HARQ feedback enabling and de-enabling in non-terrestrial networks

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback enabling and de-enabling in a non-terrestrial network (NTN). A terminal device receives downlink control information from a network device. The downlink control information indicates a number of transport blocks associated with an uplink transmission or a downlink transmission on the HARQ process, a number of subframes of the transport block for the transport blocks, and a number of repetitions of the uplink transmission or the downlink transmission on the HARQ process. The terminal device obtains a threshold value for determining whether HARQ feedback for the HARQ process is de-enabled or enabled. In addition, the terminal device determines an enable state or a de-enable state of HARQ feedback based on a threshold value and at least one of: the number of blocks for transmission, the number of subframes for transmission of blocks, or the number of repetitions.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Various example embodiments relate to the field of telecommunications, and more particularly to methods, devices, apparatus, and computer-readable storage media for enabling and disabling hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback in a non-terrestrial network (NTN). Background Art

[0002] The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has defined a new work item on performance enhancement of Internet of Things (IoT) NTN (IoT-NTN) for Release 18 (Rel-18) in RP-212729. For IoT on NTN, such as narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced machine type communication (eMTC) on NTN, etc., disabling hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback can bring at least the following advantages. For example, user equipment (UE) power consumption and latency can be reduced. In addition, HARQ stagnation for NB-IoT due to the large round-trip time (RTT) in NTN can be alleviated. In addition, since more resources are available in the uplink, the uplink throughput in NTN can be improved. On the other hand, if HARQ feedback is disabled, the layer 1 (L1) reliability of downlink transmission may be reduced due to the lack of HARQ feedback. In NB-IoT, a maximum of two HARQ processes are supported. When only one HARQ process is configured, a solution on how to dynamically indicate HARQ feedback enablement and disablement should be considered. Summary of the invention

[0003] In general, example embodiments of the present disclosure provide solutions for HARQ feedback enabling and disabling in NTNs.

[0004] In a first aspect, a terminal device is provided. The terminal device includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, enable the terminal device to at least: receive downlink control information from a network device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks associated with uplink transmission or downlink transmission on a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ process, the number of transport block subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process; obtain a threshold for determining whether HARQ feedback for the HARQ process is disabled or enabled; and determine the enablement state or the disablement state of the HARQ feedback based on the threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, or the number of repetitions.

[0005] In a second aspect, a network device is provided. The network device includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, enable the network device to at least: determine a threshold value, which is used to determine whether a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ feedback for a HARQ process is disabled or enabled; determine the enable state or disable state of the HARQ feedback and the number of transport blocks associated with uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process, the number of subframes of the transport blocks used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process based on at least the threshold value; and send downlink control information for the HARQ process to a terminal device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for the HARQ process.

[0006] In a third aspect, a method implemented at a terminal device is provided. The method includes receiving downlink control information from a network device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks associated with uplink transmission or downlink transmission on a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ process, the number of transport blocks used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process; obtaining a threshold for determining whether HARQ feedback for the HARQ process is disabled or enabled; and determining an enable state or a disable state of the HARQ feedback based on the threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, or the number of repetitions.

[0007] In a fourth aspect, a method implemented at a network device is provided. The method includes: determining a threshold value, the threshold value is used to determine whether a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ feedback for a HARQ process is disabled or enabled; determining the enable state or disable state of the HARQ feedback and the number of transport blocks associated with uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process, the number of subframes of the transport block for the transport block, and the number of repetitions for uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process based on at least the threshold value; and sending downlink control information for the HARQ process to a terminal device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes for the transport block, and the number of repetitions for the HARQ process.

[0008] In a fifth aspect, an apparatus is provided. The apparatus includes: a component for receiving downlink control information from a network device at a terminal device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks associated with uplink transmission or downlink transmission on a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ process, the number of transport block subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process; a component for obtaining a threshold for determining whether HARQ feedback for the HARQ process is disabled or enabled; and a component for determining an enabled state or disabled state of HARQ feedback based on the threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, or the number of repetitions.

[0009] In a sixth aspect, an apparatus is provided. The apparatus includes: a component for determining a threshold at a network device, the threshold being used to determine whether a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ feedback for a HARQ process is disabled or enabled; a component for determining an enable state or a disable state of the HARQ feedback and the number of transport blocks associated with uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process, the number of subframes of the transport blocks used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process based on at least the threshold; and a component for sending downlink control information for the HARQ process to a terminal device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for the HARQ process.

[0010] In a seventh aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium is provided, comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to at least execute a method according to any one of the third to fourth aspects above.

[0011] In an eighth aspect, a computer program is provided, comprising instructions, which, when executed by an apparatus, at least cause the apparatus to perform at least the method according to any one of the third to fourth aspects above.

[0012] In a ninth aspect, a terminal device is provided. The terminal device includes a receiving circuit system configured to receive downlink control information from a network device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks associated with uplink transmission or downlink transmission on a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ process, the number of transport block subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process; an obtaining circuit system configured to obtain a threshold for determining whether HARQ feedback for the HARQ process is disabled or enabled; and a determining circuit system configured to determine the enabling state or disabling state of the HARQ feedback based on the threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, or the number of repetitions.

[0013] In a tenth aspect, a network device is provided. The network device includes a determining circuit system configured to determine a threshold value for determining whether a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ feedback for a HARQ process is disabled or enabled; a determining circuit system configured to determine an enabling state or a disabling state of the HARQ feedback and the number of transport blocks associated with uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process, the number of subframes of the transport blocks used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process based on at least the threshold value; and a sending circuit system configured to send downlink control information for the HARQ process to a terminal device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for the HARQ process.

[0014] It should be understood that the invention summary is not intended to identify the key or essential features of the embodiments of the present disclosure, nor is it intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Other features of the present disclosure will become easily understood through the following description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Some examples will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0016] Figure 1A shows an example of a network environment in which some example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented;

[0017] Figures 1B to 1C Other examples of network environments are shown in which some example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented;

[0018] Figure 2 shows a signaling flow between a terminal device and a network device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0019] Figure 3An example process for determining HARQ disabling / enabling based on implicit indication according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown;

[0020] Figure 4 An example process for determining blind retransmission related information by reusing fields in downlink control information according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown;

[0021] Figure 5 A flowchart of a method implemented at a terminal device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown;

[0022] Figure 6 A flowchart of a method implemented at a network device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown;

[0023] Figure 7 shows a simplified block diagram of a device suitable for implementing some example embodiments of the present disclosure; and

[0024] Figure 8 A block diagram illustrating an example of a computer readable medium according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0025] Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] The principles of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to some example embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are only for illustrative purposes, and contribute to those skilled in the art to understand and implement the present disclosure, without implying any limitation to the scope of the present disclosure. The present disclosure described herein can be implemented in various ways except for the modes described below.

