Method and apparatus for wireless communication

Abstract

In one aspect of the invention, a method for wireless communication, a computer readable medium, and an apparatus for wireless communication are provided. The apparatus may be a UE. The UE discovers a relay wireless device for local communication on an unlicensed carrier. Upon success of the LBT procedure on the unlicensed carrier, the UE communicates data with the relay wireless device on the unlicensed carrier through local communication in order to further communicate the data with the base station. According to the invention, wireless communication can be better carried out.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a communication system, and more particularly to a device collaboration technique using listen-before-talk (LBT) and channel occupancy time (COT) sharing on an unlicensed frequency band. Background Art

[0002] The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present invention and do not constitute prior art.

[0003] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide a variety of telecommunication services, such as telephony, video, data, messaging, and broadcasting. Typical wireless communication systems may employ multiple-access technologies that are capable of supporting communications with multiple users by sharing available system resources. Examples of multiple-access technologies include Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) systems, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) systems, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) systems, Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) systems, Single-Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) systems, and Time Division Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD-SCDMA) systems.

[0004] The above-mentioned multiple access technologies have been adopted in various telecommunication standards to provide a common protocol that enables different wireless devices to communicate at a municipal, national, regional, and even global level. An example of a telecommunication standard is the fifth generation (5G) New Radio (NR). 5G NR is part of the continuous mobile broadband evolution released by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) to meet new requirements associated with latency, reliability, security, scalability (such as with the Internet of Things (IoT)) and other requirements. Some aspects of 5G NR may be based on the fourth generation (4G) Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard. 5G NR technology requires further improvements, which may also be applicable to other multiple access technologies and telecommunication standards that adopt these technologies. Summary of the invention

[0005] The following content presents a brief summary of one or more aspects, with the purpose of providing a basic understanding of these aspects. The present invention summary is not an extensive overview of all considered aspects, and is neither intended to identify the key or important elements of all aspects, nor to outline the scope of any or all aspects. The purpose of the present invention summary is only to present some concepts of one or more aspects in a simplified form, as a preface to the more detailed description that will be presented below.

[0006] In one aspect, a method for wireless communication, performed by a user equipment, includes: discovering a relay wireless device for local communication on an unlicensed carrier; and upon success of a listen-before-talk procedure on the unlicensed carrier, communicating data with the relay wireless device on the unlicensed carrier through the local communication, so as to further communicate the data with a base station.

[0007] In one aspect, a method for wireless communication, performed by a relay wireless device, includes: discovering a user equipment for local communication on an unlicensed carrier; and after a listen-before-talk procedure on the unlicensed carrier is successful, communicating data with the user equipment on the unlicensed carrier through the local communication for communicating the data between the user equipment and a base station.

[0008] By utilizing the present invention, wireless communication can be better performed.

[0009] To accomplish the foregoing and related purposes, one or more aspects include the features fully described below and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following detailed description and accompanying drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative features of one or more aspects. However, these features are only indicative of some of the various ways in which the principles of the various aspects can be employed, and the present invention is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary wireless communication system and access network.

[0011] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating communication between a BS and a UE in an access network.

[0012] Figure 3 An exemplary logical architecture of a distributed access network is illustrated.

[0013] Figure 4 An exemplary physical architecture of a distributed access network is illustrated.

[0014] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram showing exemplary time slots centered on DL.

[0015] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram showing exemplary time slots centered around the UL.

[0016] Figure 7 A device cooperation scenario is schematically illustrated, in which a master UE receives data signals from a base station via a direct link and an indirect link via a relay device.

[0017] FIG8(A) schematically illustrates a downlink device cooperation scenario, in which a primary UE is served by a base station via a direct link and an indirect link via a relay device.

[0018] FIG8(B) schematically illustrates a downlink device cooperation scenario, where the primary UE is served by the base station only through an indirect link via a relay device.

[0019] FIG8(C) schematically illustrates an uplink device cooperation scenario, in which the master UE transmits data signals to the base station using a direct link and an indirect link via a relay device.

[0020] FIG8(D) schematically illustrates an uplink device cooperation scenario, in which the master UE transmits data signals to the base station only via an indirect link via a relay device.

[0021] Fig. 9A device cooperation scenario is schematically shown, in which a relay device uses an unlicensed frequency band to forward data to a primary UE.

[0022] Fig.10 An uplink device cooperation scenario is schematically illustrated, in which a primary UE transmits a data signal to a base station in an unlicensed frequency band using a direct link and an indirect link via a relay device.

[0023] FIG11(A) schematically illustrates the overall listening before speaking (LBT) process.

[0024] FIG. 11(B) is a diagram providing a detailed view of the defer duration in the listen-before-talk (LBT) process.

[0025] FIG12(A) schematically illustrates the process of exchanging frequency domain location information of the LBT bandwidth through the master UE relay control signaling when the relay device lacks a SIM card.

[0026] FIG12(B) schematically illustrates the frequency domain location information exchange process of the LBT bandwidth that allows direct communication with the base station and the master UE when the relay device has a SIM card.

[0027] Fig.13 An example diagram schematically illustrates frequency domain location information about the LBT bandwidth.

[0028] Fig.14 A downlink transmission process is schematically illustrated, in which a relay device performs LBT to determine a COT for data forwarding.

[0029] Fig.15 A downlink transmission process is schematically shown, in which the master UE performs LBT, obtains the COT, and shares the COT with the relay device for data forwarding.

[0030] Fig.16 An uplink transmission process is schematically illustrated, in which the master UE performs LBT to obtain a COT for transmitting data to the relay device.

[0031] Fig.17 Schematically illustrates the concept of COT sharing in unlicensed spectrum.

[0032] Fig.18 A device-cooperative COT sharing process is schematically illustrated, where the relay device obtains the COT for downlink transmission and shares the remaining time with the master UE for uplink transmission.

[0033] Fig.19A device-cooperative COT sharing process is schematically illustrated, where a relay device obtains the COT for downlink transmission and shares the remaining time with another master UE for uplink transmission.

[0034] Fig. 20 A device-cooperative COT sharing process is schematically illustrated, where the master UE obtains the COT for uplink transmission and shares the remaining time with the base station for downlink transmission.

[0035] Fig.21 A device-cooperative COT sharing process is schematically illustrated, in which a master UE obtains a COT for uplink transmission and shares the remaining time with a base station for downlink transmission to another master UE via another relay device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] The specific embodiments described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings are intended to be descriptions of various configurations, and are not intended to represent the only configurations that can practice the concepts described in the present invention. This specific embodiment part includes specific details, and the purpose is to provide a thorough understanding of various concepts. However, for those skilled in the art, these concepts can also be practiced without these specific details. In some cases, in order to avoid blurring these concepts, known structures and components are shown in block diagram form.

[0037] Several aspects of telecommunication systems will now be presented with reference to various apparatus and methods. The apparatus and methods will be described in the detailed description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively referred to as "elements"). The elements may be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether these elements are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0038] For example, an element, any part of an element, or any combination of elements may be implemented as a "processing system", where the processing system may include one or more processors. Examples of processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, graphics processing units (GPUs), central processing units (CPUs), application processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processors, systems on a chip (SoCs), baseband processors, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gated logic, discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware configured to perform the various functions described in the present invention. One or more processors in a processing system may execute software. Software shall be construed broadly to mean instructions, instruction sets, codes, code segments, program code, programs, subroutines, software components, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executables, threads of execution, processes, and functions, etc., whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise.

[0039] Therefore, in one or more exemplary aspects, the above functions can be implemented in hardware, software or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions can be stored on a computer-readable medium, or encoded as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media. The storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. The above-mentioned computer-readable medium may include a random access memory (Random-Access Memory, RAM), a read-only memory (Read-Only Memory, ROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (Electrically Erasable Programmable ROM, EEPROM), an optical disk storage, a magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storage devices, a combination of computer-readable media of the above types, or any other medium that can be used to store computer executable code in the form of instructions or data structures that can be accessed by a computer, which is used only as an example and is not intended to limit the present invention.

[0040] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary wireless communication system and access network 100. The wireless communication system (also referred to as a Wireless Wide Area Network (WWAN)) includes a base station (BS) 102, a user equipment (UE) 104, an evolved packet core (EPC) 160, and another core network 190 (such as a 5G core network (5G Core, 5GC)). BS 102 may include a macro cell (a high-power cellular base station) and / or a small cell (a low-power cellular base station). A macro cell includes a BS, and a small cell includes a femtocell, a picocell, and a microcell.

[0041] BS 102 configured for 4G LTE (collectively referred to as Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN)) can be connected to the EPC 160 interface via a backhaul link 132 (such as an SI interface). BS 102 configured for 5G NR (collectively referred to as Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN)) can be connected to the core network 190 interface via a backhaul link 184. Among other functions, BS 102 may perform one or more of the following functions: transfer of user data, radio channel cipher and decryption, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection setup and release, load balancing, distribution of non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, Radio Access Network (RAN) sharing, Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS), subscriber and equipment tracking, RAN Information Management (RIM), paging, positioning, and delivery of warning messages. BS 102 may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via EPC 160 or core network 190) via a backhaul link 134 (e.g., an X2 interface). The backhaul link 134 may be wired or wireless.

[0042] BS 102 can communicate wirelessly with UE 104. Each BS 102 can provide communication coverage for a respective geographic coverage area 110. There may be overlapping geographic coverage areas 110, for example, a small cell 102' can have a coverage area 110' that overlaps with the coverage area 110 of one or more macro base stations 102. A network that includes both small cells and macro cells can be called a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network can also include a home evolved Node B (eNB) (Home eNB, HeNB), where the HeNB can provide services to a restricted group called a closed subscriber group (CSG). The communication link 120 between BS 102 and UE 104 can include an uplink (UL) (also called a reverse link) transmission from UE 104 to BS 102 and / or a downlink (DL) (also called a forward link) transmission from BS 102 to UE 104. The communication link 120 may use MIMO antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming and / or transmit diversity. The communication link may pass through one or more carriers. BS102 / UE 104 may use a spectrum with a bandwidth of up to 7 MHz (e.g., 5, 10, 15, 20, 100, 400 MHz, etc.) per carrier, where the carriers are allocated in carrier aggregation (CA) for transmission in each direction, where the carrier aggregation is up to Yx MHz (x component carriers) in total. The above carriers may be adjacent to each other or may not be adjacent to each other. The allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to DL and UL (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated to DL than to UL). A component carrier may include a primary component carrier and one or more secondary component carriers. The primary component carrier may be referred to as a primary cell (PCell) and the secondary component carrier may be referred to as a secondary cell (SCell).

