Device, Method, Apparatus, and Medium for Optimizing Resource Usage

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to devices, methods, apparatuses, and computer-readable storage media for resource usage optimization. In some example embodiments, a second device receives a first set of indications of a first resource pool for a first communication characteristic and a second set of indications of a second resource pool for a second communication characteristic from a first device. When the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications. The second device determines random access resources based at least on the communication characteristics to be performed by the second device and the received first and second sets of indications. The communication characteristics include at least one of the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic. The second device uses the determined random access resources to perform random access.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to the field of telecommunications, and in particular to devices, methods, apparatuses, and computer-readable storage media for resource usage optimization. Background Art

[0002] With the development of communication technology, terminal devices can initiate random access procedures to perform communications with different communication features. For example, in different scenarios, terminal devices supporting communication features such as coverage enhancement (CE), small data transmission (SDT), reduced capability (RedCap) and slicing can only perform CE communication, or only perform SDT communication, or only perform RD communication, or a combination of CE and SDT, or any other combination of communications. Then, the terminal device should determine the appropriate random access channel resources for performing a certain communication feature with the radio access network device. Summary of the invention

[0003] In general, example embodiments of the present disclosure provide devices, methods, apparatus, and computer-readable storage media for resource usage optimization.

[0004] In a first aspect, a first device is provided. The first device includes at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code. The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the first device to reserve at least a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second resource pool for a second communication feature. The first device is also caused to send a first set of indications of the first resource pool and a second set of indications of the second resource pool to a second device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications.

[0005] In a second aspect, a second device is provided. The second device includes at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code. The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the second device to receive from the first device a first group of indications of a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second group of indications of a second resource pool for a second communication feature, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first group of indications partially overlaps with the second group of indications. The second device is also caused to determine a random access resource based at least on a communication feature to be performed by the second device and the received first group of indications and the second group of indications, wherein the communication feature includes at least one of the first communication feature and the second communication feature. The second device is also caused to perform random access using the determined random access resource.

[0006] In a third aspect, a method implemented in a first device is provided. In the method, the first device reserves at least a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second resource pool for a second communication feature. The first device sends a first group of indications of the first resource pool and a second group of indications of the second resource pool to a second device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first group of indications partially overlaps with the second group of indications.

[0007] In a fourth aspect, a method implemented in a second device is provided. In the method, the second device receives a first group of indications of a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second group of indications of a second resource pool for a second communication feature from a first device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first group of indications partially overlaps with the second group of indications. The second device determines a random access resource based at least on a communication feature to be performed by the second device and the received first group of indications and second group of indications, wherein the communication feature includes at least one of the first communication feature and the second communication feature. The second device also performs random access using the determined random access resource.

[0008] In a fifth aspect, an apparatus implemented in a first device is provided. The apparatus includes components for reserving at least a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second resource pool for a second communication feature. The apparatus includes components for sending a first set of indications of the first resource pool and a second set of indications of the second resource pool to a second device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications.

[0009] In a sixth aspect, an apparatus implemented in a second device is provided. The apparatus includes a component for receiving a first group of indications of a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second group of indications of a second resource pool for a second communication feature from a first device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first group of indications partially overlaps with the second group of indications. The apparatus includes a component for determining a random access resource based at least on a communication feature to be performed by the second device and the received first group of indications and second group of indications, wherein the communication feature includes at least one of the first communication feature and the second communication feature; and a component for performing random access using the determined random access resource.

[0010] In an eighth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon is provided. The instructions, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform the method of any one of the third to fourth aspects.

[0011] Other features of the present disclosure will become readily understood through the following description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent through a more detailed description of some example embodiments of the present disclosure in the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0013] Figure 1 illustrates an example environment in which example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented;

[0014] Figure 2 illustrates a signaling diagram for resource usage optimization according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0015] Figure 3 illustrates example resource reservations according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0016] Figure 4 illustrates example relationships of resource pools and common resources according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0017] Figure 5 illustrates a flow chart of an example method implemented at a first device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0018] Figure 6 A flowchart illustrating an example method implemented at a second device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure; and

[0019] Figure 7 is a simplified block diagram of a device suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0020] Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The principles of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to some example embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are described for illustrative purposes only and help those skilled in the art to understand and implement the present disclosure without implying any limitation on the scope of the present disclosure. The disclosure described herein can be implemented in various ways different from the way described below.

[0022] In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

[0023] As used herein, the term "radio access network equipment" or "RAN equipment" refers to a device that is capable of providing or hosting a cell or coverage area with which a second device (e.g., a terminal device) can communicate. Examples of first devices include, but are not limited to, Node B (NodeB or NB), evolved Node B (eNodeB or eNB), next generation eNB (ng-eNB), ng-eNB-central unit (ng-eNB-CU), ng-eNB-distributed unit (ng-eNB-DU), next generation NodeB (gNB), gNB-central unit (gNB-CU), gNB-distributed unit (gNB-DU), remote radio unit (RRU), radio head (RH), remote radio head (RRH), integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, low power nodes such as femto nodes, pico nodes, etc. In some communication systems, the first device may be composed of multiple separate entities, for example, in an NTN system, the first device may be composed of a radio frequency part located in a satellite or drone and an inter-frequency / baseband part located in a ground station.