[0027] In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

[0028] References in this disclosure to "one embodiment," "an embodiment," "example embodiment," etc. indicate that the embodiment may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but not every embodiment necessarily includes the particular feature, structure, or characteristic. In addition, these phrases do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Furthermore, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in conjunction with an embodiment, it should be considered that those skilled in the art are aware that the feature, structure, or characteristic can be affected in conjunction with other embodiments, whether or not explicitly described.

[0029] It should be understood that although the terms "first" and "second" etc. can be used in this article to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another element. For example, the first element can be referred to as the second element, and similarly, the second element can be referred to as the first element without departing from the scope of the example embodiments. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the listed terms.

[0030] The terms used herein are only used for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit exemplary embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are also intended to include plural forms unless the context clearly states otherwise. It should also be understood that the terms "comprises", "comprising", "has", "having", "includes" and / or "including" are used herein to specify the presence of the features, elements and / or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components and / or their combinations. As used herein, "at least one of the following elements: <list of two or more elements>" and "at least one of <list of two or more elements>" and similar wording, wherein the list of two or more elements is connected by "and" or "or", representing at least any one element, or at least any two or more elements, or at least all elements.

[0031] As used in this application, the term "circuitry" may refer to one or more or all of the following:

[0032] (a) hardware circuit implementation only (e.g., implementation only in analog and / or digital circuitry) and

[0033] (b) a combination of hardware circuitry and software such as (where applicable):

[0034] (i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuits and software / firmware and

[0035] (ii) any portion of hardware processor(s) with software (including digital signal processor(s), software and memory(s) that work together to enable a device (such as a mobile phone or server) to perform various functions and

[0036] (c) Hardware circuits and / or processor(s), such as microprocessor(s) or portions of microprocessor(s), that require software (e.g., firmware) to operate, but the software may not be present when the software is not required for operation.

[0037] This definition of circuitry applies to all uses of the term in this application, including in any claims. As a further example, as used in this application, the term "circuitry" also covers an implementation of only a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or a portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware. The term "circuitry" also covers, for example, a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device or a similar integrated circuit in a server, cellular network device, or other computing or network device, if applicable to the particular claim element.

[0038] As used herein, the term "communication network" refers to a network that complies with any appropriate communication standard, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), New Radio (NR), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA), Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), Non-terrestrial Network (NTN), IoT on NTN, etc. In addition, the communication between the terminal device and the network device in the communication network can be performed according to any appropriate generation communication protocol, including but not limited to the first generation (1G), second generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), 4.5G, fifth generation (5G), future sixth generation (6G) communication protocol and / or any other protocol currently known or to be developed in the future. The embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to various communication systems. In view of the rapid development of communication, there will certainly be future types of communication technologies and systems, using which the present disclosure can be embodied. This should not be regarded as limiting the scope of the present disclosure to the above-mentioned systems.

[0039] As used herein, the term "network device" refers to a node in a communication network via which a terminal device accesses the network and receives services therefrom. A network device may refer to a base station (BS) or an access point (AP), for example, a Node B (NodeB or NB), an evolved Node B (eNodeB or eNB), a new radio (NR) NB (also referred to as a gNB), a remote radio unit (RRU), a radio head (RH), a remote radio head (RRH), an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, a relay, a low power node (such as a femto and pico, etc.), depending on the terminology and technology applied.

[0040] The term "terminal device" refers to any terminal device that may be capable of wireless communication. As an example and not limitation, a terminal device may also be referred to as a communication device, user equipment (UE), subscriber station (SS), portable user station, mobile station (MS) or access terminal (AT). The terminal device may include, but is not limited to, a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, a voice over IP (VoIP) phone, a wireless local loop phone, a tablet computer, a wearable terminal device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a portable computer, a desktop computer, an image capture terminal device (such as a digital camera), a game terminal device, a music storage and playback device, a vehicle-mounted wireless terminal device, a wireless endpoint, a mobile station, a laptop embedded device (LEE), a laptop mounted device (LME), a USB dongle, a smart device, a wireless client device (CPE), an Internet of Things (IoT) device, a machine type communication (MTC) device, a watch or other wearable device, a head mounted display (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, medical equipment and applications (such as remote surgery), industrial equipment and applications (such as robots and / or other wireless devices operating in the context of an industrial and / or automated processing chain), consumer electronic devices, devices operating on a commercial and / or industrial wireless network, etc. In the following description, the terms "terminal device", "communication device", "terminal", "user equipment" and "UE" may be used interchangeably.

[0041] For non-GEO scenarios, the propagation delay may vary as the satellite moves and is different for various satellite orbits and elevation angles. For example, Table 1 below shows the delay values ​​for various satellite orbits.

[0042] Table 1: Delay values ​​for various satellite orbits

[0043]

[0044] HARQ feedback enable / disable is used to avoid HARQ stall due to long RTT and guarantee the required UE throughput. With data repetition in NB-IoT, the transmission time of the available HARQ process is extended and it is still possible that the RTT cannot be filled and HARQ stall may occur in some cases, such as for large RTT and small repetition. HARQ feedback enable / disable should be supported to avoid HARQ stall due to long RTT and guarantee the required UE throughput.

[0045] In the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Release 17 (Rel-17), disabling HARQ feedback for NTN IoT was discussed. In 3GPP Release 18 (Rel-18), there is a new work item (WI) for IoT-NTN performance enhancement. This work considers the existing IoT-NTN as a baseline along with the Rel-17 WI results, and further IoT-NTN performance enhancement is considered based on disabling HARQ feedback to mitigate the impact of HARQ stalling on UE data rate.

[0046] However, disabling HARQ feedback has both advantages and disadvantages. For example, disabling HARQ feedback can benefit UE power consumption and latency. In addition, disabling HARQ feedback for downlink transmission can alleviate HARQ stagnation for NB-IoT, which is caused by large RTT in NTN. In addition, disabling HARQ feedback for downlink transmission can improve uplink throughput in NTN because more resources will be available in the uplink. However, RLC status reporting may require more uplink resources, which may partially consume the uplink resources made available by disabling HARQ feedback. If HARQ feedback is disabled, the layer 1 (L1) reliability of downlink transmission may be reduced due to the lack of HARQ feedback. In addition, for link adaptation, the UE still needs to always send HARQ acknowledgment (ACK).

[0047] Therefore, both disabling and enabling of HARQ feedback should be supported. However, in NB-IoT, a maximum of two HARQ processes are supported. When only one HARQ process is configured, how the network dynamically indicates to the UE that HARQ feedback is disabled or enabled is still an important issue to be solved.

