RV sequence {0, 0, 0, 0} or {0, 3, 0, 3} containing 0 is introduced. Retransmissions are UL-licensed, and a configured grant timer (configuredGrantTimer) is introduced; if this timer expires, it serves as an indication for an autonomous new transmission, i.e., an implicit ACK.

[0078] Rel-16 NR-U supports multiple CG configurations. To avoid the necessity of LBT in discontinuous transmissions, NR-U supports more transmission opportunities for CG-PUSCH by introducing multiple consecutive time slots (i.e., cg-nrofSlots) and multiple consecutive PUSCH instances within a time slot (i.e., cg-nrofPUSCH-InSlot) after the configuration grant offset. For example, UE 10 mentioned above is in the repeat transport block (TB) among the candidates repK earliest consecutive transmission opportunities in the same configuration. However, radio resources are not allowed to be allocated for a nominal repeat that spans multiple time slots, and the repeat is dropped if it conflicts with one or more invalid symbols. To decouple the link between the hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) identifier (ID) and the symbol index of the transmission opportunity to reduce latency, NR-U supports flexible HARQ ID selection for UEs (e.g., UE 10 mentioned above), and the UE has complete flexibility to select any RV for each repeat. To indicate HARQ-related information to the gNB (e.g., gNB 20 mentioned above), the UE transmits Configuration Grant Uplink Control Information (CG-UCI) with HARQ ID, RV, and new data indicator (NDI) in each CG-PUSCH. Therefore, the UE can more freely choose collision-free ocassion for CG-PUSCH transmission, and the HARQ ID can be used for configuration grant settings. Furthermore, considering the potential missed detections of PUSCH due to the so-called hidden node problem in unlicensed bands, NR-U introduces a Configuration Grant Retransmission Timer (cg-RetransmissionTimer) to support autonomous CG-PUSCH retransmission. Additionally, NR-U uses CG downlink feedback information (CG-DFI) to indicate HARQ-ACK for all UL HARQ processes and supports using ACK to indicate new transmissions and autonomous CG-PUSCH retransmission after the cg-RetransmissionTimer expires (i.e., implicit NACK).

[0079] In a controlled environment, LBT failures are almost nonexistent, hidden node interference is negligible, and the probability of missed uplink UL transmissions is likely very low. Therefore, the autonomous retransmission after the cg-RetransmissionTimer defined in Rel-16 NR-U results in unnecessary downlink control information (DCI) overhead. However, to maintain low latency, the UE can utilize the flexible HARQ ID selection functionality in NR-U instead of the deterministic HARQ ID in eURLLC. For various application scenarios, it is reasonable for the gNB (such as the gNB 20 mentioned above) to flexibly configure its functions between the NR-U CG and the URLLC CG.

[0080] One embodiment of this disclosure provides a possible solution for coordinating CG-PUSCH in NR-U and URLLC in unlicensed bands.

[0081] Example 1: UE FFP parameter configuration:

[0082] Example 1-1: The "Offset" and "Period" values ​​of the UE's FFP:

[0083] For UE 10 described above, an offset value between the gNB's FFP and the UE's FFP is introduced to determine the starting position of the UE's FFP. The FFP parameters of the UE-initiated FFP can be derived using the following scheme for UE 10.

[0084] For UE-initiated COT, the gNB 20 provides at least one set of FFP parameters to the UE (e.g., UE 10) or a group of UEs via SIB1 (broadcast) or dedicated RRC configuration. The at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the UE is included in the configuration information for UE 10 to perform COT initiation. This configuration information can be transmitted from the gNB 20 to one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10) via SIB1 or dedicated RRC signaling. The FFP parameters may include one or more of the following higher-level parameters:

[0085] ■ Channel access mode = "semi-static";

[0086] ■Period(T x ), and has the following possible values:

[0087] ◆ An existing value selected from the {1, 2, 2.5, 4, 5, 10} milliseconds (ms) configured in semiStaticChannelAccessConfig-r16;

[0088] ◆New values ​​defined in Rel.17: Note that the UE's FFP can be defined as an integer multiple or integer factor of the gNB's FFP. The FFP period value associated with the aforementioned FFP, based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE, can be an integer multiple or integer factor of the aforementioned FFP period value associated with the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station. The aforementioned FFP period value associated with the aforementioned FFP, based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE, can be configured to one of 1, 2, 2.5, 4, 5, or 10 ms.

[0089] ◆Reuse the periodic value of periodically occurring resources configured in RRC signaling. However, the aforementioned periodic value of periodically occurring resources may be overwritten by another explicit signal, including:

[0090] ●Configured grant (CG);

[0091] ● Scheduling request (SR);

[0092] ●Sounding reference signal (SRS);

[0093] ● Regular CSI feedback; or

[0094] ● Random access channel (RACH).

[0095] ■The above offset values ​​can be determined relative to one or more of the following reference points:

[0096] ◆The starting point of gNB's FFP;

[0097] ◆ Radio frame boundaries; and

[0098] ◆Reference System Frame Number (SFN).

[0099] For example, in one embodiment, the FFP offset specifies the starting point of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE, and the value of the FFP offset is configured relative to the boundary of the wireless communication frame.

[0100] ■Example 1-2: UE's FFP "Offset" and "Period" Configuration

[0101] One or more sets of period and offset values ​​can be configured together, such as {period, offset}, or they can be configured separately, such as {period} and {offset}, for a single UE, such as UE 10 mentioned above.

[0102] The gNB 20 mentioned above can create a mapping table containing multiple sets of {period}, {offset}, or {period, offset} values, each set corresponding to a column index in the table above.

[0103] The aforementioned mapping table can be created and represented by signals through RRC configuration. One or more sets of {period}, {offset}, or {period, offset} values ​​are selected based on the column index of the aforementioned mapping table. A set of FFP parameters for the aforementioned UE is configured based on the column index of the corresponding FFP parameter mapping table configured by the aforementioned base station. The aforementioned column index can be indicated semi-statically using cell-specific RRC, UE-specific RRC signaling, or dynamically in a combination of DCI fields, unused fields, or different fields with predefined code points. The aforementioned fields of the DCI may be newly created fields. The DCI type used to indicate the aforementioned column index of the aforementioned DCI can be one of the following:

[0104] ■ Unicast DCI for UL licensing;

[0105] ■ Unicast DCI for CG startup; and

[0106] ■ Share DCI within a group of UEs.

[0107] The values ​​of {period}, {offset}, or {period, offset} can be associated with other parameters or implicitly determined based on parameters in other configurations. Examples of other parameters or parameters in other configurations can include one or more of the following:

[0108] ■The location of PRACH resources in the RACH configuration.

[0109] ■DL / UL Time-division duplex (TDD) format.

[0110] ■ CG periodicity in UL CG configuration: For example, the values ​​of the above period and the above offset can be selected to align with the start point of the above initial transmission at any time associated with redundancy version 0 (RV0).

[0111] ■ Priority levels in UL CG configuration: For example, different priority levels correspond to different offset values.

[0112] ■ The location of the PUCCH resource used for scheduling requests (SRs).

[0113] ■Resource locations as reported regularly by CSI.

[0114] The aforementioned gNB 20 can generate multiple sets of {period}, {offset}, or {period, offset} candidate objects for the aforementioned UE 10. The aforementioned UE 10 can be configured by the aforementioned base station or determine autonomously which set of FFP parameters to use, and switch from the first set of FFP parameters to the second set of FFP parameters. The aforementioned first set of FFP parameters was previously used by the aforementioned UE 10, while the aforementioned second set of FFP parameters is currently determined and used by the aforementioned UE 10. However, the aforementioned handover period should not violate existing regulations, which stipulate that the aforementioned UE 10 cannot switch between a set of FFP parameters more than once every 200ms. A set of FFP parameters can be referred to as a set of FFP configurations. In one embodiment, the aforementioned base station sets options for the aforementioned UE or instructs the aforementioned UE that if the aforementioned base station has configured multiple sets of FFP parameters, then the UE switches from the aforementioned set of FFP parameters to the second set of FFP parameters, and after the aforementioned UE performs semi-static channel access using the aforementioned first set of FFP parameters for at least 200ms, the aforementioned UE switches to the second set of FFP parameters.

[0115] The UE 10 can determine which FFP configuration to apply based on its RRC state and / or UL traffic type. The RRC state of the UE 10 can include RRC_IDLE, RRC_inactive, or RRC_CONNECTED. For example, the UL traffic type of the UE 10 can include emergency or non-emergency traffic types, mission-critical or non-mission-critical traffic types, URLLC or non-URLLC traffic types, etc. In one embodiment, at least one set of FFP parameters is configured in SIB1 for the UE operating in the RRC_IDLE state, and another set of FFP parameters is configured in dedicated RRC signaling for the UE operating in the RRC_CONNECTED state.

[0116] If the aforementioned UE 10 can autonomously determine and select a set of FFP parameters, then the aforementioned UE 10 can notify gNB 20 about the FFP parameters {period}, {offset}, or {period, offset} selected by the aforementioned UE 10 through uplink signals / channels.

[0117] The default values ​​for the UE's period and the aforementioned offset for the FFP can be provided by SIB1 from the aforementioned gNB 20. The default values ​​for the UE's period and the aforementioned offset for the FFP can be the same as or different from the FFP of the gNB. Each set of at least one set of FFP parameters includes an FFP period and an FFP offset associated with the UE, so that the UE performs COT initiation. The at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the UE and the at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the base station are configured separately.

[0118] The periodic values ​​and offsets of the UE's FFPs can be overwritten. For example, dedicated RRC signaling with updated values ​​for a set of FFP parameters can override the default values ​​of a set of FFP parameters configured by SIB1. Dynamic control information (e.g., DCI) with updated values ​​for a set of FFP parameters can override the values ​​of a set of FFP parameters configured by higher-level RRC signaling.

[0119] ■ Example 1-2-1: Example of UE FFP parameter configuration procedure:

[0120] refer to Figure 5 Multiple sets of FFP parameters, namely period and offset, can be configured for the aforementioned UE 10 using RRC signaling (S031). For example, the aforementioned gNB 20 configured a set of FFP parameters for the aforementioned UE 10.

[0121] The aforementioned gNB 20 may use RRC signaling and / or DCI to indicate one or more sets of FFP parameters to the aforementioned UE 10 (S032).

[0122] gNB 20 can override at least one set of previously configured FFP parameters based on the FFP parameters indicated by the predefined override rules (S033).

[0123] The aforementioned UE 10 determines whether multiple sets of FFP parameters are configured for the aforementioned UE 10 (S034). If multiple sets of FFP parameters are configured for the aforementioned UE 10 (S034), the aforementioned UE 10 can determine which set of FFP parameters to apply based on specific conditions (such as the aforementioned UE 10's RRC status or UL traffic type) (S035).

[0124] If only one set of FFP parameters is configured for the aforementioned UE 10, then the aforementioned UE 10 will initiate a COT and perform uplink UL transmission based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters (S036).

[0125] ■ Example 2: Stopping transmission in restricted areas in FFP:

[0126] ■ Example 2-1: Restricting Uplink UL Transmissions from UE

[0127] UE 10 can restrict uplink UL transmissions based on the UE's COT location and the idle location of one of the other devices. Examples of the above-mentioned restricted uplink UL transmission configurations are described in detail below.

[0128] The aforementioned UE 10 can determine whether any of the following restrictions apply to UE 10 according to predefined rules. Furthermore, if any of the following restrictions apply to UE 10, the aforementioned gNB 20 can indicate this to UE 10 via RRC signaling or dynamic DCI:

[0129] ■ The above-mentioned UE 10 should avoid uplink UL transmission in the following areas:

[0130] ◆Scenario 1: Idle period in the FFP of a UE used to initiate the COT of the above UE;

[0131] ◆Case 2: Idle time in the FFP of a gNB (e.g., gNB 20 mentioned above); and

[0132] ◆Scenario 3: Idle period in the FFP of one or more other UEs.

[0133] The UE that initiates COT for the aforementioned UE is referred to as the active UE. Assume that UE 10 requires restricted uplink UL transmission. The gNB 20 can provide at least one of the following information to the UE (e.g., UE 10) or a group of UEs via RRC signaling or dynamic DCI:

[0134] ■The duration and location of the UE's COT and / or the location of the idle period of the aforementioned active UE.

[0135] ■ gNB's COT duration and location, corresponding idle period and / or corresponding Clear Channel Assessment (CCA) (or LBT) gap.

[0136] ■ Other UE's COT duration and location, corresponding idle period and / or corresponding CCA (or LBT) interval.

[0137] ■ The number of overlapping COTs, each COT has a corresponding FFP parameter.

[0138] ■ UL / DL location of TDD configuration.

[0139] The aforementioned UE 10 may determine the restricted area for uplink UL transmission based on the specified circumstances announced by gNB 20 or according to predetermined rules. The restricted area refers to the area where uplink UL transmission is not permitted during the UE's COT-enabled FFP.

[0140] The aforementioned UE 10 may restrict uplink UL transmissions via sharing a COT from one of the other UEs (i.e., the aforementioned gNB 20 shares a COT with one of the other UEs). The shared COT may include a UE-initiated COT from one of the other UEs. The restricted area can be derived from one or more of the following types of information belonging to the FFP of the parent UE of one of the other UEs:

[0141] ■FFP parameters;

[0142] ■COT duration; and

[0143] ■ The idle period position of the COT initiated by one of the other UEs mentioned above.

[0144] The various types of information mentioned above can be provided by the gNB 20 via RRC signaling or dynamically indicated via DCI, or can be derived from the measurement of the uplink UL transmission duration of the UE to other UEs.

[0145] In one embodiment, one or more valid symbols used for transmitting the aforementioned uplink UL cluster are defined as at least one of the following symbols:

[0146] ■ Symbols used for uplink UL transmission are not in the FFP idle period, and some UEs have initiated the above COT in the above FFP.

