Off-grid communication

Abstract

A UE may identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with a network node. Similarly, the network node may identify the set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with a UE. Each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources may be a different time-frequency resource in different time slots based on the off-slot grid communication. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. The UE and the network node may communicate with each other based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communication. The set of time-frequency resources may correspond to at least one of a time offset, a frequency offset, a carrier frequency, an SCS, or a bandwidth related to a time slot.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims the benefit of Israeli patent application serial number 296685, filed on September 21, 2022, entitled “OFF-GRID COMMUNICATION,” which is expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Technical Field

[0003] The present disclosure relates generally to communication systems, and more particularly to security in wireless communication systems based on off-slot grid communications. Background Art

[0004] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide a variety of telecommunication services, such as telephony, video, data, messaging, and broadcast. Typical wireless communication systems may employ multiple access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources. Examples of such multiple access technologies include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, and time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) systems.

[0005] These multiple access technologies have been adopted in various telecommunication standards to provide a common protocol that enables different wireless devices to communicate at a city, country, region, and even global level. An example telecommunication standard is 5G New Radio (NR). 5G NR is part of the continuous mobile broadband evolution promulgated by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) to meet new requirements associated with latency, reliability, security, scalability (e.g., with the Internet of Things (IoT)) and other requirements. 5GNR includes services associated with enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), massive machine type communication (mMTC), and ultra-reliable low latency communication (URLLC). Certain aspects of 5G NR may be based on the 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard. 5G NR technology needs to be further improved. In addition, these improvements may also be applicable to other multiple access technologies and telecommunication standards that adopt these technologies. In particular, current technology may not be able to solve the efficient physical layer authentication between devices in the upcoming wireless communication system that can utilize heterogeneous new technologies and decentralized network architecture models. Improved physical layer authentication technology may be needed in wireless communication systems. Summary of the invention

[0006] A simplified summary of one or more aspects is presented below to provide a basic understanding of these aspects. This summary is not an extensive review of all contemplated aspects. This summary neither identifies the key or important elements of all aspects, nor describes the scope of any or all aspects. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects in a simplified form as a prelude to a more detailed description presented later.

[0007] In one aspect of the present disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a user equipment (UE). The apparatus may identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with a network node. Based on the off-slot grid communication, each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources may be a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. The apparatus may communicate with the network node based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communication.

[0008] In one aspect of the present disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a network node. The apparatus may identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with a UE. Based on the off-slot grid communication, each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources may be a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. The apparatus may communicate with the UE based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communication.

[0009] To achieve the aforementioned and related purposes, one or more aspects include the features fully described below and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the accompanying drawings set forth in detail some exemplary features of one or more aspects. However, these features indicate only some of the various ways in which the principles of the various aspects can be employed. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication system and an access network according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0011] Figure 2A is a diagram illustrating an example of a first frame according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0012] Figure 2B is a diagram illustrating an example of downlink (DL) channels within a subframe according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0013] Figure 2C is a diagram illustrating an example of a second frame according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0014] Figure 2D is a diagram illustrating an example of uplink (UL) channels within a subframe according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0015] Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a base station and a user equipment (UE) in an access network according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0016] Figure 4A is a diagram illustrating allocation of time-frequency resources associated with an example conventional communication in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0017] Figure 4B is a diagram illustrating allocation of time-frequency resources associated with example off-slot grid communications in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0018] Figure 5 is a diagram of a communication flow of a method of wireless communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0019] Figure 6 is a flow chart of a method of wireless communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0020] Figure 7 is a flow chart of a method of wireless communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0021] Figure 8 is a flow chart of a method of wireless communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0022] Fig. 9 is a flow chart of a method of wireless communication according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0023] Fig.10 are diagrams illustrating examples of hardware implementations for example devices and / or network entities according to various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0024] Fig.11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for an example network entity according to various aspects of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] Secure wireless communication systems (such as 5th Generation (5G), 6th Generation (6G) or higher) may include not only protection of user data and identities, but also the ability to allow any equipment (e.g., cloud, network and / or device) that intend to communicate with each other to authenticate and authorize communication with each other in order to prevent not only unauthorized use of the system, but also malicious use of the system.

[0026] Some features of upcoming wireless communication systems (e.g., 6G) may pose challenges in terms of security. For example, upcoming wireless communication systems may utilize new architectural models that may combine cloud, network, and devices. In addition, artificial intelligence (AI) / machine learning (ML) may play a core role in upcoming wireless communication systems. In addition, advances in computing may also pose security challenges.