[0048] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a scheme for enabling and disabling HARQ feedback in NTN is provided. With this scheme, a terminal device receives downlink control information (DCI) from a network device. The DCI indicates the number of transport blocks (TBs) associated with uplink transmission or downlink transmission on a HARQ process, the number of subframes of a transport block used for the transport block, and the number of repetitions for uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process. The terminal device obtains a threshold for determining whether HARQ feedback for the HARQ process is disabled or enabled. In addition, the terminal device determines the enabling state or disabling state of the HARQ feedback based on the threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport block, or the number of repetitions. The number of repetitions (N Rep ) corresponds to the repetition number field (I Req ) determines the number of subframes (N SF) is represented by the resource assignment field (I SF ), the number of transport blocks (TBs) is determined by the number of TBs scheduled for unicast field in the corresponding DCI when npdsch-MultiTB-Config is enabled.

[0049] In this way, HARQ feedback disabling and enabling can be flexibly and dynamically determined and indicated. This scheme can avoid HARQ stagnation and ensure the required UE throughput by implicitly indicating the enabling or disabling of HARQ feedback. The indication of HARQ feedback enabling or disabling is completely dynamic and does not require radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration because the HARQ behavior can be changed for each transmitted transport block. In addition, since implicit indication is used in DCI, there is no need to introduce additional bits / fields in DCI, so additional signaling overhead can be avoided. In this way, communication efficiency can be improved. The principles and embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0050] First reference Figure 1A , which shows an example of a network environment 100 in which some example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented. The network environment 100 may include a terminal device 110 and a network device 120. In some example embodiments, the environment 100 may be implemented as an NTN, and the network device 120 may include a communication satellite.

[0051] For example, Figure 1B As shown, the network device 120 includes a communication satellite 120-1, and the communication satellite 120-1 can operate as a gNB, or in other words, the gNB (onboard) can be located in the communication satellite 120-1. Figure 1B As shown, terminal device 110 may be located within coverage 130 of communication satellite 120-1, for example, coverage 130 may be referred to as an NTN cell. Figure 1B Not shown, the communications satellite 120 - 1 may communicate with a gateway device associated with a 5G core network (CN).

[0052] For example, Figure 1C As shown, the communication satellite 120-1 can operate as a passive or transparent network relay node between the terminal device 110 and the network device 120-2 on the ground. In some embodiments, the satellite 120-1 can communicate with the terminal device 110 via a service link or a wireless interface, and communicate with the network device 120-2 on the ground via a feeder link or a wireless interface.

[0053] In some embodiments, satellite 120-1 may include a GEO satellite, a LEO satellite, or other types of satellites. In some embodiments, satellite 120-1 may belong to one or more satellite systems or architectures, such as a global navigation satellite system (GNSS), a global positioning system (GPS), a global navigation satellite system (GLONASS), a BeiDou satellite navigation system (BDS), etc.

[0054] It should be understood that Figure 1A The network environment 100 shown in FIG. 1 is for illustration purposes only and does not imply any limitation on the scope of the present disclosure. Figure 1B 1C depicts the terminal device 110 as a mobile phone, but the terminal device 110 may be any type of user equipment.

[0055] The communication in the network environment 100 can be implemented according to any appropriate (multiple) communication protocols, including but not limited to cellular communication protocols of the first generation (1G), the second generation (2G), the third generation (3G), the fourth generation (4G), the fifth generation (5G) and 6G, wireless local area network communication protocols (such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11, etc.) and / or any other protocol currently known or to be developed in the future. In addition, the communication can utilize any appropriate wireless communication technology, including but not limited to: code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division duplex (FDD), time division duplex (TDD), multiple input multiple output (MIMO), orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDM), discrete Fourier transform spread spectrum orthogonal frequency division multiple access (DFT-s-OFDM) and / or any other technology currently known or to be developed in the future.

[0056] It should be understood that Figure 1A The number of devices (ie, terminal device 110, network device 120) shown in the figure and their connection relationship and type are for illustration purposes only and do not imply any limitation. Environment 100 may include any suitable number of devices suitable for implementing the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0057] Figure 2 FIG. 2 shows a signaling flow 200 between a terminal device and a network device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the signaling flow 200 will refer to FIG. Figure 1A is described.

[0058] like Figure 2As shown, network device 120 determines (205) a threshold for determining whether HARQ feedback for a HARQ process is disabled or enabled. In some example embodiments, network device 120 may send information associated with the threshold to terminal device 110 via an RRC message. For example, the information associated with the threshold may include multiple thresholds corresponding to multiple elevation angles. In this case, network device 120 may determine the threshold from the multiple thresholds based on the elevation angle between terminal device 110 and network device 120.

[0059] As another example, the information associated with the threshold value may include multiple threshold values ​​corresponding to multiple distances. In this case, the network device 120 may determine the threshold value from the multiple threshold values ​​based on the distance between the terminal device 110 and the network device 120. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold value may be configured for each HARQ process. In this case, different HARQ processes may support different operations.

[0060] like Figure 2 As shown, the network device 120 determines (210) an enable state or a disable state of HARQ feedback and the number of transport blocks associated with uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process, the number of subframes of the transport block used for the transport block, and the number of repetitions for uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process based at least on a threshold.

[0061] For example, the network device 120 can dynamically determine whether to enable or disable HARQ feedback based on the transmission time, propagation delay, and required UE throughput of the narrowband physical downlink shared channel (NPDSCH). The transmission time of NPDSCH can be N consecutive (multiple) NB-IoT downlink subframes. The transmission time can depend on the number of scheduled transport blocks, the scheduled transport block size, and the number of repetitions. For example, the transmission time can be calculated as: Number of subframes NPDSCH =N TB N Rep N SF , where N TB is the number of scheduled transport blocks, N Rep is the number of repetitions, and N SF is the number of subframes scheduled for the transport block.

[0062] HARQ stalling mainly occurs when the transmission time of the available HARQ process cannot fill the RTT propagation time between the terminal device 110 and the network device 120, while when the transmission time is large, HARQ stalling may not occur. Therefore, the product of the number of scheduled transport blocks, the number of subframes scheduled for the transport block, and the number of repetitions may be associated with HARQ feedback disabling and enabling.

[0063] In some example embodiments, network device 120 may determine the enablement state or the disablement state of HARQ feedback based on the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions. For example, if the product is less than a threshold, network device 120 may determine the disablement state of HARQ feedback. Otherwise, if the product is greater than the threshold, network device 120 may determine the enablement state of HARQ feedback.

[0064] It should be understood that the enabled state or disabled state of HARQ feedback can be determined based on any arithmetic operation based on at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for transport blocks, and the number of repetitions, and the scope of the present disclosure will not be limited in this regard. In addition, it should be understood that the enabled state or disabled state of HARQ feedback can be determined based on at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for transport blocks, the number of repetitions, together with any other one or more factors indicated or not indicated in DCI216, and the scope of the present disclosure will not be limited in this regard.

[0065] In some example embodiments, network device 120 may determine an enable state or disable state of HARQ feedback for an initial transmission of a HARQ process. That is, the determination of HARQ feedback disablement or enablement may be applied to the initial HARQ transmission. For HARQ retransmissions (e.g., for the same HARQ, no new data indicator (NDI) is switched in DCI 216), HARQ feedback disablement or enablement may follow the disablement or enablement of its initial transmission.