[0147] In one embodiment, one or more valid symbols used to transmit the aforementioned downlink DL cluster transmission are symbols that are not in the idle period of the aforementioned FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE.

[0148] After uplink UL transmission is temporarily suspended due to restricted areas, one or more invalid symbols, or discontinuous UL scheduling, if the transmission gap length meets the requirements of regulations defined for unlicensed band access (e.g., greater than or less than 16 microseconds), the UE 10 can resume transmission on an activated COT using a specific channel access scheme.

[0149] ■ Example 2-1-1: Restricted Uplink UL Transmission Configuration Procedure Example:

[0150] Reference Figure 6The aforementioned UE 10 determines the initiator of a COT (S041). Specifically, the aforementioned UE 10 determines whether a COT is initiated by the aforementioned UE 10 itself, or by the aforementioned gNB 20 or one of the aforementioned other UEs (S041).

[0151] The aforementioned UE 10 determines, based on predefined rules or relying on the instructions of the aforementioned gNB 20, whether any situation should comply with restrictive uplink UL transmission (S042).

[0152] The aforementioned UE 10 determines information about the idle period location of the aforementioned UE 10, or (if necessary) information about the idle period location of other devices obtained from the aforementioned gNB 20 (S043).

[0153] The aforementioned UE 10 stopped uplink UL transmission due to restricted area, one or more invalid symbols, or non-continuous UL scheduling (S044).

[0154] If the length of the aforementioned transmission gap meets the requirements (S045), then the aforementioned UE 10 resumes uplink UL transmission according to the specific channel access scheme.

[0155] ■ Example 2-2: Limitations of Downlink DL Transmission in UE's COT

[0156] The aforementioned gNB 20 can restrict downlink DL transmissions when sharing COT from the UE. A restricted area refers to a region within the FFP where the UE initiates COT that does not allow downlink DL transmissions. This restricted area can be derived from the following possible scenarios.

[0157] Idle period of COT initiated by UE:

[0158] The aforementioned restricted area can be derived from the idle period in the FFP where the UE initiates the aforementioned COT. The aforementioned idle period of the FFP associated with the aforementioned UE can be configured by the aforementioned gNB 20 via higher-layer signaling, provided by the aforementioned UE 10 via CG-UCI, or based on the gNB's measurement of the UE's uplink UL transmission duration.

[0159] In one embodiment, one or more valid symbols used for transmitting the aforementioned downlink DL cluster are defined as at least one of the following symbols:

[0160] ■ Symbols used for downlink DL transmission are not used during the idle period of the aforementioned FFP when the UE initiates COT.

[0161] In one embodiment, one or more valid symbols used to transmit the aforementioned downlink DL cluster are symbols that are not in the idle period of the aforementioned FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE.

[0162] After a temporary halt to downlink DL transmission due to a restricted area, one or more invalid symbols, discontinuous DL scheduling, or DL / UL slot format limitations, the aforementioned gNB 20 can resume transmission in a UE's COT using a certain channel access scheme, depending on the length of the transmission gap of the halted downlink DL transmission (e.g., greater than or less than 16 µs).

[0163] ■ Example 3: Giving the UE an instruction regarding the COT that the UE initiates:

[0164] In addition to detecting the presence of a shared gNB-initiated COT by the gNB 20 based on the DL channel / signal detection, the gNB 20 may also explicitly or implicitly indicate to the UE 10 one or more pieces of information to be given to the UE 10 to determine whether to initiate a COT for uplink UL transmission in at least one of the following FFPs.

[0165] ■ Example 3-1: Information provided by gNB regarding COT startup for UE:

[0166] The aforementioned gNB 20 may explicitly or implicitly indicate at least one of the following information to the aforementioned UE 10:

[0167] ●COT type related functions: This function information indicates whether the UE is allowed to initiate COT.

[0168] ●COT sharing information: If UE-initiated COT is allowed, the aforementioned UE 10 can receive this COT sharing information and determine whether the aforementioned UE 10 can still use the shared COT from the aforementioned gNB 20, in preparation for the situation where the aforementioned UE 10 fails in a UE-initiated COT.

[0169] ●COT Type Information: This COT type information indicates whether the above DL transmission is transmitted according to the COT initiated by the gNB 20 of the above gNB 20, or according to the COT initiated by the UE shared by the above gNB 20 from one of the other UEs mentioned above.

[0170] ●COT Priority Information: This COT priority information specifies which of the above FFP configurations has higher priority than the others, based on the gNB configuration and / or the relevant FFP parameters of each FFP configuration. If multiple FFP configurations are configured for the above UE 10, the COT initiated by the UE should follow the FFP configuration specified in the above COT priority information.

[0171] ●COT Location Information: This COT location information provides the location of several subsequent FFPs that allow the UE to perform UE-initiated COT. For example, the above COT location information includes a bitmap pattern to indicate the location of one or more FFPs that allow the UE to initiate a UE-initiated COT.

[0172] ■ Example 3-2: Priority or QoS-related information for triggering UE startup using COT:

[0173] The aforementioned UE 10 can determine whether to use the UE-initiated COT or the shared gNB-initiated COT for uplink UL transmission based on the priority level or performance-related information of the UL traffic type, as detailed below:

[0174] ● Priority levels for UL traffic types:

[0175] The priority levels for UL traffic types can be at the physical layer rule level or the intermediate access control (MAC) layer task level:

[0176] ■Physical Layer Priority Ranking: Examples of the above physical layer priorities may include one or more of the following:

[0177] ◆The priority indicated in the CG configuration;

[0178] ◆The uplink grants priority to the indications in the DCI;

[0179] ◆ Priority of the HARQ codebook used to provide HARQ feedback; and

[0180] ◆Channel access priority class (CAPC).

[0181] ■ MAC Layer Priority Ranking: Examples of MAC layer priorities mentioned above may include one or more of the following:

[0182] ◆ Priority of the logical channel group (LCG) used to trigger scheduling requests; and

[0183] ◆Logical Channel Prioritization (LCP) restrictions are used to assign priority to authorized resources of URLLC.

[0184] ●Performance-related information:

[0185] For example, the aforementioned performance-related information may include quality of service (QoS) or latency requirements for service traffic types, and can be obtained through time-sensitive network assistance information (TSCAI).

[0186] ■ Example 3-3: Resource location information related to COT used to trigger UE startup:

[0187] In one embodiment, for UL scheduling based on configuration grant (DG), the scheduling information includes the location of uplink UL resources used for configuration grant uplink UL transmission. For scheduling based on dynamic grant (DG), the DCI in the PDCCH includes the location of uplink UL resources used for dynamic grant uplink UL transmission. The UE 10 can determine whether to use UE-initiated COT or shared gNB-initiated COT for uplink UL transmission based on the resource location of the CG or DG resources (relative to the location of the UE's FFP or gNB's FFP).

[0188] For cases where the aforementioned CG or DG uplink resources start from the beginning of the UE's FFP and end before the aforementioned idle period of the UE's FFP, the following scheme can be used to determine whether to use the aforementioned COT initiated by UE 10 or the aforementioned COT initiated by gNB 20 for uplink UL transmission:

[0189] ●Assuming the COT is initiated by the UE, the aforementioned UE 10 can execute LBT immediately before the COT of another UE to initiate the COT of that UE.

[0190] ● The UE 10 determines whether a UE-initiated COT or a gNB-initiated COT is applied (or initiated) based on the instruction from the gNB 20. This instruction can be carried in RRC signaling or dynamic DCI. In one embodiment, the DCI further includes COT initiation information, indicating whether the dynamically scheduled uplink UL transmission is based on a UE-initiated COT or a base station-initiated COT. In one embodiment, Figures 2A to 2CThe configuration information mentioned above also includes an indication that the UE is permitted to perform UE-initiated COT functions. This configuration information can be transmitted in RRC signaling. In one embodiment, Figures 2A to 2C The above configuration information also includes instructions to allow the above UE (e.g., the above UE 10) to perform UE-initiated COT functions.

[0191] ● The aforementioned UE 10 can determine which COT type to apply based on predefined decision rules, which may be shared or not shared between the aforementioned UE 10 and gNB 20.

[0192] ■ The COT type is determined in the UE using decision rules shared with the aforementioned gNB 20: For example, according to the decision rules, the aforementioned UE 10 selects a COT type whose idle period does not overlap with the aforementioned CG or DG uplink resources. In another example, the aforementioned UE 10 selects the COT type based on the priority level of the aforementioned uplink traffic.

[0193] ■ Determining the COT type in the UE using decision rules not shared with gNB 20: For example, UE 10 can independently determine the COT type. However, since the decision rules are unknown to gNB 20, UE 10 can notify gNB 20 of the selected COT type via uplink signals (e.g., CG-UCI) through the uplink channel.

[0194] If the aforementioned CG or DG uplink resources do not start at the beginning of the aforementioned UE's FFP, it is assumed that the COT initiated by the gNB is used, and the aforementioned UE 10 can share the gNB-initiated COT for uplink transmission.

[0195] In the above situation, if the DG uplink resources are located outside the current COT of the gNB (for example, uplink resources scheduled in the COT of the gNB 20, which is different from the COT used by the gNB 20 for transmitting dynamic licensed DG scheduling), it is assumed that the COT is initiated by the application UE.

[0196] For the aforementioned CG or DG uplink resources, where the COT located in the aforementioned gNB is also located in the aforementioned UE's COT, the aforementioned COT type can be determined according to the following scheme:

[0197] ●Option 1:

[0198] In one embodiment, Figure 2A and Figure 2BThe aforementioned downlink DL information is derived from a DL channel or DL ​​signal, which is transmitted at a starting point based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station. The DL channel transmitted may include a PDCCH. The DCI in the PDCCH may include resource location information used for dynamically scheduling uplink UL transmissions from the aforementioned UE.

[0199] If the aforementioned UE 10 detects a DL channel / signal at the front end of the aforementioned gNB's FFP and / or the aforementioned gNB 20 indicates that the use of UE-initiated COT is not permitted, then it is assumed that the gNB-initiated COT is used for uplink UL transmission.

[0200] Otherwise, if the aforementioned uplink resources start from the beginning of the UE's FFP, and / or the aforementioned gNB 20 has indicated that the use of UE-initiated COT is permitted, and / or the aforementioned UE (e.g., the aforementioned UE 10) has initiated COT, then it is assumed that the UE-initiated COT is used for uplink UL transmission.

[0201] ●Option 2:

[0202] If the aforementioned uplink resources start from the beginning of the UE's FFP, and / or the aforementioned gNB 20 has indicated that the UE is allowed to initiate COT, and / or the aforementioned UE 10 has initiated COT, then it is assumed that the UE-initiated COT is used for uplink UL transmission.

[0203] Otherwise, if the aforementioned UE 10 detects a DL channel / signal in the aforementioned front-end portion of the gNB's FFP, and / or the aforementioned gNB 20 indicates that the use of UE-initiated COT is not permitted, then it is assumed that the gNB-initiated COT is used for uplink UL transmission.

[0204] In one embodiment, in the above Figure 2A In this context, at least one condition in the above configuration information, at least one condition in the above scheduling information, and the detection result of detecting the transmission of downlink DL information include at least one of the following:

[0205] ■ The above configuration information includes at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE or an indication of the COT function that allows the UE to start;

[0206] ■ The aforementioned scheduling information includes uplink UL resource location information for configuring authorized uplink UL transmission in the aforementioned uplink UL cluster. This uplink UL resource location information indicates the location of the uplink UL resources used for configuring authorized uplink UL transmission. The starting position of the uplink UL resources used for configuring authorized uplink UL transmission is aligned with the starting point of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE; and

[0207] ■ The uplink UL resources used for the above-mentioned configuration authorization uplink UL transmission are located in a COT of the above-mentioned FFP based on the above-mentioned set of FFP parameters associated with the above-mentioned base station in the above-mentioned scheduling information, and the above-mentioned UE cannot detect downlink DL information at the starting point of the above-mentioned FFP based on the above-mentioned set of FFP parameters associated with the above-mentioned base station.

[0208] In one embodiment, in the above Figure 2B In the above configuration information, at least one condition and at least one condition in the above downlink DL information include at least one of the following:

[0209] ■ The above configuration information includes at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE or an indication of the COT function that allows the UE to start;

[0210] ■The DCI includes resource location information and COT initiation information for dynamically scheduling uplink UL transmission in the downlink DL information. The resource location information indicates the location of the uplink UL resources used for the dynamically scheduled uplink UL transmission, and the COT initiation information indicates that the dynamically scheduled uplink UL transmission is based on the COT initiated by the UE.

[0211] In one embodiment, in the above Figure 2B In the above configuration information, at least one condition and at least one condition in the above downlink DL information include at least one of the following:

[0212] ■ The configuration information includes at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE or an indication of the COT function that allows the UE to initiate;

[0213] ■The UE receives the aforementioned downlink DL information, but the aforementioned downlink DL information is not transmitted at the start of the FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station; and

[0214] ■The DCI includes resource location information in the downlink DL information for dynamically scheduling uplink UL transmissions in the uplink UL cluster. The resource location information indicates the location of the uplink UL resources for dynamically scheduling the uplink UL transmissions, and the starting position of the dynamically scheduled uplink UL transmissions is aligned with the starting point of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE.

[0215] In one embodiment, in the above Figure 2B In the above configuration information, at least one condition and at least one condition in the above downlink DL information include at least one of the following:

[0216] ■ The above configuration information includes at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE or an indication of the COT function that allows the UE to start;

[0217] ■ The UE receives the aforementioned downlink DL information in an FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the base station. The DCI includes resource location information for dynamically scheduling uplink UL transmission in the downlink DL information. The resource location information indicates the location in the uplink UL cluster where uplink UL resources for dynamically scheduling uplink UL transmission are scheduled. The uplink UL resources for dynamically scheduling uplink UL transmission are scheduled in a later FFP. The dynamically scheduled uplink UL transmission is scheduled outside the base station associated FFP, and the starting position of the dynamically scheduled uplink UL transmission is aligned with the starting point of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE.