[0027] The upcoming wireless communication ecosystem may combine multiple technologies, including cloud technology, network infrastructure technology, device technology, and interfaces between different technologies. The upcoming wireless communication ecosystem may also be characterized by a decentralized network architecture model that makes extensive use of edge computing and cellular mesh networks. When certain functions that previously resided in the secure area of ​​the core network are pushed to the edge of the system, new features may potentially create new vulnerabilities. Therefore, regardless of the architecture model used, the various components of the upcoming wireless communication system can inherently deliver a specific level of security and resilience.

[0028] In some aspects, physical layer security can provide an effective and efficient means to combat vulnerabilities and threats on radio media that may be naturally susceptible to attacks such as eavesdropping or denial of service (i.e., jamming) attacks. In some configurations, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) beamforming can be used in sub-terahertz (THz) (sub-THz) frequency bands as a natural physical layer security to thwart potential eavesdroppers.

[0029] In one or more configurations, the time slot structure (e.g., the actual start / end time of a transmission associated with a time slot and / or bandwidth) may be randomized to improve security. In this article, the time slot structure may refer to mapping data to a finite and known (for the transmitter and receiver) duration and frequency allocation. For example, in the case of LTE, a time slot may occupy half of a subframe and may have a duration of half a millisecond. The bandwidth of a time slot may depend on the frequency band used for the time slot. In particular, a UE may identify a set of time-frequency resources for communicating with a network node off a time slot grid. Similarly, a network node may identify a set of time-frequency resources for communicating with a UE off a time slot grid. The time-frequency resource set may include different time-frequency resources in different time slots. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. The UE and the network node may communicate with each other based on the time-frequency resource set and the off-time slot grid communication. Therefore, improved physical layer security may be achieved.

[0030] The specific embodiments described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings are descriptions of various configurations and do not represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein can be practiced. In order to provide a thorough understanding of the various concepts, the specific embodiments include specific details. However, these concepts can be practiced without these specific details. In some cases, well-known structures and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring such concepts.

[0031] Several aspects of telecommunication systems are presented with reference to various apparatus and methods. These apparatus and methods are described in the following detailed description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively referred to as "elements"). These elements may be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether these elements are implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0032] As an example, an element, or any part of an element, or any combination of elements can be implemented as a "processing system", which includes one or more processors. Examples of processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, graphics processing units (GPUs), central processing units (CPUs), application processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processors, systems on chip (SoCs), baseband processors, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gating logic, discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware configured to perform various functionalities described throughout the present disclosure. One or more processors in a processing system can execute software. Whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or other terms, software should be broadly interpreted as meaning instructions, instruction sets, codes, code segments, program codes, programs, subroutines, software components, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, threads of execution, processes, functions, or any combination thereof.

[0033] Thus, in one or more example aspects, specific implementations and / or use cases, the described functionality may be implemented in hardware, software, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functionality may be stored or encoded as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media. Storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. As an example, such computer-readable media may include random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storage devices, combinations of these types of computer-readable media, or any other medium that can be used to store computer-executable code in the form of instructions or data structures that can be accessed by a computer.

[0034] Although various aspects, specific implementations and / or use cases are described in this application by the illustration of some examples, additional or different aspects, specific implementations and use cases may be generated in many different arrangements and scenarios. The various aspects, specific implementations and / or use cases described herein can be implemented across many different platform types, devices, systems, shapes, sizes and packaging arrangements. For example, various aspects, specific implementations and / or use cases can be generated via integrated chip specific implementations and other devices based on non-module components (e.g., end-user devices, vehicles, communication equipment, computing equipment, industrial equipment, retail / purchase equipment, medical equipment, devices that enable artificial intelligence (AI), etc.). Although some examples may or may not be specifically for use cases or applications, the described examples may have a wide range of applicability. Various aspects, specific implementations and / or use cases can be in the range from chip-level or modular components to non-modular, non-chip-level specific implementations, and further to the range of aggregated, distributed or original equipment manufacturer (OEM) equipment or systems in conjunction with one or more technologies herein. In some actual settings, the equipment combined with the various aspects and features described may also include additional components and features for implementing and practicing the claimed and described aspects. For example, the transmission and reception of wireless signals necessarily include multiple components for analog and digital purposes (e.g., hardware components including antennas, RF chains, power amplifiers, modulators, buffers, processors, interleavers, adders / summers, etc.) The various techniques described herein can be practiced in a wide variety of devices of various sizes, shapes, and configurations, chip-level components, systems, distributed arrangements, aggregated or disaggregated components, end-user devices, etc.