[0024] As used herein, the term "terminal device" refers to any device with wireless or wired communication capabilities. Examples of terminal devices include, but are not limited to, user equipment (UE), personal computers, desktops, mobile phones, cellular phones, smart phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), portable computers, tablet computers, wearable devices, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, Internet of Everything (IoE) devices, machine type communication (MTC) devices, vehicle devices for V2X communication (where X means pedestrians, vehicles, or infrastructure / networks), devices for integrated access and backhaul (IAB), or image capture devices such as digital cameras, gaming devices, music storage and playback devices, or Internet devices that enable wireless or wired Internet access and browsing. Here, the term "terminal device" can be used interchangeably with UE.

[0025] The term "circuitry" as used herein may refer to a combination of hardware circuits and / or hardware circuits and software. For example, a circuit system may be a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuits and software / firmware. As a further example, a circuit system may be any part of a hardware processor with software, including (multiple) digital signal processors, software and memory, which work together to enable devices such as terminal devices or network devices to perform various functions. In another example, a circuit system may be a hardware circuit and / or processor that requires software / firmware to operate, such as a microprocessor or a part of a microprocessor, but the software may not exist when the operation does not require it. As used herein, the term circuit system also encompasses the implementation of only a hardware circuit or (multiple) processors or a part of a hardware circuit or (multiple) processors and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware.

[0026] As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The term "including" and its variations should be interpreted as open terms meaning "including but not limited to". The term "based on" should be interpreted as "based at least in part on". The terms "one embodiment" and "embodiment" should be interpreted as "at least one embodiment". The term "another embodiment" should be interpreted as "at least one other embodiment". The terms "first", "second", etc. may refer to different or identical objects.

[0027] As mentioned above, with the development of communication technology, different communication features are pre-configured for different communication needs so as to balance the communication needs with limited resources. In addition, the random access channel (RACH) can be pre-configured for different communication features (such as small data transmission, reduced capacity, coverage enhancement and slicing). The purpose of the pre-configuration is to define a resource pool, which will be used for a certain communication feature that requires dedicated resources so that the feature can be identified from the resources used. This will ensure successful and fast access of the terminal device to perform a certain communication feature, or ensure that the network recognizes special processing when providing a response, such as using different uplink (UL) grant transmission block sizes (TBS), using different repetitions, etc. However, due to the limited RACH resources (64 preamble codes per RACH opportunity), there may be problems in signaling and resource identification for possible combinations of the above-mentioned communication features. For example, a terminal device with reduced capabilities can use RACH resources dedicated to reduced capabilities (RedCap) alone, a terminal device with coverage enhancement capabilities can use RACH resources dedicated to coverage enhancement (CE), and a terminal device with slicing capabilities can use RACH resources dedicated to slicing, but it is not defined how a terminal device that supports two or more communication features configured simultaneously (RedCap and CE, or RedCap, CE and slicing, or other combinations of the above communication features) utilizes the allocated resources. On the terminal device side, it is not defined how the terminal device knows the overlapping resources that can be used for both one communication feature and another communication feature. In other words, on the network side, it is not defined how the network knows what communication feature the terminal device that initiates the random access process is going to perform.

[0028] There may be a solution for identifying overlapping resources for the combined communication types of the above communication types. In this solution, the RAN equipment can send individual signaling for each combined communication feature. However, as the number of communication features increases, the amount of signaling will increase exponentially. In addition, the strict isolation of the allocated resources for each individual feature leads to overly fragmented resource portions, resulting in the adverse effects of conflicts or shortages in actual access.

[0029] The example embodiments of the present disclosure provide an efficient scheme for using overlapping resources of RACH resources. In this scheme, a RAN device (hereinafter also referred to as a "first device") reserves at least a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second resource pool for a second communication feature different from the first communication feature. Then, the first device sends a first group of indications of the first resource pool and a second group of indications of the second resource pool to a terminal device (hereinafter also referred to as a "second device"), wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first group of indications partially overlaps with the second group of indications. Using the received first group of indications and the second group of indications, the second device can implicitly determine the first resource pool dedicated to the first communication feature, and the portion of the first resource pool that overlaps with the second resource pool (if there is an overlap).

[0030] In this way, the second device is able to determine the RACH resources for performing combined communications having the first communication feature and the second communication feature without receiving separate signaling for each combination of communication features. On the other side, in the event that the first device receives a preamble from the second device on a certain RACH resource (e.g., an overlapping portion of a resource pool), the first device can identify special treatment for the second device.

[0031] refer to Figure 1-Figure 7 , describes an example embodiment for resource usage optimization according to the present disclosure.

[0032] Figure 1 An example environment 100 is illustrated in which example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented.

