Method and apparatus for supporting physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) repetition

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention relates to a method and equipment for supporting physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) repetition. In accordance with an embodiment of the present application, an example method comprises: receiving a first signaling indicating a first number of repetitions of a PUCCH resource; determining a second number of repetitions equal to or less than the first number of repetitions based on the first number of repetitions; determining a time-frequency domain resource for each repetition of the PUCCH resource; and transmitting the PUCCH resource having the second number of repetitions based on the determined time-frequency domain resource.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present application generally relate to wireless communication techniques, and more particularly, to mechanisms for supporting a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), such as supporting PUCCH repetition (or PUCCH with repetitions, or repetitions for PUCCH). Background Art

[0002] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various telecommunication services, such as telephony, video, data, messaging, broadcast, etc. Wireless communication systems may employ multiple access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of wireless communication systems may include fourth generation (4G) systems (e.g., long term evolution (LTE) systems, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) systems, or LTE-A Pro systems) and fifth generation (5G) systems, which may also be referred to as new radio (NR) systems.

[0003] Although the PUCCH repetition mechanism has been applied to improve the robustness of PUCCH transmission, there are still several issues to be resolved regarding PUCCH repetition in NR. For example, it has been agreed in the RAN1_110bise meeting that common PUCCH resources will support PUCCH repetition before radio resource control (RRC) configuration (e.g., Msg 4 Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ)-Acknowledgement (ACK)), and how to support it will be studied. In another example, PUCCH repetition in non-terrestrial networks (NTNs) also needs to be considered.

[0004] Therefore, it is desirable to provide a technical solution for improving the PUCCH repetition mechanism to adapt to industry trends. Summary of the invention

[0005] One objective of the embodiments of the present application is to provide a technical solution for supporting PUCCH repetition, in particular, a method and device for supporting PUCCH repetition, which can support PUCCH repetition for common PUCCH resources before RRC configuration and / or improve PUCCH repetition in NTN scenarios.

[0006] Some embodiments of the present application provide a device (e.g., UE), comprising: a transceiver; and a processor coupled to the transceiver, wherein the processor is configured to: receive first signaling indicating a first number of repetitions of a PUCCH resource; determine a second number of repetitions that is equal to or less than the first number of repetitions based on the first number of repetitions; determine time-frequency domain resources for each repetition of the PUCCH resource; and transmit the PUCCH resource with the second number of repetitions based on the determined time-frequency domain resources.

[0007] Some other embodiments of the present application provide a method (for example, a method performed in a UE), which includes: receiving first signaling indicating a first number of repetitions of a PUCCH resource; determining a second number of repetitions that is equal to or less than the first number of repetitions based on the first number of repetitions; determining time-frequency domain resources for each repetition of the PUCCH resource; and transmitting the PUCCH resource with the second number of repetitions based on the determined time-frequency domain resources.

[0008] In some embodiments of the present application, the first signaling indicating the first repetition number is system information or downlink control information.

[0009] In some embodiments of the present application, the first repetition number is indicated by a HARQ timing indicator.

[0010] In some embodiments of the present application, the starting position of the time-frequency domain resources for the PUCCH resources with a second repetition number of N (N>=1) is the following: the position corresponding to every N time-frequency domain resources.

[0011] In some embodiments of the present application, the starting position of the time-frequency domain resources used for the PUCCH resources having the second repetition number is indicated by a second signaling, or selected by a remote side.

[0012] In some embodiments of the present application, the first repetition number is determined based on a reception row index associated with the repetition number of the PUCCH in a configured or predefined table.

[0013] In some embodiments of the present application, the first repetition number is determined based on the repetition number of Msg A, Msg 3 or a physical random access channel (PRACH).

[0014] In some embodiments of the present application, the processor is configured to: transmit information indicating a request for PUCCH repetition or information indicating the number of PUCCH repetitions before determining the first number of repetitions. According to some embodiments of the present application, the information indicating a request for PUCCH repetition is one of: PRACH repetition; a repetition request for Msg A or Msg 3; at least one bit in Msg A or Msg 3; or a specific PRACH resource.

[0015] In some embodiments of the present application, the second number of repetitions is determined based on at least one of: a reference signal received power (RSRP); a satellite position; a satellite elevation angle; a timing advance value; or a distance between a satellite and a remote side. According to some embodiments of the present application, the processor is configured to: receive information indicating at least one threshold associated with the second number of repetitions: an RSRP threshold; a satellite position threshold; a satellite elevation angle threshold; a timing advance value threshold; or a distance threshold between a satellite and a remote side.

[0016] In some embodiments of the present application, the time-frequency domain resources used for each repetition of the PUCCH resources are at a time slot level or a symbol level.

[0017] According to some embodiments of the present application, when the time-frequency domain resources used for each repetition are at the symbol level, a symbol-level gap between adjacent repetitions will be configured or predefined.

[0018] According to some embodiments of the present application, for each repetition of the PUCCH resources, when the time-frequency domain resources used for each repetition are symbol-level and the remaining available symbols in the time slot excluding the symbol-level gap are less than the number of symbols used for the repetition of the PUCCH resources, the repetition will start from the next time slot.