[0035] The deployment of a communication system (such as a 5G NR system) can be arranged with various components or constituent parts in a variety of ways. In a 5G NR system or network, a network node, a network entity, a mobility element of a network, a radio access network (RAN) node, a core network node, a network element or a network equipment (such as a base station (BS), or one or more units (or one or more components) that perform base station functionality can be implemented in an aggregated or decomposed architecture. For example, a BS (such as a Node B (NB), an evolved NB (eNB), an NR BS, a 5G NB, an access point (AP), a transmit receive point (TRP) or a cell, etc.) can be implemented as an aggregated base station (also referred to as an independent BS or a monolithic BS) or a decomposed base station.

[0036] A converged base station may be configured to utilize a radio protocol stack physically or logically integrated within a single RAN node. A decomposed base station may be configured to utilize a protocol stack physically or logically distributed between two or more units, such as one or more central or centralized units (CUs), one or more distributed units (DUs), or one or more radio units (RUs). In some aspects, a CU may be implemented within a RAN node, and one or more DUs may be co-located with the CU, or alternatively, may be geographically or virtually distributed in one or more other RAN nodes. A DU may be implemented to communicate with one or more RUs. Each of a CU, a DU, and a RU may be implemented as a virtual unit, i.e., a virtual central unit (VCU), a virtual distributed unit (VDU), or a virtual radio unit (VRU).

[0037] Base station operation or network design may take into account the aggregated nature of base station functionality. For example, a disaggregated base station may be used in an integrated access backhaul (IAB) network, an open radio access network (O-RAN (network configuration such as that initiated by the O-RAN Alliance)), or a virtualized radio access network (vRAN, also known as a cloud radio access network (C-RAN)). Decomposition may include distributing functionality across two or more units at various physical locations, as well as virtually distributing functionality of at least one unit, which may enable flexibility in network design. Individual units of a disaggregated base station or disaggregated RAN architecture may be configured for wired or wireless communication with at least one other unit.

[0038] Figure 1 1 is a diagram 100 illustrating an example of a wireless communication system and an access network. The illustrated wireless communication system includes a disaggregated base station architecture. The disaggregated base station architecture may include one or more CUs 110 that may communicate directly with a core network 120 via a backhaul link, or indirectly with the core network 120 through one or more disaggregated base station units, such as a near real-time (near RT) RAN intelligent controller (RIC) 125 via an E2 link, or a non-real-time (non-RT) RIC 115 associated with a service management and orchestration (SMO) framework 105, or both. The CU 110 may communicate with one or more DUs 130 via corresponding midhaul links, such as an F1 interface. The DU 130 may communicate with one or more RUs 140 via corresponding fronthaul links. The RU 140 may communicate with corresponding UEs 104 via one or more radio frequency (RF) access links. In some implementations, a UE 104 may be served simultaneously by multiple RUs 140.

[0039] Each of the units (i.e., CU 110, DU 130, RU 140, and near-RT RIC 125, non-RT RIC 115, and SMO framework 105) may include or be coupled to one or more interfaces configured to receive or send signals, data, or information (collectively, signals) via a wired or wireless transmission medium. Each of the units or an associated processor or controller that provides instructions to the communication interfaces of these units may be configured to communicate with one or more of the other units via a transmission medium. For example, these units may include a wired interface configured to receive signals or send signals to one or more of the other units via a wired transmission medium. Additionally, these units may include a wireless interface that may include a receiver, transmitter, or transceiver (such as an RF transceiver) configured to receive and / or send signals to one or more of the other units via a wireless transmission medium.

[0040] In some aspects, CU 110 may host one or more higher layer control functions. Such control functions may include radio resource control (RRC), packet data convergence protocol (PDCP), or service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), etc. Each control function may be implemented using an interface configured to communicate signals with other control functions hosted by CU 110. CU 110 may be configured to handle user plane functionality (i.e., central unit-user plane (CU-UP)), control plane functionality (i.e., central unit-control plane (CU-CP)), or a combination thereof. In some specific implementations, CU 110 may be logically split into one or more CU-UP units and one or more CU-CP units. When implemented in an O-RAN configuration, the CU-UP unit may communicate bidirectionally with the CU-CP unit via an interface (such as an E1 interface). As needed, CU 110 may be implemented to communicate with DU 130 for network control and signal transmission.