[0033] Environment 100 may be part of a communication network, including a first device 110 (operating as a RAN device) and second devices 120-1, 120-2, and 120-3. For ease of discussion, terminal devices 120-1, 120-2, and 120-3 may be collectively referred to as "second devices 120" (operating as terminal devices). Second device 120 may communicate with first device 110.

[0034] It should be understood that the number of second devices and first devices shown in environment 100 is for illustration purposes only and does not imply any limitation on the scope of the present disclosure. In some embodiments, environment 100 may include another second device to communicate information with another first device.

[0035] Communications in environment 100 may follow any suitable communication standards or protocols that already exist or will be developed in the future, such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Long Term Evolution (LTE), Advanced LTE (LTE-A), Fifth Generation (5G) New Radio (NR), Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi), and Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) standards, and employ any suitable communication technology, including, for example, Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM), Time Division Multiplexing (TDM), Frequency Division Multiplexing (FDM), Code Division Multiplexing (CDM), Bluetooth, ZigBee, and Machine Type Communication (MTC), Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC), Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC), Carrier Aggregation (CA), Dual Connectivity (DC), and New Radio License-Unlicensed (NR-U) technologies.

[0036] In the environment 100, the second device 120 can support the combination of communication features configured at the same time. For example, the second device 120 can support the combination of SDT and RD configured at the same time. Whether to perform random access for the combination of communication features is based on the communication requirements or network capabilities of the second device 120. When the second device determines to perform communication with the combination of communication features, the second device should first determine the RACH resources for the combination of communication features.

[0037] Figure 2 A signaling diagram 200 for resource usage optimization according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is illustrated. For the purpose of discussion, reference will be made to Figure 1 Signaling diagram 200 is described.

[0038] In the signaling diagram 200, the first device 110 reserves (215) at least a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second resource pool for a second communication feature. In some embodiments, the first resource pool and the second resource pool include at least one physical random access resource in the time domain and / or frequency domain (e.g., at least one physical random access opportunity), and / or at least one preamble for random access (e.g., a preamble in a physical random access opportunity for random access). In some embodiments, the first resource pool and the second resource pool also include any other type of shared resources, such as a configuration authorization type. For the sake of discussion, the resources hereinafter refer to a PRACH for random access and / or a preamble on the PRACH. The first communication feature and the second communication feature may be any communication feature that has been defined or undefined. For example, the first communication feature and the second communication feature may be at least one of the following: CE, SDT, RedCap, and slices. In some embodiments, the communication features may include other features defined in the future.

[0039] Then, the first device 110 sends (220) a first set of indications of the first resource pool and a second set of indications of the second resource pool to the second device 120. In some embodiments, the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool. In this case, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications. For example, the first set of indications includes indices of resources in the first resource pool, and the second set of indications includes indices of resources in the second resource pool. In this way, when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications. In an exemplary embodiment, it is assumed that the first resource pool "PRACH1-5" is reserved for the first communication feature and the second resource pool "PRACH 3-10" is reserved for the second communication feature, so that the indications of the resources PRACH 3-5 in the first resource pool overlap with the indications of the resources PRACH 3-5 in the second resource pool.

[0040] In some embodiments, the association between the resource pool and the communication feature can be determined by the second device 120 using preconfigured rules. For example, the group indicates that it is sorted in a preconfigured order. It will be understood that there may be any other rules for determining the association between the resource pool and the communication feature by the second device 120.

[0041] Alternatively or additionally, in some embodiments, the first device 110 further sends a first indication of a first association between the first resource pool and the first communication feature, and a second indication of a second association between the second resource pool and the second communication feature to the second device 120. In this way, the second device 120 can use the indication to determine the resources dedicated to a certain communication feature.

[0042] Alternatively or additionally, in some embodiments, the first device 110 also sends an explicit indication of whether the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool (hereinafter referred to as a third indication). For example, together with the first set of indications of the first resource pool, the first device 110 also sends a third indication of resources in the first resource pool that overlap with the second resource pool.

[0043] Using these indication groups, the second device 120 can implicitly determine (225) overlapping resources, which are used for random access of combined communications having the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic. Returning to the above example regarding the index set "PRACH1-10", since "PRACH 3-5" is an overlapping resource, the second device 120 can determine "PRACH 3-5" as a resource for combined communications having the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic. If the second device 120 is to perform a combined communication having the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic, the second device 120 can send a preamble on PRACH 3-5 to initiate random access. Otherwise, if the second device 120 is to perform the first communication characteristic, the second device can send a preamble on PRACH1-2 to initiate random access.

[0044] Alternatively or additionally, the second device 120 may also determine (225) overlapping resources based on the first group indication and the third indication, the overlapping resources being used for random access for combined communication having the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic.

[0045] After determining resources for random access of the communication feature to be performed by the second device 120, the second device 120 performs (230) random access using the determined random access resources. For example, the second device 120 may send a preamble to the first device 110 on the determined random access resources.