[0066] like Figure 2 As shown, the network device 120 sends (215) DCI 216 for the HARQ process to the terminal device 110. On the receiving side, the terminal device 110 receives (220) DCI 216 from the network device 120. The DCI 216 indicates the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions used for the HARQ process.

[0067] An example format of DCI 216 may be as shown in Table 2.

[0068] Table 2: DCI format N1

[0069]

[0070]

[0071] The number of scheduled transport blocks N TB The number of repetitions N may be determined based on the number of scheduled TB fields in the DCI 216. RepThe repetition number field 1 in DCI 216 may be used according to Table 3. Rep The number of subframes N is determined. SF The resource assignment field 1 in DCI 216 may be based on Table 4. SF is determined.

[0072] Table 3: Number of repetitions N used for NPDSCH Rep

[0073] <![CDATA[I Rep ]]> <![CDATA[N Rep ]]> 0 1 1 2 2 4 3 8 4 16 5 32 6 64 7 128 8 192 9 256 10 384 11 512 12 768 13 1024 14 1536 15 2048

[0074] Table 4: Number of subframes N used for NPDSCH SF

[0075] <![CDATA[I SF ]]> <![CDATA[N SF ]]> 0 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 8 7 10

[0076] In an embodiment where HARQ feedback is disabled, there is no HARQ feedback, so there is no need for a HARQ-ACK resource field for indicating the time-frequency resources of the NPUSCH for carrying ACK / non-acknowledgement (NACK) responses. In this case, to improve reliability, certain types of blind retransmission schemes may be supported. For example, information associated with blind retransmissions for a HARQ process may be indicated in a HARQ-ACK resource field in DCI 216.

[0077] As an example, several indexes / values ​​can be configured to indicate blind retransmission related information, such as blind transmission with a fixed pattern and blind transmission based on dynamic DCI. Blind retransmission with a fixed pattern refers to that the resources in the frequency domain and / or time domain are fixed in a certain mode, which can be configured via semi-static signaling (e.g., RRC signaling). This blind retransmission can save DCI signaling for retransmission resource indication. However, blind transmission based on dynamic DCI is flexible in resource allocation, but at the cost of wasting DCI signaling.

[0078] Therefore, in some example embodiments, the information associated with the blind retransmission may include an indication that the blind retransmission is based on a fixed pattern (also referred to as a first indication). Alternatively or in addition, the information associated with the blind retransmission may include another indication that the blind retransmission is based on another DCI (also referred to as a second indication).

[0079] As an example, the value of the HARQ confirmation resource field may be predefined. Alternatively or in addition, the value of the HARQ confirmation resource field may be configured via an RRC message to the terminal device 110. In this case, the HARQ retransmission scheme may be dynamically determined and indicated without introducing new bits / fields in the DCI 216, so that additional signaling overhead may be avoided. With blind retransmission, the advantages of HARQ feedback disabling may be retained, such as power consumption, latency reduction, and avoiding HARQ stagnation. In addition, the reliability of downlink transmission may also be ensured.

[0080] In some example embodiments, the network device 120 may configure a flag to indicate that the enable state or disable state of HARQ feedback is determined based on a threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for transport blocks, or the number of repetitions. For example, a semi-static flag may be configured to implicitly indicate that HARQ feedback is enabled / disabled by the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of repetitions, and the number of subframes used for transport blocks. For example, when the flag is true, HARQ disabling / enabling may be implicitly indicated using this method. When the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of repetitions, and the number of subframes used for transport blocks is less than a configured threshold, HARQ disabling may be implicitly indicated. When the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of repetitions, and the number of subframes used for transport blocks is greater than a configured threshold, HARQ enabling may be implicitly indicated. Otherwise, when the flag is false, this method with implicit indication of HARQ disabling / enabling may not be used. In some example embodiments, the flag may be included in an RRC message to the terminal device 110. As an example, the flag may be configured for each HARQ process. In this case, different HARQ processes may support different operations.

[0081] Then, if Figure 2 As shown, on the terminal device 110 side, it obtains (225) a threshold for determining whether the HARQ feedback for the HARQ process is disabled or enabled. In an embodiment where the information associated with the threshold is predefined, the terminal device 110 may determine the threshold based on preconfiguration; alternatively, in an embodiment where the information associated with the threshold is configured by an RRC message from the network device 120, the terminal device 110 may receive the information associated with the threshold from the network device 120. Then, the terminal device 110 may obtain the threshold based on the received information associated with the threshold.

[0082] In an embodiment where the information associated with the threshold includes multiple thresholds corresponding to multiple elevation angles, the terminal device 110 may obtain the threshold from the multiple thresholds based on the elevation angle between the terminal device 110 and the network device 120. Alternatively or additionally, in an embodiment where the information associated with the threshold includes multiple thresholds corresponding to multiple distances, the terminal device 110 may obtain the threshold from the multiple thresholds based on the distance between the terminal device 110 and the network device 120.

[0083] like Figure 2 As shown, the terminal device 110 determines (230) an enabling state or disabling state of HARQ feedback based on a threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for transport blocks, or the number of repetitions. Similar to the network device side, in some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the enabling state or disabling state of HARQ feedback based on the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for transport blocks, and the number of repetitions.

[0084] For example, if the product is less than the threshold, the terminal device 110 may determine the disabled state of the HARQ feedback. Otherwise, if the product is greater than the threshold, the terminal device 110 may determine the enabled state of the HARQ feedback.

[0085] Similar to the network device side, in some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the enable state or disable state of the HARQ feedback for the initial transmission of the HARQ process. In this case, the determination of HARQ feedback disablement or enablement may be applied to the initial HARQ transmission. For HARQ retransmissions (e.g., for the same HARQ, no new data indicator (NDI) is switched in the DCI 216), HARQ feedback disablement or enablement may follow the disablement or enablement of its initial transmission.

[0086] In an example embodiment in which HARQ feedback is disabled and information associated with blind retransmissions for a HARQ process is indicated in a HARQ confirmation resource field in DCI 216, if the information associated with the blind retransmission includes a first indication, the terminal device 110 may determine that the blind retransmission is based on a fixed pattern. As another example, if the information associated with the blind retransmission includes a second indication, the terminal device 110 may determine that the blind retransmission is based on another DCI. On this basis, blind retransmission may be performed to improve reliability. In an embodiment in which the value of the HARQ confirmation resource field is predefined, the terminal device 110 may determine which blind retransmission the first indication or the second indication refers to based on the predefined value of the HARQ confirmation resource field and the HARQ confirmation resource field in the DCI. Alternatively or additionally, in an embodiment in which the value of the HARQ confirmation resource field is configured by an RRC message from the network device 120, the terminal device 110 may determine which blind retransmission the first indication or the second indication refers to based on the RRC-configured value of the HARQ confirmation resource field and the HARQ confirmation resource field in the DCI.