[0218] In one embodiment, in the above Figure 2B In this context, at least one condition in the above configuration information and at least one condition in the above downlink DL information include at least one of the following:

[0219] ■ The above configuration information includes at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE or an indication of the COT function that allows the UE to start;

[0220] ■The UE receives the downlink DL information in an FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station. The DCI includes resource location information and COT initiation information in the downlink DL information for dynamically scheduling uplink UL transmission. The resource location information indicates the location of uplink UL resources for dynamically scheduling uplink UL transmission in the aforementioned uplink UL cluster. The uplink UL resources for dynamically scheduling uplink UL transmission are located in a later FFP. The dynamic scheduling uplink UL transmission is scheduled outside the base station associated FFP. The COT initiation information indicates that the dynamic scheduling uplink UL transmission is based on a COT initiated by the UE.

[0221] ■ Example 3-3-1: An example of triggering the UE to start the COT procedure based on Scheme 1 of Example 3-3.

[0222] refer to Figure 7 The UE 10 receives scheduling information for CG or DG uplink resources (S051) and determines whether the uplink resources are outside the current COT of the gNB 20 (referred to as the current COT of the gNB) (S052). If the uplink resources are outside the current COT of the gNB 20, it is assumed that the COT initiated by the UE is used for uplink UL transmission (S053).

[0223] If the aforementioned uplink resources are located in the COT of the aforementioned gNB and the COT of the aforementioned UE, then the aforementioned UE 10 will determine whether the aforementioned uplink resources start from the FFP start point of the aforementioned UE (S054).

[0224] If the aforementioned uplink resources start from the beginning of the aforementioned UE's FFP (S054), then the aforementioned UE 10 assumes that the UE-initiated COT has been initiated or determines the COT type according to the gNB's instruction (S055).

[0225] If the aforementioned uplink resource does not start from the beginning of the UE's FFP (S054), then the UE 10 determines whether the aforementioned uplink resource of the COT to be initiated is a gNB-initiated COT (S056). For example, the UE 10 may determine whether the aforementioned position of the aforementioned uplink resource is a gNB-initiated COT or a UE-initiated COT based on DL channel / signal detection or based on the aforementioned indication from the gNB 20. In one embodiment, in Figure 2AIn this context, the aforementioned downlink DL information (e.g., DL channel / signal detection) is derived from the DL channel or DL ​​signal sent from the starting point of the FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station, and is used to allow the UE to determine whether the aforementioned gNB 20 has initiated the gNB's COT.

[0226] If the aforementioned uplink transmission location has been identified as a COT initiated by a gNB (S056), then it is assumed that a COT initiated by a gNB is applied, and the gNB COT shared by the aforementioned gNB 20 is used for uplink UL transmission (S057).

[0227] If the aforementioned uplink transmission location is not identified as a COT initiated by the gNB, then the UE 10 will determine whether the aforementioned uplink transmission location in the COT was initiated by the UE 10 (S058). If the aforementioned uplink transmission location in the COT was initiated by the UE 10 (S058), then the UE-initiated COT will be used for uplink UL transmission (S053). Otherwise, the COT is not initiated (S059).

[0228] ■Example 3-4: RRC status information of COT used to trigger UE startup:

[0229] The aforementioned UE 10 can determine whether to use UE-initiated COT or shared gNB-initiated COT for uplink UL transmission based on the UE 10's RRC state. The UE 10's RRC state may include one of the following: RRC_IDLE state, RRC_INACTIVE state, or RRC_CONNECTED state. In one embodiment, in the aforementioned... Figure 2A The above configuration information includes at least one condition, the above scheduling information includes at least one condition, and the detection result of detecting the transmission of the above downlink (DL) information. It also includes a condition: the above UE is operating in the RRC_CONNECTED state.

[0230] For example, when UE 10 is in the RRC_IDLE or RRC_inactive state, the COT initiated by the gNB will be applied. When UE 10 is in the RRC_connected state, it will be assumed that the COT initiated by the UE is applied.

[0231] ■ Examples 3-5: Uplink resource availability for COT used to trigger UE startup:

[0232] In one embodiment, in the above Figure 2AIn this context, at least one condition in the aforementioned configuration information, at least one condition in the aforementioned scheduling information, and the detection result of detecting the transmission of the aforementioned downlink (DL) information further include a condition: the aforementioned uplink UL resource is a valid uplink UL resource for COT initiation performed by the aforementioned UE. The aforementioned uplink UL resource is a valid uplink UL resource for COT initiation performed by the aforementioned UE if at least one of the following conditions is met:

[0233] ■ The symbol in this uplink UL resource was not indicated as a DL symbol by the aforementioned base station; and

[0234] ■ The symbol in this uplink UL resource was not removed by the aforementioned base station.

[0235] In one embodiment, one or more valid symbols used for transmitting the aforementioned uplink UL cluster are defined as at least one of the following:

[0236] ■ The symbols used for uplink UL transmission are not used during the idle period of the aforementioned FFP where the UE has initiated the aforementioned COT;

[0237] ■ Symbols used for uplink UL transmission are not indicated as DL symbols in the slot format indication (SFI); and

[0238] ■ The symbol used for uplink UL transmission was not removed by the aforementioned base stations.

[0239] The UE 10 can determine whether to use a UE-initiated COT or a shared gNB-initiated COT for uplink UL transmission based on the availability of uplink resources at the beginning of the UE's FFP (CG or DG). If uplink resources are available at the beginning of the UE's FFP, it is assumed that the UE-initiated COT is applied. If no uplink resources are available at the beginning of the UE's FFP, it is assumed that the gNB-initiated COT is applied. In one embodiment, the starting position of dynamically scheduled uplink UL transmission is aligned with the starting point of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the UE.

[0240] The aforementioned gNB 20 can use one or more of the following schemes to configure the availability of the above CG or DG uplink resources for the COT initiated by the UE:

[0241] ● Use the group-shared DCI (GC-DCI) to indicate the availability of the aforementioned CG or DG uplink resources according to one of the following instructions:

[0242] ■Slot format indication (SFI) in DCI format 2_0.

[0243] ◆If the uplink resources for uplink UL transmission starting with FFP of the above UE are invalid, the above gNB20 can disable the COT initiated by the UE.

[0244] ■ Uplink cancellation indication (CI) in DCI format 2_4.

[0245] ◆If the uplink UL transmission at the FFP start position of the above UE is canceled, the above gNB 20 can disable the COT initiated by the UE.

[0246] ■ Other newly created instructions in GC-DCI.

[0247] ■ Examples 3-6: Explicit indication scheme for triggering COT initiated by UE:

[0248] The aforementioned gNB 20 can use any one or any combination of the following schemes to explicitly indicate the COT initiated by the aforementioned UE:

[0249] ●RRC configuration indicates support for COT types of a single FFP or COT types that trigger a single FFP:

[0250] The gNB 20 described above can use the new RRC configuration to indicate the COT type of a single FFP. For example, for the UE 10 with higher priority traffic, a UE-initiated COT is configured; otherwise, a gNB-initiated COT is configured.

[0251] The aforementioned gNB 20 can reuse the existing RRC configuration, i.e., the CG configuration, and add an additional field to indicate the COT that supports the aforementioned UE initiation. In one embodiment, the aforementioned COT initiation information is co-encoded in an existing field for dynamic channel access for load-based devices (LBEs).

[0252] ● Indicates RRC configuration of COT type for multiple FFPs:

[0253] The gNB 20 described above can use RRC configuration to indicate the COT type of multiple FFPs. For example, the gNB 20 uses a bitmap as an indicator of the COT type of multiple upcoming FFPs. Each bit value of 1 or 0 in the bitmap can represent a UE-initiated COT or a gNB-initiated COT, respectively. The gNB 20 can create a table with multiple column indexes via RRC signaling, each index mapping to one of multiple sets of bitmaps to indicate the COT type of multiple FFPs. The gNB 20 can dynamically send DCI to the UE 10 to indicate the column indexes of the table to determine the selected bitmap for the COT type.

[0254] ●MAC CE:

[0255] The aforementioned gNB 20 can use a newly created MAC CE or an existing MAC CE to indicate the COT that triggers UE startup or gNB startup.

[0256] ●Dynamic DCI: The gNB 20 described above can use dynamic DCI to indicate the triggering of COT initiated by the UE or gNB. Some examples are described in detail below:

[0257] ■The above gNB 20 allows for the use of explicit parameters in the DCI to indicate the COT type. This parameter can be used in conjunction with FFP parameter settings.

[0258] ■ For a UL CG Type 2 configuration, the aforementioned gNB 20 can use a startup DCI to indicate the COT type. In one embodiment, the aforementioned COT startup information is located in the startup DCI and is used to schedule Type 2 CG PUSCH transmissions.

[0259] ■ The aforementioned gNB 20 can use an intra-group shared DCI to allow a group of UEs to perform a UE-initiated COT. For example, the aforementioned gNB 20 can reuse the existing intra-group shared DCI format 2_0 to indicate the COT duration or SFI information. The aforementioned COT initiation information is located in the intra-group shared DCI and is used to indicate the COT initiation of a group of UEs.

[0260] ■The bit field used to indicate COT activation by the UE can be one of the following:

[0261] ◆ Existing fields for the LBT type indication used for LBE;

[0262] ◆Fields that are specifically defined in addition to the existing fields in the DCI mentioned above;

[0263] ◆Any combination of multiple fields with specific code points;

[0264] ◆Use the fields from the LBE mentioned above to configure unused fields for use by the FBE; or

[0265] ◆The above bit field is encoded together with another bit field.

[0266] ■Example 3-7: Implicit indication scheme for triggering COT initiated by UE:

[0267] The gNB 20 mentioned above can use any one or any combination of the following schemes to implicitly indicate the triggering (or initiation) of the COT initiated by the UE.

[0268] ●Dynamic DCI:

[0269] The aforementioned gNB 20 can use dynamic DCI to indicate the triggering of a COT initiated by the UE or the gNB. The bit fields in the DCI used to indicate a COT initiated by the UE can be existing fields used to indicate LBT types for LBE.

[0270] ■ For example, type 2 LBT (i.e. no LBT) means triggering the COT of gNB startup because in this case, PUSCH is transmitted in the shared gNB startup COT.

[0271] ■ For example, a Type 1 LBT (i.e., a 9µs CCA) means that a 9µs CCA is required to trigger the UE startup COT because in this case, the PUSCH transmission is located outside the COT of the shared gNB startup.

[0272] ●Uplink resource location:

[0273] The aforementioned gNB 20 can use the location of the CG or DG uplink resources for uplink UL transmission, relative to the location of the UE's FFP, to indicate the COT that triggers the UE or gNB. For example, if the aforementioned uplink resources start from the beginning of the UE's FFP, then a UE-initiated COT is assumed.

[0274] ●Energy detection (ED) threshold:

[0275] The aforementioned gNB 20 can use an ED threshold to indicate either a COT initiated by the UE or a COT initiated by the gNB. For example, if a UE-initiated COT is preferred, the aforementioned ED threshold of the LBT is set lower, and the aforementioned UE 10 shares the UE-initiated COT with the aforementioned gNB 20. For example, if a gNB-initiated COT is preferred, the aforementioned ED threshold is set higher to facilitate uplink UL transmission.

[0276] ■Example 3-8: Coverage mechanism of COT indication initiated by UE:

[0277] The gNB 20 can send an updated COT type coverage indication to the UE 10, thereby overriding the previous indication of the previous COT type. The previous indication of the previous COT type may have been previously sent from the gNB 20 to the UE 10 or previously determined by the UE 10. In one embodiment, the COT initiator information in the initiation DCI overrides the determination of the COT initiator based on the decision rules for CG uplink transmission. The COT type indication can be overridden using the following possible schemes:

[0278] Dynamic control information (e.g., DCI) has an updated COT type coverage indication, which can override the aforementioned COT type previously configured by higher-layer RRC signaling. For example, the COT type indication in dynamic DCI can override the COT type configured in CG uplink transmission.

[0279] Dedicated RRC signaling with the above-mentioned updated COT type coverage indication can override the default settings of the COT type, for example, which may be configured by SIB1.

[0280] In one embodiment, the COT initiation information described above overrides the COT initiation information in the previously received DCI in the DCI. Based on a newly created DCI format or an existing DCI format, the group-shared DCI with the updated COT type coverage indication can cover the following COT types. For example, the gNB 20 described above reuses the existing group-shared DCI format 2_0, which indicates COT duration or SFI information, as the updated COT type coverage indication to immediately cover the previously determined COT type.

[0281] ■ Example 4: COT initiated by the UE for uplink UL transmission during RACH procedure:

[0282] The aforementioned UE 10 can initiate a UE-initiated COT for uplink UL transmission during the RACH procedure to transmit uplink signals, including PRACH, HARQ-ACK, Msg3, etc.

[0283] ■ Example 4-1: COT initiated by the UE during the RACH procedure in RRC state:

[0284] The aforementioned UE 10 can execute the UE-initiated COT in the RACH procedure in the RRC_IDLE, RRC_INACTIVE, or RRC_CONNECTED states. Details regarding the information required to execute the UE-initiated COT are provided below:

[0285] In one embodiment, Figure 2A ,2B The configuration information mentioned above in 2C is transmitted in SIB1, Msg2, Msg4, MsgB, PDCCH for retransmission of Msg3, or dedicated RRC signaling, and the configuration information includes at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the UE for performing COT initiation.