[0019] According to some embodiments of the present application, whether the time-frequency domain resource for each repetition of the PUCCH resource is at a slot level or a symbol level is configured or determined by one of the following: the number of symbols used for each repetition; a HARQ timing indicator; or a HARQ resource indicator. In some scenarios, in the case where whether the time-frequency domain resource for each repetition of the PUCCH resource is at a slot level or a symbol level is determined by the HARQ resource indicator, the number of HARQ resources associated with the HARQ resource indicator will be reduced from the number of HARQ resources associated with the HARQ resource indicator that does not indicate a slot level or a symbol level. For example, the number of HARQ resources will be reduced by at least one of the following: reducing the number of resource block (RB) positions; reducing the number of orthogonal cover code (OCC) sequences; reducing the number of cyclic shift (CS) values.

[0020] According to some embodiments of the present application, the corresponding interpretation of the HARQ timing indicator is based on whether there is a repeated request transmitted from the remote side.

[0021] According to some embodiments of the present application, the corresponding interpretation of the HARQ resource indicator is based on whether there is a repeated request transmitted from the remote side.

[0022] According to some embodiments of the present application, the corresponding interpretation of the table is based on whether there is a repeated request transmitted from the remote side.

[0023] Some other embodiments of the present application provide another device (e.g., a gNB), comprising: a transceiver; and a processor coupled to the transceiver, wherein the processor is configured to: transmit a first signaling indicating a first number of repetitions of a PUCCH resource; determine a second number of repetitions that is equal to or less than the first number of repetitions based on the first signaling; determine a time-frequency domain resource for each repetition of the PUCCH resource; and receive the PUCCH resource with the second number of repetitions based on the determined time-frequency domain resources.

[0024] In summary, the embodiments of the present application provide a technical solution to support PUCCH repetition (for example, supporting repetition for common PUCCH resources before RRC configuration), which improves the PUCCH repetition mechanism and will facilitate the deployment and implementation of NR. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] In order to describe the manner in which the advantages and features of the present disclosure can be obtained, the description of the present disclosure is presented by reference to specific embodiments of the present disclosure, which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. These drawings depict only exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure and therefore should not be considered as limiting the scope thereof.

[0026] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary wireless communication system according to some embodiments of the present application.

[0027] Figure 2 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary process of a method for supporting PUCCH repetition according to some embodiments of the present application.

[0028] Figure 3 A schematic diagram illustrating example PUCCH resources with symbol-level repetition according to some embodiments of the present application.

[0029] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram illustrating possible starting positions of time-frequency domain resources for PUCCH repetition under Rule 1 according to some embodiments of the present application.

[0030] Figure 5 A block diagram illustrating an example device supporting PUCCH repetition according to some embodiments of the present application.

[0031] Figure 6 A block diagram illustrating an exemplary device supporting PUCCH repetition according to some other embodiments of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] The detailed description of the drawings is intended as a description of the preferred embodiments of the present application and is not intended to represent the only form in which the present application can be practiced. It should be understood that the same or equivalent functions can be achieved by different embodiments intended to be included in the spirit and scope of the present application.

[0033] Reference will now be made in detail to some embodiments of the present application, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. To facilitate understanding, embodiments are provided under specific network architectures and new service scenarios (e.g., 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) 5G, 3GPP LTE, etc.). It is considered that all embodiments in the present application are also applicable to similar technical problems as network architectures and new service scenarios develop; and in addition, the terms described in the present application may be changed, which should not affect the principles of the present application.

[0034] Figure 1 A schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary wireless communication system 100 according to some embodiments of the present application.

[0035] like Figure 1 As shown in FIG. 1 , a wireless communication system 100 includes a UE 103 and a base station (BS) 101. Although for simplicity, Figure 1 Only one BS is described in FIG. 1 , but it is considered that in some other embodiments of the present application, the wireless communication system 100 may include more BSs. Similarly, although for simplicity, in Figure 1 Only one UE is illustrated in the figure, but it is considered that in some other embodiments of the present application, the wireless communication system 100 may include more UEs.

[0036] The wireless communication system 100 is compatible with any type of network capable of sending and receiving wireless communication signals. For example, the wireless communication system 100 is compatible with wireless communication networks, cellular telephone networks, networks based on time division multiple access (TDMA), networks based on code division multiple access (CDMA), networks based on orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), LTE networks, networks based on 3GPP, 3GPP 5G networks, satellite communication networks, high altitude platform networks, and / or other communication networks.

[0037] BS 101 may also be referred to as an access point, an access terminal, a base, a macro cell, a Node B, an enhanced Node B (eNB), a gNB, a home Node B, a relay node or a device, or described using other terms used in the art. BS 101 is typically part of a radio access network that may include a controller communicatively coupled to BS 101.

[0038] UE 103 may include a computing device, such as a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a tablet computer, a smart TV (e.g., a TV connected to the Internet), a set-top box, a game console, a security system (including a security camera), a car computer, a network device (e.g., a router, a switch, and a modem), or the like. According to an embodiment of the present application, UE 103 may include a portable wireless communication device, a smart phone, a cellular phone, a flip phone, a device with a subscriber identity module, a personal computer, a selective call receiver, or any other device capable of sending and receiving communication signals on a wireless network. In some embodiments of the present application, UE 103 may include a wearable device, such as a smart watch, a fitness bracelet, an optical head-mounted display, or the like. In addition, UE 103 may be referred to as a subscriber unit, a mobile device, a mobile station, a user, a terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a fixed terminal, a subscriber station, a user terminal, or a device, or described using other terms used in the art.