[0046] On the first device 110 side, in some embodiments, if a preamble for random access is received from the second device 120 on non-overlapping resources in the first resource pool, the first device 110 may understand that the communication to be performed by the second device has the first communication characteristic. In some embodiments, if a preamble for random access is received from the second device 120 on overlapping resources in the first resource pool, the first device 110 may understand that the communication to be performed by the second device has a combination of the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic.

[0047] In this way, using the reservation of the first resource pool and the second resource pool and the first group of indications and the second group of indications, the terminal device (second device) can implicitly determine the appropriate RACH resources for any communication feature or any combination of communication features. On the RAN device (first device) side, the RAN device can provide special processing based on the preamble received from the terminal device. As a result, the signaling overhead is minimized. In addition, if a new communication feature is added, the number of indication groups increases linearly rather than exponentially. Therefore, the mechanism has the ability to be forward compatible.

[0048] Figure 3 An example resource reservation 300 is illustrated according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, reference will be made to Figure 1 To describe partition 300.

[0049] In this example, the first device 110 reserves a first resource pool 310 for a first communication feature and a second resource pool 320 for a second communication feature. In some embodiments, the first device 110 also reserves a third resource pool 330 for a third communication feature. It will be understood that the number of communication features and the corresponding resource pools are just examples, and the first device 110 may also reserve other resource pools for other communication features. In some embodiments, the first communication feature may be CE, the second communication feature may be RedCap, and the third communication feature may be SDT. In some embodiments, as mentioned above, there may be another communication feature that is already defined (e.g., slices) or undefined.

[0050] The first, second and third resource pools 310, 320 and 330 overlap with each other. In some embodiments, the first resource pool 310 may overlap only with the second resource pool 320, or only with the third resource pool 230. In some embodiments, the second resource pool 220 may overlap only with the third resource pool 330. In addition, in some embodiments, the first resource pool 310, the second resource pool 320 and the third resource pool 330 do not overlap with each other.

[0051] In some embodiments, the resource pool includes at least one physical random access channel resource in the time domain and / or frequency domain, and / or at least one preamble for random access. In this case, the second device 120 can use the resources in the resource pool to initiate random access. In some embodiments, the resource pool includes a configuration grant type.

[0052] For the purpose of discussion, the following embodiments are described in the context that the resources in the resource pool refer to random access resources (e.g., random access opportunities in the time domain and / or frequency domain) and / or preambles. In the implementation of resource reservation 300, the resources in the first overlap 325 between the first resource pool 310 and the second resource pool 320 can be used for the second device 120 to perform random access with the first communication feature and the second communication feature. Similarly, the resources in the second overlap 335 can be used for the second device 120 to perform random access with the second communication feature and the third communication feature. The resources in the third overlap 345 can be used for the second device 120 to perform random access with the first communication feature and the third communication feature. The resources in the fourth overlap 355 can be used for the second device 120 to perform random access with the first communication feature, the second communication feature, and the third communication feature.

[0053] Thus, when the second device 120 performs random access using a certain resource pool, the first device 110 can provide a corresponding response to the second device 120. For example, the second device 120 sends a preamble to the first device 110 on a certain resource pool. In other words, the first device understands the communication characteristics to be performed by the second device 120.

[0054] After reserving the first, second, and third resource pools, the first device 110 sends a first set of indications for the first resource pool, a second set of indications for the second resource pool, and a third set of indications for the third resource pool. In this way, possible overlaps across pools (for different features) are not explicitly signaled, but may be implicitly obtained from the above-mentioned sets of indications. For example, when the second device 120 will not perform random access for a combination of multiple communication features, possible overlapping resources are excluded from each resource pool for individual communication features.

[0055] On the first device 110 side, based on the preamble received from the second device 120, the communication characteristics to be performed by the second device 120 may be determined. For example, if the received preamble is on a resource in the first resource pool that does not overlap with other resource pools, the communication characteristics to be performed by the second device 120 may be determined to be the first communication. If the received preamble is on a resource in the first resource pool that overlaps with the second and third resource pools (e.g., on the overlapping resource portion 355), the communication characteristics to be performed by the second device 120 may be determined to be a combination of the first, second, and third communication characteristics.

[0056] Figure 4 An example relationship 400 of a resource pool and common resources is illustrated according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0057] like Figure 4As shown in , the first resource pool 310 is reserved for the first communication feature, the second resource pool 320 is reserved for the second communication feature, and the third resource pool 330 is reserved for the third communication feature. In some embodiments, the first communication feature may be coverage enhancement (CE), the second communication feature may be small data transfer (SDT), and the third communication feature may be reduced capability (RedCap).

[0058] The RACH resources for combined communications with multiple individual communication features are implicitly indicated to the terminal device through the above three pools. For example, the resources reserved for the combination of the first communication feature and the third communication feature are in the third overlap 345; the resources reserved for the combination of the first communication feature and the second communication feature are in the first overlap 325; and the resources reserved for the combination of the second communication feature and the third communication feature are in the second overlap 335. In addition, the resources reserved for the combination of the first communication feature, the second communication feature, and the third communication feature are in the fourth overlap 355.