[0286] The aforementioned gNB 20 and UE 10 can use information from the COT and / or corresponding UE FFP parameters supporting UE initiation during the random access channel (RACH) procedure. This information from the aforementioned COT and / or corresponding UE FFP parameters supporting UE initiation can be included in... Figure 2A , 2B The configuration information mentioned above in 2C includes one or more of the following:

[0287] ●COT type: Whether it supports UE-initiated COT, gNB-initiated COT, or both UE-initiated COT and gNB-initiated COT to perform uplink UL transmission for one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10 mentioned above).

[0288] ● The COT period and / or FFP offset initiated by the UE:

[0289] ■ If the UE's FFP parameters are not configured, the aforementioned UE 10 can use preset FFP parameters or the same FFP parameters as the COT initiated by the gNB. FFP parameters are parameters used to configure the UE's FFP. In one embodiment, at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE is the same as a set of FFP parameters configured for the aforementioned base station.

[0290] ■ In one embodiment, the FFP period value associated with the UE is derived from the period of the PRACH resources configured for the UE, while the FFP offset value associated with the UE is derived from the position of the PRACH resources configured for the UE. The period parameters and offset of the UE's FFP can be the same as the period and offset of the PRACH resources. The parameters of the UE's FFP period and offset can be referred to as period parameters and offset parameters. That is, the period parameters and offset of the UE's FFP can follow the parameters in the PRACH settings.

[0291] ●Conditions that restrict UE from initiating COT:

[0292] ■ For example, one of the above conditions specifies whether one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10 above) are allowed to use UE-initiated COT transmission PRACH during the idle period of the gNB's FFP.

[0293] ■ For example, one of the above conditions specifies whether one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10 mentioned above) are allowed to use UE-initiated COT transmission PRACH in the Clear Channel Assessment (CCA) area of ​​the gNB's FFP.

[0294] ■ Example 4-2: Implicit indication scheme for instructing UE startup COT and corresponding FFP parameters during RACH:

[0295] During RACH, the UE 10 can be implicitly indicated regarding uplink UL transmissions of COT initiated by a UE with corresponding FFP parameters, or uplink UL transmissions of COT initiated by a gNB with corresponding FFP parameters, through the RRC status, uplink channel type, or detection of downlink channel / signal of the aforementioned UE 10, as detailed below.

[0296] ● Implicit indication based on the RRC status of UE 10 above:

[0297] During RACH, the RRC state of UE 10 can implicitly indicate to UE 10 an uplink UL transmission of COT initiated by a UE with corresponding FFP parameters, or an uplink UL transmission of COT initiated by a gNB with corresponding FFP parameters. For example, if UE 10 performs an uplink UL transmission for uplink synchronization in the RRC_CONNECTED state during RACH, it is assumed that a UE-initiated COT scheme is initiated between one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10) and gNB 20. When UE 10 performs an uplink UL transmission during RACH in the RRC_CONNECTED state, both UE 10 and gNB determine that the COT type of the initiated COT is a UE-initiated COT.

[0298] For example, if UE 10 performs an uplink UL transmission during RACH in the RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE state, it is assumed that the COT scheme initiated by the gNB is applied between one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10) and the gNB 20. When UE 10 performs an uplink UL transmission during RACH in the RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE state, both UE 10 and the gNB determine that the COT type of the initiated COT is a gNB-initiated COT.

[0299] ●Based on the implicit indication of the aforementioned uplink channel:

[0300] The uplink type transmitted by UE 10 during RACH can implicitly indicate whether UE 10 is transmitting an uplink UL based on a UE-initiated COT with corresponding FFP parameters, or an uplink UL based on a gNB-initiated COT with corresponding FFP parameters. For example, if the uplink channel is PRACH, the default setting for the COT type is UE-initiated COT. That is, when the gNB receives PRACH from UE 10, it is assumed that a UE-initiated COT scheme is initiated between one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10) and the gNB 20. Both UE 10 and the gNB determine that when UE 10 performs PRACH transmission, the COT type of the initiated COT is UE-initiated COT.

[0301] The aforementioned set of FFP parameters (e.g., period and / or offset) for the COT initiated by the UE can be configured using one or more of the following settings:

[0302] ■ Explicitly indicated: The above set of FFP parameters (e.g., period and / or offset) of the COT initiated by the above UE are explicitly indicated.

[0303] ■ By default, the timing of the PRACH resource occurrence is the same: the period and offset parameters of the UE's FFP can be the same as the parameters in the PRACH configuration.

[0304] ■ By default, the FFP parameters are the same as those of the gNB: The period and offset parameters of the UE's FFP can be the same as those of the gNB's FFP.

[0305] The preset settings of the aforementioned COT type or corresponding FFP parameters can be overridden by another setting of the COT type or FFP parameters in an indication (e.g., dedicated RRC signaling or DCI). For example, at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE is configured in SIB1, and the at least one set of FFP parameters configured in SIB1 associated with the aforementioned UE is overridden by a set of FFP parameters configured in a dedicated RRC signal.

[0306] ● Implicit indications based on downlink channel / signal detection, such as SSB, CORESET#0, SIB:

[0307] In one embodiment, the downlink DL transmission described above includes SSB, CORESET#0, SIB, Msg2, or PDCCH for retransmission of Msg3, transmitted from the start of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the base station. During RACH, by detecting the downlink channel / signal transmitted from the gNB 20 to the UE 10 as an implicit indication, the UE 10 may be implicitly indicated regarding uplink UL transmission of COT initiated by the UE with the corresponding FFP parameters, or uplink UL transmission of COT initiated by the gNB with the corresponding FFP parameters. The implicit indication based on the downlink channel / signal detection may include SSB, CORSET#0, or SIB. If one or more UEs (e.g., the UE 10 described above) can detect the downlink channel / signal during COT, it is assumed to be gNB-initiated COT; otherwise, it is assumed to be UE-initiated COT. In other words, if one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10 mentioned above) can detect a downlink channel or signal during COT, then the COT type of the aforementioned COT is gNB-initiated COT. That is, when one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10 mentioned above) can detect a downlink channel or signal during COT, it is assumed that the aforementioned gNB-initiated COT scheme is applied between the aforementioned one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10 mentioned above) and the aforementioned gNB 20, and the aforementioned UE 10 and the aforementioned gNB each determine that the COT type of the initiated COT is gNB-initiated COT.

[0308] If one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10 mentioned above) are unable to detect a downlink channel or signal during COT, the default setting for the COT type of the aforementioned COT is UE-initiated COT. That is, when one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10 mentioned above) are unable to detect a downlink channel or signal during COT, the aforementioned UE-initiated COT scheme is assumed to be applied between the aforementioned one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10 mentioned above) and the aforementioned gNB 20, and the aforementioned UE 10 and the aforementioned gNB each determine that the COT type of the initiated COT is UE-initiated COT.

[0309] ■ Example 4-2-1: An example of a procedure for determining the COT type during RACH:

[0310] refer to Figure 8 The RACH procedure between the aforementioned gNB 20 and the aforementioned UE 10 is triggered based on specific conditions (S061).

[0311] If UE 10 detects a downlink channel / signal (S062), it is assumed that COT initiated by gNB is used for PRACH transmission (S063). If UE 10 cannot detect a downlink channel / signal, UE 10 will determine whether it is in the RRC_CONNECTED state (S064).

[0312] If UE 10 cannot detect the downlink channel / signal and is in the RRC_CONNECTED state (S064), the COT type can be determined according to the configuration of gNB 20 (S065). The configuration set by gNB 20 is referred to as the gNB configuration herein. If UE 10 is in the RRC_IDLE state and receives an indication of the COT type in SIB1 (S066), then UE 10 follows the indication in SIB1 (S067). Otherwise, it is assumed that the COT initiated by the gNB is for PRACH transmission (S063).

[0313] ■ Example 4-3: Explicit indication scheme for COT and corresponding FFP parameters initiated by the UE during RACH:

[0314] In one embodiment, Figure 2A , 2B The configuration information mentioned above in 2C is transmitted in SIB1, Msg2, Msg4, MsgB, PDCCH for retransmission of Msg3, or dedicated RRC signaling, and the configuration information includes at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the UE for performing COT initiation.

[0315] During RACH, the COT initiated by the UE with the corresponding FFP parameters or the COT initiated by the gNB with the corresponding FFP parameters can be explicitly indicated to the aforementioned UE 10 through SIB1, RRC signaling, downlink messages in four-step RACH or two-step RACH, which will be described in detail below.

[0316] ■SIB1(RMSI): The above-mentioned UE 10 can receive a broadcast channel in SIB1(RMSI) to indicate the COT and / or corresponding FFP parameters initiated by the UE.

[0317] ■ If the aforementioned UE 10 enters the RRC_CONNECTED state, then the aforementioned UE 10 may receive dedicated RRC signaling for instructing the UE to initiate COT and / or corresponding FFP parameters.

[0318] ■ The aforementioned UE 10 can receive Msg2 or Msg4 in the form of a four-step RACH to indicate the UE initiation of a COT and / or the corresponding FFP parameters. Therefore, one or more subsequent uplink transmissions, such as Msg3 or Msg5, can be transmitted within the aforementioned UE-initiated COT.

[0319] ■ The aforementioned UE 10 can receive a MsgB in the form of a two-step RACH, indicating the COT and / or corresponding FFP parameters initiated by the UE. Therefore, one or more subsequent uplink transmissions following the MsgB can be transmitted within the aforementioned COT initiated by the UE.

[0320] In one embodiment, the configuration information in SIB1 further includes resource location information for uplink UL transmission on PRACH. The configuration information in Msg2 further includes resource location information for uplink UL transmission in Msg3. The configuration information in the PDCCH used for Msg3 retransmission further includes resource location information for uplink UL transmission in Msg3 retransmission.

[0321] In one embodiment, the aforementioned uplink UL transmission is a PRACH transmission, and at least one condition in the aforementioned configuration information and the aforementioned downlink DL transmission detection result include at least one of the following:

[0322] ■ The above configuration information includes at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE or an indication of the COT function that allows the UE to start;

[0323] ■ In SIB1, the starting position of the uplink UL resource for PRACH transmission transmitted by the UE is aligned with the starting point of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE; and the uplink UL resource for PRACH transmission transmitted by the UE is located within the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the base station, and the UE cannot detect the downlink DL transmission from the starting point of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the base station.

[0324] In one embodiment

[0325] The uplink UL transmission is either Msg3 transmission or Msg3 retransmission, and at least one of the conditions in the above configuration information and the detection result of the downlink DL transmission include at least one of the following:

[0326] ■ The above configuration information includes at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE or an indication of the COT function that allows the UE to start;

[0327] ■ The starting position of the uplink UL resources scheduled for Msg3 transmission in Msg2, or the starting position of the uplink UL resources scheduled for Msg3 retransmission in the PDCCH, is aligned with the starting point of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE; and

[0328] ■ The uplink UL resources used for Msg3 transmission or Msg3 retransmission are located within the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station, and the aforementioned UE cannot detect the aforementioned downlink DL transmission from the starting point of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station.

[0329] ■ Example 4-4: The gNB can share the UE-initiated COT for downlink DL transmission during the RACH procedure:

[0330] The aforementioned gNB 20 can share a UE-initiated COT from one or more UEs (e.g., the aforementioned UE 10), and in the aforementioned UE-initiated COT, in the RACH procedure, perform downlink DL transmission.

[0331] For example, the gNB 20 can share the COT initiated by the UE from one or more UEs (e.g., the UE 10), and transmit Msg2 (random access response, RAR) after detecting Msg1 (PRACH) from the UE 10, or send Msg4 after detecting Msg3 from the UE 10.

[0332] Whether the aforementioned gNB 20 should avoid downlink DL transmission during the UE's FFP idle period can be predetermined, configured, or notified by the aforementioned UE 10.

[0333] ■Examples 4-5: Restrictions on COT initiated by the UE for uplink transmission in the RRC_IDLE state during the RACH procedure:

[0334] If any of the above-mentioned uplink UL transmissions conflicts with the gNB's FFP idle period during the UE's COT startup, at least one of the following strategies can be adopted:

[0335] ●If the aforementioned uplink UL transmission coincides with or overlaps with the idle period of the aforementioned gNB 20's FFP, the aforementioned UE 10 will skip the aforementioned uplink UL transmission.

[0336] ● The gNB 20 can send an indication to the UE 10 to indicate whether the UE 10 can perform uplink UL transmission during the aforementioned idle period of the gNB's FFP. The indication scheme may include one or more of the following:

[0337] ■Dynamic multicast or unicast DCI;

[0338] ■RRC configuration;

[0339] ■Media Access Control (MAC) control element (CE); and

[0340] ■ The rules for the reservation.

[0341] For example, the aforementioned predetermined rules may include default settings, thereby allowing UE 10 to determine its behavior regarding whether to perform uplink UL transmissions during the gNB's FFP idle period. These predetermined rules may be overridden. In another example, the predetermined rules may include priority information associated with specific traffic obtained by UE 10 from higher-layer signaling.

[0342] ■ Example 5: Overlap of Uplink UL Transmission and Idle Period:

[0343] ■ Example 5-1: COT initiated by a UE with uplink UL transmission overlapping with idle period:

[0344] In one embodiment, in the above Figures 2A to 2C In the above-mentioned uplink UL cluster transmission, the transmission of the above-mentioned uplink UL is included in the above-mentioned FFP based on the above-mentioned set of FFP parameters associated with the above-mentioned UE. When the nominal repetition in the multiple repetitions coincides or overlaps with one or more invalid symbols, the nominal repetition is divided into multiple actual repetitions according to PUSCH repetition type B, or the nominal repetition is not transmitted.