[0043] Some UEs 104 may communicate with each other using a device-to-device (D2D) communication link 158. The D2D communication link 158 may use DL / UL WWAN spectrum. The D2D communication link 158 may use one or more sidelink channels, such as a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), a physical sidelink discovery channel (PSDCH), a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH). D2D communication may be through various wireless D2D communication systems, such as FlashLinQ, WiMedia, Bluetooth, ZigBee, Wi-Fi based on IEEE 802.11 standards, LTE, or NR.

[0044] The wireless communication system may also include a Wi-Fi access point (AP) 150, wherein the Wi-Fi AP 150 communicates with a Wi-Fi station (STA) 152 via a communication link 154 in a 5 GHz unlicensed frequency spectrum. When communicating in the unlicensed spectrum, the STA 152 / AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) before communicating to determine whether the channel is available.

[0045] The small cell 102' may operate in a licensed and / or unlicensed spectrum. When operating in an unlicensed spectrum, the small cell 102' may employ NR and use the same 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum as the 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum used by the Wi-Fi AP 150. The small cell 102' employing NR in the unlicensed spectrum may increase the coverage of the access network and / or improve the capacity of the access network.

[0046] The base station 102 (whether a small cell 102' or a large cell (e.g., a macro base station)) may include an eNB, a gNodeB (gNB), or other types of base stations. Some base stations, such as gNB 180, may operate in the traditional sub-6 GHz spectrum, millimeter wave (mmW) frequencies, and / or near-mmW frequencies to communicate with the UE 104. When the gNB 180 operates at mmW or near-mmW frequencies, the gNB 180 may be referred to as a mmW base station. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a portion of the RF in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and a wavelength between 1 mm and 10 mm. Radio waves in the frequency band may be referred to as millimeter waves. Near mmW can extend down to frequencies of 3 GHz with a wavelength of 100 mm. The super high frequency (SHF) band extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz and is also called centimeter waves. Communications using mmW / near mmW radio frequency bands (eg, 3 GHz-300 GHz) have extremely high path loss and short range. The mmW base station 180 may utilize beamforming 182 with the UE 104 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short range.

[0047] The base station 180 may transmit beamformed signals in one or more transmit directions 108a to the UE 104. The UE 104 may receive beamformed signals from the base station 180 in one or more receive directions 108b. The UE 104 may also transmit beamformed signals to the base station 180 in one or more transmit directions. The base station 180 may receive beamformed signals from the UE 104 in one or more receive directions. The base station 180 / UE 104 may perform beam training to determine the best receive and transmit directions for each base station 180 / UE 104. The transmit and receive directions for the base station 180 may be the same or different. The transmit and receive directions for the UE 104 may be the same or different.

[0048] The EPC 160 may include a Mobility Management Entity (MME) 162, other MMEs 164, a serving gateway 166, an MBMS gateway 168, a Broadcast Multicast Service Center (BM-SC) 170, and a Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway 172. The MME 162 may communicate with a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) 174. The MME 162 is a control node that handles signaling between the UE 104 and the EPC 160. Typically, the MME 162 provides bearer and connection management. All user Internet Protocol (IP) packets are transferred through the serving gateway 166, which itself is connected to the PDN Gateway 172. The PDN Gateway 172 provides UE IP address allocation and other functions. The PDN Gateway 172 and the BM-SC 170 are connected to the IP Service 176. The IP services 176 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), a Packet-Switched Streaming Service (PSS), and / or other IP services. The BM-SC 170 may provide functionality for provisioning and delivery of MBMS user services. The BM-SC 170 may serve as an entry point for content provider MBMS delivery, may be used to authorize and initiate MBMS bearer services within a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), and may be used to schedule MBMS delivery. The MBMS Gateway 168 may be used to allocate MBMS traffic to the BS 102, and may be responsible for session management (start / end) and collection of charging information related to the evolved MBMS (eMBMS), where the BS 102 belongs to a Multicast Broadcast Single Frequency Network (MBSFN) area that broadcasts specific services.

[0049] The core network 190 may include an access and mobility management function (AMF) 192, other AMFs 193, a location management function (LMF) 198, a session management function (SMF) 194, and a user plane function (UPF) 195. The AMF 192 may communicate with the Unified Data Management (UDM) 196. The AMF 192 is a control node that handles signaling between the UE 104 and the core network 190. Typically, the SMF 194 provides QoS flow and session management. All user Internet protocol (IP) packets are transmitted through the UPF 195. The UPF 195 provides UE IP address allocation and other functions. The UPF 195 is connected to the IP service 197. The IP service 197 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), a PS streaming service, and / or other IP services.

[0050] The BS may also be referred to as a gNB, Node B (NB), eNB, access point, basic transceiver station, radio base station, radio transceiver, transceiver function, Basic Service Set (BSS), Extended Service Set (ESS), transmit reception point (TRP), or some other suitable term. The BS 102 provides an access point to the EPC 160 or core network 190 for the UE 104. Examples of UE 104 include a cellular phone, a smart phone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a satellite radio, a global positioning system, a multimedia device, a video device, a digital audio player (such as an MP3 player), a camera, a game console, a tablet, a smart device, a wearable device, a vehicle, an electric meter, a gas pump, a large or small kitchen appliance, a medical device, an implant, a sensor / actuator, a display, or any other device with similar functions. Some of the UEs 104 may be referred to as IoT devices (e.g., parking meters, gas pumps, ovens, vehicles, heart monitors, etc.) UE 104 may also be referred to as a station, a mobile station, a user station, a mobile unit, a user unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communication device, a remote device, a mobile user station, an access terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a handset, a user agent, a mobile client, a client, or some other suitable terminology.

[0051] Although the present invention may be described with reference to 5G NR, the present invention may be applicable to other similar fields, such as LTE, LTE-A, CDMA, GSM or other wireless / radio access technologies.

[0052] Figure 22 is a block diagram of BS 210 and UE 250 communicating in an access network. In the DL, IP packets from EPC 160 may be provided to controller / processor 275. Controller / processor 275 implements layer 3 and layer 2 functions. Layer 3 includes the Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer, and layer 2 includes the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, the Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, and the Medium Access Control (MAC) layer. The controller / processor 275 provides: RRC layer functions, wherein the RRC layer functions are associated with broadcasting of system information (such as Master Information Block (MIB), System Information Block (SIB)), RRC connection control (such as RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-Radio Access Technology (RAT) mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functions, wherein the PDCP layer functions are associated with header compression / decompression, security (ciphering, deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functions, wherein the RLC layer functions are associated with transfer of higher layer Packet Data Unit (PDU), error correction through Automatic Repeat Request (ARQ), RLC Service Data Unit (SDU) The MAC layer functions are associated with the concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC data PDU (SDU), the re-segmentation of RLC data PDU and the reordering of RLC data PDU; and MAC layer functions, wherein the MAC layer functions are associated with the mapping between logical channels and transport channels, the multiplexing of MAC SDU onto transport blocks (TB), the demultiplexing of MAC SDU from TB, scheduling information reporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ), priority processing and logical channel prioritization.

[0053] The transmit (TX) processor 216 and the receive (RX) processor 270 implement layer 1 functions associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1 (including the physical (PHY) layer) may include error detection on the transmission channel, forward error correction (FEC) encoding / decoding of the transmission channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. The TX processor 216 processes the mapping to the signal constellation based on various modulation schemes (such as binary phase-shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK), M-phase-shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols can then be divided into parallel streams, each of which can then be mapped to an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) subcarrier, multiplexed with a Reference Signal (RS) (such as a pilot) in the time domain and / or frequency domain, and then combined using an Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM stream is spatially precoded to produce multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from the channel estimator 274 can be used to determine the coding and modulation schemes, as well as for spatial processing. Channel estimates can be derived from RS and / or channel state feedback transmitted by the UE 250. Each spatial stream can then be provided to a different antenna 220 via a separate transmitter 218TX. Each transmitter 218TX can modulate an RF carrier using each spatial stream for transmission.

[0054] At the UE 250, each receiver 254RX can receive a signal through each antenna 252. Each receiver 254RX recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to the RX processor 256. The TX processor 268 and the RX processor 256 implement layer 1 functions associated with various signal processing functions. The RX processor 256 can perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial stream to the UE 250. If there are multiple spatial streams to the UE 250, the multiple spatial streams can be combined into a single OFDM symbol stream by the RX processor 256. The RX processor 256 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal includes separate OFDM symbol streams for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols and RS on each subcarrier are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation point transmitted by the BS 210. These soft decisions can be based on the channel estimates calculated by the channel estimator 258. These soft decisions may then be decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally transmitted on the physical channel by BS 210. The data and control signals may then be provided to controller / processor 259, which implements layer 3 and layer 2 functions.

[0055] The controller / processor 259 may be associated with a memory 260 that stores program codes and data. The memory 260 may be referred to as a computer readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 259 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the EPC 160. The controller / processor 259 is also responsible for error detection using an Acknowledgement (ACK) and / or Negative Acknowledgment (NACK) protocol to support HARQ operations.

[0056] Similar to the functions described in conjunction with DL transmission of BS210, the controller / processor 259 provides: RRC layer functions, wherein the RRC layer functions are associated with acquisition of system information (such as MIB, SIB), RRC connection and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functions, wherein the PDCP layer functions are associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functions, wherein the RLC layer functions are associated with transfer of higher layer PDUs, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs, re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functions, wherein the MAC layer functions are associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto TBs, demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through HARQ, priority processing and logical channel prioritization.