[0087] In an example embodiment in which a flag is included in an RRC message from the network device 120, which indicates that the enable state or disable state of HARQ feedback is determined based on a threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for transport blocks, or the number of repetitions, the terminal device 110 can determine the enable state or disable state of HARQ feedback based on the threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for transport blocks, or the number of repetitions. In an embodiment in which the semi-static flag is configured to indicate that HARQ feedback is implicitly enabled / disabled by the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of repetitions, and the number of subframes used for transport blocks, when the flag is true, the terminal device 110 can determine that HARQ disenablement / enablement is implicitly indicated using this method. For example, when the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of repetitions, and the number of subframes used for transport blocks is less than the configured threshold, the terminal device 110 can determine that HARQ disenablement is implicitly indicated. When the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of repetitions, and the number of subframes used for the transport blocks is greater than the configured threshold, the terminal device 110 may determine that HARQ enabling is implicitly indicated. Otherwise, when the flag is false, the terminal device 110 may determine that this method with implicit indication of HARQ disabling / enabling is not used. For example, the flag may be configured for each HARQ process. In this case, different HARQ processes may support different operations.

[0088] In some example embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the enabling state or disabling state of HARQ feedback for the initial transmission of the HARQ process. In this case, the determination of HARQ feedback disabling or enabling may be applied to the initial HARQ transmission. For HARQ retransmissions, HARQ feedback disabling or enabling may follow disabling or enabling in its initial transmission.

[0089] Figure 3 An example process 300 for determining HARQ disabling / enabling based on implicit indications according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. For the purpose of discussion, the process 300 will refer to Figure 1A It will be appreciated that although process 300 has been described in Figure 1A The process flow is described in the network environment 100 of FIG. 1 , but the process flow can also be applied to other communication scenarios. In this case, the terminal device 110 is implemented by UE 302 and the network device 120 is implemented by gNB 304.

[0090] In this case, for example, assume that the orbit altitude of LEO is 1200 km. At 305, gNB 304 sends an RRC message indicating the 24 ms threshold to UE 302. In this case, if the product of the indicated number of scheduled TBs, the number of repetitions, and the number of subframes scheduled for the transport block is less than the indicated threshold, HARQ disabling may be implicitly indicated for the TB.

[0091] At 310, gNB 304 sends DCI to UE 302, where the scheduled transport block N TB field is "1", the number of repetitions field is I Rep is "1", which corresponds to the number of repetitions N based on Table 3 above Rep is "2", and the resource assignment field I SF is "2", which corresponds to the number of subframes N according to Table 4 above SF is "3". Therefore, N TB 、N Rep and N SF The product of is 1*2*3=6ms, which is less than the configured threshold. Therefore, UE 302 may know that HARQ feedback is disabled.

[0092] At 315, gNB 304 sends DCI to UE 302, where the scheduled transport block N TB field is "1", the number of repetitions field is I Rep is "4", which corresponds to the number of repetitions N based on Table 3 above Rep is "16", and the resource assignment field I SF is "2", which corresponds to the number of subframes N based on Table 4 above SFis "3". Therefore, N TB 、N Rep and N SF The product of is 1*16*3=48ms, which is greater than the configured threshold. Therefore, UE 302 can know that HARQ feedback is enabled. Then, at 320, UE 302 sends HARQ ACK / NACK to gNB 304.

[0093] References Figure 2 All operations and features described are also applicable to process 300 and have similar effects. For simplicity, details will be omitted.

[0094] Figure 4 An example process 400 is shown for determining blind retransmission related information by reusing fields in a DCI according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the process 400 will refer to Figure 1A It will be appreciated that although process 400 has been described in Figure 1A The process flow is described in the network environment 100 of FIG. 1 , but the process flow can also be applied to other communication scenarios. In this case, the terminal device 110 is implemented by UE 402 and the network device 120 is implemented by gNB 404.

[0095] One or more values ​​of the current HARQ-ACK resource field may be reserved to indicate a blind retransmission scheme. For example, the reservation of the HARQ-ACK resource field may be implemented by predefinition or configured by the gNB 404 via an RRC message. In this case, it is assumed that the reservation of the HARQ-ACK resource field is configured by the gNB 404.

[0096] like Figure 4 As shown, at 405, gNB 404 sends an RRC message to UE 402. The RRC message indicates that the values ​​"0" and "8" of the HARQ-ACK resource field are configured separately to indicate blind transmission with a fixed mode and blind transmission based on dynamic DCI. That is, the content shown in bold in Table 5 can be reused. Table 5 shows the HARQ-ACK resource field corresponding to the ACK / NACK subcarrier and subframe spacing k0 between the downlink scheduling DCI and the scheduled NPUSCH, with a subcarrier spacing of Δf = 3.75kHz.

[0097] Table 5: HARQ-ACK Resource Field

[0098]

[0099] At 410, the gNB 304 sends a DCI with a HARQ-ACK resource field of "0" to the UE 302. In this case, the UE determines that blind transmission with a fixed pattern is used for this downlink transmission.

[0100] At 415, gNB 304 sends a DCI with a HARQ-ACK resource field of "8" to UE 302. In this case, the UE determines that blind transmission based on dynamic DCI is used for this downlink transmission.

[0101] References Figure 2 All operations and features described are equally applicable to process 400 and have similar effects. For simplicity, details will be omitted.

[0102] Figure 5 A flowchart 500 of a method implemented at a terminal device 110 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. For the purpose of discussion, the method 500 will refer to Figure 1A It is described from the perspective of the terminal device 110 .

[0103] At block 510, the terminal device 110 receives downlink control information from the network device 120, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks associated with uplink transmission or downlink transmission on a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ process, the number of subframes of the transport block used for the transport block, and the number of repetitions for uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process. At block 520, the terminal device 110 obtains a threshold for determining whether HARQ feedback of the HARQ process is disabled or enabled. At block 530, the terminal device 110 determines the enabling state or disabling state of the HARQ feedback based on the threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport block, or the number of repetitions.

[0104] In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold is predefined or configured by a radio resource control message from the network device 120. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold includes a plurality of thresholds corresponding to a plurality of elevation angles, and the terminal device 110 obtains the threshold by obtaining the threshold from the plurality of thresholds based on the elevation angle between the terminal device 110 and the network device 120. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold includes a plurality of thresholds corresponding to a plurality of distances, and the terminal device 110 obtains the threshold by obtaining the threshold from the plurality of thresholds based on the distance between the terminal device 110 and the network device 120. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold is configured per HARQ process.

[0105] In some example embodiments, the terminal device 110 determines the enabled state or disabled state of the HARQ feedback by determining the disabled state of the HARQ feedback based on the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions being less than a threshold. In some example embodiments, information associated with blind retransmissions for the HARQ process is indicated in a HARQ confirmation resource field in the downlink control information. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the blind retransmission includes one of the following: a first indication that the blind retransmission is based on a fixed pattern; or a second indication that the blind retransmission is based on additional downlink control information. In some example embodiments, the value of the HARQ confirmation resource field is predefined or configured by a radio resource control message from the network device 120.