[0039] In some scenarios, in order to expand the coverage and availability of wireless communication systems (e.g., 5G systems), satellites and high-altitude platforms may be used as relay devices in communications associated with ground devices (e.g., UEs). A network or network segment using radio frequency (RF) resources on a satellite or an aerial vehicle may be referred to as an NTN. In an NTN, some or all functions of a BS may be deployed in a satellite or an aerial vehicle. That is, in an NTN, a satellite may also be referred to as a BS. Exemplary satellites include low earth orbit (LEO) satellites, medium earth orbit (MEO) satellites, geosynchronous earth orbit (GEO) satellites, and high elliptical orbit (HEO) satellites, etc. In some embodiments of the present application, alternatively, a satellite may be an unmanned aircraft system (UAS) platform. (Several) UAS platforms may include tethered UAS and lighter-than-air (LTA) UAS, heavier-than-air (HTA) UAS, and high-altitude platform (HAP) UAS.

[0040] Since 3GPP Release 15, a PUCCH repetition mechanism with inter-slot hopping has been supported for improving the robustness of PUCCH transmission, and the mechanism has been drafted in the 3GPP standard document TS 38.213. However, the old PUCCH repetition mechanism is only for dedicated PUCCH resources, where PUCCH repetition can be configured at the slot level, and for PUCCH repetition, the symbol occupancy at each slot is the same. For common PUCCH resources before RRC configuration or PUCCH for Msg 4, there is no PUCCH repetition. It is necessary to solve the problems of how to determine the number of repetitions of common PUCCH resources before RRC configuration, and how to indicate the number of repetitions of common PUCCH resources before RRC configuration. In addition, the characteristics of NTN are not considered in the old PUCCH repetition mechanism. It is also necessary to consider whether PUCCH repetition in NTN will be improved.

[0041] At least in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, an embodiment of the present application proposes a technical solution for supporting PUCCH repetition, such as a method and device for supporting PUCCH repetition.

[0042] Figure 2 1 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary process of a method for supporting PUCCH repetition according to some embodiments of the present application. Although the method is described at a system level including a BS (e.g., gNB) in a network side and a remote device (e.g., UE) in a remote side, a person skilled in the art should understand that the methods implemented in the network side and the remote side can be implemented separately and / or combined by other devices with similar functions.

[0043] refer to Figure 2 In step 201, a BS or the like (e.g., a gNB) may, for example, transmit to a UE or the like a first signaling indicating a first number of repetitions of a PUCCH resource (or a first number of repetitions of a PUCCH). Therefore, in step 202, the UE will receive a first signaling indicating a first number of repetitions of a PUCCH resource. For example, in the case of a cell-specific configuration for PUCCH repetition, the gNB may actively indicate the first number of repetitions of the PUCCH to the UE. In some other scenarios, such as in the case of a UE-specific configuration for PUCCH repetition, the gNB may indicate the first number of repetitions of the PUCCH to the UE in response to receiving relevant information indicating a request for repetition of the PUCCH or indicating the number of repetitions of the PUCCH.

[0044] The first repetition number may be 1, 2, 4, 8 or other non-zero integers, which means that there will be 1, 2, 4, 8 or other non-zero integer transmissions of PUCCH resources from the remote side. The first signaling may be various signalings that may directly or indirectly indicate the first repetition number of PUCCH, such as system information, RRC, medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) or downlink control information (DCI), etc. For example, the gNB may directly indicate that the first repetition number of PUCCH is 2 in the system information or HARQ timing indicator. In another example, the gNB may indirectly indicate the first repetition number of PUCCH by indicating a row index associated with the repetition number of PUCCH in a configured or predefined table or by indicating the repetition number of Msg A, Msg 3 or PRACH, etc.; and the UE shall determine the first repetition number of PUCCH based on the indicated row index or the indicated repetition number of Msg A, Msg 3 or PRACH, etc. An exemplary configured or predefined table is a table evolved from the legacy Table 9.2.1-1 "PUCCH resource sets before dedicated PUCCH resource configuration" in TS 38.213 or similar, where one or more row indices of the configured or predefined table are associated with corresponding repetition number(s) of PUCCH.

[0045] The second number of repetitions preferred or used by the UE will be determined (or selected) by the gNB in ​​step 203 and by the UE in step 204 based on the first number of repetitions. The first number of repetitions of the PUCCH indicated by the gNB may not be preferred by the UE, especially when the UE has not requested the first number of repetitions in advance. Therefore, the second number of repetitions may be different from the first number of repetitions, which is equal to or less than the first number of repetitions. For example, the first number of repetitions of the PUCCH is determined by the gNB in ​​a cell-specific manner considering the UE with the worst channel condition in the cell. Then, for a specific UE that receives the first number of repetitions considering the worst channel condition, it may perform PUCCH repetition only with its preferred number of repetitions (which is equal to or less than the first number of repetitions).