[0345] In this description, dividing one or more nominal repetitions of one or more transport blocks (TBs) into one or more actual repetitions of the aforementioned transport blocks is referred to as a segmentation. For a UE-initiated COT in a CG or DG, if any uplink UL transmission of any single TB or a repetition of a TB conflicts with the idle period of the UE's FFP or the idle period of the gNB's FFP, at least one of the following strategies may be adopted:

[0346] ●If the location of the aforementioned uplink resources conflicts with the aforementioned idle period of the UE's FFP, then the aforementioned UE 10 may execute one or more of the following procedures:

[0347] ■As long as the above-mentioned TB overlaps with the above-mentioned idle period, the above-mentioned UE 10 will skip the transmission of the entire above-mentioned transport block (TB).

[0348] ■ The above UE 10 treats idle period symbols as invalid symbols and performs segmentation by dividing the nominal repetition of the above TB into the actual repetition of the above TB according to a scheme similar to Rel.16URLLC type 2 repetition.

[0349] ●If the location of the aforementioned uplink resources conflicts with the idle period of the aforementioned gNB's FFP, the aforementioned UE 10 may execute one or more of the following procedures:

[0350] ■ The aforementioned UE 10 can still perform repeated uplink UL transmissions of the aforementioned TB or the aforementioned TB during the aforementioned idle period.

[0351] ■If the uplink UL transmission partially overlaps with the aforementioned idle period, the aforementioned UE 10 will skip the aforementioned uplink UL transmission.

[0352] ■ The aforementioned UE 10 treats idle period symbols as invalid symbols and performs segmentation by dividing the nominal repetition of the aforementioned TB into the actual repetition of the aforementioned TB according to a scheme similar to Rel.16URLLC Type 2 repetition.

[0353] ■ In one embodiment, the gNB 20 transmits a gNB-controlled instruction to the UE 10. Based on the gNB-controlled instruction, the UE 10 determines whether to perform an uplink UL transmission during the gNB's FFP idle period. The gNB-controlled instruction may include one or more of the following:

[0354] ◆Dynamic unicast or group sharing instructions;

[0355] ◆RRC configuration;

[0356] ◆Media Access Control (MAC) Controller Component (CE); and

[0357] ◆The rules for the reservation.

[0358] For example, the aforementioned predetermined rules may include default settings, thereby allowing UE 10 to determine its behavior regarding whether to perform uplink UL transmissions during the gNB's FFP idle period. These predetermined rules may be overridden. In another example, the predetermined rules may include priority information associated with specific traffic obtained by UE 10 from higher-layer signaling.

[0359] Example 5-2: Shared gNB-initiated COT for uplink UL transmissions overlapping with idle periods:

[0360] For the aforementioned UE 10 that shares a gNB-initiated COT in CG or DG, if any single TB or repeated uplink UL transmission of TB conflicts with the idle period of the UE's FFP or the idle period of the gNB's FFP, at least one of the following strategies may be adopted:

[0361] ●If the location of the aforementioned uplink resources conflicts with the idle period of the UE's FFP, the aforementioned UE 10 may ignore the aforementioned idle period and still perform the aforementioned single TB or repeated uplink UL transmissions during the aforementioned idle period.

[0362] ●If the uplink resources transmitted by the uplink UL conflict with the idle period of the FFP of the gNB, the UE 10 may perform one or more of the following steps:

[0363] ■If the aforementioned transport block (TB) overlaps with the aforementioned idle period, the aforementioned UE 10 will skip the transmission of the entire transport block (TB).

[0364] ■ The above UE 10 treats idle period symbols as invalid symbols and performs segmentation by dividing the nominal repetition of the above TB into the actual repetition of the above TB according to a scheme similar to Rel.16URLLC type 2 repetition.

[0365] ■ In one embodiment, the gNB 20 transmits a gNB-controlled instruction to the UE 10. Based on the gNB-controlled instruction, the UE 10 determines whether to perform uplink UL transmission during the gNB's FFP idle period. The gNB-controlled indications may include one or more of the above:

[0366] ◆Dynamic unicast or group sharing instructions;

[0367] ◆RRC configuration;

[0368] ◆Media Access Control (MAC) Controller Component (CE); and

[0369] ◆The rules for the reservation.

[0370] For example, the aforementioned predetermined rules may include default settings, thereby allowing UE 10 to determine its behavior regarding whether to perform uplink UL transmissions during the gNB's FFP idle period. These predetermined rules may be overridden. In another example, the predetermined rules may include priority information associated with specific traffic obtained by UE 10 from upper-layer signaling.

[0371] ■ Example 5-2-1: Program example of overlapping uplink transmission and idle period:

[0372] The idle period in the UE's FFP is called the UE's idle period, while the idle period in the gNB's FFP is called the gNB's idle period.

[0373] refer to Figure 9 The UE 10 receives uplink resource scheduling information from the CG or DG (S071) and determines whether the uplink resource is shared from resources initiated by the gNB (e.g., gNB-initiated COT) or resources initiated by the UE (e.g., UE-initiated COT) (S072). The gNB-initiated resource may include the gNB-initiated COT, and the UE-initiated resource may include the UE-initiated COT.

[0374] If the aforementioned uplink resources are shared via COT initiated from the gNB, then UE 10 will determine whether the location of the aforementioned uplink resources coincides with or overlaps with the UE's idle period (S073). The UE's idle period is the idle period in the UE's FFP, while the gNB's idle period is the idle period in the gNB's FFP. If the location of the aforementioned uplink resources coincides with or overlaps with the UE's idle period, then UE 10 can still perform uplink UL transmission within the aforementioned idle period (S074).

[0375] If the aforementioned location of the uplink resource does not coincide with or overlap with the UE's idle period, the UE 10 will determine whether the aforementioned location of the uplink resource coincides with or overlaps with the gNB's idle period (S075). If the location of the uplink resource coincides with or overlaps with the gNB's idle period, the UE 10 will stop the aforementioned transmission during the gNB's idle period or rely on the gNB's instruction (S076) to determine whether the UE's behavior should perform uplink UL transmission during the gNB's FFP idle period. If the location of the uplink resource does not coincide with or overlap with the gNB's idle period, the UE 10 can still perform uplink UL transmission through the aforementioned uplink resource, which can be referred to as a non-idle period (S0792).

[0376] If the aforementioned uplink resource is a COT initiated by the UE, then the UE 10 will determine whether the location of the aforementioned uplink resource coincides with or overlaps with the UE's idle period (S077). If the location of the aforementioned uplink resource coincides with or overlaps with the UE's idle period, then the UE 10 will stop the aforementioned transmission during the UE's idle period (S078).

[0377] If the location of the aforementioned uplink resource does not coincide with or overlap with the UE's idle period, the UE 10 will determine whether the location of the aforementioned uplink resource coincides with or overlaps with the gNB's idle period (S079). If the location of the aforementioned uplink resource coincides with or overlaps with the gNB's idle period, the UE 10 can still perform uplink UL transmission during the gNB's idle period, or rely on the gNB's indication to determine whether the UE's behavior should perform uplink UL transmission during the gNB's FFP idle period (S0791). If the location of the aforementioned uplink resource does not coincide with or overlap with the gNB's idle period, the UE 10 can still perform uplink UL transmission through the aforementioned uplink resource, which can be referred to as a non-idle period (S0792).

[0378] ■Example 6: Instructing a UE to initiate COT using one of the other UEs for gNB downlink DL transmission:

[0379] ■ Example 6-1: Indication scheme for gNB downlink DL transmission using COT initiated by one of the other UEs:

[0380] The gNB 20 can use the following scheme to send an indication to the UE 10, indicating whether the COT is shared from one of the other UEs or originates from the gNB 20.

[0381] ● Explicit indications in unicast or group-shared DCI:

[0382] ■ The gNB 20 may use the above indication as an explicit indication in the unicast DCI of the UE 10 or an explicit indication in the group-shared DCI. The indication of whether the COT is shared from or derived from one of the other UEs and the indication used to indicate whether the COT is a UE-initiated COT for the current UE can be indicated by joint encoding.

[0383] ■ The above bit field indicates that the above COT is a COT initiated by one of the other UEs or a COT initiated by a gNB, and may contain the following:

[0384] ◆Reuse existing fields to indicate the LBT type of LBE.

[0385] ◆Use specially defined fields instead of existing fields in DCI.

[0386] ◆ Use any combination of multiple fields with specific code points.

[0387] ◆ Borrow unused fields from LBE for use in FBE.

[0388] ◆ It can be encoded in conjunction with another bit field.

[0389] ●Implicit indication:

[0390] ■ The gNB 20 may transmit the aforementioned indication to the UE 10 in the form of an implicit indication. For example, the indication may be revealed by the location of the DL channel / signal transmitted from the gNB 20 to the UE 10. The UE 10 can determine whether the COT is shared by one of the other UEs or initiated by the gNB based on the aforementioned location of the DL channel / signal received by the UE 10. For example, if the UE 10 detects that the DL channel / signal is at the beginning of the gNB's COT, the UE 10 determines that the COT was initiated by the gNB. Otherwise, the UE 10 determines that the COT is shared by one of the other UEs.

[0391] ■Example 6-2: Transmission limitations of COT initiated by a UE using one of the other UEs mentioned above for gNB downlink DL transmission:

[0392] In one embodiment, in the above Figures 2A to 2C In the above-mentioned downlink DL cluster, the content transmitted must be at least given to the above-mentioned UE used to initiate the above-mentioned COT, including broadcast information, dedicated RRC signaling, DCI with scheduling information, or DCI without scheduling information.

[0393] During a COT shared from one of the other UEs mentioned above, the gNB 20 may have some restrictions on the DL channel / signal types that can be transmitted by the gNB 20. The gNB 20 may transmit DL channels or signals of one or more DL channel / signal types that are not subject to the above restrictions, but may not transmit signals of other DL channel / signal types that are subject to the above restrictions.

[0394] If the aforementioned COT is shared from one of the other UEs, the aforementioned gNB 20 can configure the applicability of the DL channel / signal type transmitted by the aforementioned gNB 20 according to the characteristics of the DL channel / signal type. The DL channel / signal can be classified into one of the DL channel / signal types, including:

[0395] ● Broadcast information, i.e., SSB;

[0396] ● Broadcast RRC signaling, i.e., SIB1;

[0397] ●Dedicated RRC signaling;

[0398] ● Shared DCI (e.g., DCI format 2_0) and corresponding PDSCH within the group; and

[0399] ● Unicast DCI and corresponding PDSCH.

[0400] In one embodiment, if the aforementioned COT is shared from one of the other UEs, only a portion of the DL channels / signal types are eligible for transmission by the aforementioned gNB 20. If the aforementioned DL channels / signal types are not permitted for transmission in the aforementioned shared COT of one of the other UEs, then the aforementioned UE 10 does not need to monitor the aforementioned DL channels / signal types.

[0401] ■ Example 6-2-1: Example of a procedure for using a COT initiated by one of the other UEs to perform gNB downlink DL transmission:

[0402] refer to Figure 10 The aforementioned UE 10 receives scheduling information for CG or DG uplink resources (S081).

[0403] The aforementioned UE 10 determines, based on the implicit or explicit indication sent by the aforementioned gNB 20, whether the aforementioned uplink resources are shared COT initiated by a UE shared from one of the aforementioned other UEs (S082).

[0404] If the aforementioned uplink resources are shared via COT initiated by one of the other UEs, then the aforementioned UE 10 only monitors broadcast signaling (e.g., broadcast information or broadcast RRC signaling) and / or ensemble DL control information (e.g., intra-group shared DCI) (S083).

[0405] If the aforementioned uplink resources are not shared by a COT initiated by one of the other UEs, then the aforementioned UE 10 monitors broadcast signaling, multicast DL control information, and unicast DL control information (S084). ■ Example 7: UE-initiated COT for UL CG:

[0406] ■ Example 7-1: For UL CG, in the COT initiated by the UE, the UE multiplexes uplink UL transmission:

[0407] To support uplink multiplexing through COT jointly initiated by UEs, the following approach can be adopted: ● The same FFP parameters, i.e., period or offset, can be configured for a group of UEs, including UE 10 mentioned above.

[0408] ● Using different CG configurations, multiple LBT sub-bands can be configured for the aforementioned UE 10. The aforementioned UE 10 can select one of the aforementioned sub-bands for uplink UL transmission based on the LBT results, and share the transmission with other UEs through different sub-bands. In one embodiment, the aforementioned scheduling information includes multiple CG configurations for performing uplink UL transmission within an FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE.

[0409] ■ Example 7-2: Covering COT types for performing uplink UL transmissions in CG resources:

[0410] The aforementioned UE 10 can determine the COT type based on certain conditions. When the aforementioned UE 10 determines to perform CG resource uplink UL transmission starting from the aforementioned FFP position, if the aforementioned UE 10 has already determined the COT type based on certain conditions, then the aforementioned gNB 20 can use the following scheme to cover the aforementioned COT type:

[0411] ● For example, DCI shared within a group (GC-DCI) includes:

[0412] ■ The newly created GC-DCI;

[0413] ■DCI format 2_0 slot format indication (SFI); or

[0414] ■ Uplink cancellation (CI) in DCI format 2_4.

[0415] ● Unicast DCI, for example including:

[0416] ■ Start DCI.

[0417] The gNB 20 can use the COT type determined by the gNB in ​​the GC-DCI or unicast DCI to override the COT type determined by the UE 10. In one embodiment, the COT initiator information in the initiation DCI overrides the determination of the COT initiator based on the decision rules for CG uplink transmission. The COT initiator information is located in a shared DCI within a group and is used to indicate the COT initiator to a group of UEs.

[0418] ■ Example 7-3: Share the COT initiated by the UE with the gNB for downlink DL transmission in CG resources:

[0419] To ensure that there are sufficient shared resources in the COT initiated by the UE for the downlink DL transmission of the aforementioned gNB 20, the aforementioned gNB 20 can use the following scheme.