[0106] In some example embodiments, the terminal device 110 determines the enable state or disable state of the HARQ feedback by determining the enable state of the HARQ feedback based on whether the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions is greater than a threshold.

[0107] In some example embodiments, a flag is included in a radio resource control message from network device 120, the flag indicating an enable state or a disable state of determining HARQ feedback based on a threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for transport blocks, or the number of repetitions. In some example embodiments, the flag is configured per HARQ process.

[0108] In some example embodiments, the terminal device 110 determines the enablement state or the disablement state of the HARQ feedback by determining the enablement state or the disablement state of the HARQ feedback for the initial transmission of the HARQ process.

[0109] Figure 6 A flowchart 600 is shown of a method implemented at a network device 120 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. For the purpose of discussion, the method 600 will refer to Figure 1A It is described from the perspective of network device 120 .

[0110] At block 610, the network device 120 determines a threshold for determining whether a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ feedback of a HARQ process is disabled or enabled. At block 620, the network device 120 determines the enablement state or the disablement state of the HARQ feedback and the number of transport blocks associated with uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process, the number of subframes of the transport blocks used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for uplink transmission or downlink transmission on the HARQ process based at least on the threshold. At block 630, the network device 120 sends downlink control information for the HARQ process to the terminal device 110, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for the HARQ process.

[0111] In some example embodiments, network device 120 further transmits information associated with the threshold to terminal device 110 through a radio resource control message. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold includes a plurality of thresholds corresponding to a plurality of elevation angles. In some example embodiments, network device 120 determines the threshold by determining the threshold from a plurality of thresholds based on an elevation angle between terminal device 110 and network device 120. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold includes a plurality of thresholds corresponding to a plurality of distances. In some example embodiments, network device 120 determines the threshold by determining the threshold from a plurality of thresholds based on a distance between terminal device 110 and network device 120. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold is configured per HARQ process.

[0112] In some example embodiments, the network device 120 determines the enabled state or disabled state of the HARQ feedback by determining the disabled state of the HARQ feedback based on the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions being less than a threshold. In some example embodiments, information associated with blind retransmissions for the HARQ process is indicated in a HARQ confirmation resource field in the downlink control information. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the blind retransmission includes one of the following: a first indication that the blind retransmission is based on a fixed pattern; or a second indication that the blind retransmission is based on additional downlink control information. In some example embodiments, the value of the HARQ confirmation resource field is predefined or configured by a radio resource control message to the terminal device 110.

[0113] In some example embodiments, network device 120 determines the enablement state or the disablement state of the HARQ feedback according to the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions being greater than a threshold.

[0114] In some example embodiments, a flag is included in a radio resource control message to the terminal device 110, the flag indicating an enable state or a disable state of determining HARQ feedback based on a threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for transport blocks, or the number of repetitions. In some example embodiments, the flag is configured per HARQ process.

[0115] In some example embodiments, network device 120 determines the enablement state or disablement state of HARQ feedback by determining the enablement state or disablement state of HARQ feedback for an initial transmission of a HARQ process.

[0116] In some example embodiments, an apparatus capable of executing method 500 (e.g., terminal device 110) may include a component for executing the corresponding steps of method 500. The component may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the component may be implemented in the form of a circuit system or a software module.

[0117] In some example embodiments, the apparatus includes a component for receiving downlink control information from a network device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks associated with an uplink transmission or a downlink transmission on a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ process, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks in the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for the uplink transmission or the downlink transmission on the HARQ process; a component for obtaining a threshold for determining whether HARQ feedback of the HARQ process is disabled or enabled; and a component for determining an enabled state or a disabled state of the HARQ feedback based on the threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, or the number of repetitions.

[0118] In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold is predefined or configured by a radio resource control message from the network device. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold includes multiple thresholds corresponding to multiple elevation angles, and the means for obtaining the threshold includes: means for obtaining the threshold from the multiple thresholds based on the elevation angle between the terminal device and the network device. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold includes multiple thresholds corresponding to multiple distances, and the means for obtaining the threshold includes: means for obtaining the threshold from the multiple thresholds based on the distance between the terminal device and the network device. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold is configured per HARQ process.

[0119] In some example embodiments, the component for determining the enabled state or disabled state of HARQ feedback includes: a component for determining the disabled state of HARQ feedback based on the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes for transport blocks, and the number of repetitions being less than a threshold. In some example embodiments, information associated with blind retransmissions for the HARQ process is indicated in a HARQ confirmation resource field in the downlink control information. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the blind retransmission includes one of the following: a first indication that the blind retransmission is based on a fixed pattern; or a second indication that the blind retransmission is based on additional downlink control information. In some example embodiments, the value of the HARQ confirmation resource field is predefined or configured by a radio resource control message from a network device.

[0120] In some exemplary embodiments, the means for determining an enable state or a disable state of HARQ feedback includes: a means for determining the enable state of HARQ feedback according to a product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions being greater than a threshold.

[0121] In some example embodiments, a flag is included in a radio resource control message from a network device, the flag indicating an enable state or a disable state of determining HARQ feedback based on a threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for transport blocks, or the number of repetitions. In some example embodiments, the flag is configured per HARQ process.

[0122] In some example embodiments, the means for determining an enabled state or disabled state of HARQ feedback includes means for determining an enabled state or disabled state of HARQ feedback for an initial transmission of a HARQ process.

[0123] In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for performing other steps in some embodiments of method 500. In some embodiments, the means comprises at least one processor and at least one memory, the at least one memory comprising computer program code. The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to cause the performance of the apparatus together with the at least one processor.

[0124] In some example embodiments, an apparatus capable of executing method 600 (e.g., network device 120) may include a component for executing the corresponding steps of method 600. The component may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the component may be implemented in a circuit system or a software module.

[0125] In some example embodiments, the apparatus includes a component for determining a threshold value for determining whether hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a HARQ process is disabled or enabled; a component for determining an enabled state or a disabled state of the HARQ feedback and the number of transport blocks associated with an uplink transmission or a downlink transmission on the HARQ process, the number of subframes of the transport blocks used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for the uplink transmission or the downlink transmission on the HARQ process based at least on the threshold value; and a component for sending downlink control information for the HARQ process to a terminal device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for the HARQ process.

[0126] In some example embodiments, the apparatus further comprises: a component for sending information associated with the threshold to the terminal device via a radio resource control message. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold comprises a plurality of thresholds corresponding to a plurality of elevation angles. In some example embodiments, the component for determining the threshold comprises: a component for determining the threshold from a plurality of thresholds based on an elevation angle between the terminal device and the network device. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold comprises a plurality of thresholds corresponding to a plurality of distances. In some example embodiments, the component for determining the threshold comprises: a component for determining the threshold from a plurality of thresholds based on a distance between the terminal device and the network device. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the threshold is configured per HARQ process.