[0041] DU 130 may correspond to a logical unit that includes one or more base station functions for controlling the operation of one or more RUs 140. In some aspects, DU 130 may host one or more of a radio link control (RLC) layer, a medium access control (MAC) layer, and one or more high physical (PHY) layers (such as modules for forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding, scrambling, modulation and demodulation, etc.) at least in part according to a functional split such as those defined by 3GPP. In some aspects, DU 130 may further host one or more low PHY layers. Each layer (or module) may be implemented using an interface that is configured to communicate signals with other layers (and modules) hosted by DU 130 or with control functions hosted by CU 110.

[0042] The lower layer functionality may be implemented by one or more RUs 140. In some deployments, the RU 140 controlled by the DU 130 may correspond to a logical node that hosts RF processing functions or low PHY layer functions (such as performing Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), Inverse FFT (iFFT), digital beamforming or physical random access channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering, etc.), or both, based at least in part on functional splitting (such as lower layer functional splitting). In such an architecture, the RU 140 may be implemented to handle over-the-air (OTA) communications with one or more UEs 104. In some implementations, real-time and non-real-time aspects of communicating with the control plane and user plane of the RU 140 may be controlled by the corresponding DU 130. In some scenarios, this configuration may enable the implementation of the DU 130 and the CU 110 in a cloud-based RAN architecture (such as a vRAN architecture).

[0043] The SMO framework 105 may be configured to support RAN deployment and provisioning of non-virtualized network elements and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 105 may be configured to support the deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, which may be managed via an operation and maintenance interface (such as an O1 interface). For virtualized network elements, the SMO framework 105 may be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform (such as an open cloud (O-Cloud) 190) to perform network element lifecycle management (such as instantiating virtualized network elements) via a cloud computing platform interface (such as an O2 interface). Such virtualized network elements may include, but are not limited to, CU 110, DU 130, RU 140, and near-RT RIC 125. In some specific implementations, the SMO framework 105 may communicate with hardware aspects of the 4G RAN (such as an open eNB (O-eNB) 111) via the O1 interface. Additionally, in some specific implementations, the SMO framework 105 may communicate directly with one or more RUs 140 via the O1 interface. The SMO framework 105 may also include a non-RT RIC 115 configured to support the functionality of the SMO framework 105 .

[0044] The non-RT RIC 115 may be configured to include logic functions that enable non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, artificial intelligence (AI) / machine learning (ML) (AI / ML) workflows including model training and updating, or policy-based guidance of applications / features in the near-RT RIC 125. The non-RT RIC 115 may be coupled to or communicate with the near-RT RIC 125 (such as via an A1 interface). The near-RT RIC 125 may be configured to include logic functions that enable near-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources via data collection and actions through an interface (such as via an E2 interface) that connects one or more CUs 110, one or more DUs 130, or both, and the O-eNB with the near-RT RIC 125.

[0045] In some implementations, in order to generate an AI / ML model to be deployed in the near-RT RIC 125, the non-RT RIC 115 may receive parameters or external enrichment information from an external server. Such information may be utilized by the near-RT RIC 125 and may be received from a non-network data source or from a network function at the SMO framework 105 or the non-RT RIC 115. In some examples, the non-RT RIC 115 or the near-RT RIC 125 may be configured to tune RAN behavior or performance. For example, the non-RT RIC 115 may monitor long-term trends and patterns of performance and employ AI / ML models to perform corrective actions through the SMO framework 105 (such as via reconfiguration of O1) or via creation of RAN management policies (such as A1 policies).

[0046] At least one of the CU 110, the DU 130, and the RU 140 may be referred to as a base station 102. Therefore, the base station 102 may include one or more of the CU 110, the DU 130, and the RU 140 (each component is indicated by a dotted line to indicate that each component may be included in the base station 102 or may not be included in the base station). The base station 102 provides an access point to the core network 120 for the UE 104. The base station 102 may include a macro cell (a high-power cellular base station) and / or a small cell (a low-power cellular base station). Small cells include femto cells, pico cells, and micro cells. A network including both small cells and macro cells may be referred to as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include a home evolved Node B (eNB) (HeNB), which may provide services to a restricted group referred to as a closed subscriber group (CSG). The communication link between RU 140 and UE 104 may include uplink (UL) (also known as reverse link) transmission from UE 104 to RU 140 and / or downlink (DL) (also known as forward link) transmission from RU 140 to UE 104. The communication link may use multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming and / or transmit diversity. The communication link may be through one or more carriers. For each carrier allocated in a carrier aggregation of up to Yx MHz (x component carriers) for transmission in each direction, the base station 102 / UE 104 may use a spectrum of up to Y MHz (e.g., 5MHz, 10MHz, 15MHz, 20MHz, 100MHz, 400MHz, etc.) bandwidth. These carriers may or may not be adjacent to each other. The allocation of carriers may be equivalent to DL and UL asymmetric (e.g., more or fewer carriers may be allocated to DL than to UL). Component carriers may include a primary component carrier and one or more secondary component carriers. The primary component carrier may be referred to as a primary cell (PCell) and the secondary component carrier may be referred to as a secondary cell (SCell).