[0057] The channel estimate derived from the RS or feedback transmitted by the channel estimator 258 from the BS 210 can be used by the TX processor 268 to select the appropriate codec and modulation scheme, and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial stream generated by the TX processor 268 can be provided to different antennas 252 via separate transmitters 254TX. Each transmitter 254TX can modulate the RF carrier using each spatial stream for transmission. Similar to the description of the receiver function at the UE 250, UL transmission is processed in a similar manner at the BS 210. Each receiver 218RX receives a signal through each antenna 220. Each receiver 218RX recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to the RX processor 270.

[0058] The controller / processor 275 may be associated with a memory 276 that stores program codes and data. The memory 276 may be referred to as a computer readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 275 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packets from the UE 250. The IP packets from the controller / processor 275 may be provided to the EPC 160. The controller / processor 275 is also responsible for error detection using ACK and / or NACK protocols to support HARQ operations.

[0059] NR may refer to a radio configured to operate according to a new air interface (e.g., in addition to an OFDMA-based air interface) or a fixed transport layer (e.g., in addition to IP). NR may utilize OFDM with a cyclic prefix (CP) on both UL and DL, and may include support for half-duplex operation using time division duplexing (TDD). NR may include mission critical features such as Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) services targeting wide bandwidths (e.g., above 80 MHz), mmW targeting high carrier frequencies (e.g., 60 GHz), Massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC) targeting non-backward compatible Machine Type Communication (MTC) technologies, and / or Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) services targeting.

[0060] A single component carrier bandwidth of 100 MHz can be supported. In one example, an NR resource block (RB) can span 12 subcarriers, where the 12 subcarriers have a subcarrier bandwidth of 60 KHz over a duration of 0.25 ms or a bandwidth of 30 KHz over a duration of 0.5 ms (similarly, 50 MHz bandwidth is used for a 15 kHz subcarrier spacing (SCS) over a duration of 1 ms). Each radio frame may include 10 subframes (or 10, 20, 40, or 80 NR time slots) of length 10 ms. Each time slot may indicate the link direction (i.e., DL or UL) used for data transmission and the link direction for each time slot may be dynamically switched. Each time slot may contain DL / UL data and DL / UL control data. Please refer to the following Figure 5 and Figure 6 The UL and DL time slots used for NR are described in more detail.

[0061] The NR RAN may include a central unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU). The NR BS (such as gNB, 5G NB, NB, Transmission Reception Point (TRP), AP) may correspond to one or more BSs. The NR cell may be configured as an access cell (ACell) or a data-only cell (DCell). For example, the RAN (such as a CU or DU) may configure the above cells. The DCell may be a cell for carrier aggregation or dual connectivity and may not be used for initial access, cell selection / reselection, or switching. In some cases, the DCell may not transmit a synchronization signal (SS), and in some cases, the DCell may transmit an SS. The NR BS may transmit a DL signal to the UE to indicate the cell type. Based on the cell type indication, the UE may communicate with the NR BS. For example, the UE may determine the NR BS based on the indicated cell type to consider cell selection, access, switching, and / or measurement.

[0062] Figure 3 An exemplary logical architecture of a distributed RAN 300 according to aspects of the present invention is illustrated. A 5G access node (AN) 306 may include an access node controller (ANC) 302. The ANC may be the CU of a distributed RAN. The backhaul interface to the Next Generation Core Network (NG-CN) 304 may terminate at the ANC. The backhaul interface to an adjacent next generation access node (NG-AN) 310 may terminate at the ANC. The ANC may include one or more TRPs 308 (TRPs may also be referred to as BSs, NR BSs, NBs, 5G NBs, APs, or some other terms). As described above, TRPs may be used interchangeably with "cells."

[0063] The TRP 308 may be a DU. The TRP may be connected to one ANC (ANC 302) or more than one ANC (not illustrated). For example, for RAN sharing, Radio as a Service (RaaS), and service-specific ANC deployments, the TRP may be connected to more than one ANC. The TRP may include one or more antenna ports. The TRP may be configured to independently (e.g., dynamically selected) or jointly (e.g., jointly transmitted) supply services to the UE.

[0064] The logical architecture of the distributed RAN 300 can be used to illustrate the fronthaul definition. The architecture can be defined to support fronthaul solutions across different deployment types. For example, the architecture can be based on transmission network performance (such as bandwidth, latency and / or jitter). The architecture can share features and / or components with LTE. According to aspects of the present invention, the NG-AN310 can support dual connectivity with NR. The NG-AN can share a common fronthaul for LTE and NR.

[0065] The architecture may enable collaboration between TRPs 308. For example, collaboration may be provisioned within and / or across TRPs via ANC 302. According to aspects of the invention, an inter-TRP interface may not be required / existent.

[0066] According to aspects of the present invention, dynamic configuration of separate logical functions may exist within the architecture of the distributed RAN 300. PDCP, RLC, MAC protocols may be adaptively located at the ANC or TRP.

[0067] Figure 4 An exemplary physical architecture of a distributed RAN 400 according to aspects of the present invention is illustrated. A centralized core network unit (C-CU) 402 can host core network functions. The C-CU can be centrally deployed. To handle peak capacity, C-CU functions can be offloaded (e.g., to Advanced Wireless Service (AWS)). A centralized RAN unit (C-RU) 404 can host one or more ANC functions. Optionally, the C-RU can host core network functions locally. The C-RU can have a distributed deployment. The C-RU can be closer to the edge of the network. The DU 406 can host one or more TRPs. The DU can be located at the edge of the network with RF functions.

[0068] Figure 55 is a schematic diagram of an exemplary DL-centric time slot. The DL-centric time slot may include a control portion 502. The control portion 502 may be present in an initial or starting portion of the DL-centric time slot. The control portion 502 may include various scheduling information and / or control information corresponding to various portions of the DL-centric time slot. In some configurations, such as Figure 5 As shown, the control portion 502 can be a physical downlink control channel (Physical DL Control Channel, PDCCH). The DL-centric time slot can also include a DL data portion 504. The DL data portion 504 can sometimes be referred to as the payload of the DL-centric time slot. The DL data portion 504 can include communication resources for communicating DL data from a scheduling entity (such as a UE or a BS) to a subordinate entity (such as a UE). In some configurations, the DL data portion 504 can be a physical downlink shared channel (Physical DL Shared Channel, PDSCH).

[0069] The DL-centric time slot may also include a common UL portion 506. The common UL portion 506 may sometimes be referred to as a UL burst, a common UL burst, and / or various other suitable terms. The common UL portion 506 may include feedback information corresponding to various other portions of the DL-centric time slot. For example, the common UL portion 506 may include feedback information corresponding to the control portion 502. Non-limiting examples of feedback information may include ACK signals, NACK signals, HARQ indicators, and / or various other suitable types of information. The common UL portion 506 may include additional or further information, such as information about a random access channel (RACH) process, a scheduling request, and various other suitable types of information.

[0070] like Figure 5As shown, the end of the DL data portion 504 can be separated in time from the start of the common UL portion 506. This time separation may sometimes be referred to as a gap, a guard period, a guard interval, and / or various other suitable terms. This separation provides time for a switch-over from DL communications (e.g., a reception operation performed by a subordinate entity (e.g., a UE)) to UL communications (e.g., a transmission performed by a subordinate entity (e.g., a UE)). It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the foregoing is merely an example of a DL-centric time slot, and that alternative structures having similar features may exist without necessarily departing from the aspects described herein.

[0071] Figure 6 600 is a diagram of an exemplary UL-centric timeslot. The UL-centric timeslot may include a control portion 602. The control portion 602 may be present in an initial or starting portion of the UL-centric timeslot. Figure 6 The control part 602 in the above reference Figure 5 The control portion 502 described is similar. The UL-centric time slot may also include a UL data portion 604. The UL data portion 604 may sometimes be referred to as the payload of the UL-centric time slot. The UL portion may refer to communication resources used to communicate UL data from a subordinate entity (such as a UE) to a scheduling entity (such as a UE or a BS). In some configurations, the control portion 602 may be a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

[0072] like Figure 6 As shown, the end of the control portion 602 can be separated in time from the beginning of the UL data portion 604. This time separation may sometimes be referred to as an interval, a guard period, a guard gap, and / or various other suitable terms. The separation provides time for switching from DL communications (such as reception operations performed by the scheduling entity) to UL communications (such as transmissions performed by the scheduling entity). The UL-centric timeslot may also contain a common UL portion 606. Figure 6 The common UL portion 606 in the embodiment may be similar to the above reference Figure 5The common UL portion 506 described herein. The common UL portion 606 may additionally or additionally include information about a channel quality indicator (CQI), a sounding reference signal (SRS), and various other suitable types of information. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the foregoing is merely an example of a UL-centric time slot, and that alternative structures having similar features may exist without necessarily departing from the aspects described herein.

[0073] In some cases, two or more subordinate entities (such as UEs) can use sidelink signals to communicate with each other. The actual applications of such sidelink communications may include public safety, proximity services, UE-to-network relays, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, Internet of Everything (IoE) communications, IoT communications, mission-critical meshes, and / or various other suitable applications. Generally, a sidelink signal may refer to a signal that is communicated from one subordinate entity (such as UE1) to another subordinate entity (such as UE2) without relaying the communication through a scheduling entity (such as a UE or BS), even if the scheduling entity may be used for scheduling and / or control purposes. In some examples, a sidelink signal may use a licensed spectrum to communicate (unlike wireless local area networks that typically use unlicensed spectrum).

[0074] Figure 7 Schematic diagram 700 illustrates a device collaboration scenario for enhanced downlink (DL) transmission. In this scenario, a primary user equipment (UE) 704 is served by a base station 702 in a first time-frequency resource (e.g., component carrier 1 (CC1)). The primary UE 704 receives a data signal transmitted by the base station 702 on CC1 via a direct link 710. A relay wireless device 706 (e.g., an access point or another UE) is able to receive a signal in the first time-frequency resource (CC1) via a link 730 and forward the received signal to the primary UE 704 in a second time-frequency resource (e.g., CC2) via a link 720.