[0059] In this way, once the respective groups of indications of the first resource pool, the second resource pool, and the third resource pool are sent to the second device 120, the second device 120 can determine each partition of the resources by comparing the respective groups of indications. To help the UE compare the pools, the first group of indications of the first resource pool 310 can be accompanied by an indication of overlap, and / or the second group of indications of the second resource pool 320 and the third group of indications 330 of the third resource pool.

[0060] In addition, the second set of indications of the second resource pool 320 may be accompanied by an indication of overlap, and / or the first set of indications of the first resource pool 310 and the third set of indications of the third resource pool 330. The third set of indications of the third resource pool 330 may be accompanied by an indication of overlap, and / or the first set of indications of the first resource pool 310 and the second set of indications of the second resource pool 320.

[0061] From these sets of indications, the second device 120 can infer:

[0062] Resources in the first resource pool 310 that do not overlap with other resource pools are reserved for the second device 120 to perform only the first communication feature;

[0063] Resources in the second resource pool 320 that do not overlap with other resource pools are reserved for the second device 120 to perform only the second communication feature;

[0064] Resources in the second resource pool 330 that do not overlap with other resource pools are reserved for the second device 120 to perform only the third communication feature;

[0065] Resources in the first overlap 325 are reserved for the second device 120 to perform random access for a combination of the first communication feature and the second communication feature;

[0066] Resources in the second overlap 335 are reserved for the second device 120 to perform random access for a combination of the second communication feature and the third communication feature;

[0067] Resources in the third overlap 345 are reserved for the second device 120 to perform random access for a combination of the first communication feature and the third communication feature;

[0068] • Resources in the fourth overlap 345 are reserved for the second device 120 to perform random access for a combination of the first communication feature, the second communication feature, and the third communication feature; and

[0069] • Common RACH resources 410 other than the above resources are reserved for the second device 120 to perform random access not used for any of these features.

[0070] Alternatively or additionally, in some embodiments, separate signaling ties each communication feature to the actual feature, such as the first communication feature - CE, the second communication feature - RedCap, and the third communication feature - SDT.

[0071] The second device 120 then determines the region based on the acquired signaling of the first device 110. The configuration of the first device 110 for individual RACH resources indicates the random access resource pool separately from the total number of preambles used in the cell:

[0072] The first resource pool 310 is reserved for a first communication feature (eg, CE);

[0073] The second resource pool 320 is reserved for a second communication feature (eg, RedCap); and

[0074] • The third resource pool 330 is reserved for a third communication feature (eg, SDT).

[0075] Then, the behavior of the second device 120 is further determined by the capabilities of the second device 120:

[0076] If the second device 120 supports all three features and the second device 120 is to perform non-SDT access, but the UE is not within the enhanced coverage - the second device 120 should determine resources in the second pool 320 that do not overlap with other resource pools;

[0077] If the second device 120 supports all three communication features, and the second device 120 is to perform SDT access, but the second device 120 is not within the enhanced coverage area - the second device 120 should determine resources in the second overlap 335;

[0078] If the second device 120 supports all three features, and the second device 120 is to perform SDT access, and the second device 120 is within the enhanced coverage range - the second device 120 determines the preamble in the fourth overlap 355,

[0079] If the second device 120 does not support any of these features, or when not performing RA for a new feature, the second device 120 selects a publicly available RACH configuration opportunity in the common RACH resource 410 .

[0080] In some embodiments, RACH resources may be divided into different pools by using different periods and different RACH opportunities.

[0081] In this way, signaling overhead is minimized, and new features in subsequent versions can be smoothly introduced, because legacy terminal devices only need to understand that a pool for a new feature is introduced and exclude the corresponding resources without understanding the actual feature. In addition, there is no need to reconfigure the pool for existing features, and the new part to be excluded can be obtained from the added pool.

[0082] Figure 5 A flowchart of an example method 500 implemented at a first device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is illustrated. For the purpose of discussion, reference will be made to Figure 1 5. It should be understood that the method 500 may include additional actions not shown and / or may omit some of the actions shown, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard.

[0083] At block 510 , the first device 110 reserves at least a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second resource pool for a second communication feature.

[0084] At block 520 , the first device 110 sends a first set of indications of a first resource pool and a second set of indications of a second resource pool to the second device 120 , wherein the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool.

[0085] In some embodiments, the first device 110 sends to the second device a first indication of a first association between the first resource pool and the first communications feature and a second indication of a second association between the second resource pool and the second communications feature.

[0086] In some embodiments, the first device 110 sends a third indication to the second device regarding whether the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool.

[0087] In some embodiments, where the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool, in response to receiving a preamble code for random access from the second device 120 on non-overlapping resources in the first resource pool, the first device 110 determines that the communication to be performed by the second device has a first communication characteristic; and / or in response to receiving a preamble code for random access from the second device 120 on overlapping resources in the first resource pool, the first device 110 determines that the communication to be performed by the second device has a combination of the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic.