[0047] Some UEs 104 may communicate with each other using a device-to-device (D2D) communication link 158. The D2D communication link 158 may use DL / UL wireless wide area network (WWAN) spectrum. The D2D communication link 158 may use one or more sidelink channels, such as a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH), a physical sidelink discovery channel (PSDCH), a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH). The D2D communication may be through a variety of wireless D2D communication systems, such as, for example, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard, LTE, or NR.

[0048] The wireless communication system may also include a Wi-Fi AP 150 that communicates with a UE 104 (also referred to as a Wi-Fi station (STA)) via a communication link 154, for example, in a 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum, etc. When communicating in an unlicensed spectrum, the UE 104 / AP 150 may perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) to determine whether a channel is available prior to communication.

[0049] The electromagnetic spectrum is typically subdivided into various categories, bands, channels, etc. based on frequency / wavelength. In 5G NR, two initial operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR1 (410 MHz-7.125 GHz) and FR2 (24.25 GHz-52.6 GHz). Although a portion of FR1 is greater than 6 GHz, FR1 is often referred to (interchangeably) as the "sub-6 GHz" band in various documents and articles. A similar naming issue sometimes occurs with respect to FR2, which is often (interchangeably) referred to as the "millimeter wave" band in documents and articles, although it is different from the extremely high frequency (EHF) band (30 GHz–300 GHz) that is identified as the "millimeter wave" band by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).

[0050] Frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are generally referred to as mid-band frequencies. Recent 5G NR research has identified the operating bands for these mid-band frequencies as frequency range designation FR3 (7.125GHz–24.25GHz). The bands falling within FR3 can inherit FR1 characteristics and / or FR2 characteristics, and therefore the features of FR1 and / or FR2 can be effectively extended to mid-band frequencies. In addition, higher frequency bands are currently being explored to extend 5G NR operations to more than 52.6GHz. For example, three higher operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR2-2 (52.6GHz–71GHz), FR4 (71GHz–114.25GHz), and FR5 (114.25GHz–300GHz). Each of these higher frequency bands falls within the EHF band.

[0051] In view of the above, unless otherwise specified, if the term "6 GHz or less" is used herein, it may broadly refer to frequencies that may be less than 6 GHz, may be within FR1, or may include mid-band frequencies. In addition, unless otherwise specified, if the term "millimeter wave" is used herein, it may broadly refer to frequencies that may include mid-band frequencies, may be within FR2, FR4, FR2-2, and / or FR5, or may be within the EHF band.

[0052] The base station 102 and the UE 104 may each include multiple antennas (such as antenna elements, antenna panels, and / or antenna arrays) to facilitate beamforming. The base station 102 may send a beamformed signal 182 to the UE 104 in one or more transmit directions. The UE 104 may receive the beamformed signal from the base station 102 in one or more receive directions. The UE 104 may also send a beamformed signal 184 to the base station 102 in one or more transmit directions. The base station 102 may receive the beamformed signal from the UE 104 in one or more receive directions. The base station 102 / UE 104 may perform beam training to determine the best receive direction and transmit direction for each of the base station 102 / UE 104. The transmit direction and receive direction of the base station 102 may be the same or different. The transmit direction and receive direction of the UE 104 may be the same or different.

[0053] The base station 102 may include and / or be referred to as a gNB, a Node B, an eNB, an access point, a base transceiver station, a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a transceiver function, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), a transmit receive point (TRP), a network node, a network entity, a network equipment, or some other suitable term. The base station 102 may be implemented as an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node, a relay node, a sidelink node, an aggregated (monolithic) base station with a baseband unit (BBU) (including a CU and a DU) and a RU, or as a decomposed base station including one or more of a CU, a DU, and / or a RU. A set of base stations that may include decomposed base stations and / or aggregated base stations may be referred to as a next generation (NG) RAN (NG-RAN).