[0075] The base station 702 is configured to transmit a data signal to the primary UE 704 using the first time-frequency resource. The direct communication link between the base station 702 and the primary UE 704 is referred to as a direct link 710.

[0076] In addition, the base station 702 also transmits data signals to the relay wireless device 706 via link 730 using the same first time-frequency resource, CC1. The relay wireless device 706 receives these signals and forwards them to the primary UE 704 using the second time-frequency resource via link 720. This indirect communication path from the base station 702 to the primary UE 704 via the relay wireless device 706 is referred to as an indirect link.

[0077] In this scenario, master UE 704 may receive data signals from direct link 710 and indirect links (including link 730 and link 720). This arrangement allows master UE 704 to utilize multiple component carriers (CC1 and CC2), which is expected to increase the rank and throughput of the communication system.

[0078] As shown, a master UE 704 served by a base station 702 in a first time-frequency resource (e.g., CC1) receives a data signal transmitted by the base station 702. A relay wireless device 706 is capable of receiving the signal in the first time-frequency resource and forwarding the received signal in a second time-frequency resource (CC2). The frequency conversion performed by the relay wireless device 706 allows the master UE 704 to receive signals in the first and second time-frequency resources, or to receive signals only in the second time-frequency resource.

[0079] The device cooperation of the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 is expected to increase the rank of the master UE 704 and improve the throughput. The capacity of the master UE 704 can be expressed as Nlog2(1+SINR), where N is the number of receive antenna ports. By using the second component carrier (CC2), the capacity is not limited to the number of antenna ports in CC1.

[0080] The relay wireless device 706 can amplify and forward the received signal without decoding it. This function can be implemented in a general UE or a relay or any wireless device with conversion and forwarding capabilities. The first time-frequency resource and the second time-frequency resource can be in two different frequency bands (e.g., FR1 and FR2) or in the same frequency band but not overlapping.

[0081] FIG8(A) illustrates a downlink (DL) device cooperation scenario, where a primary UE 704 is served by a base station 702. The base station 702 transmits data signals to the primary UE 704 via a direct link 710 using a first time-frequency resource, such as CC1. At the same time, the base station 702 also transmits data signals to the relay wireless device 706 via a link 730 using the same first time-frequency resource (CC1). The relay wireless device 706 receives these signals and forwards them to the primary UE 704 via a link 720 using a second time-frequency resource, such as CC2. This arrangement allows the primary UE 704 to receive data signals from both the direct link 710 and the indirect links (link 730 and link 720), which is expected to increase the rank and throughput of the communication system.

[0082] 8(B) illustrates a scenario where the master UE 704 receives data only via an indirect link. In this case, the base station 702 transmits data signals to the relay wireless device 706 via a link 730 using a first time-frequency resource (CC1). The relay wireless device 706 then forwards these signals to the master UE 704 via a link 720 using a second time-frequency resource (CC2). The master UE 704 does not receive data directly from the base station 702, but relies on the relay wireless device 706 for data reception.

[0083] FIG8(C) illustrates an uplink (UL) device cooperation scenario, where a master UE 704 transmits data signals to a base station 702 using a first time-frequency resource (CC1) and a second time-frequency resource (CC2). The master UE 704 transmits data signals to a relay wireless device 706 using the second time-frequency resource (CC2) via a link 720. The relay wireless device 706 receives these signals and forwards them to the base station 702 using the first time-frequency resource (CC1) via a link 730. The master UE 704 also transmits data signals directly to the base station 702 on CC1 via a direct link 710. The signals of the direct link and the indirect link are received by the base station 702. This arrangement allows the master UE 704 to utilize multiple component carriers for data transmission, which is expected to increase the rank and throughput of the communication system.

[0084] 8(D) illustrates a scenario where the master UE 704 transmits signals to the relay wireless device 706 using only the second time-frequency resource (CC2) via link 720. The relay wireless device 706 converts these signals to the first time-frequency resource (CC1) and transmits the converted signals to the base station 702 via link 730. In this scenario, the master UE 704 does not transmit data directly to the base station 702 using the first time-frequency resource, but relies on the relay wireless device 706 for data transmission.

[0085] In the downlink (DL) case, the relay wireless device 706 needs to perform listen before talk (LBT) before forwarding data to the master UE 704 using the unlicensed spectrum (e.g., CC2). This is to avoid interference with other devices using the same unlicensed spectrum. If the LBT of the relay wireless device 706 passes, the master UE 704 can receive data using CC1 and CC2 (path combination mode). If LBT fails, the master UE 704 only uses CC1 to receive data (direct link mode only).

[0086] In the uplink (UL) case, the master UE 704 needs to perform LBT before using the unlicensed spectrum (CC2) to transmit data to the relay wireless device 706. If the LBT of the master UE 704 passes, the master UE 704 can use CC1 and CC2 (path combination mode) to transmit data. If LBT fails, the master UE 704 only uses CC1 to transmit data (direct link mode only).

[0087] The direct link refers to the communication link between the base station 702 and the master UE 704 using CC1. The indirect link refers to the communication path from the base station 702 to the relay wireless device 706 using CC1 and from the relay wireless device 706 to the master UE 704 using CC2. The local link refers to the link between the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 using CC2.

[0088] Fig. 9 8(A) , the primary UE 704 is served by the base station 702 on a first time-frequency resource, such as CC1. The primary UE 704 receives data signals transmitted by the base station 702 on CC1 via a direct link 710. The base station 702 also transmits data signals to the relay wireless device 706 via a link 730 using the same first time-frequency resource (CC1). The relay wireless device 706 receives these signals and forwards them to the primary UE 704 via a link 720 using a second time-frequency resource.

[0089] When the second time-frequency resource (CC2) used for link 720 is a licensed frequency band, it occupies the resources of base station 702. This may cause undesirable interference to other users served on CC2 by base station 702. Allowing relay wireless device 706 to use the licensed resources of the base station without coordination may cause such interference, which the operator may want to avoid.

[0090] On the other hand, when CC2 is an unlicensed band, the device cooperation architecture becomes a network transparent method to improve user throughput. Since the relay wireless device 706 uses unlicensed resources for the link 720, it does not interfere with the licensed resources of the base station 702. This method may be more acceptable to operators because it does not affect their network planning and resource allocation.

[0091] In this example, CC2 used by the relay wireless device 706 on link 720 is an unlicensed band. Therefore, the relay wireless device 706 needs to perform listen before talk (LBT) before transmission to avoid interference with other devices that may be using the same unlicensed spectrum. LBT is a mechanism used in unlicensed bands to detect whether the channel is idle before transmission to avoid conflicts with other devices using the same resources. When the relay wireless device 706 receives an indication, such as downlink control information (DCI), indicating that the base station 702 is about to transmit data to the primary UE 704, the relay wireless device 706 may perform LBT.

[0092] If the LBT of the relay wireless device 706 is successful, indicating that the channel is idle, the relay wireless device 706 can forward the data on CC2 to the master UE 704. In this case, the master UE 704 uses CC1 and CC2 to receive data, and this mode is called path combination mode. If the LBT of the relay wireless device 706 fails, indicating that the channel is occupied, the master UE 704 can only receive data on CC1 through the direct link 710, and this mode is called direct link mode.

[0093] Fig.10 1000 illustrates an uplink (UL) device cooperation scenario, in which a master UE 704 transmits a data signal to a base station 702 using a first time-frequency resource (eg, CC1) and a second time-frequency resource (eg, CC2).

[0094] Similar to the scenario described in FIG8(C), the master UE 704 transmits data signals to the relay wireless device 706 via link 720 using the second time-frequency resource (CC2). The relay wireless device 706 receives these signals and forwards them to the base station 702 via link 730 using the first time-frequency resource (CC1). The master UE 704 also transmits data signals directly to the base station 702 on CC1 via a direct link 710. The signals of the direct link and the indirect link are received by the base station 702. This arrangement allows the master UE 704 to utilize multiple component carriers for data transmission, which is expected to improve the rank and throughput of the communication system.

[0095] In the uplink process of device cooperation on the unlicensed band, the master UE 704 performs LBT when receiving an indication to start UL transmission. This indication is usually an uplink grant from the base station 702, notifying the master UE 704 that it can transmit uplink data. After receiving the uplink grant, the master UE 704 starts the LBT process.

[0096] The master UE 704 transmits data using one of two modes, depending on the LBT result. When the LBT of the master UE 704 passes, indicating that the channel is idle, the master UE 704 uses CC1 and CC2 for data transmission in path combining mode. It transmits data directly to the base station 702 using CC1 (direct link 710) and transmits data to the relay wireless device 706 using CC2 (link 720). The relay wireless device 706 then forwards the data to the base station 702 using CC1 (link 730). When the LBT of the master UE 704 fails, indicating that the channel is occupied, the master UE 704 only uses CC1 for data transmission in direct link mode. It transmits data directly to the base station 702 using direct link 710.

[0097] Relay wireless device 706 may use the same uplink resources on link 730 as primary UE 704 uses on link 710. This allows base station 702 to receive combined signals from direct link 710 and indirect links (link 720 and link 730), hopefully improving received signal quality and increasing achievable throughput.

[0098] The base station 702 does not need to send a separate grant for uplink transmission to the relay wireless device 706. Data forwarding by the relay wireless device 706 may be controlled by the master UE 704, which determines whether the relay wireless device 706 needs to forward its data based on the LBT results and the desired transmission mode (path combining or direct link only).

[0099] Figure 11(A) and 11(B) 1100 and 1150 respectively illustrate a channel sensing structure for listen-before-talk (LBT) in the unlicensed specification. This structure defines that a device can access a channel only when the channel is idle to avoid conflicts with other devices using the same unlicensed spectrum.