[0046] The second number of repetitions may be determined in various ways. For example, the second number of repetitions may be determined based on RSRP as in the old case. In another example, at least one characteristic of the NTN may also be considered when determining the second number of repetitions, such as satellite position, satellite elevation angle, timing advance value, or distance between the satellite and the remote side. In some scenarios, at least one threshold associated with the second number of repetitions may be configured. For example, the gNB may transmit information indicating at least one threshold associated with the second number of repetitions to the UE, the information including but not limited to: RSRP threshold; satellite position threshold; satellite elevation threshold; timing advance value threshold; or distance threshold between the satellite and the remote side (or UE). In some scenarios, such as in the case of UE-specific configuration for PUCCH repetition, the UE may use at least one threshold to determine whether PUCCH repetition is necessary or to determine the preferred number of PUCCH repetitions.

[0047] Those skilled in the art should be aware that, for the sake of clarity, the terms (such as “first” and “second”, etc.) in this document are only used to distinguish similar features or elements, etc., and should not be regarded as limiting the scope of the technical solution.

[0048] In step 206, the UE will determine the time-frequency domain resources for each repetition of the PUCCH resources; and then transmit the PUCCH resources with the second repetition number based on the determined time-frequency domain resources in step 208. Consistently, in step 207, the gNB will determine the time-frequency domain resources for each repetition of the PUCCH resources; and then receive the PUCCH resources with the second repetition number based on the determined time-frequency domain resources in step 209. Since the first repetition number may be different from the second repetition number, blind detection at the gNB side is necessary for receiving the PUCCH resources with the second repetition number in some scenarios (e.g., configuring the PUCCH repetition in a cell-specific manner).

[0049] The time-frequency domain resources used for each repetition of the PUCCH resource can be determined in various ways. For example, the starting position of the time-frequency domain resources for the PUCCH resource with a repetition number of N (N>=1) is the following: the position corresponding to every N time-frequency domain resources. In another example, the starting position of the time-frequency domain resources for the PUCCH resource with a repetition number is indicated by the second signaling from the gNB, or is selected by the remote side (e.g., UE).

[0050] An exemplary time-frequency domain resource for each repetition is a group of symbols including one or more symbols, and the symbol is at the slot level or symbol level (or each repetition of the PUCCH is at the slot level or symbol level). In the case where the time-frequency domain resource for each repetition is at the slot level (i.e., each repetition of the PUCCH is at the slot level, also referred to as slot-level repetition), the old slot-level repetition mechanism can be similarly applied.

[0051] When the time-frequency domain resources used for each repetition are symbol-level (i.e., each repetition of PUCCH is symbol-level, also referred to as symbol-level repetition), the old Table 9.2.1-1 in TS 38.213 or similar will be used to determine the starting symbol in the first slot for the first repetition of PUCCH with several repetitions. In some scenarios, the second repetition of PUCCH with several repetitions will follow the first repetition, and so on, i.e., there is no gap or there is a zero gap between adjacent repetitions of PUCCH. In some other scenarios, in the case where each repetition of PUCCH is symbol-level, the symbol-level gap between adjacent repetitions will be configured or predefined, where no gap or zero gap can be regarded as a special case of symbol-level gap. For symbol-level repetition, in the case where the remaining available symbols in the slot excluding the symbol-level gap are less than the number of symbols used for the repetition of PUCCH resources, the repetition will start from the next slot.

[0052] Figure 3 A schematic diagram illustrating example PUCCH resources with symbol-level repetition according to some embodiments of the present application.

[0053] refer to Figure 3 , assuming that in scenario (a) or scenario (b), there is no gap (or there is zero gap) between two adjacent repetitions of PUCCH resources with symbol-level repetition. Each time slot (e.g., time slot #0 or time slot #1 in scenarios (a) and (b)) includes 14 symbols.

[0054] Specifically, in scenario (a), there is a PUCCH resource with 4 symbol-level repetitions, and each symbol-level repetition occupies 4 symbols. The first repetition of the PUCCH resource starts from the fifth symbol in slot #0. Then, after the second repetition, there are only 2 remaining symbols in slot #0, which is less than the 4 symbols of the symbol-level repetition. Therefore, the third repetition will start from the first symbol in slot #1 instead of the thirteenth symbol in slot #0.

[0055] Similarly, in scenario (b), there is a PUCCH resource with 8 symbol-level repetitions, and each symbol-level repetition occupies 2 symbols. The first repetition of the PUCCH resource starts from the fifth symbol in slot #0. Then, after the fifth repetition, there are no remaining symbols in slot #0. Therefore, the sixth repetition will start from the first symbol in slot #1.

[0056] Compared with the slot-level repetition mechanism, the symbol-level repetition mechanism can reduce latency. In some scenarios (e.g., indicating the first repetition number of PUCCH in a UE-specific manner), the UE needs to distinguish whether to configure slot-level repetition or symbol-level repetition, which can be achieved in various ways.

[0057] According to some embodiments of the present application, whether the time-frequency domain resource for each repetition of the PUCCH resource is at the time slot level or the symbol level is configured by system information, for example. According to some other embodiments of the present application, whether the time-frequency domain resource for each repetition of the PUCCH resource is at the time slot level or the symbol level is determined based on relevant information, such as based on the number of symbols used for each repetition, or based on a HARQ timing indicator, or based on a HARQ resource indicator, etc.