[0088] In some embodiments, the first resource pool and the second resource pool include at least one physical random access channel resource in the time domain and / or frequency domain, and / or at least one preamble code for a random access opportunity.

[0089] In some embodiments, at least one of the first communication feature and the second communication feature includes at least one of coverage enhancement (CE), small data transfer (SDT), reduced capability (RedCap), or slicing.

[0090] Figure 6 A flow chart of an example method 600 implemented at the second device 120 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is illustrated. For the purpose of discussion, reference will be made to Figure 1 6. It should be understood that the method 600 may include additional actions not shown and / or may omit some of the actions shown, and the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this regard.

[0091] In box 610, the second device 120 receives a first set of indications of a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second set of indications of a second resource pool for a second communication feature from the first device 110, wherein the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool.

[0092] At block 620 , the second device 120 determines a random access resource based at least on a communication feature to be performed by the second device and the received first and second set of indications, wherein the communication feature includes at least one of the first and second communication features.

[0093] At block 630 , the second device 120 performs random access using the determined random access resource.

[0094] In some embodiments, the second device 120 receives from the first device 110 a first indication of a first association between the first resource pool and the first communication feature and a second indication of a second association between the second resource pool and the second communication feature.

[0095] In some embodiments, the second device 120 receives a third indication from the first device 110 whether the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool.

[0096] In some embodiments, the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool, and method 600 also includes, based on at least one of the received first and second groups of indications, the received first and second indications, and the received third indication, according to determining that the second device 120 is to perform the first communication feature, the second device determines the preamble code on the non-overlapping resources in the first resource pool as the determined random access resource; or according to determining that the second device 120 is to perform both the first communication feature and the second communication feature, the second device 120 determines the preamble code on the overlapping resources in the first resource pool as the determined random access resource.

[0097] In some embodiments, method 600 also includes, based on at least one of the received first group of indications and the second group of indications, determining that the second device 120 is to perform another communication feature in addition to the first communication feature and the second communication feature, the second device 120 determining a preamble code in a common resource other than the first resource pool and the second resource pool as the determined random access resource.

[0098] In some embodiments, the first resource pool and the second resource pool include at least one physical random access resource in the time domain and / or frequency domain, and / or at least one preamble code for random access.

[0099] In some embodiments, at least one of the first communication feature and the second communication feature includes at least one of coverage enhancement (CE), small data transfer (SDT), reduced capability (RedCap), or slicing.

[0100] In some aspects, an apparatus implemented in a first device includes: a component for reserving at least a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second resource pool for a second communication feature; and a component for sending a first set of indications of the first resource pool and a second set of indications of the second resource pool to a second device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications.

[0101] In some aspects, an apparatus implemented in a second device includes: a component for receiving a first set of indications of a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second set of indications of a second resource pool for a second communication feature from the first device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications; a component for determining a preamble code based on the communication feature to be performed by the second device and the received first set of indications and second set of indications, wherein the communication feature includes at least one of the first communication feature and the second communication feature; and a component for sending a preamble code to the first device for random access on the determined resources.

[0102] In some aspects, the first device includes at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code; the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, enable the first device to: reserve at least a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second resource pool feature for a second communication; and send a first set of indications of the first resource pool and a second set of indications of the second resource pool to the second device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications.

[0103] In some aspects, the second device includes at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code; the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, enable the second device to: receive a first set of indications of a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second set of indications of a second resource pool for a second communication feature from the first device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications; determine a random access resource based at least on a communication feature to be performed by the second device and the received first set of indications and second set of indications, wherein the communication feature includes at least one of the first communication feature and the second communication feature; and perform random access using the determined random access resource.

[0104] Figure 7 is a simplified block diagram of a device 700 suitable for implementing an example embodiment of the present disclosure. The device 700 may be implemented as follows: Figure 2 The embodiment is implemented at the first device 110 or the second device 120 shown in FIG.

[0105] As shown, the device 700 includes a processor 710, a memory 720 coupled to the processor 710, a communication module 730 coupled to the processor 710, and a communication interface (not shown) coupled to the communication module 730. The memory 720 stores at least a program 740. The communication module 730 is used for two-way communication, for example, via multiple antennas or via a cable. The communication interface can represent any interface required for communication.

[0106] Assume that program 740 includes program instructions that, when executed by associated processor 710, enable device 700 to operate in accordance with example embodiments of the present disclosure, as described herein with reference to Figures 1 to 6 The example embodiments herein may be implemented by computer software executable by the processor 710 of the device 700, or by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware. The processor 710 may be configured to implement various example embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0107] The memory 720 may be of any type suitable for the local technology network and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as, as non-limiting examples, non-transitory computer-readable storage media, semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, and removable memory. Although only one memory 720 is shown in the device 700, there may be several physically different memory modules in the device 700. The processor 710 may be of any type suitable for the local technology network and, as non-limiting examples, may include one or more of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. The device 700 may have multiple processors, such as a dedicated integrated circuit chip that is time-slave to a clock synchronized with a main processor.