[0100] LBT is a mechanism used in unlicensed bands to detect whether the channel is idle before transmission, thereby avoiding conflicts with other devices using the same resources. LBT needs to be performed before transmission in unlicensed bands. If the energy sensed within the LBT bandwidth exceeds a certain threshold, the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 will consider the resources within the LBT bandwidth to be busy. The LBT of the transmission or forwarding of the signal will be postponed. The transmission or forwarding of the signal will only begin when the sensed energy does not exceed a certain threshold for a specified duration.

[0101] FIG. 11(A) describes the entire LBT process, including deferral duration 1110 , random backoff 1120 , and COT 1130 .

[0102] Delay duration Td 1112 represents the time period during which the device senses channel activity. The delay duration is calculated as T d =16+m p ×9 microseconds, where m p is the number of sensing slots within the delay duration. m p The value of depends on the channel access priority class (CAPC) of the data to be transmitted.

[0103] After the delay duration, the device enters a random backoff period 1120. This period consists of a random number of sensing time slots, each of which has a duration of T sl = 9 microseconds. The number of sensing slots in the random backoff is randomly generated within the range defined by the contention window (CW). The purpose of the random backoff is to further reduce the probability of collision by introducing a random delay before channel access.

[0104] The device may begin transmitting data if the channel is sensed to be idle during the delay duration 1110 and the random backoff 1120. The COT 1130 represents the transmission duration allowed on the channel.

[0105] FIG. 11(B) provides the delay duration T d Detailed explanation of 1112. The delay duration is determined by a fixed time period T f 1152 and duration is T sl m in 1154 p perception time slots, where m p Depends on the Channel Access Priority Class (CAPC).

[0106] Table 1 shows the CAPC, number of sensing time slots (m p ), minimum and maximum contention window size (CW min,p and CW max,p )、Maximum COT(T m The mapping between COT,p) and the contention window size allowed for different priority classes. The higher the priority class, the shorter the delay duration and the larger the allowed contention window size, thus allowing higher priority data to access the channel faster.

[0107] Table 1 Downlink CAPC parameters

[0108]

[0109]

[0110] 8, 9 and 10, provides multiple benefits in terms of spectrum efficiency. By utilizing the unlicensed spectrum of the link between the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706, the system can offload traffic from the licensed band (CC1), thereby freeing up resources for other users served by the base station 702.

[0111] However, utilizing unlicensed spectrum requires careful coordination to avoid conflicts with other devices operating in the same band. The LBT process is designed to transmit only when the channel is idle.

[0112] The delay duration 1112 and random backoff 1120 introduce a delay before channel access, which may affect the latency of the device cooperation system, especially for time-sensitive applications. The selection of CAPC and corresponding parameters will affect the LBT duration and collision probability. Therefore, choosing the right CAPC for data services is very important to balance throughput and latency requirements.

[0113] Once the delay duration 1112 and random backoff 1120 are complete, and if the channel is perceived as idle, data transmission can begin. The time that the channel is occupied for data transmission is referred to as COT 1130 (T cot ).

[0114] In order to achieve data transmission in the scenario of device collaboration in unauthorized local links, such as Fig. 9 and Fig.10 As shown, the following necessary information is exchanged between the master UE 704, the relay wireless device 706 and / or the base station 702:

[0115] Frequency domain location information of LBT bandwidth in CC2.

[0116] For downlink (DL) transmission, how does the relay wireless device 706 obtain the COT in CC2:

[0117] oSolution 1: The relay wireless device 706 directly performs LBT to obtain COT for data forwarding.

[0118] o Solution 2: The master UE 704 performs LBT and shares the acquired COT with the relay wireless device 706.

[0119] For uplink (UL) transmission, how does the primary UE 704 obtain the COT in CC2:

[0120] o The master UE 704 performs LBT to obtain the COT for data transmission.

[0121] The information about the frequency domain location of the LBT bandwidth in CC2 allows the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 to perform LBT in the correct frequency domain location, thereby avoiding interference to other devices operating in the unlicensed band.

[0122] In the downlink scenario, Fig. 9 As shown, the relay wireless device 706 is responsible for forwarding data to the primary UE 704 using CC2. In order to obtain the COT required for data forwarding, two options need to be considered. In the first solution, the relay wireless device 706 directly performs LBT to obtain the COT. In the second solution, the primary UE 704 performs LBT and shares the obtained COT with the relay wireless device 706.

[0123] In the uplink scenario, Fig.10 As shown, the master UE 704 is responsible for sending data to the relay wireless device 706 using CC2. In order to obtain the COT for data transmission, the master UE 704 performs LBT. If the LBT is successful, the master UE 704 can send data to the relay wireless device 706 using the obtained COT.

[0124] Figure 12(A) and 12(B) Schematic diagrams 1200 and 1250, respectively, illustrate two options for exchanging information about the frequency domain location of the LBT bandwidth in CC2 of the local link between the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706. These options take into account the situation that the relay wireless device 706 may or may not have a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card, which affects its ability to communicate directly with the base station 702.

[0125] 12(A) shows the information exchange process when the relay wireless device 706 does not have a SIM card. In this case, the relay wireless device 706 cannot communicate directly with the base station 702, and needs to relay control signaling through the master UE 704.

[0126] In operation 1212, the base station 702 sends information about the frequency domain location of the LBT bandwidth for local link communication to the master UE 704. This information allows the master UE 704 to know where to perform LBT in CC2 for local link communication with the relay wireless device 706.

[0127] Subsequently, in operation 1222, the master UE 704 forwards the received information about the frequency domain location of the LBT bandwidth to the relay wireless device 706. This step enables the relay wireless device 706 to forward data to the master UE 704 in the downlink scenario (e.g., Fig. 9 ) performs LBT at the correct frequency location.

[0128] In addition, the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 have completed a pairing process before this information exchange. The pairing process includes discovery and information exchange, allowing the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 to establish a connection and understand each other's capabilities. During the pairing process, the master UE 704 may have received information about the LBT bandwidth location from the base station 702 and included it in the discovery message exchanged with the relay wireless device 706. In addition, the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 may have established a side link for communication. Therefore, the master UE 704 can send the received information about the frequency domain location of the LBT bandwidth to the relay wireless device 706 via the side link control information.

[0129] 12(B) describes the information exchange process when the relay wireless device 706 has a SIM card. In this case, the relay wireless device 706 can communicate directly with the base station 702 and the main UE 704, providing more control signaling flexibility.

[0130] In operation 1252, the base station 702 transmits information on the frequency domain location of the LBT bandwidth used for local link communication to the primary UE 704.

[0131] Simultaneously or subsequently to operation 1252, in operation 1262, the base station 702 also sends the same information directly to the relay wireless device 706. The base station 702 may implement operations 1252 and 1262 in a time division multiplexing (TDM) manner, where the information is sent at different times to the primary UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706. Alternatively, the base station 702 may send the information to both devices simultaneously.

[0132] The order of operations 1252 and 1262 may vary depending on system implementation and specific scenarios. The base station 702 provides information of the LBT bandwidth location to the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706, allowing both devices to perform LBT at the correct frequency location.

[0133] Figure 12(A) and 12(B) Both options presented in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 may provide the primary UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 with the frequency domain location of the LBT bandwidth for local link communications on CC2.

[0134] Fig.13 1300 is a diagram showing an example of information of a frequency domain location of an LBT bandwidth on CC2. In this example, a resource block (RB) set is considered as the LBT bandwidth.

[0135] The figure shows three RB sets: RB set 1310, RB set 1320, and RB set 1330. These RB sets are separated by guard bands (GB), namely guard band 1340 and guard band 1350. The RB sets represent frequency resources that can be used for data transmission, and the guard bands serve as separation between RB sets to minimize interference.

[0136] In some configurations, the base station 702 can use radio resource control (RRC) signaling to inform the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 about the frequency domain location of the guard band. By knowing the location of the guard band, the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 can determine the LBT bandwidth, which corresponds to the RB set between the guard bands.

[0137] For example, if base station 702 notifies primary UE 704 and relay wireless device 706 of the locations of guard band 1340 and guard band 1350, both devices can infer that RB set 1320 is the LBT bandwidth for performing LBT before transmitting or forwarding data on CC2.

[0138] In addition to the explicit signaling of the guard band position, the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 may be configured with a default guard band mode that can be used when the base station 702 does not provide specific guard band information. In this case, the base station 702 can use a flag or field in RRC signaling or downlink control information (DCI) to indicate whether to use the default guard band mode. This allows the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 to determine the LBT bandwidth according to the default mode.

[0139] Another example of providing LBT bandwidth information is frequency domain resource allocation carried by DCI. The base station 702 can use DCI to directly specify the frequency resources allocated to a specific user.

[0140] If the DCI allocates the resources of the entire RB set to a single UE, the UE can directly identify the LBT bandwidth. However, if the base station 702 allocates the resources of the RB set to multiple UEs, the DCI frequency domain resource allocation of a specific UE may only represent a portion of the LBT bandwidth.

[0141] For example, if an RB set width is 20 MHz, and the base station 702 allocates 10 MHz to two different UEs, the DCI frequency domain resource information of each UE will only cover half of the LBT bandwidth. In this case, the UE may need additional information to determine the complete LBT bandwidth.

[0142] Fig.141400 is a diagram illustrating a downlink (DL) transmission process in which a relay wireless device 706 performs LBT to obtain a COT for data forwarding. This process solves the problem of letting the relay wireless device 706 know when to start performing LBT to obtain a COT for DL ​​data forwarding. The base station 702 triggers LBT for the relay wireless device 706 and provides the relay wireless device 706 with the information required to perform LBT on the correct time and frequency resources.

[0143] In operation 1412, the base station 702 triggers the relay wireless device 706 to perform LBT. The LBT triggering information includes at least one of the following: (i) a time domain resource for performing LBT, indicating when the relay wireless device 706 should start the LBT process; and (ii) a frequency domain resource or location of the LBT bandwidth, which is used to specify where the relay wireless device 706 should perform LBT in the frequency domain.