[0058] For example, whether to configure slot-level PUCCH repetition or symbol-level PUCCH repetition is determined based on the number of symbols used for each repetition of PUCCH. If the number of symbols is 2 or 4, it is symbol-level repetition; otherwise, it is slot-level repetition.

[0059] In another example, whether to configure slot-level PUCCH repetition or symbol-level PUCCH repetition is determined based on 1 bit (or more bits) in the HARQ timing indicator, which may be an existing bit in the legacy HARQ timing indicator reused to indicate symbol-level repetition or slot-level repetition. In the case where the HARQ timing indicator is used to indicate symbol-level repetition or slot-level repetition and is also used to indicate the first repetition number of PUCCH, the HARQ timing indicator may fail to indicate the time delay between Msg 4 (or Msg B) and the corresponding common PUCCH after Msg 4 (or Msg B). In this case, a default time delay will be adopted.

[0060] In yet another example, whether to configure slot-level PUCCH repetition or symbol-level PUCCH repetition is determined based on 1 bit (or more bits) in the HARQ resource indicator, which may be an existing bit in the legacy HARQ resource indicator reused to indicate symbol-level repetition or slot-level repetition. In this case, the number of HARQ resources associated with the HARQ resource indicator will be reduced from the number of HARQ resources associated with the HARQ resource indicator that does not indicate slot-level or symbol-level (e.g., the legacy HARQ resource indicator). For example, based on the legacy Table 9.2.1-1 in TS 38.213, the available HARQ resources for PUCCH resource selection will be 8 instead of 16. The number of HARQ resources will be reduced in various ways, such as by at least one of: reducing the number of RB positions; reducing the number of OCC sequences; or reducing the number of CS values.

[0061] In the case of improving or reusing an old table (e.g., Table 9.2.1-1 in TS 38.213) or (several) indicators (e.g., HARQ timing indicator or HARQ resource indicator) to indicate information related to the repetition of PUCCH (e.g., indicating the number of PUCCH repetitions, indicating whether PUCCH repetitions exist, or indicating whether symbol-level repetitions or slot-level repetitions are configured, etc.), how to correctly interpret the received information associated with the table or (several) indicators is important, because the old table or (several) indicators may also be applicable to the case of no PUCCH repetitions. According to some embodiments of the present application, the corresponding interpretation is based on whether there is a repetition request transmitted from the remote side. For example, the corresponding interpretation associated with the received row index in the configured or predefined table of "PUCCH resource set before dedicated PUCCH resource configuration" is based on whether there is a repetition request transmitted from the remote side. The new table will be used only when the UE reports that its preferred number of repetitions is greater than 1 or when the UE reports that PUCCH repetition is necessary; otherwise, the old table will be applied and there will be no PUCCH repetition.

[0062] The following will describe more detailed embodiments of the present application in terms of PUCCH repetitions configured in a cell-specific manner and in a UE-specific manner. Although for the sake of clarity, different exemplary embodiments are described with focus on specific scenarios, those skilled in the art can also apply the embodiments in various scenarios based on the disclosure and teachings of the present application.

[0063] In some embodiments of the present application, PUCCH repetition is configured for UE in a cell-specific manner (also referred to as cell-specific repetition number configuration of PUCCH). The PUCCH resources and corresponding time domain offsets of each UE can be determined as in the old version or based on symbol-level repetition. Only the number of PUCCH repetitions will be determined according to the relevant cell-specific configuration and the UE itself.

[0064] For example, the gNB may configure a first repetition number for the PUCCH in the system information, and the first repetition number may be determined taking into account the UE with the worst channel condition in the associated cell.

[0065] After receiving the first repetition number of PUCCH, the specific UE will determine the preferred repetition number (second repetition number) of PUCCH based on the first repetition number, and the preferred repetition number is equal to or less than the first repetition number. The specific UE can perform PUCCH at its determined repetition number.

[0066] The gNB will also attempt to determine the second number of repetitions for a specific UE. However, blind detection at the gNB side is necessary. The time domain resources reserved for PUCCH repetition will be based on the first number of repetitions. The time domain resources actually occupied by PUCCH repetition will be determined based on the configuration of the relevant PUCCH resources, the second number of repetitions, and whether slot-level repetition or symbol-level repetition is configured. In order to mitigate blind detection at the gNB side, according to some embodiments of the present application, there are some restrictions or rules on the time domain resources used for PUCCH repetition, such as some restrictions or rules on the starting position of the time-frequency domain resources used for PUCCH repetition. The gNB will start blind detection based on the determined starting position of the time-frequency domain resources.

[0067] For example, in some embodiments of the present application, the starting position of the occupied time-frequency domain resources will be explicitly indicated by the gNB, such as by the HARQ timing indicator in the DCI. In some other embodiments of the present application, the starting position of the occupied time-frequency domain resources will be selected by the UE, and the starting position can be randomly decoded by the gNB and will be blindly decoded by the gNB.