[0420] The gNB 20 can use downlink control signals to request or instruct the UE 10. The UE 10 can respond to these downlink control signals by reducing the number of CG PUSCH repetitions or reserving radio resources for the gNB 20 in a COT initiated by the UE. These downlink control signals may include RRC configuration, unicast DCI, or GC-DCI, as detailed below:

[0421] ●RRC configuration, for example, includes:

[0422] ■Reserved bitmap for resources.

[0423] ●For example, unicast DCI includes:

[0424] ■ Type 2 Repeated Startup DCI.

[0425] ● For example, DCI shared within a group (GC-DCI) includes:

[0426] ■ The newly created GC-DCI;

[0427] ■Slot Format Indication (SFI) for DCI Format 2_0; or

[0428] ■ Uplink cancellation (CI) in DCI format 2_4.

[0429] If UE 10 does not have UL data to transmit in CG-PUSCH, but still wishes to share the UE-initiated COT of UE 10 with gNB 20, then the UE can run one of the following schemes:

[0430] ●The aforementioned UE 10 can still transmit other uplink channels / signals, such as DMRS, SRS, and CG-UCI, in the front-end of the FFP to trigger the UE-initiated COT.

[0431] ■The aforementioned gNB 20 can request the aforementioned UE 10 to transmit the aforementioned other uplink channels / signals via RRC signaling or dynamic DCI.

[0432] ●Assuming that the COT initiated by the aforementioned UE 10 has already been initiated by the aforementioned UE 10, even if the aforementioned gNB 20 does not detect the uplink channel / signal from the aforementioned UE 10, the aforementioned gNB 20 can still access the COT initiated by the aforementioned UE.

[0433] In one embodiment, by transmitting the uplink UL cluster at the beginning of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE, the UE shares the COT initiated by the UE with the base station.

[0434] ■ Example 7-4: Reducing the latency of CG PUSCH transmission caused by LBT:

[0435] The gNB 20 described above can be configured with multiple CG configurations with different start offsets, so that the time domain gap between the time domain resources of two CG configurations can be shorter than 16us, and type 2LBT (without LBT) can be applied to reduce latency.

[0436] To avoid the need for LBT in the COT initiated by the UE due to the gap between the aforementioned time slot boundaries, the aforementioned UE10 can use PUSCH repetition type B for cross-time slot transmission.

[0437] Example 7-5: Indication of COT type in CG-UCI:

[0438] The COT sharing information in CG-UCI can be used to indicate whether the aforementioned UE 10 has initiated COT with the aforementioned gNB 20.

[0439] If the aforementioned UE 10 does not initiate COT (i.e., the aforementioned UE 10 uses uplink UL resources shared from the gNB's COT), then the aforementioned UE 10 can use the following example to indicate COT sharing information to the aforementioned gNB 20 to indicate "not sharing" COT:

[0440] ■ Use the newly added information bits as part of the COT shared information and explicitly indicate the aforementioned COT shared information to the gNB 20.

[0441] ■ Using existing COT sharing information, set the COT duration to zero to indicate to the aforementioned gNB 20 that the aforementioned UE 10 will not initiate COT.

[0442] ■ No COT sharing information is transmitted in CG-UCI (i.e., no COT sharing information exists) to indicate to the above gNB 20 that the above UE 10 will not initiate COT.

[0443] If the aforementioned UE 10 initiates COT, then the aforementioned UE 10 will use the aforementioned existing COT sharing information to indicate that the aforementioned UE 10 has initiated COT, and provide the duration of COT shared with the aforementioned gNB 20.

[0444] In one embodiment, the UE uses the COT information transmitted in the aforementioned uplink UL cluster to request the base station not to share the COT initiated by the UE. The aforementioned COT sharing information may be transmitted together with the uplink UL cluster in the CG-UCI.

[0445] ■ Example 8: CG characteristics for URLLC uplink UL transmission in a controlled environment and in an unlicensed frequency band:

[0446] ■ Example 8-1: Choosing between URLLC CG mechanism and NR-U CG mechanism:

[0447] The aforementioned gNB 20 can decide to use either the URLLC CG mechanism or the NR-U CG mechanism in unlicensed frequency bands, including corresponding repetition schemes. The aforementioned gNB 20 and one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10) can synchronize regarding the mechanism used by the aforementioned gNB 20 according to predetermined rules. The aforementioned gNB 20 can use downlink control signals to notify one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10) about the mechanism used by the aforementioned gNB 20. The aforementioned downlink control signals may include dynamic unicast, intra-group shared DCI indication, RRC configuration, or MAC CE. The aforementioned gNB 20 can use the following schemes to indicate to one or more UEs (e.g., UE 10) about the aforementioned mechanism used by the aforementioned gNB 20:

[0448] ■ Use dynamic unicast or group-shared DCI instructions.

[0449] ■ Using RRC configuration:

[0450] ◆The aforementioned gNB 20 can use new RRC parameters to explicitly indicate to one or more UEs (e.g., the aforementioned UE 10) the aforementioned mechanism for CG PUSCH transmission using the aforementioned gNB 20.

[0451] ◆The gNB 20 described above may use existing RRC parameters that are relevant to the use cases or traffic types described above, or that take precedence over the implicit indications regarding the mechanisms selected by the gNB 20 for CGPUSCH transmission.

[0452] ■ Using MAC CE instructions

[0453] ■Usage of reservation rules:

[0454] ◆For example, the aforementioned gNB 20 and one or more UEs (e.g., the aforementioned UE 10) may use default settings based on specific rules, which may be overridden.

[0455] ■ Example 8-2: Feature combination of URLLC CG mechanism and NR-U CG mechanism:

[0456] ■ Example 8-2-1: Feature combination variation 1 (multiple TBs):

[0457] In URLLC CG, the functional features of single transport block (TB) or multiple transport block (TB) transmission per cycle in NR-U CG can be supported, with the following possible variations.

[0458] The gNB 20 described above can use Scheme 1 or Scheme 2 below to determine the HARQ process ID for each TB in each CG configuration or multiple HARQ process IDs for each TB in multiple CG configurations.

[0459] ●Option 1:

[0460] ■ The value of the HARQ process ID for each TB mentioned above can be derived from at least one of the following parameters:

[0461] ◆The position of the first symbol in the uplink UL transmission of the transport block (TB);

[0462] ◆Number of CG configurations; and

[0463] ◆Quantity in TB

[0464] ■ The RV determination for each repeated transmission of a transport block (TB), and the location where the initial transmission can be performed in multiple repeated transmissions, can use the existing URLLC CG scheme.

[0465] ■ If the above-mentioned autonomous retransmission function is configured, NDI can be transmitted in CG-UCI.

[0466] ●Option 2:

[0467] ■ The above UE 10 can select one HARQ process ID from multiple HARQ process IDs configured for each TB.

[0468] ■The UE 10 described above can determine the RV of each repeated transmission in a transport block (TB) and the position where the initial transmission can be performed in multiple repeated transmissions according to the following scheme:

[0469] ◆Once the UE 10 autonomously determines the location of multiple repeated initial transmissions, the UE 10 uses the RV sequence pre-configured by gNB20 to determine the RV value.

[0470] ◆The UE 10 above determines the RV value and reports the RV value in CG-UCI.

[0471] ■ Example 8-2-2: Feature Combination Variation 2 (CG-UCI):

[0472] The CG-UCI feature in NR-U can be supported in URLLC CGs in unlicensed frequency bands. The gNB 20 described above can be configured with or without CG-UCI in the PUSCH, and the CG-UCI content can be configured using newly defined parameters or existing CG-related parameters. The following are possible CG-UCI configurations:

[0473] ●CG-UCI is either preset or does not exist.

[0474] ●CG-UCI can only contain COT shared information.

[0475] ●CG-UCI can only contain information associated with autonomous retransmission, namely HARQ process ID, RV, and NDI.

[0476] ●CG-UCI may include all or some of the following information: COT sharing information, HARQ process ID, RV, and NDI.

[0477] The above-mentioned UE 10 can use the following schemes to enhance the transmission reliability of CG-UCI:

[0478] ●The UE 10 mentioned above transmits CG-UCI in each actual retransmission of CG-PUSCH.

[0479] ● This can enhance the beta offset value of UCI multiplexed with the aforementioned PUSCH resources to ensure the reliability of CG-UCI. The aforementioned beta offset value is defined in the aforementioned 3GPP standard.

[0480] ■ Example 8-2-3: Feature Combination Variation 3 (CG-DFI):

[0481] The aforementioned CG-DFI functionality in NR-U can be supported in URLLC CG under unlicensed frequency bands. The gNB 20 mentioned above can be configured to include CG downlink feedback information (CG-DFI) in the DCI and to configure the supported functions in CG-DFI. The following are possible CG-DFI configurations:

[0482] ● For multiple TBs transmitted according to multiple launched CG configurations, the DFI indication of each HARQ process ID of the multiple TBs in the DCI can be organized according to the following scheme. A HARQ process ID is associated with one of the aforementioned multiple TBs.

[0483] ■ The above gNB 20 uses a 2-D bitmap as a DFI indicator, where one dimension of the above 2-D bitmap represents the index of the CG configuration at startup, and the other dimension of the above 2-D bitmap represents the HARQ process ID for each TB.

[0484] ■ The above gNB 20 uses a 1-D bitmap as a DFI indicator to concatenate multiple TB HARQ process IDs in each launched CG configuration.

[0485] ■ The above gNB 20 uses additional fields or existing bit fields in DCI to indicate the CG configuration selected by the above gNB 20, while the above DFI indication and bit map (e.g., the above 2-D bit map or the above 1-D bit map) used in NR-U only indicate the HARQ process ID of the corresponding CG configuration.

[0486] ●In addition to DCI format 0_1, embodiments of this disclosure also support one of the multiple bitmaps of DFI indication and the aforementioned HARQ process ID in DCI format 0_2 of URLLC CG.

[0487] ■ The aforementioned gNB 20 uses a new field to carry and transmit CG-DFI to the aforementioned UE 10 in DCI format 0_2.

[0488] ●The gNB 20 mentioned above can be configured to include CG-DFI in the DCI without configuring cg-RetransmissionTimer.

[0489] ●The aforementioned gNB 20 can use the COT shared from the aforementioned UE 10 to transmit CG-DFI in DCI.

[0490] ■ Example 8-2-4: Feature combination variation 4 (repeated multiple TBs):

[0491] In URLLC DG or CG, for Type A or Type B repetitions in unlicensed frequency bands, it is possible to support the transmission of multiple TB functional features in NR-U. The following are possible configurations.

[0492] ● Shared repeating pattern across multiple TBs:

[0493] ■ For CG type 1 or type 2 and DG, the URLLC TDRA table in Rel.16 is reused. The above gNB 20 can be configured with one of the following repeating schemes for multiple TBs, where multiple TBs share the same repeating pattern:

[0494] ◆Solution 1: The UE 10 transmits multiple TBs as the first group, and transmits one or more repeats of the first group after the first group.

[0495] ● The indexed SLIV column in the TDRA table above indicates the position of the first TB. The positions of the other TBs are arranged sequentially after the first TB. After all the above TBs have been transmitted, the above TBs are transmitted in group repetition mode until the required number of group repetitions is reached.

[0496] ◆Option 2: The UE 10 above will transmit a single repetition of TB as the first repetition, and will transmit a repetition of the next TB after the first repetition:

[0497] ●In the TDRA table above, the SLIV column index indicates the position of the first TB. The first TB is repeated first according to the number of repetitions, and then the next TB is transmitted. Its position can be implicitly determined based on the position of the previous TB and the number of repetitions.

[0498] ■The above scheme can use the same frequency hopping rules as Rel.16URLLC for repeated transmissions of multiple TB.

[0499] ● Independent repeating patterns of multiple TB:

[0500] ■ For CG type 1 or type 2 and DG, extend or enhance the above TDRA table in Rel.16URLLC to accommodate multiple SLIVs and repetition counts in columns.

[0501] ■ The aforementioned UE 10 uses column indexes in RRC signaling or DCI to select a set of SLIVs and repetition counts to map to each of multiple TBs. The aforementioned SLIVs and repetition counts can be indicated individually for each TB.

[0502] ■ Different frequency hopping modes can be configured separately for each TB.

[0503] ■ Example 8-2-5: Feature Combination Variation 5 (Autonomous Retransmission):

[0504] The URLLC CG can support autonomous retransmission functionality in the NR-U CG in unlicensed frequency bands. The following are possible configurations for the URLLC CG.

[0505] ●The aforementioned UE 10 uses the CG-RetransmissionTimer in NR-U CG to perform autonomous retransmission in the manner of URLLC CG.

[0506] ●The UE 10 described above transmits the HARQ process ID, RV, and NDI for URLLC CG in CG-UCI.

[0507] ■ Example 8-2-6: Feature combination variation 6 (type A or type B repeated):

[0508] The functionality of repeating Type A or Type B in URLLC CG can be used in NR-U to support multiple TB transmissions. The aforementioned UE 10 can perform uplink UL transmissions using the following possible configurations:

[0509] ●For type A repetition

[0510] ■ The parameter (cg-nrofSlots) of multiple consecutive time slots within the CG cycle in NR-U can be used as the maximum value of the total number of repetitions of the above multiple TBs.

[0511] ■ The number of repetitions per TB can be provided using the column indexes of the TDRA table mentioned above, either through the RRC configuration for Type 1CG or the activation DCI for Type 2CG.

[0512] ■ The parameter (nrofPUSCH-InSlot) for multiple PUSCHs in a slot in NR-U can be configured to 1 to match the URLLC CG type A repetition in Rel.16.

[0513] ●For type B repetition

[0514] ■ In NR-U CG, multiple intra-slot and inter-slot repetitions can be used across slot boundaries and / or across one or more invalid symbols.