[0144] After receiving the LBT trigger, the relay wireless device 706 performs LBT on CC2 in operation 1414. The relay wireless device 706 senses the energy level within a specific LBT bandwidth and compares it with a predetermined threshold. If the sensed energy level is lower than the threshold for a certain period of time, the relay wireless device 706 considers the channel to be idle and obtains COT for data forwarding.

[0145] In operation 1416, the base station 702 sends DL data on CC1 to the relay wireless device 706. The relay wireless device 706 receives the data and converts the frequency domain resources from CC1 to CC2. This frequency conversion involves shifting the carrier frequency of the received signal from the licensed band (CC1) to the unlicensed band (CC2), and allows the relay wireless device 706 to forward the data to the primary UE 704 on CC2 in operation 1418.

[0146] The relay wireless device 706 uses the COT obtained on CC2 to forward the data to the primary UE 704. By performing LBT and obtaining the COT, the relay wireless device 706 can transmit data on CC2 without interfering with other devices operating in the unlicensed spectrum.

[0147] This process enables the relay wireless device 706 to obtain the necessary COT for DL ​​data forwarding.

[0148] Fig.15 1500 is a diagram illustrating a downlink (DL) transmission process in which a master UE 704 performs LBT to obtain a COT and shares the obtained COT with a relay wireless device 706 for data forwarding. The base station 702 triggers the LBT of the master UE 704 and provides necessary control information so that the master UE 704 performs LBT and shares the obtained COT with the relay wireless device 706.

[0149] In operation 1512, the base station 702 sends an indication to trigger the master UE 704 to perform LBT and provides control information for DL ​​data transmission. The control information may include a flag or field to let the master UE 704 know that it should share the acquired COT with the relay wireless device 706 for DL ​​data forwarding. After receiving the indication, the master UE 704 performs LBT on CC2 in operation 1514. The master UE 704 senses the energy level within the specific LBT bandwidth and compares it with a predetermined threshold. If the sensed energy level is lower than the threshold for a certain period of time, the master UE 704 considers the channel idle and acquires the COT.

[0150] In operation 1516, the master UE 704 sends COT sharing information and LBT type indication to the relay wireless device 706. The COT sharing information includes at least one of the following: (i) time domain resources of the COT, (ii) frequency domain resources of the COT, (iii) the relay wireless device 706 performs LBT to use the LBT type of the shared COT, and (iv) a flag or field that triggers the relay wireless device 706 to start performing COT shared LBT. The master UE 704 can send this information to the relay wireless device 706 through various methods, such as sending through CC1 (because the relay wireless device 706 can also receive signals on CC1) or sending through a side link.

[0151] The master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 have completed a pairing process prior to this information exchange. The pairing process may involve discovery and information exchange via CC1 or a sidelink, enabling the master UE 704 and the relay wireless device 706 to establish a connection and learn about each other's capabilities.

[0152] In operation 1518, the relay wireless device 706 performs LBT according to the received COT sharing information and the indicated LBT type. This LBT step determines whether the relay wireless device 706 can access the channel without causing interference, even if the COT was originally acquired by the master UE 704. The relay wireless device 706 forwards data to the master UE 704 on CC2 using the shared COT acquired by the master UE 704.

[0153] In operation 1520, the base station 702 transmits DL data on CC1 to the relay wireless device 706. The relay wireless device 706 receives the data and switches the frequency domain resources from CC1 to CC2. This frequency switching involves shifting the carrier frequency of the received signal from the licensed band (CC1) to the unlicensed band (CC2).

[0154] In operation 1522, the relay wireless device 706 forwards the received data on CC2 to the primary UE 704 using the shared COT. By utilizing the COT obtained by the primary UE 704, the relay wireless device 706 can transmit data on CC2 without interfering with other devices operating in the unlicensed spectrum. This process enables the relay wireless device 706 to obtain the necessary COT for DL ​​data forwarding through the LBT and COT sharing of the primary UE 704.

[0155] The base station 702 indirectly learns the LBT success and the forwarding status of the relay wireless device 706 through the CSI-RS measurement reported by the primary UE 704. As discussed above, the base station 702 transmits the CSI-RS to the relay wireless device 706, and when the LBT is successful, the relay wireless device 706 forwards the CSI-RS to the primary UE 704 on CC2. The primary UE 704 measures the CSI-RS on CC2 and reports the measurement results to the base station 702. Based on the received CSI-RS measurement results, the base station 702 can infer whether the relay wireless device 706 has acquired the COT and started forwarding data on CC2.

[0156] For example, if the relay wireless device 706 is off, the master UE 704 will not be able to measure the CSI-RS on CC2 and report this information in its CSI-RS report to the base station 702. However, if the relay wireless device 706 is on and forwards the CSI-RS of the base station 702 to the master UE 704, the master UE 704 will measure the CSI-RS on CC2 and report accordingly, indicating that the relay wireless device 706 is forwarding data on CC2.

[0157] Fig.16 16 is a diagram 1600 showing an uplink (UL) transmission process in which a master UE 704 performs LBT to obtain a COT for transmitting data to a relay wireless device 706. This process solves the problem of letting the master UE 704 know when to start performing LBT to obtain a COT for performing UL data transmission on a local link (link 720).

[0158] In operation 1612, the base station 702 sends an uplink grant to the primary UE 704, scheduling the primary UE 704 to send data on CC2 via a physical uplink shared channel (Physical Uplink Shared Channel, PUSCH). The uplink grant serves as an indication for the primary UE 704 to start the LBT process.

[0159] After receiving the uplink grant, the master UE 704 performs LBT on CC2 in operation 1614. The master UE 704 senses the energy level within a specific LBT bandwidth and compares it with a predetermined threshold. If the sensed energy level is lower than the threshold for a certain period of time, the master UE 704 considers the channel idle and acquires COT for data transmission.

[0160] In operation 1616, if the LBT is successful, the master UE 704 will use the acquired COT to send UL data on CC2 to the relay wireless device 706. The master UE 704 transmits data to the relay wireless device 706 on the unlicensed band (CC2) through the local link (link 720).

[0161] The relay wireless device 706 receives data from the master UE 704 on CC2 in operation 1618 and converts the frequency domain resources from CC2 to CC1. This frequency conversion involves transferring the carrier frequency of the received signal from the unlicensed band (CC2) to the licensed band (CC1). The relay wireless device 706 then forwards the converted data to the base station 702 on CC1 via the link 730.

[0162] It should be noted that the master UE 704 transmits data on CC2 only when LBT succeeds. However, since CC1 is the licensed band, the master UE 704 will transmit data on CC1 regardless of the LBT result on CC2. This means that even if LBT on CC2 fails, indicating that the channel is occupied, the master UE 704 can still use the licensed band (CC1) to transmit data directly to the base station 702.

[0163] The master UE 704 can utilize both the licensed band (CC1) and the unlicensed band (CC2) for data transmission. By performing LBT on CC2 and obtaining COT, the master UE 704 can transmit additional data to the relay wireless device 706, which then forwards the data to the base station 702 via CC1. This allows the master UE 704 to increase its transmission rank and is expected to increase overall throughput.

[0164] For example, if the master UE 704 has two layers of data to transmit, it can directly send the two layers of data to the base station 702 via CC1. However, if LBT on CC2 is successful, the master UE 704 can transmit additional layers of data (e.g., two more layers) to the relay wireless device 706 on CC2, and then the relay wireless device 706 forwards the data to the base station 702 via CC1. Therefore, the master UE 704 can effectively transmit four layers of data, improve its transmission rank, and is expected to improve throughput compared to when only the licensed band (CC1) is used.

[0165] Fig.171700 is a diagram illustrating the concept of COT sharing in unlicensed spectrum. The COT represents the time period during which a device can occupy a channel after performing LBT and acquiring the channel.

[0166] In this example, a single COT 1710 may include a downlink (DL) transmission 1712, followed by a gap 1714, and an uplink (UL) transmission 1716. DL transmission 1712 represents an initial transmission initiated by a base station (BS). After the DL transmission is completed, there may be time remaining in the COT. Gap 1714 represents the time interval between the end of DL transmission 1712 and the start of UL transmission 1716. For example, if the COT has not ended when the initial transmission is completed, the COT can be shared between the UE and the base station.

[0167] The gap 1714 between the DL transmission 1712 and the UL transmission 1716 plays a crucial role in determining the LBT duration required by the UE before initiating the UL transmission 1716. The LBT duration depends on the length of the gap 1714:

[0168] If the gap 1714 is less than 16 μs, the UE may start UL transmission 1716 without performing LBT (ie, LBT duration = 0 μs).

[0169] If the gap 1714 is equal to 16 μs, the UE may perform LBT for 16 μs before starting UL transmission 1716 .

[0170] If the gap 1714 is equal to 25 μs, the UE may perform LBT for 25 μs before starting UL transmission 1716 .

[0171] exist Fig.17 In the illustrated scenario, if the gap 1714 is 16 μs, the UE starts performing LBT immediately after the end of the DL transmission 1712. The UE starts UL transmission 1716 only after completing the 16 μs LBT process and determining that the channel is idle.

[0172] Fig.17 The COT sharing mechanism shown in can be applied to the device cooperation scenario described above. In the context of device cooperation, the relay wireless device 706 can obtain the COT for DL ​​transmission and share the remaining COT with the master UE 704 for further UL operation. Similarly, the master UE 704 can obtain the COT for UL transmission and share the remaining COT with the base station 702 for further DL operation.

[0173] Fig.1818 is a diagram 1800 illustrating a COT sharing process for device cooperation on an unlicensed local link, wherein a relay wireless device 706 acquires a COT for downlink (DL) transmission and shares the remaining COT with a primary UE 704 for further uplink (UL) operation.

[0174] In operations 1812, 1814, 1816, and 1818, the base station 702 triggers the relay wireless device 706 to perform LBT on CC2, and the relay wireless device 706 obtains the COT for DL ​​data forwarding, similar to Fig.14 The base station 702 sends DL data to the relay wireless device 706 via CC1, and the relay wireless device 706 forwards the data to the primary UE 704 via CC2 using the obtained COT.