[0068] An exemplary rule (Rule 1) for the starting position of the time domain resources for PUCCH repetition is: for PUCCH resources with a second repetition number of N (N>=1), the possible starting position of the time-frequency domain resources includes: the position corresponding to every N time-frequency domain resources. That is, the possible starting position of the occupied time-frequency domain resources is one of the positions corresponding to every N time-frequency domain resources.

[0069] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram illustrating possible starting positions of time-frequency domain resources for PUCCH repetition under Rule 1 according to some embodiments of the present application.

[0070] refer to Figure 4 , assuming that 8 time-frequency domain resources are occupied for PUCCH repetition. The exemplary repetition number 8 is configured in a cell-specific manner.

[0071] In scenario (a), the number of repetitions is 1, and the possible starting positions will be in time-frequency domain resources 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7, and the gNB will likely start blind detection in time-frequency domain resources 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7. In scenario (b), the second number of repetitions is 2, the possible starting positions will be in time-frequency domain resources 0, 2, 4, and 6, and the gNB will likely start blind detection in time-frequency domain resources 0, 2, 4, and 6. In scenario (c), the second number of repetitions is 4, the possible starting positions will be in time-frequency domain resources 0 and 4, and the gNB will likely start blind detection in time-frequency domain resources 0 and 4. In scenario (d), the second number of repetitions is 8, the possible starting positions will only be in time-frequency domain resource 0, and the gNB will only start blind detection in time-frequency domain resource 0.

[0072] PUCCH repetition configured in a UE-specific manner

[0073] In some embodiments of the present application, PUCCH repetition is configured for UE in a UE-specific manner (also referred to as UE-specific repetition number configuration for PUCCH). PUCCH repetition configured in a UE-specific manner will avoid resource waste at the network side, because PUCCH resource reservation will not always consider the worst UE with the maximum repetition number.

[0074] In some scenarios, for example when the gNB receives information from the UE indicating that the number of repetitions of PUCCH is greater than 1, only the number of repetitions greater than 1 will be configured for PUCCH in a UE-specific manner.

[0075] In some other scenarios, for example where the gNB receives information from the UE indicating that repetition of the PUCCH is requested or with any repetition number including 1, any repetition number may be configured for the PUCCH in a UE-specific manner.

[0076] The gNB may indicate the number of PUCCH repetitions (the first number of repetitions) to the UE in a UE-specific manner.

[0077] For example, the number of PUCCH repetitions (e.g., a number greater than 1) is indicated by the HARQ timing indicator in the DCI. The exemplary HARQ timing indicator used to indicate the number of PUCCH repetitions is reusing the legacy HARQ timing indicator. The legacy HARQ timing indicator has 3 bits to indicate the time domain offset between Msg 4 (or Msg B) and the subsequent PUCCH. When the HARQ timing indicator is used to indicate the number of PUCCH repetitions, 1 bit will be left to indicate the time domain offset, and the other 2 bits will be used to indicate the number of PUCCH repetitions. As stated above, the HARQ timing indicator can indicate symbol-level repetitions or slot-level repetitions and also indicate the number of PUCCH repetitions, and there is no bit for indicating the time delay between Msg 4 and the corresponding PUCCH after Msg 4. In this case, the default time delay will be adopted.

[0078] In another example, the gNB may indirectly indicate the PUCCH repetition number (first repetition number) by indicating a row index in a configured or predefined table associated with the repetition number of the PUCCH. The PUCCH repetition number may be 1 or greater than 1. The UE shall determine the first repetition number of the PUCCH based on the indicated row index. An exemplary configured or predefined table is Table 1 as described below, which evolves from the legacy Table 9.2.1-1 in TS 38.213, where different row indices in Table 1 are associated with different repetition numbers of the PUCCH. One of the PUCCH configurations in the remaining rows may support a PUCCH repetition number of 1, for example, a row index of 1. Although only PUCCHs with a symbol number of 14 are supported in Table 1, it should be known to those skilled in the art that similar tables (several) may be designed to support PUCCHs with other numbers of symbols.

[0079] Table 1

[0080]

[0081] In another example, the gNB may indirectly indicate the PUCCH repetition number by indicating the repetition number of Msg A or Msg 3. The PUCCH repetition number may be 1 or greater than 1. The relationship between the PUCCH repetition number and the repetition number of Msg A or Msg 3 is configured or predefined. For example, according to the configured or predefined relationship, the repetition number of Msg A or Msg 3 may be 1, 2, 3, 4, which respectively correspond to the PUCCH repetition number of 1, 2, 4, or 8.

[0082] In another example, the gNB may indirectly indicate the PUCCH repetition number by indicating the PRACH repetition number. The PUCCH repetition number may be 1 or greater than 1. Similarly, the relationship between the PUCCH repetition number and the PRACH repetition number is configured or predefined so that the PUCCH repetition number can be determined based on the PRACH repetition number.

[0083] In addition to determining the second repetition number of PUCCH after receiving the first repetition number, in some scenarios, the UE may also determine whether PUCCH repetition is necessary at the UE side and indicate the determination to the gNB before receiving the first repetition number from the network side.