[0515] ■ The parameters (cg-nrofSlots) of multiple consecutive time slots within the CG cycle in NR-U determine the maximum value of the total number of repetitions for multiple TBs.

[0516] ◆ Configure the symbol length for each repetition in the SLIV. If the length of the above cg-nrofSlot cannot accommodate an integer multiple of the repetition, the last repetition (including symbols shorter than the full symbol length) can be omitted or truncated to the remaining symbols to fit the total length of the above cg-nrofSlot.

[0517] ◆The TDRA parameters mentioned above, including the SLIV for initial transfer and the number of repetitions K per TB, can be provided using column indexing via RRC configuration of type 1CG or via startup DCI of type 2CG. However, the total number of repetitions mentioned above is limited by cg-nrofSlots.

[0518] ■ In NR-U, the parameter (nrofPUSCH-InSlot) for multiple PUSCHs in a time slot is not used, or it can be used to limit the number of repetitions of the above within a time slot.

[0519] ■ The repetition pattern of type B repetition can be determined by the number of repetitions K, cg-nrofSlots, and nrofPUSCH-InSlot.

[0520] ■ For FBE with COT initiated by UE, the aforementioned UE 10 can perform cross-FFP repetition based on type B by treating the symbols of the UE's FFP idle period as invalid symbols.

[0521] ■Example 9: CG-PUSCH repetition and semi-static elastic symbol overlap:

[0522] To avoid discontinuous retransmissions caused by semi-static elastic symbols, LBT is required. If dynamic SFI is configured, but the aforementioned UE 10 does not receive or detect the SFI in DCI format 2_0, and at least one symbol of the retransmission of the TB to be transmitted from the aforementioned UE 10 conflicts with the semi-static elastic symbol, whether the aforementioned retransmission is transmitted can be determined according to the following scheme.

[0523] ●RRC Configuration:

[0524] ■ The gNB 20 mentioned above can use RRC configuration to configure the UE 10 mentioned above to determine whether the UE 10 should transmit or not transmit CG-PUSCH or repeated transmission of CG-PUSCH in the semi-static flexible symbol interval based on newly created dedicated parameters or existing CG-related parameters (including priority information) in the RRC configuration mentioned above.

[0525] ●Reservation Rules:

[0526] ■ If the gNB 20 selects the NR-U CG mechanism as the CG PUSCH transmission scheme, then regardless of whether the UE 10 should transmit CG-PUSCH or repeated CG-PUSCH transmissions on semi-static elastic symbols, it will follow one or more predetermined CG PUSCH rules. For example, when the CGPUSCH rule is satisfied, the UE 10 may transmit CG-PUSCH or repeated CG-PUSCH transmissions on semi-static elastic symbols. Otherwise, the UE 10 is not allowed to transmit CG-PUSCH or repeated CG-PUSCH transmissions on semi-static elastic symbols.

[0527] ■ Example 10: Isolated symbols resulting from the segmentation of time slot boundaries:

[0528] In the URLLC CG of Rel.16, when there is only one symbol left in a time slot (i.e., an isolated symbol) after a type B repeated segmentation, the above UE 10 can skip the repeated transmission at that symbol.

[0529] For PUSCH type B repeated crossing of slot boundaries, if the segmentation creates isolated symbols, the aforementioned UE 10 can use the following strategy to avoid transmission gaps caused by the aforementioned isolated symbols.

[0530] ● Whether the aforementioned UE 10 should perform uplink transmission during the aforementioned isolated symbol period can be indicated by the aforementioned gNB20 using RRC signaling, dynamic DCI, predefined rules, or CG-related RRC configuration, as detailed below:

[0531] ■RRC signaling: The above gNB 20 can use RRC signaling to configure and instruct the above UE 10 to perform uplink UL transmission during the above isolated symbol.

[0532] ■ Dynamic DCI: The above gNB 20 can use dynamic DCI to configure and instruct the above UE 10 to perform uplink UL transmission during the above isolated symbol.

[0533] ■ Implicit determination based on predetermined rules: The gNB 20 and UE 10 can use predetermined rules to determine whether UE 10 can perform uplink UL transmission during the isolated symbol period. For example, the predetermined rules could be about the duration of the LBT or the length of the gap.

[0534] ■ Reliance on CG-related RRC configuration including priority information: The aforementioned gNB 20 and UE 10 can use an RRC configuration with priority information to determine whether UE 10 can perform uplink UL transmission during the aforementioned isolated symbol. The priority information can include priority levels for different types of traffic or services with different requirements (such as latency requirements). For example, for traffic types with higher priority or stricter latency requirements, UE 10 should transmit that type of traffic during the aforementioned isolated symbol.

[0535] ●If the aforementioned UE 10 performs an uplink UL transmission during the aforementioned isolated symbol period, then the aforementioned UE 10 may transmit one of the following:

[0536] ■ Demodulation reference signal (DMRS).

[0537] ■ After rate matching is performed on the DMRS resources, actual repeated transmissions are scheduled in the aforementioned isolated symbols.

[0538] ■ Example 10-1: An example of an uplink UL transmission procedure with isolated symbols caused by time slot boundary segmentation:

[0539] refer to Figure 11The aforementioned UE 10 receives scheduling information from CG or DG for uplink transmissions with multiple repetitions (S091).

[0540] The aforementioned UE 10 determines whether one of the aforementioned multiple repetitions crosses the time slot boundary, and determines whether an isolated symbol is created after the aforementioned repetitions are segmented (S092).

[0541] If a repeat crosses a time slot boundary and an isolated symbol is created after the repeat is segmented, the UE 10 receives an instruction from the gNB 20 (S093) and determines whether to allow the UE 10 to use the isolated symbol for uplink UL transmission in response to the instruction (S095). Otherwise, the UE 10 segments resources to transmit multiple actual repeats (S094).

[0542] If, based on the aforementioned instruction (S095) of gNB 20, UE 10 is permitted to perform uplink UL transmission via an isolated symbol, then UE 10 can transmit uplink data or signals (e.g., DMRS) via the isolated symbol (S096). Otherwise, UE 10 may skip uplink UL transmission on the isolated symbol (S097).

[0543] ■ Example 11: Repeating across an invalid CG-PUSCH:

[0544] For Type B repetitions spanning one or more invalid symbols (e.g., idle periods), a gap is generated after the end of one or more invalid symbols, following the splitting of one or more nominal repetitions into actual repetitions. The aforementioned UE 10 may perform LBT during the aforementioned gap before transmitting the aforementioned actual repetition. This aforementioned gap in LBT can be referred to as an LBT gap and can be created based on the following scheme.

[0545] In one embodiment, a nominal repeat is divided into a first actual repeat preceding the aforementioned idle period and a second actual repeat following the aforementioned idle period, an LBT gap occurs after the aforementioned idle period ends, and the UE performs LBT sensing during the aforementioned LBT gap before transmitting the aforementioned second actual repeat.

[0546] In one embodiment, the length of the LBT gap is predefined according to the LBT channel access type.

[0547] In one embodiment, the length of the LBT gap is configured by the gNB 20 via an RRC signal.

[0548] ■ Example 12: Any scheme, option and example in each of the above examples, whether it is COT configuration for UE startup or coordination features in NR-U CG or URLLC DG, can work together in various combinations based on different uses.

[0549] Figure 12 This is a block diagram of an example system 700 for wireless communication according to one embodiment of this disclosure. The embodiments described herein can be implemented in the above system using any suitably configured hardware and / or software. Figure 12 The system 700 shown includes a radio frequency (RF) circuit 710, a baseband circuit 720, a processing unit 730, a memory / storage unit 740, a display 750, a camera 760, a sensor 770, and an input / output (I / O) interface 780, which are interconnected as shown.

[0550] The processing unit 730 described above may include circuitry, such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The processor may include any combination of general-purpose and special-purpose processors, such as a graphics processor and an application processor. The processor may be coupled to the memory / storage and configured to execute instructions stored in the memory / storage to enable various applications and / or operating systems to run on the system.

[0551] The baseband circuit 720 described above may include circuitry, such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The processor may include a baseband processor. The baseband circuitry can handle various radio control functions, enabling it to communicate with one or more radio networks via radio frequency circuitry. These radio control functions may include, but are not limited to, signal modulation, encoding, decoding, frequency modulation transfer, etc. In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry can provide communication compatible with one or more radio technologies. For example, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry can support communication with 5G NR, LTE, Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (EUTRAN) and / or other Wireless Metropolitan Area Networks (WMAN), Wireless Local Area Networks (WLAN), and Wireless Personal Area Networks (WPAN). Embodiments of the baseband circuitry configured to support radio communication using more than one radio protocol may be referred to as multi-mode baseband circuitry. In various embodiments, the baseband circuitry 720 may include circuitry to operate signals that are not strictly considered to be at a baseband frequency. For example, in some implementations, the baseband circuit may include circuitry that operates on a signal having an intermediate frequency between the baseband frequency and the frequency modulation frequency.

[0552] The radio frequency (RF) circuit 710 described above enables communication with a wireless network using modulated electromagnetic radiation transmitted through a non-solid-state medium. In various embodiments, the RF circuit may include switches, filters, amplifiers, etc., to facilitate communication with the wireless network. In various embodiments, the RF circuit 710 may include circuitry for operating signals that are not strictly considered to be frequency-modulated. For example, in some embodiments, the RF circuit may include circuitry for operating signals with an intermediate frequency between the fundamental frequency and frequency modulation.

[0553] In various implementations, the transmitter, control, or receiver circuitry discussed above for the UE, eNB, or gNB may be wholly or partially embodied in one or more of the radio frequency circuitry, baseband circuitry, and / or processing unit. As used herein, "circuit" may refer to, be part of, or include an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), electronic circuitry, a processor (shared, dedicated, or combined), and / or memory (shared, dedicated, or combined) executing one or more software or firmware programs, combinational logic circuitry, and / or other suitable hardware components providing said functionality. In some implementations, the electronic device circuitry may be implemented in one or more software or firmware modules, or the functionality associated with the circuitry may be implemented by one or more software or firmware modules. In some implementations, some or all of the components of the baseband circuitry, processing unit, and / or memory / storage may be implemented together on a system on a single chip (SOC).

[0554] The memory / storage unit 740 described above can be used to load and store data and / or instructions, for example, for the system described above. The memory / storage unit used in one embodiment may include any combination of suitable volatile memory, such as Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM), and / or non-volatile memory, such as flash memory. In various embodiments, the I / O interface 780 described above may include one or more user interfaces designed to allow users to interact with the system and / or peripheral component interfaces designed to allow peripheral components to interact with the system. User interfaces may include, but are not limited to, physical keyboards or keypads, touchpads, speakers, microphones, etc. Peripheral component interfaces may include, but are not limited to, non-volatile memory ports, Universal Serial Bus (USB) ports, audio jacks, and power interfaces.

[0555] In various embodiments, the sensor 770 may include one or more sensing devices to determine environmental conditions and / or location information associated with the system. In some embodiments, the sensor may include, but is not limited to, a gyroscope sensor, an accelerometer, a proximity sensor, an ambient light sensor, and a positioning unit. The positioning unit may also be part of, or interact with, baseband and / or radio frequency circuitry to communicate with components of a positioning network, such as Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites. In various embodiments, the display 750 may include a display, such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a touchscreen display. In various embodiments, the system 700 may be a mobile computing device, such as, but not limited to, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a netbook, an ultrabook, a smartphone, etc. In various embodiments, the system may have more or fewer components and / or different architectures. Where appropriate, the methods described herein may be implemented as a computer program. The computer program may be stored on a storage medium, such as a non-temporary storage medium.

[0556] The embodiments described above are combinations of technologies / processes that can be employed in 3GPP specifications to create a final product.

[0557] Those skilled in the art will understand that each unit, algorithm, and step described and disclosed in the above embodiments of this disclosure is implemented using electronic hardware or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether the function operates in hardware or software depends on the application conditions and the design requirements of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can implement the functions for each specific application in different ways, but such implementation should not exceed the scope of the present invention. Since the working process of the above systems, devices, and units is substantially the same as described above, those skilled in the art will understand that they can refer to the working process of the above systems, devices, and units in the above embodiments. For ease of description and simplicity, these working processes will not be described in detail.

[0558] It is understood that the systems, apparatuses, and methods disclosed in the embodiments of the present invention can be implemented in other ways. The above embodiments are merely exemplary. The division of units is based solely on logical function, and other division methods exist in implementation. Multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system. Certain specific features may also be omitted or skipped. In another aspect, the mutual coupling, direct coupling, or communication coupling shown or discussed is achieved through some ports, devices, or units, whether indirectly or through electrical, mechanical, or other forms of communication.

[0559] The units mentioned above, used as separate components for explanation, may be physically separate or not. These units may be physical units or not, meaning they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the aforementioned units may be used depending on the purpose of the implementation. Furthermore, each functional unit in each implementation may be integrated into a processing unit, or physically independent, or integrated into a processing unit having two or more units.

[0560] If software functional units are implemented as products for use and sale, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions proposed in this invention can be implemented substantially, in key parts or in part, as software products. Alternatively, a portion of a technical plan beneficial to conventional technology can be implemented as a software product. Software products in a computer are stored in storage media and include multiple commands for a computing device (such as a personal computer, server, or network device) to execute all or part of the steps disclosed in the embodiments of this invention. Storage media include USB drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), floppy disks, or other types of media capable of storing program code.

[0561] A user equipment (UE) performs a semi-static channel access method in a random access procedure in an unlicensed frequency band. A base station transmits configuration information and downlink (DL) information to the UE in an FFP based on a set of fixed frame period FFP parameters associated with the base station. The UE determines whether to initiate channel occupancy time (COT) in the FFP based on one or more of the following: at least one condition in the configuration information, at least one condition in the scheduling information, at least one condition in the downlink DL information, and a detection result of detecting the transmission of the downlink DL information. The base station determines whether to use a COT initiated by a UE shared from the UE.