[0175] After the DL data forwarding is completed, if there is time remaining in the COT, the relay wireless device 706 can share the COT for further UL transmission with the primary UE 704. This allows efficient utilization of unlicensed spectrum resources and enables the primary UE 704 to transmit UL data without performing a separate LBT process.

[0176] In operation 1822, the base station 702 indicates the resources for which the relay wireless device 706 reports the COT shared information. This indication may include at least one of the following: (i) the time domain resources for which the relay wireless device 706 reports the COT shared information to the base station 702, or (ii) the frequency domain resources for which the relay wireless device 706 reports the COT shared information to the base station 702. The base station 702 may transmit this indication in operation 1812 alone or together with the LBT trigger, and may send it before or after the DL data transmission in operation 1816.

[0177] In operation 1824, the relay wireless device 706 reports the COT sharing information to the base station 702. The COT sharing information includes at least one of the following: (i) a time domain resource of the COT indicating the remaining time for UL transmission; (ii) a frequency domain resource of the COT; or (iii) a flag or field indicating whether the COT can be shared by the base station 702 for other UL transmissions.

[0178] In this example, the relay wireless device 706 has a SIM card and can communicate directly with the base station 702, as described above and shown in Figure 12(B).

[0179] In operation 1826, the base station 702 triggers the master UE 704 to perform COT shared LBT and indicates the LBT type. Different LBT types correspond to different LBT durations, such as 16 μs or 25 μs. Fig.17The base station 702 also instructs the primary UE 704 to use the shared COT for UL transmission of UL resources.

[0180] In operation 1828, the master UE 704 performs LBT according to the indicated LBT type to access the shared COT for UL transmission.

[0181] If LBT is successful, the master UE 704 transmits UL data to the relay wireless device 706 through CC2 using the shared COT in operation 1830. The relay wireless device 706 then converts the frequency domain resources of the received signal from CC2 to CC1 and forwards it to the base station 702 in operation 1832.

[0182] This COT sharing process allows the relay wireless device 706 to effectively share the remaining COT with the primary UE 704 for UL transmissions, reducing the need for additional LBT processes and improving overall resource utilization in the unlicensed spectrum.

[0183] Fig.19 19 is a diagram 1900 illustrating a COT sharing process for device cooperation on an unlicensed local link, wherein a relay wireless device 706 acquires a COT for downlink (DL) transmission and shares the remaining COT with another master UE 714 for further uplink (UL) operation. The relay wireless device 716 is paired with the master UE 714.

[0184] In operations 1912, 1914, 1916, and 1918, the base station 702 triggers the relay wireless device 706 to perform LBT on CC2, and the relay wireless device 706 obtains the COT for DL ​​data forwarding, similar to Fig.14 The base station 702 sends DL data to the relay wireless device 706 on CC1, and the relay wireless device 706 forwards the data to the primary UE 704 on CC2 using the acquired COT.

[0185] In operation 1922, the base station 702 indicates the resources for which the relay wireless device 706 reports the COT shared information. This indication includes at least one of the following: (i) the time domain resources for which the relay wireless device 706 reports the COT shared information to the base station 702, or (ii) the frequency domain resources for which the relay wireless device 706 reports the COT shared information to the base station 702. The base station 702 may transmit this indication alone or together with the LBT trigger in operation 1912, and may send it before or after the DL data transmission in operation 1916.

[0186] In operation 1924, the relay wireless device 706 reports the COT sharing information to the base station 702. The COT sharing information includes at least one of the following: (i) a time domain resource of the COT indicating the remaining time for UL transmission; (ii) a frequency domain resource of the COT; or (iii) a flag or field indicating whether the COT can be shared by the base station 702 for other UL transmissions.

[0187] In operation 1932, after receiving the COT sharing information, the base station 702 triggers the master UE 714 to perform the COT shared LBT and indicates the LBT type to the master UE 714. Different LBT types correspond to different LBT durations, such as 16 μs or 25 μs. Fig.17 The base station 702 also instructs the primary UE 714 to use the shared COT for UL transmission of UL resources.

[0188] In operation 1934, the master UE 714 performs LBT according to the indicated LBT type to access the shared COT for UL transmission. If the LBT is successful, in operation 1936, the master UE 714 uses the shared COT to send UL data on CC2 to the relay wireless device 716. The relay wireless device 716 then converts the frequency domain resources of the received signal from CC2 to CC1 and forwards it to the base station 702 in operation 1938.

[0189] The master UE 714 may use the shared COT for UL data transmission to the base station 702 via the relay wireless device 716. The master UE 714 and the relay wireless device 716 represent other user equipment served by the base station 702 in UL device collaboration (devCo) mode but without initiating COT.

[0190] Fig.19 Two possible cases of UL transmission of the primary UE 714 are shown in FIG.

[0191] Case 1: The master UE 714 transmits data in CC1 and CC2. In this case, the master UE 714 sends UL data directly to the base station 702 using CC1, and sends data to the relay wireless device 716 using CC2. The relay wireless device 716 then forwards the data received from CC2 to the base station 702 using CC1.

[0192] Case 2: The master UE 714 transmits data only in CC2. In this case, the master UE 714 sends UL data to the relay wireless device 716 using CC2, and the relay wireless device 716 forwards the received data to the base station 702 using CC1. The master UE 714 transmits data directly to the base station 702 without using CC1.

[0193] This process allows the relay wireless device 706 to share the remaining COT with the primary UE 714 for UL transmission, improving the overall resource utilization in the unlicensed spectrum.

[0194] Fig. 20 2000 is a diagram illustrating a COT sharing process for device cooperation on an unlicensed local link, wherein a master UE 704 acquires a COT for uplink (UL) transmission and shares the remaining COT with a base station 702 for further downlink (DL) operation.

[0195] In operation 2012, the base station 702 sends an uplink grant to the primary UE 704, scheduling the primary UE 704 to send data via a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) on CC2. The uplink grant can serve as an indication for the primary UE 704 to start the LBT process.

[0196] After receiving the uplink grant, the master UE 704 performs LBT on CC2 in operation 2014. The master UE 704 senses the energy level within a specific LBT bandwidth and compares it with a predetermined threshold. If the sensed energy level is lower than the threshold for a certain duration, the master UE 704 considers the channel idle and acquires COT for data transmission.

[0197] In operation 2016, if the LBT is successful, the master UE 704 uses the acquired COT to send UL data on CC2 to the relay wireless device 706. The master UE 704 transmits data to the relay wireless device 706 through the link 720 on the unlicensed band (CC2).

[0198] The relay wireless device 706 receives data from the master UE 704 on CC2 in operation 2018 and converts the frequency domain resources from CC2 to CC1. This frequency conversion involves shifting the carrier frequency of the received signal from the unlicensed band (CC2) to the licensed band (CC1). The relay wireless device 706 then forwards the converted data to the base station 702 via link 730 on CC1.

[0199] After the UL data transmission is completed, if there is time remaining in the COT, the master UE 704 can share the COT with the base station 702 for further DL transmission. This allows efficient utilization of unlicensed spectrum resources and enables the base station 702 to transmit DL data without performing a separate LBT process.

[0200] In operation 2022, the master UE 704 reports COT sharing information to the base station 702. The COT sharing information includes at least one of the following: (i) time domain resources of the COT, indicating the remaining time for DL ​​transmission; (ii) frequency domain resources of the COT; or (iii) a flag or field for indicating whether the COT can be shared by the base station 702 for other DL transmissions.

[0201] In operation 2024, after receiving the COT sharing information, the base station 702 triggers the relay wireless device 706 to perform COT-shared LBT. The base station 702 indicates the frequency domain resources for the relay wireless device 706 to perform LBT.

[0202] In operation 2026, the relay wireless device 706 performs LBT according to the indicated frequency domain resources to access the shared COT for DL ​​transmission.

[0203] If LBT is successful, the base station 702 transmits DL data to the relay wireless device 706 using the shared COT on CC1 in operation 2028. The relay wireless device 706 then converts the frequency domain resources of the received signal from CC1 to CC2 and forwards it to the primary UE 704 in operation 2030.

[0204] The COT sharing information reported by the master UE 704 in operation 2022 is similar to the previous example (eg Fig.18 ) is similar to the COT sharing information reported by the relay wireless device 706 in . It provides the base station 702 with the necessary information to determine the remaining COT duration and the frequency resources available for DL ​​transmission.

[0205] This COT sharing process allows the master UE 704 to effectively share the remaining COT with the base station 702 for DL ​​transmission, improving the overall resource utilization in the unlicensed spectrum. By utilizing the COT obtained by the master UE 704, the base station 702 can transmit DL data to the master UE 704 through the relay wireless device 706 without the need for an additional LBT process, reducing latency and improving the efficiency of the device cooperation system.

[0206] Fig.21 21 is a schematic diagram illustrating a COT sharing process for device cooperation on an unlicensed local link, wherein a master UE 704 acquires a COT for uplink (UL) transmission and shares the remaining COT with a base station 702 for further downlink (DL) operation to another master UE 714 via another relay wireless device 716.

[0207] Operations 2112, 2114, 2116, 2118, and 2122 are respectively Fig. 20Operations 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, and 2022 in are the same. The master UE 704 receives an uplink grant from the base station 702 (operation 2112), performs LBT on CC2 (operation 2114), sends UL data to the relay wireless device 706 on CC2 (operation 2116), and the device forwards the data to the base station 702 on CC1 (operation 2118). Then, the master UE 704 reports the COT sharing information to the base station 702 (operation 2122).

[0208] After receiving the COT sharing information, the base station 702 triggers another relay wireless device (relay wireless device 716) to perform LBT to share the COT in operation 2132. The relay wireless device 716 is paired with another master UE (master UE 714), which is different from the master UE 704 that initiated the COT.

[0209] In operation 2134, the relay wireless device 716 performs LBT according to the triggering of the base station 702 to access the shared COT for DL ​​transmission.