[0084] In the legacy network, the RSRP threshold may be configured from the network to the UE. The UE may determine the number of repetitions based on the measured RSRP value and the RSRP threshold. In the NTN network, since the satellite moves according to the orbit, different positions of the satellite may result in different path losses and then different PUCCH repetitions. Therefore, in addition to the legacy mechanism based on RSRP, according to some embodiments of the present application, for example, in the NTN, the UE may also determine the number of PUCCH repetitions based on at least one of the characteristics of the NTN: satellite position, satellite elevation angle, timing advance value calculated by the UE, or the distance between the satellite and the remote side, etc. The information may be determined based on satellite ephemeris information. For example, at least one NTN characteristic threshold may be configured from the gNB to the UE in the system information, for example, a satellite position threshold, or a satellite elevation threshold, or a timing advance value threshold, or a distance threshold between the satellite and the UE, etc. Therefore, the UE can determine the PUCCH repetition number (which may be the second repetition number or the preferred repetition number indicated to the gNB) based on the configured threshold according to the satellite ephemeris information (for example, satellite position and / or satellite elevation angle, TA value, distance between the satellite and the UE, etc.) and the corresponding characteristics of the NTN.

[0085] In some scenarios, the UE may indicate to the gNB only whether the UE prefers PUCCH repetition. In some other scenarios, the UE may indicate to the gNB a specific number of PUCCH repetitions.

[0086] For example, the UE can indicate the request for PUCCH repetition through PRACH repetition. If there is RACH repetition, the gNB will configure PUCCH repetition for the UE.

[0087] In another example, the UE may indicate a request for PUCCH repetition via a repetition request for Msg 3. If there is a Msg 3 repetition request from the UE, the gNB shall configure PUCCH repetition for the UE.

[0088] In another example, the UE may indicate that repetition of PUCCH is requested through specific PRACH resources. For example, there will be at least two sets of RACH resources. If the UE selects a specific RACH resource from the first set of RACH resources for PRACH transmission, the gNB will configure PUCCH repetition for the UE; otherwise, the gNB will configure PUCCH repetition for the UE.

[0089] In yet another example, the UE may indicate requesting repetition of the PUCCH through at least one bit in Msg A or Msg 3 (or an additional field in Msg A or Msg 3). The UE may also indicate the number of repetitions through a bit (e.g., 2 bits in Msg A or Msg 3).

[0090] In another example, the UE may indicate the preferred number of repetitions to the gNB via a specific PRACH resource. For example, there may be multiple groups of RACH resources and each group of RACH resources corresponds to a PUCCH repetition number, such as 1, 2, 4, or 8. By selecting a PRACH resource in one group, the preferred number of PUCCH repetitions at the UE side will be indicated to the gNB.

[0091] In addition to the method, an embodiment of the present application also proposes a device supporting PUCCH repetition.

[0092] For example, Figure 5 A block diagram illustrating a device 500 supporting PUCCH repetition according to some embodiments of the present application.

[0093] like Figure 5 As shown in FIG. 5 , the apparatus 500 may include at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium 501, at least one receiving circuit system 502, at least one transmitting circuit system 504, and at least one processor 506 coupled to the non-transitory computer-readable medium 501, the receiving circuit system 502, and the transmitting circuit system 504. The at least one processor 506 may be a CPU, a DSP, a microprocessor, etc. The apparatus 500 may be a gNB or the like, or a UE or the like, which is configured to perform the method described above or the like.

[0094] Although in this figure, elements such as at least one processor 506, transmit circuit system 504, and receive circuit system 502 are described in singular form, plural form is contemplated unless limitation to the singular form is explicitly stated. In some embodiments of the present application, receive circuit system 502 and transmit circuit system 504 may be combined into a single device, such as a transceiver. In certain embodiments of the present application, apparatus 500 may further include an input device, a memory, and / or other components.

[0095] In some embodiments of the present application, a non-transitory computer-readable medium 501 may store thereon computer-executable instructions to enable a processor to implement the method described above with respect to gNB or the like. For example, when the computer-executable instructions are executed, the processor 506 interacts with the receiving circuit system 502 and the transmitting circuit system 504 to perform the steps described above with respect to gNB or the like.

[0096] In some embodiments of the present application, a non-transitory computer-readable medium 501 may store thereon computer-executable instructions to enable a processor to implement the method described above with respect to a UE or the like. For example, when the computer-executable instructions are executed, the processor 506 interacts with the receiving circuit system 502 and the transmitting circuit system 504 to perform the steps described above with respect to a UE or the like.

[0097] Figure 6 A block diagram illustrating a device 600 supporting PUCCH reception according to some other embodiments of the present application.

[0098] refer to Figure 6 , the device 600 (e.g., a gNB or a UE) may include at least one processor 602 and at least one transceiver 604 coupled to the at least one processor 602. The transceiver 604 may include at least one separate receive circuit system 606 and transmit circuit system 604, or at least one integrated receive circuit system 606 and transmit circuit system 604. The at least one processor 602 may be a CPU, a DSP, a microprocessor, etc.

[0099] According to some embodiments of the present application, when the device 600 is a UE or the like, the processor is configured to: receive a first signaling indicating a first number of repetitions of a PUCCH resource; determine a second number of repetitions that is equal to or less than the first number of repetitions based on the first number of repetitions; determine the time-frequency domain resources used for each repetition of the PUCCH resource; and transmit a PUCCH resource with a second number of repetitions based on the determined time-frequency domain resources.