[0108] When the device 700 acts as the first device 110, the processor 710 may implement the above-mentioned Figure 2 and Figure 5 When the device 700 acts as the second device 120, the processor 710 may implement the operations or actions of the first device 110 described above. Figure 2 and Figure 6 The operation or action of the second device 120 described above Figures 1 to 6 All operations and features described are equally applicable to the device 700 and have similar effects. For simplicity, the details will be omitted.

[0109] In general, various example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or dedicated circuits, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software that may be executed by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. Although various aspects of the example embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated and described as block diagrams, flow charts, or using some other graphical representations, it should be understood that, as non-limiting examples, the boxes, devices, systems, techniques, or methods described herein may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, dedicated circuits or logic, general hardware or controllers or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

[0110] The present disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer executable instructions, such as those included in a program module, which are executed in a device on a target real or virtual processor to perform the above-referenced Figures 1 to 6The operations and actions described. Typically, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, etc. that perform specific tasks or implement specific abstract data types. In various example embodiments, the functionality of program modules can be combined or split between program modules as needed. The machine executable instructions of program modules can be executed in local or distributed devices. In distributed devices, program modules can be located in local and remote storage media.

[0111] The program code for executing the method of the present disclosure can be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. These program codes can be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer or other programmable data processing device so that the program code, when executed by the processor or controller, enables the functions / operations specified in the flow chart and / or block diagram to be implemented. The program code can be executed entirely on the machine, partially on the machine as an independent software package, partially on the machine and partially on a remote machine, or entirely on a remote machine or server.

[0112] In the context of the present disclosure, computer program codes or related data may be carried by any suitable carrier to enable a device, apparatus or processor to perform various processes and operations as described above. Examples of carriers include signals and computer-readable media.

[0113] The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signal medium or a computer readable storage medium. The computer readable medium may include, but is not limited to, an electrical, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared or semiconductor system, device or apparatus, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples of computer readable storage media will include: an electrical connection with one or more wires, a portable computer floppy disk, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

[0114] In addition, although operations are depicted in a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring such operations to be performed in the particular order shown or in a continuous order, or performing all illustrated operations to achieve the desired result. In some scenarios, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, although several specific implementation details are included in the above discussion, these should not be interpreted as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to a particular example embodiment. Certain features described in the context of separate example embodiments may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. On the contrary, the various features described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented separately in multiple example embodiments or in any suitable sub-combination.

[0115] Although the present disclosure has been described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological acts, it should be understood that the present disclosure defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features described above and serving as example forms of implementing the claims are disclosed.

[0116] Various example embodiments of the present technology have been described. In addition to or as an alternative to the above, the following embodiments are described. Features described in any of the following examples can be utilized with any other examples described herein.

Claims

1. A first device, comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code; the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the first device to: at least reserve a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second resource pool for a second communication feature; and send a first set of indications of the first resource pool and a second set of indications of the second resource pool to a second device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications.

2. The first device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the first device to: send a first indication of a first association between the first resource pool and the first communication feature, and a second indication of a second association between the second resource pool and the second communication feature to the second device.

3. The first device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the first device to: send a third indication to the second device as to whether the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool.

4. The first device according to claim 1, wherein the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool, and the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the first device to: in response to receiving a preamble for random access from the second device on non-overlapping resources in the first resource pool, determine that the communication to be performed by the second device has the first communication feature, and / or in response to receiving the preamble for the random access from the second device on overlapping resources in the first resource pool, determine that the communication to be performed by the second device has a combination of the first communication feature and the second communication feature.

5. The first device according to claim 1, wherein the first resource pool and the second resource pool include at least one physical random access channel resource in the time domain and / or frequency domain, and / or at least one preamble for random access.

6. The first device according to any one of claims 1-5, wherein at least one of the first communication feature and the second communication feature includes at least one of the following: coverage enhancement (CE), small data transmission (SDT), reduced capability (RedCap), or slicing.

7. A second device, comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code; the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the second device to: Receive a first set of indications of a first resource pool for a first communication characteristic and a second set of indications of a second resource pool for a second communication characteristic from a first device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications; Determine random access resources at least based on the communication characteristics to be performed by the second device and the received first set of indications and second set of indications, wherein the communication characteristics include at least one of the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic; and Perform random access using the determined random access resources.

8. The second device according to claim 7, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured, together with the at least one processor, to cause the second device to: Receive from the first device a first indication of a first association between the first resource pool and the first communication characteristic, and a second indication of a second association between the second resource pool and the second communication characteristic.

9. The second device according to claim 8, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured, together with the at least one processor, to cause the second device to: Receive from the first device a third indication of whether the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool.