[0210] If LBT is successful, the base station 702 sends DL data on CC1 to the relay wireless device 716 in operation 2136. Then, the relay wireless device 716 converts the frequency domain resources of the received signal from CC1 to CC2 and forwards it to the primary UE 714 in operation 2138.

[0211] This process shows that the COT originally acquired by the master UE 704 for UL transmission can be used by another relay wireless device 716 to forward DL data sent by the base station 702 to another master UE 714. The master UE 714 and the relay wireless device 716 represent other UEs served by the base station 702 in DL device cooperation (devCo) mode but without initiating COT.

[0212] There may be two cases for DL ​​transmission sent to the primary UE 714:

[0213] Case 1: Master UE 714 receives data from CC1 and CC2. In this case, master UE 714 receives DL data directly from base station 702 using CC1 and from relay wireless device 716 using CC2. Relay wireless device 716 forwards data received from base station 702 on CC1 to master UE 714 via CC2.

[0214] Case 2: The master UE 714 receives data only from CC2. In this case, the master UE 714 receives DL data from the relay wireless device 716 using CC2. The relay wireless device 716 forwards the data received from the base station 702 on CC1 to the master UE 714 via CC2. The master UE 714 does not receive data directly from the base station 702 using CC1.

[0215] This COT sharing process allows the base station 702 to effectively utilize the remaining COT originally acquired by the master UE 704 for DL ​​transmission to another master UE 714 through another relay wireless device 716. By using the shared COT, the other relay wireless device 716 can transmit DL data without an additional LBT process, reducing delay and improving the efficiency of the device cooperation system in the unlicensed spectrum.

[0216] It is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the process / flowchart of the present invention is an example of an exemplary method. It should therefore be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the process / flowchart can be rearranged based on design preferences, and some blocks can be further combined or omitted. The attached method claims the elements presented by the various blocks in an exemplary order, but this does not mean that the present invention is limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

[0217] The previous description is provided to enable those skilled in the art to realize the various aspects described in the present invention. Those skilled in the art can easily make various modifications to these aspects, and can apply the general principles defined in the present invention to other aspects. Therefore, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown in the present invention, but should be given the full scope consistent with the claim language description. Wherein, unless otherwise specified, it is not intended to mean "one and only one" when referring to the singular element, but to mean "one or more". The word "exemplary" is used in the present invention to refer to "used as an example, example or illustration". Any aspect of the present invention described as "exemplary" is not necessarily understood to be preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Unless otherwise specified, the term "some" refers to one or more. Combinations such as "at least one of A, B or C", "one or more of A, B or C", "at least one of A, B and C", "one or more of A, B and C" and "A, B, C or any combination thereof" include any combination of A, B and / or C, and may include multiple A, multiple B, or multiple C. Specifically, combinations such as "at least one of A, B, or C," "one or more of A, B, or C," "at least one of A, B and C," "one or more of A, B, and C," and "A, B, C, or any combination thereof" may include only A, only B, only C, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A, B, and C, any of which may include one or more of A, B, or C. All structural and functional equivalents of the elements of the various aspects described in the present invention that are known or will become known to those skilled in the art may be expressly included in the present invention by reference and are intended to be covered by the claims. In addition, the content disclosed in the present invention is not intended to be donated to the public, regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly stated in the claims. The words "module," "mechanism," "element," "device," etc. may not be substitutes for the word "means." Thus, unless an element in a claim is explicitly stated using the phrase "means for...", the element should not be understood as a functional limitation (means plus function).

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication, performed by a user equipment, comprising: discovering relay wireless devices used for local communications on unlicensed carriers; as well as After the listen-before-talk process on the unlicensed carrier is successful, data is communicated with the relay wireless device on the unlicensed carrier through the local communication to further communicate the data with the base station.

2. The method for wireless communication according to claim 1, wherein: Further including: receiving an uplink grant and frequency domain location information about a listen-before-talk bandwidth from the base station on a licensed carrier for the local communication with the relay wireless device on the unlicensed carrier; and performing the listen-before-talk process on the listen-before-talk bandwidth to obtain a channel occupancy time for the local communication on the unlicensed carrier, Communicating the data with the relay wireless device includes transmitting the data to the relay wireless device within the acquired channel occupancy time according to the uplink authorization.

3. The method for wireless communication according to claim 2, wherein: Further including: After communicating the data with the relay wireless device, information about the remaining duration of the channel occupation time is transmitted to the base station, wherein the base station uses the remaining duration of the channel occupation time for downlink data transmission.

4. The method for wireless communication according to claim 3, wherein: The information about the remaining duration of the channel occupation time includes at least one of the following: The channel occupies the time domain resources for the remaining duration; The frequency domain resources of the remaining duration of the channel occupation time; or An indication is used to indicate whether the remaining duration of the channel occupancy time can be shared by the base station for other downlink transmissions.

5. The method for wireless communication according to claim 1, wherein: The listen-before-talk process is performed by the relay wireless device, and communicating the data with the relay wireless device includes receiving the data from the relay wireless device.

6. The method for wireless communication according to claim 5, wherein: Further including: receiving, from the base station on the licensed carrier, an indication for triggering the relay wireless device to perform the listen-before-talk process and frequency domain location information about the listen-before-talk bandwidth for the local communication with the relay wireless device on the unlicensed carrier; and The relay wireless device is triggered with the information.

7. The method for wireless communication according to claim 5, wherein: Further including: The base station receives information about the remaining duration of the channel occupation time acquired by the relay wireless device after communicating the data with the relay wireless device from the relay wireless device, wherein the base station uses the remaining duration of the channel occupation time for uplink data transmission of another user equipment.

8. The method for wireless communication according to claim 7, wherein: The information about the remaining duration of the channel occupancy time includes at least: The channel occupies the time domain resources for the remaining duration; The channel occupies the frequency domain resources for the remaining duration; or An indication is used to indicate whether the remaining duration of the channel occupancy time can be shared by the base station for other uplink transmissions.

9. The method for wireless communication according to claim 1, wherein: Further including: receiving from the base station an indication for triggering the user equipment to perform the listen-before-talk process and frequency domain location information about a listen-before-talk bandwidth for the local communication with the relay wireless device on the unlicensed carrier; performing the listen-before-talk process on the listen-before-talk bandwidth to obtain channel occupancy time for the local communication on the unlicensed carrier; and Channel occupancy time sharing information and a listen-before-talk type indication are transmitted to the relay wireless device for the relay wireless device to perform a listen-before-talk process to forward data using the acquired channel occupancy time, wherein communicating the data with the relay wireless device includes receiving the data from the relay wireless device during the acquired channel occupancy time.

10. The method for wireless communication according to claim 9, wherein: The channel occupancy time sharing information includes at least one of the following: The time domain resource of the channel occupies time; The frequency domain resources that the channel occupies in time; or The listen-before-talk type is used for the relay wireless device to perform the listen-before-talk process to use the acquired channel occupation time.

11. A method for wireless communication, performed by a relay wireless device, comprising: discovering user equipment for local communications on an unlicensed carrier; as well as After the listen-before-talk process on the unlicensed carrier is successful, data is communicated with the user equipment on the unlicensed carrier through the local communication, so as to communicate the data between the user equipment and the base station.

12. The method for wireless communication according to claim 11, wherein: Further including: receiving, from the base station on the licensed carrier, a trigger for performing the listen-before-talk process and frequency domain location information about a listen-before-talk bandwidth for the local communication with the user equipment on the unlicensed carrier; performing the listen-before-talk process on the listen-before-talk bandwidth to obtain channel occupancy time for the local communication on the unlicensed carrier; and After the listen-before-talk process is successful, receiving the data from the base station on the authorized carrier, Communicating the data with the user equipment includes forwarding the data to the user equipment within the acquired channel occupancy time.

13. The method for wireless communication according to claim 12, wherein: Further including: receiving an indication from the base station, the indication being used to indicate a resource that a reporting channel occupies time sharing information; as well as Sending the channel occupancy time sharing information to the base station, the information including at least one of the following: A time domain resource of a remaining duration of the channel occupancy time after communicating the data with the user equipment; The frequency domain resources of the remaining duration of the channel occupation time; or An indication is used to indicate whether the base station can share the remaining duration of the channel occupancy time for other uplink transmissions.

14. The method for wireless communication according to claim 11, wherein: The listen-before-talk process is performed by the user equipment, and communicating the data with the user equipment includes receiving the data from the user equipment during the channel occupation time acquired by the user equipment.

15. The method for wireless communication according to claim 14, wherein: Further including: receiving channel occupancy time sharing information and a listen-before-talk type indication from the user equipment; as well as Performing the listen-before-talk process of the listen-before-talk type to forward data using the channel occupancy time obtained by the user equipment, The channel occupancy time sharing information includes at least one of the following: The time domain resource of the channel occupies time; The channel occupies the frequency domain resources of time; or The listen-before-speak type.

16. The method for wireless communication according to claim 11, wherein: Further including: Information about a frequency domain location of a listen-before-talk bandwidth for the local communication with the user equipment on the unlicensed carrier is received from the base station on the licensed carrier.

17. The method for wireless communication according to claim 16, wherein: The information about the frequency domain position of the listen-before-speak bandwidth includes at least one of the following: The frequency domain resource location of the guard band; A flag or field indicating whether to use the default guardband mode; or Frequency domain resource allocation.

18. The method for wireless communication according to claim 11, wherein: Further including: Information is received from the user equipment regarding a frequency domain location of a listen-before-talk bandwidth for the local communication with the user equipment over the unlicensed carrier.

19. The method for wireless communication according to claim 11, wherein: The relay wireless device does not have a subscriber identity module card and cannot communicate directly with the base station.

20. The method for wireless communication according to claim 11, wherein: The relay wireless device has a subscriber identity module card and is able to communicate directly with the base station.

21. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: A processor, wherein when executing the program instructions stored in the memory, the processor performs the method for wireless communication according to any one of claims 1 to 20.

22. A storage medium storing program instructions, wherein when the program instructions are executed by a processor, the processor executes the method for wireless communication according to any one of claims 1 to 20.

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