[0100] According to some other embodiments of the present application, when the device 600 is a gNB or the like, the device 600 is configured to: transmit a first signaling indicating a first number of repetitions of a PUCCH resource; determine a second number of repetitions that is equal to or less than the first number of repetitions based on the first signaling; determine the time-frequency domain resources used for each repetition of the PUCCH resource; and receive the PUCCH resource with the second number of repetitions based on the determined time-frequency domain resources.

[0101] The method according to the embodiment of the present application can also be implemented on a programmed processor. However, the controller, flow chart and module can also be implemented on a general or special-purpose computer, a programmed microprocessor or microcontroller and peripheral integrated circuit elements, integrated circuits, hardware electronics or logic circuits (such as discrete element circuits), programmable logic devices or the like. In general, any device capable of implementing the flow chart shown in the figure can be used to implement the processor function of the present application. For example, an embodiment of the present application provides a device comprising a processor and a memory. Computer programmable instructions for implementing the method are stored in a memory, and the processor is configured to execute computer programmable instructions to implement the method. The method may be a method as stated above or other methods according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0102] Alternative embodiments preferably implement the method according to an embodiment of the present application in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer programmable instructions. The instructions are preferably executed by a computer executable component that is preferably integrated with a network security system. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium can be stored on any suitable computer-readable medium, such as RAM, ROM, flash memory, EEPROM, optical storage device (CD or DVD), hard drive, floppy disk drive, or any suitable device. The computer executable component is preferably a processor, but the instructions may be executed alternatively or additionally by any suitable dedicated hardware device. For example, an embodiment of the present application provides a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer programmable instructions stored therein. The computer programmable instructions are configured to implement the method as stated above or other methods according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0103] In addition, in the present disclosure, the term "includes / including" or any other variation thereof is intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that the process, method, article or equipment comprising a series of elements not only includes those elements but also may include other elements that are not explicitly listed or inherent to this process, method, article or equipment. Elements beginning with "a / an" or the like do not exclude the presence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article or equipment comprising the elements without more constraints. Moreover, the term "another" is defined as at least a second or more. As used herein, the term "having" and the like are defined as "comprising".

Claims

1. A device comprising: Transceiver; and a processor coupled to the transceiver, wherein the processor is configured to: receiving first signaling indicating a first number of repetitions of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource; determining a second number of repetitions that is equal to or less than the first number of repetitions based on the first number of repetitions; Determining time-frequency domain resources for each repetition of the PUCCH resource; and The PUCCH resource having the second number of repetitions is transmitted based on the determined time-frequency domain resources. 2 . The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the first signaling indicating the first number of repetitions is system information or downlink control information. 3 . The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the first number of repetitions is indicated by a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) timing indicator.

4. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The starting position of the time-frequency domain resources for the PUCCH resources having the second repetition number is indicated by second signaling or selected by the remote side.

5. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The first repetition number is determined based on a reception row index associated with a repetition number of the PUCCH in a configured or predefined table.

6. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The first repetition number is determined based on the repetition number of Msg A, Msg 3 or the physical random access channel PRACH.

7. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The processor is configured to: Information indicating a request for repetition of the PUCCH or information indicating the number of repetitions of the PUCCH is transmitted before determining the first number of repetitions.

8. The device according to claim 7, wherein: The information indicating the request for repetition of the PUCCH is one of: Physical random access channel PRACH repetition; Repeated requests for Msg A or Msg 3; At least one bit from Msg A or Msg 3; or Specific PRACH resources.

9. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The second number of repetitions is determined based on at least one of the following: Reference signal received power RSRP; Satellite position; Satellite elevation angle; Timing advance value; or The distance between the satellite and the remote side.

10. The device according to claim 9, wherein: The processor is configured to: receive information indicating at least one threshold associated with the second number of repetitions: RSRP threshold; Satellite position threshold; Satellite elevation angle threshold; a timing advance value threshold; or The distance threshold between the satellite and the remote side.

11. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The time-frequency domain resources used for each repetition of the PUCCH resources are at a time slot level or a symbol level.

12. The device according to claim 11, wherein In case the time-frequency domain resources used for each repetition are at symbol level, a symbol level gap between adjacent repetitions will be configured or predefined.

13. The device according to claim 11, wherein: Whether the time-frequency domain resource used for each repetition of the PUCCH resource is at a slot level or a symbol level is configured or determined by one of the following: the number of symbols to use for each repetition; Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request HARQ timing indicator; or HARQ resource indicator.

14. An apparatus comprising: Transceiver; and a processor coupled to the transceiver, wherein the processor is configured to: Transmitting first signaling indicating a first repetition number of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource; Determine, based on the first signaling, a second number of repetitions that is equal to or less than the first number of repetitions; Determining time-frequency domain resources for each repetition of the PUCCH resource; and The PUCCH resource having the second number of repetitions is received based on the determined time-frequency domain resources.

15. A method comprising: receiving first signaling indicating a first number of repetitions of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource; determining a second number of repetitions that is equal to or less than the first number of repetitions based on the first number of repetitions; Determining time-frequency domain resources for each repetition of the PUCCH resource; and The PUCCH resource having the second number of repetitions is transmitted based on the determined time-frequency domain resources.

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