10. The second device according to claim 9, wherein the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool, and the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured, together with the at least one processor, to cause the second device to: Based on at least one of: The received first set of indications and second set of indications, The received first indication and second indication, and The received third indication, If it is determined that the second device is to perform the first communication characteristic, determine the random access resources on the non-overlapping resources in the first resource pool as the determined random access resources; or If it is determined that the second device is to perform both the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic, determine the random access resources on the overlapping resources in the first resource pool as the determined random access resources.

11. The second device according to claim 9, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are further configured, together with the at least one processor, to cause the second device to: Based on at least one of: The received first set of indications and second set of indications, The received first indication and second indication, and The received third indication, If it is determined that the second device is to perform another communication characteristic other than the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic, determine the random access resources in the common resources other than the first resource pool and the second resource pool as the determined random access resources.

12. The second device according to claim 7, wherein the first resource pool and the second resource pool include at least one physical random access channel resource in the time domain and / or the frequency domain, and / or at least one preamble for the random access.

13. The second device according to claim 7, wherein at least one of the first communication feature and the second communication feature includes at least one of the following: Coverage enhancement (CE), small data transmission (SDT), reduced capability (RedCap), or slicing.

14. A method implemented in a first device, comprising: at least reserving a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second resource pool for a second communication feature; and sending a first set of indications of the first resource pool and a second set of indications of the second resource pool to a second device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications.

15. The method according to claim 14, the method further comprising: sending a first indication of a first association between the first resource pool and the first communication feature, and a second indication of a second association between the second resource pool and the second communication feature to the second device.

16. The method according to claim 14, the method further comprising: sending a third indication to the second device as to whether the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool.

17. The method according to claim 14, wherein the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool, the method further comprising: determining that the communication to be performed by the second device has the first communication feature in response to receiving a preamble for random access from the second device on non-overlapping resources in the first resource pool, and / or determining that the communication to be performed by the second device has a combination of the first communication feature and the second communication feature in response to receiving the preamble for the random access from the second device on overlapping resources in the first resource pool.

18. The method according to claim 14, wherein the first resource pool includes at least one physical random access channel resource in the time domain and / or the frequency domain, and / or at least one preamble for random access.

19. The method according to any one of claims 14-18, wherein at least one of the first communication feature and the second communication feature includes at least one of the following: Coverage enhancement (CE), small data transmission (SDT), reduced capability (RedCap), or slicing.

20. A method implemented in a second device, comprising: receiving from a first device a first set of indications of a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second set of indications of a second resource pool for a second communication feature, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications; Determine a random access resource based at least on communication characteristics to be performed by the second device and the received first set of indications and the second set of indications, where the communication characteristics include at least one of the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic; and Perform random access using the determined random access resource.

21. The method according to claim 20, further comprising: Receive from the first device a first indication of a first association between the first resource pool and the first communication characteristic, and a second indication of a second association between the second resource pool and the second communication characteristic.

22. The method according to claim 21, further comprising: Receive from the first device a third indication of whether the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the first resource pool overlaps with the second resource pool, the method further comprising: Based on at least one of the following: The received first set of indications and the second set of indications, The received first indication and the second indication, and The received third indication, According to determining that the second device is to perform the first communication characteristic, determine the random access resource on non-overlapping resources in the first resource pool as the determined random access resource; Or According to determining that the second device is to perform both the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic, determine the random access resource on overlapping resources in the first resource pool as the determined random access resource.

24. The method according to claim 22, further comprising: Based on at least one of the following: The received first set of indications and the second set of indications, The received first indication and the second indication, and The received third indication, According to determining that the second device is to perform another communication characteristic other than the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic, determine the random access resource in common resources other than the first resource pool and the second resource pool as the determined random access resource.

25. The method according to claim 20, wherein the first resource pool includes at least one physical random access channel resource in the time domain and / or the frequency domain, and / or at least one preamble for random access.

26. The method according to any one of claims 20-25, wherein at least one of the first communication characteristic and the second communication characteristic includes at least one of the following: Coverage enhancement (CE), small data transmission (SDT), reduced capability (RedCap) or slicing.

27. An apparatus implemented in a first device, comprising: Components for at least reserving a first resource pool for a first communication characteristic and a second resource pool for a second communication characteristic; And Components for sending a first set of indications of the first resource pool and a second set of indications of the second resource pool to a second device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlap with the second set of indications.

28. An apparatus implemented in a second device, comprising: A component for receiving a first set of indications of a first resource pool for a first communication feature and a second set of indications of a second resource pool for a second communication feature from a first device, wherein when the first resource pool partially overlaps with the second resource pool, the first set of indications partially overlaps with the second set of indications; A component for determining a random access resource at least based on a communication feature to be performed by the second device and the received first set of indications and second set of indications, wherein the communication feature includes at least one of the first communication feature and the second communication feature; and A component for performing random access using the determined random access resource.

29. A computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon that, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform the method according to any one of claims 14-19 or the method according to any one of claims 20-26.

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