[0127] In some example embodiments, the component for determining the enabled state or disabled state of HARQ feedback includes: a component for determining the disabled state of HARQ feedback based on the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions being less than a threshold. In some example embodiments, information associated with blind retransmissions for the HARQ process is indicated in a HARQ confirmation resource field in the downlink control information. In some example embodiments, the information associated with the blind retransmission includes one of the following: a first indication that the blind retransmission is based on a fixed pattern; or a second indication that the blind retransmission is based on additional downlink control information. In some example embodiments, the value of the HARQ confirmation resource field is predefined or configured by a radio resource control message to a terminal device.

[0128] In some example embodiments, the means for determining an enabled state or disabled state of HARQ feedback includes: means for determining the enabled state of HARQ feedback according to the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions being greater than a threshold.

[0129] In some example embodiments, a flag is included in a radio resource control message to a terminal device, the flag indicating an enable state or a disable state of HARQ feedback based on a threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for transport blocks, or the number of repetitions. In some example embodiments, the flag is configured per HARQ process.

[0130] In some example embodiments, the means for determining an enabled state or disabled state of HARQ feedback includes means for determining an enabled state or disabled state of HARQ feedback for an initial transmission of a HARQ process.

[0131] In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for performing other steps in some embodiments of method 600. In some embodiments, the means comprises at least one processor and at least one memory, the at least one memory comprising computer program code. The at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to cause the performance of the apparatus together with the at least one processor.

[0132] Figure 7 700 is a simplified block diagram of a device suitable for implementing some example embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 700 may be provided to implement a communication device, such as Figure 1A The terminal device 110 or the network device 120 is shown. As shown in the figure, the device 700 includes one or more processors 710, one or more memories 720 coupled to the processor 710, and one or more communication modules 740 coupled to the processor 710.

[0133] The communication module 740 is used for two-way communication. The communication module 740 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication. The communication interface may represent any interface required to communicate with other network elements.

[0134] Processor 710 may be of any type suitable for the local technology network, and may include, as non-limiting examples, one or more of the following: a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Device 700 may have multiple processors, such as application specific integrated circuit chips, which are time-slaved to a clock synchronized with a main processor.

[0135] The memory 720 may include one or more non-volatile memories and one or more volatile memories. Examples of non-volatile memories include, but are not limited to, read-only memory (ROM) 724, electrically programmable read-only memory (EPROM), flash memory, hard disk, compact disk (CD), digital video disk (DVD), and other magnetic storage and / or optical storage. Examples of volatile memories include, but are not limited to, random access memory (RAM) 722 and other volatile memories that do not persist during the duration of a power outage.

[0136] The computer program 730 includes computer executable instructions that are executed by the associated processor 710. The program 730 may be stored in the ROM 724. The processor 710 may perform any appropriate actions and processes by loading the program 730 into the RAM 722.

[0137] The embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented by a program 730, so that the device 700 may execute the Figures 2 to 4 Any process of the present disclosure discussed. The embodiments of the present disclosure may also be implemented by hardware or a combination of software and hardware.

[0138] In some embodiments, the program 730 may be tangibly embodied in a computer-readable medium that may be included in the device 700 (such as in the memory 720) or in other storage devices accessible by the device 700. The device 700 may load the program 730 from the computer-readable medium to the RAM 722 for execution. The computer-readable medium may include any type of tangible non-volatile memory, such as ROM, EPROM, flash memory, hard disk, CD, DVD, etc.

[0139] Figure 8 800 according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. The computer readable medium 800 has a program 730 stored thereon. It should be noted that although Figure 8 Computer readable medium 800 is shown in the form of a CD or DVD, but computer readable medium 800 may be in any other form suitable for carrying or storing program 730.

[0140] In general, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or dedicated circuits, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software, which may be executed by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. Although various aspects of the embodiments of the present disclosure are shown and described as block diagrams, flow charts, or using some other graphical representations, it should be understood that, as non-limiting examples, the blocks, devices, systems, techniques, or methods described herein may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, dedicated circuits or logic, general hardware or controllers or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

[0141] The present disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer executable instructions, such as instructions included in a program module, which are executed in a device on a target real or virtual processor to perform the above referenced Figures 5 to 6 In any of the methods described in. Typically, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, etc. that perform specific tasks or implement specific abstract data types. The functions of program modules can be combined or split as needed in various embodiments. The machine executable instructions of program modules can be executed in local or distributed devices. In distributed devices, program modules can be located in both local and remote storage media.

[0142] The program code for executing the method of the present disclosure can be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. These program codes can be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer or other programmable data processing device so that the program code, when executed by the processor or controller, enables the functions / operations specified in the flow chart and / or block diagram to be implemented. The program code can be executed entirely on the machine, partially on the machine, as an independent software package, partially on the machine and partially on a remote machine, or completely on a remote machine or server.

[0143] In the context of the present disclosure, computer program codes or related data may be carried by any suitable carrier to enable a device, apparatus or processor to perform various processes and operations as described above. Examples of carriers include signals, computer readable media, etc.

[0144] The computer-readable medium may be a computer-readable signal medium or a computer-readable storage medium. The computer-readable medium may include, but is not limited to, electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared or semiconductor systems, devices or apparatuses, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples of computer-readable storage media would include an electrical connection with one or more wires, a portable computer disk, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. The term "non-transient" as used herein is a limitation on the medium itself (i.e., tangible, not a signal), not a limitation on the persistence of data storage (e.g., RAM vs. ROM).

[0145] In addition, although the operation is described in a specific order, it should not be understood that such operation is required to be performed in the specific order shown or in a sequential order, or that all the operations shown require to be performed to achieve the desired result. In some cases, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, although some specific implementation details are included in the above discussion, these details should not be interpreted as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but should be interpreted as descriptions of features that may be specific to a particular embodiment. Certain features described in the context of separate embodiments may also be combined in a single embodiment. On the contrary, the various features described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented separately or in any suitable sub-combination in multiple embodiments.

[0146] Although the present disclosure has been described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological acts, it should be understood that the present disclosure defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Instead, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

1. A terminal device, comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the terminal device to at least: receiving downlink control information from a network device, the downlink control information indicating a number of transport blocks associated with an uplink transmission or a downlink transmission on a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process, a number of subframes of a transport block for the transport block, and a repetition number for the uplink transmission or the downlink transmission on the HARQ process; Obtaining a threshold for determining whether HARQ feedback for the HARQ process is disabled or enabled; as well as An enabling state or a disabling state of the HARQ feedback is determined based on the threshold and at least one of: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes for the transport block, or the number of repetitions. 2 . The terminal device according to claim 1 , wherein information associated with the threshold is predefined or configured by a radio resource control message from the network device.