[0562] Some disclosed embodiments can be applied to URLLC and Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) to address issues in unlicensed frequency bands. Support for UE-initiated COT in FBE is crucial for improving uplink reliability and reducing latency, power consumption, and unnecessary overhead for the aforementioned UE and gNB in ​​IIoT / URLLC applications. Some embodiments of this disclosure support UE-initiated COT. For FBE, UE-initiated COT allows the UE to transmit at the earliest possible time in the FFP without detecting DL channels / signals from the gNB.

[0563] If both gNB-initiated COT and UE-initiated COT are started simultaneously, the aforementioned UE can have greater uplink UL transmission flexibility and opportunities in either gNB-initiated FFP or UE-initiated FFP COT.

[0564] For various channel conditions, some embodiments of this disclosure support configurable coordination of features and advantages between NR-U CG and URLLC CG. By coordinating the functions of NR-U and URLLC, the aforementioned UE and base station, according to some embodiments of this disclosure, can achieve reduced latency and enhanced reliability of CG-PUSCH transmission in unlicensed spectrum.

[0565] While this disclosure has been described in conjunction with what is considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it should be understood that this disclosure is not limited to the embodiments of this disclosure, but is intended to cover various combinations made without departing from the broadest interpretation of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method for channel access in an unlicensed frequency band, executed by a user equipment (UE) during a random access procedure, characterized in that, The random access procedure executes in the RCC_CONNECTED state, and the channel access method is based on semi-static channel access, including: Receive configuration information sent from a base station; The detection is based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station and downlink (DL) transmission within a fixed frame period (FFP). Receive information provided from the downlink transmission; Based on the above configuration information and the information provided from the downlink transmission, it is determined whether to initiate Channel Occupancy Time (COT) in an FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE. If the determination result of whether to start the above COT is yes, after successfully listening first and then speaking, start the above COT in the above FFP based on the above set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE. Transmit uplink (UL) clustering in one or more valid symbols within the region of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE; and When the UE shares a COT initiated by the UE with the base station, it receives downlink DL transmissions from the base station in one or more valid symbols in the region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE.

2. The channel access method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The downlink DL transmission includes Msg2, where Msg2 is the Random Access Response (RAR), and the configuration information includes a set of FFP parameters associated with the UE for performing COT initiation.

3. The channel access method according to claim 2, characterized in that, A period value of the fixed frame period (FFP) associated with the set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE is equal to a period value of the fixed frame period (FFP) associated with the set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station.

4. The channel access method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The periodic value of the fixed frame period (FFP) associated with the set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE is an integer multiple or integer factor of the periodic value of the fixed frame period (FFP) associated with the set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station.

5. The channel access method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The aforementioned uplink UL cluster is transmitted using Msg3.

6. The channel access method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the UE are configured in a dedicated RRC signal.

7. The channel access method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The information provided from the downlink transmission includes the information carried in the Random Access Response (RAR), and the information carried in the RAR also includes an indication for instructing the UE to perform the UE-initiated COT function.

8. The channel access method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The Random Access Response (RAR) includes scheduling information for Msg3 uplink UL transmission.

9. The channel access method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The aforementioned downlink DL transmission includes a random access response (RAR) transmitted from the starting point of an FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station.

10. The channel access method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The aforementioned uplink UL transmission includes PRACH transmission, and the downlink DL transmission includes SIB1; The UE determines to initiate COT in the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE, based on the following conditions: The above configuration information includes a set of FFP parameters associated with the UE as an indication of the COT functions that the UE is allowed to initiate; and The information carried in SIB1 includes the starting position of the uplink UL resource for PRACH transmission, and the uplink UL resource for PRACH transmission is aligned with the starting point of the FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE.

11. The channel access method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The aforementioned uplink UL transmission includes Msg3 transmission, and the downlink transmission includes Msg2, where Msg2 is the Random Access Response (RAR), wherein the UE determines to initiate COT in the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE, based on the following conditions: The above configuration information includes a set of FFP parameters associated with the UE as an indication of the COT functions that the UE is allowed to initiate. The information carried in the immediate random access response (RAR) includes the starting position of the uplink UL resources scheduled for Msg3 transmission, and the alignment of the uplink UL resources scheduled for the Msg3 transmission with the starting point of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE.

12. The channel access method according to claim 1, characterized in that, If the above symbol is located within the aforementioned uplink UL cluster and is not configured as a DL symbol by the aforementioned base station, then it is a valid symbol.

13. The channel access method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The aforementioned uplink UL transmission is Msg3, and the downlink transmission includes Msg2, where Msg2 is the Random Access Response (RAR). The UE determines to initiate COT in the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE, based on the following conditions: The above configuration information includes a set of FFP parameters associated with the UE as an indication of the COT functions that the UE is allowed to initiate; and The UE receives a COT initiation indication from the Random Access Response (RAR), and the COT initiation indication is used to instruct the UE to initiate a COT for the aforementioned uplink UL cluster transmission.

14. The channel access method according to claim 1, characterized in that, One or more valid symbols used to transmit the aforementioned uplink UL cluster are defined as: One or more symbols that are not in the idle period of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE.

15. The channel access method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The uplink UL cluster transmission based on the FFP parameters associated with the UE includes multiple repetitions of the uplink UL transmission, and when one of the multiple repetitions coincides with an idle period of the FFP parameters associated with the UE, the overlapping repetition is not transmitted in the uplink UL cluster transmission procedure.

16. The channel access method according to claim 1, characterized in that, When the aforementioned UE transmits the aforementioned uplink UL cluster from the start position of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE, the aforementioned UE shares the aforementioned COT initiated by the aforementioned UE with the aforementioned base station.

17. The channel access method according to claim 13, characterized in that, The COT initiation indication is indicated by a bit field of a specific code point with semi-static channel access, wherein the bit field indicates a combination of multiple fields.

18. The channel access method according to claim 1, characterized in that, In the uplink UL cluster transmission based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE, the uplink UL cluster transmission includes multiple repetitions of the uplink UL transmission, and when one of the multiple repetitions coincides with an idle period of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE, in the aforementioned uplink UL cluster transmission procedure, the overlapping repetition transmission is divided into multiple actual repetition transmissions according to PUSCH repetition type B.

19. A user equipment (UE), comprising: A processor configured to invoke and execute a computer program stored in memory to cause a device equipped with the processor to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 18.

20. A chip, comprising: A processor configured to invoke and execute a computer program stored in memory to cause a device with the aforementioned chip mounted to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 18.

21. A computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program, wherein the computer program causes a computer to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 18.

22. A computer program product comprising a computer program, wherein the computer program causes a computer to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 18.

23. A user equipment (UE), comprising: Memory; transceiver; and A processor, characterized in that it comprises: Receive configuration information sent from a base station; The detection is based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station and downlink (DL) transmission within a fixed frame period (FFP). Receive information provided from the downlink transmission; Based on the above configuration information and the information provided from the downlink transmission, it is determined whether to initiate Channel Occupancy Time (COT) in an FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE. If the determination result of whether to start the above COT is yes, after successfully listening first and then speaking, start the above COT in the above FFP based on the above set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE. Transmit uplink (UL) bursts in one or more valid symbols within the region of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE; and When the UE shares a COT initiated by the UE with the base station, it receives downlink DL transmissions from the base station in one or more valid symbols in the region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE.

24. A method for channel access in an unlicensed frequency band, executed by a base station in a random access procedure, characterized in that, The random access procedure executes in the RCC_CONNECTED state, and the channel access method is based on semi-static channel access, including: Transmit configuration information to the user equipment (UE); Downlink (DL) transmissions are transmitted within a fixed frame period (FFP) based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station, wherein the downlink DL transmissions provide information to the UE; Receive an uplink (UL) burst in one or more valid symbols within a region of an FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with a user equipment (UE); and When the base station uses COT initiated by the UE, a downlink DL cluster is transmitted in one or more valid symbols in the region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE.

25. The channel access method according to claim 24, characterized in that, The downlink DL transmission includes Msg2, where Msg2 is the Random Access Response (RAR), and the configuration information includes at least one set of FFP parameters associated with the UE for performing COT initiation.

26. The channel access method according to claim 25, characterized in that, A period value of the fixed frame period (FFP) associated with the set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE is equal to a period value of the fixed frame period (FFP) associated with the set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station.

27. The channel access method according to claim 25, characterized in that, The periodic value of the fixed frame period (FFP) associated with the set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE is an integer multiple or integer factor of the periodic value of the fixed frame period (FFP) associated with the set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station.

28. The channel access method according to claim 24, characterized in that, The aforementioned uplink UL cluster is transmitted using Msg3.

29. The channel access method according to claim 25, characterized in that, The aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the UE are configured in a dedicated RRC signal.

30. The channel access method according to claim 25, characterized in that, The information provided by the downlink transmission includes the information carried in the Random Access Response (RAR), and the information carried in the RAR also includes an indication for instructing the UE to perform the UE-initiated COT function.

31. The channel access method according to claim 25, characterized in that, The Random Access Response (RAR) includes scheduling information used for Msg3 uplink UL transmission.

32. The channel access method according to claim 24, characterized in that, The aforementioned downlink DL transmission includes a random access response (RAR) transmitted from the starting point of an FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station.

33. The channel access method according to claim 24, characterized in that, Based on the above configuration information and the information provided by the downlink DL transmission, the UE determines whether to initiate Channel Occupancy Time (COT) in the above FFP based on the above set of FFP parameters associated with the above UE.

34. The channel access method according to claim 24, characterized in that, The aforementioned uplink UL transmission includes PRACH transmission, and the downlink DL transmission includes SIB1; The UE determines to initiate COT in the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE, based on the following conditions: The above configuration information includes a set of FFP parameters associated with the UE as an indication of the COT functions that the UE is allowed to initiate; and The information carried in SIB1 includes the starting position of the uplink UL resource for PRACH transmission, and the uplink UL resource for PRACH transmission is aligned with the starting point of the FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE.

35. The channel access method according to claim 24, characterized in that, The aforementioned uplink UL transmission includes Msg3 transmission, and the downlink transmission includes Msg2, where Msg2 is the Random Access Response (RAR), wherein the UE determines to initiate COT in the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE, based on the following conditions: The above configuration information includes a set of FFP parameters associated with the UE as an indication of the COT functions that the UE is allowed to initiate. The information carried in the immediate random access response (RAR) includes the starting position of the uplink UL resources scheduled for Msg3 transmission, and the alignment of the uplink UL resources scheduled for the Msg3 transmission with the starting point of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE.

36. The channel access method according to claim 24, characterized in that, If the above symbol is located within the aforementioned uplink UL cluster and is not configured as a DL symbol by the aforementioned base station, then it is a valid symbol.

37. The channel access method according to claim 24, characterized in that, The aforementioned uplink UL transmission is Msg3, and the downlink transmission includes Msg2, where Msg2 is the Random Access Response (RAR). The UE determines to initiate COT in the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE, based on the following conditions: The above configuration information includes a set of FFP parameters associated with the UE as an indication of the COT functions that the UE is allowed to initiate; and The UE receives a COT initiation indication from the Random Access Response (RAR), and the COT initiation indication is used to instruct the UE to initiate a COT for the aforementioned uplink UL cluster transmission.

38. The channel access method according to claim 24, characterized in that, One or more valid symbols used to transmit the aforementioned uplink UL cluster are defined as: One or more symbols that are not in the idle period of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE.

39. The channel access method according to claim 24, characterized in that, In the uplink UL cluster reception based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE, the uplink UL reception includes multiple repetitions, and when one of the multiple repetitions coincides with an idle period of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE, the overlapping repetition is ignored in the uplink UL cluster reception procedure.

40. In the channel access method according to claim 24, wherein, When the base station detects the aforementioned uplink UL cluster by means of the start position of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE, the base station determines that the aforementioned UE will share the aforementioned COT initiated by the aforementioned UE with the base station.

41. The channel access method according to claim 37, characterized in that, The COT initiation terminal indication is indicated by a bit field with a specific code bit having semi-static channel access, wherein the bit field indicates a combination of multiple fields.

42. The channel access method according to claim 24, characterized in that, In the uplink UL cluster reception based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE, the uplink UL cluster reception includes multiple repetitions of uplink UL reception, and when one of the multiple repetitions coincides with an idle period of the aforementioned FFP based on the aforementioned set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned UE, in the aforementioned uplink UL cluster reception procedure, the overlapping repetition reception is divided into multiple actual repetition receptions according to PUSCH repetition type B.

43. A base station, comprising: A processor configured to invoke and execute a computer program stored in memory to cause a device equipped with the processor to perform the method of any one of claims 24 to 42.

44. A chip, comprising: A processor configured to invoke and execute a computer program stored in memory to cause a device with the aforementioned chip mounted to perform the method of any one of claims 24 to 42.

45. A computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program, wherein the computer program causes a computer to perform the method of any one of claims 24 to 42.

46. ​​A computer program product comprising a computer program, wherein the computer program causes a computer to perform the method of any one of claims 24 to 42.

47. A base station, comprising: Memory; transceiver; and A processor, in the RCC_CONNECTED state, performs operations based on semi-static channel access during a random access procedure, characterized by comprising: Transmit configuration information; Downlink (DL) transmissions are transmitted within a fixed frame period (FFP) based on a set of FFP parameters associated with the aforementioned base station, wherein the downlink DL transmissions provide information to the UE; Receive an uplink (UL) burst in one or more valid symbols within a region of an FFP based on a set of FFP parameters associated with a user equipment (UE); and When the base station uses COT initiated by the UE, a downlink DL cluster is transmitted in one or more valid symbols in the region of the FFP based on the set of FFP parameters associated with the UE.

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