3. The terminal device according to claim 2, wherein the information associated with the threshold comprises: a plurality of thresholds corresponding to a plurality of elevation angles, and wherein the terminal device is caused to obtain the thresholds by: The threshold is obtained from the plurality of thresholds based on an elevation angle between the terminal device and the network device.

4. The terminal device according to claim 2, wherein the information associated with the threshold comprises: A plurality of thresholds corresponding to a plurality of distances, and wherein the terminal device is caused to obtain the thresholds by: The threshold is obtained from the plurality of thresholds based on the distance between the terminal device and the network device.

5. The terminal device according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the information associated with the threshold is configured for each HARQ process.

6. The terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the terminal device determines the enabling state or the disabling state of the HARQ feedback by: The disabling state of the HARQ feedback is determined according to that a product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions is less than the threshold.

7. The terminal device according to claim 6, wherein information associated with blind retransmission for the HARQ process is indicated in a HARQ acknowledgement resource field in the downlink control information.

8. The terminal device according to claim 7, wherein the information associated with the blind retransmission comprises one of the following items: The blind retransmission is based on a first indication of a fixed pattern; or The blind retransmission is based on a second indication of the further downlink control information.

9. The terminal device according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the value of the HARQ acknowledgment resource field is predefined or configured by a radio resource control message from the network device.

10. The terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the terminal device determines the enabling state or the disabling state of the HARQ feedback by: The enabling state of the HARQ feedback is determined according to that a product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions is greater than the threshold.

11. A terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein a flag is included in a radio resource control message from the network device, and the flag indicates that the enabling state or the disabling state of the HARQ feedback is determined based on the threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of the transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, or the number of repetitions.

12. The terminal device according to claim 11, wherein the flag is configured for each HARQ process.

13. The terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the terminal device determines the enabling state or the disabling state of the HARQ feedback by: Determining the enabling state or the disabling state of the HARQ feedback for initial transmission of the HARQ process.

14. A network device comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory storing instructions, which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the network device to at least: determining a threshold value, the threshold value being used to determine whether hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a HARQ process is disabled or enabled; Determining, based at least on the threshold, an enabling state or a disabling state of the HARQ feedback and a number of transport blocks associated with an uplink transmission or a downlink transmission on a HARQ process, a number of subframes of a transport block for the transport block, and a repetition number for the uplink transmission or the downlink transmission on the HARQ process; as well as Downlink control information for the HARQ process is sent to a terminal device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for the HARQ process.

15. The network device of claim 14, wherein the network device is further configured to: Information associated with the threshold is sent to the terminal device via a radio resource control message.

16. The network device of claim 15, wherein the information associated with the threshold comprises: Multiple thresholds corresponding to multiple elevation angles.

17. The network device of claim 16, wherein the network device is caused to determine the threshold by: The threshold is determined from the plurality of thresholds based on an elevation angle between the terminal device and the network device.

18. The network device of claim 15, wherein the information associated with the threshold comprises: Multiple thresholds corresponding to multiple distances.

19. The network device of claim 18, wherein the network device is caused to determine the threshold by: The threshold is determined from the plurality of thresholds based on a distance between the terminal device and the network device.

20. The network device according to any one of claims 15 to 19, wherein the information associated with the threshold is configured for each HARQ process.

21. The network device of claim 14, wherein the network device is caused to determine the enabling state or the disabling state of the HARQ feedback by: The disabling state of the HARQ feedback is determined according to that the product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks and the repetition number is less than the threshold.

22. The network device of claim 21, wherein information associated with blind retransmission for the HARQ process is indicated in a HARQ acknowledgement resource field in the downlink control information.

23. The network device of claim 22, wherein the information associated with the blind retransmission comprises one of the following: The blind retransmission is based on a first indication of a fixed pattern; or The blind retransmission is based on a second indication of the further downlink control information.

24. The network device according to claim 22 or 23, wherein the value of the HARQ acknowledgment resource field is predefined or configured by a radio resource control message to the terminal device.

25. The network device according to any one of claims 14 to 24, wherein the network device determines the enabling state or the disabling state of the HARQ feedback by: The enabling state of the HARQ feedback is determined according to that a product of the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions is greater than the threshold.

26. A network device according to any one of claims 14 to 25, wherein a flag is included in a radio resource control message to the terminal device, the flag indicating that the enabling state or the disabling state of the HARQ feedback is determined based on the threshold and at least one of the following items: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, or the number of repetitions.

27. The network device of claim 26, wherein the flag is configured for each HARQ process.

28. The network device according to any one of claims 14 to 27, wherein the network device is caused to determine the enabling state or the disabling state of the HARQ feedback by: Determining the enabling state or the disabling state of the HARQ feedback for initial transmission of the HARQ process.

29. A method comprising: receiving, at a terminal device, downlink control information from a network device, the downlink control information indicating a number of transport blocks associated with an uplink transmission or a downlink transmission on a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process, a number of subframes of a transport block for the transport block, and a repetition number for the uplink transmission or the downlink transmission on the HARQ process; Obtaining a threshold for determining whether HARQ feedback for the HARQ process is disabled or enabled; as well as An enabling state or a disabling state of the HARQ feedback is determined based on the threshold and at least one of: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes for the transport block, or the number of repetitions.

30. A method comprising: Determining a threshold at a network device, the threshold being used to determine whether hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a HARQ process is disabled or enabled; Determining, based at least on the threshold, an enabling state or a disabling state of the HARQ feedback and a number of transport blocks associated with an uplink transmission or a downlink transmission on a HARQ process, a number of subframes of a transport block for the transport block, and a repetition number for the uplink transmission or the downlink transmission on the HARQ process; as well as Downlink control information for the HARQ process is sent to a terminal device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for the HARQ process.

31. An apparatus comprising: means for receiving, at a terminal device, downlink control information from a network device, the downlink control information indicating a number of transport blocks associated with an uplink transmission or a downlink transmission on a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process, a number of transport block subframes for the transport blocks, and a repetition number for the uplink transmission or the downlink transmission on the HARQ process; means for obtaining a threshold for determining whether HARQ feedback for the HARQ process is disabled or enabled; as well as means for determining an enabled state or a disabled state of the HARQ feedback based on the threshold and at least one of: the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes for the transport block, or the number of repetitions.

32. An apparatus comprising: means for determining, at a network device, a threshold for determining whether hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback for a HARQ process is disabled or enabled; means for determining, based at least on the threshold, an enabled state or disabled state of the HARQ feedback and a number of transport blocks associated with an uplink transmission or a downlink transmission on a HARQ process, a number of subframes of a transport block for the transport block, and a repetition number for the uplink transmission or the downlink transmission on the HARQ process; as well as Means for sending downlink control information for the HARQ process to a terminal device, the downlink control information indicating the number of transport blocks, the number of subframes used for the transport blocks, and the number of repetitions for the HARQ process.

33. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to at least perform the method according to claim 29 or 30.

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