[0054] The core network 120 may include an access and mobility management function (AMF) 161, a session management function (SMF) 162, a user plane function (UPF) 163, a unified data management (UDM) 164, one or more location servers 168, and other functional entities. AMF 161 is a control node that handles signaling between UE 104 and the core network 120. AMF 161 supports registration management, connection management, mobility management, and other functions. SMF 162 supports session management and other functions. UPF 163 supports packet routing, packet forwarding, and other functions. UDM 164 supports the generation of authentication and key agreement (AKA) credentials, user identity handling, access authorization, and subscription management. One or more location servers 168 are illustrated as including a gateway mobile location center (GMLC) 165 and a location management function (LMF) 166. However, in general, the one or more location servers 168 may include one or more location / positioning servers, which may include one or more of the GMLC 165, LMF 166, position determination entity (PDE), serving mobile location center (SMLC), mobile positioning center (MPC), etc. GMLC 165 and LMF 166 support UE location services. GMLC 165 provides an interface for clients / applications (e.g., emergency services) to access UE positioning information. LMF 166 receives measurement and assistance information from NG-RAN and UE 104 via AMF 161 to calculate the location of UE 104. NG-RAN may determine the location of UE 104 using one or more positioning methods. Positioning UE 104 may involve signal measurements, positioning estimates, and optional speed calculations based on these measurements. Signal measurements may be performed by UE 104 and / or serving base station 102. The measured signals may be based on a satellite positioning system (SPS) 170 (e.g., one or more of a global navigation satellite system (GNSS), a global positioning system (GPS), a non-terrestrial network (NTN), or other satellite positioning / location systems), LTE signals, wireless local area network (WLAN) signals, Bluetooth signals, a terrestrial beacon system (TBS), sensor-based information (e.g., an atmospheric pressure sensor, a motion sensor), an NR enhanced cell ID (NR E-CID) method, NR signals (e.g., multi-round trip time (multi-RTT), DL angle of departure (DL-AoD), DL time difference of arrival (DL-TDOA), UL time difference of arrival (UL-TDOA), and UL angle of arrival (UL-AoA) positioning), and / or one or more of other systems / signals / sensors.

[0055] Examples of UE 104 include cellular phones, smart phones, session initiation protocol (SIP) phones, laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), satellite radios, global positioning systems, multimedia devices, video devices, digital audio players (e.g., MP3 players), cameras, game consoles, tablet computers, smart devices, wearable devices, vehicles, electric meters, gas pumps, large or small kitchen appliances, healthcare equipment, implants, sensors / actuators, displays, or any other similarly functional devices. Some of the UEs 104 may be referred to as IoT devices (e.g., parking meters, gas pumps, toasters, vehicles, heart monitors, etc.). UE 104 may also be referred to as stations, mobile stations, subscriber stations, mobile units, subscriber units, wireless units, remote units, mobile devices, wireless devices, wireless communication devices, remote devices, mobile subscriber stations, access terminals, mobile terminals, wireless terminals, remote terminals, mobile phones, user agents, mobile clients, clients, or some other suitable terminology. In some scenarios, the term UE may also be applied to one or more supporting devices, such as in a device constellation arrangement. One or more of these devices may access the network collectively and / or individually.

[0056] Reference again Figure 1 In some aspects, the UE 104 may include a security component 198, which may be configured to identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with a network node. Based on the off-slot grid communication, each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources may be a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. The security component 198 may be configured to communicate with the network node based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communication. In some aspects, the base station 102 may include a security component 199, which may be configured to identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with the UE. Based on the off-slot grid communication, each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources may be a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. The security component 199 may be configured to communicate with the UE based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communication. Although the following description may focus on 5G NR, 6G, or future generations of wireless communication systems, the concepts described herein may be applicable to other similar areas such as LTE, LTE-A, CDMA, GSM, and other wireless technologies.

[0057] Figure 2A FIG200 is a diagram illustrating an example of a first subframe within a 5G NR frame structure. Figure 2B FIG230 is a diagram illustrating an example of DL channels within a 5G NR subframe. Figure 2C FIG250 is a diagram illustrating an example of a second subframe within a 5G NR frame structure. Figure 2D FIG280 is a diagram illustrating an example of UL channels within a 5G NR subframe. The 5G NR frame structure may be frequency division duplex (FDD), where for a particular set of subcarriers (carrier system bandwidth), subframes within that subcarrier set are dedicated to either DL or UL, or may be time division duplex (TDD), where for a particular set of subcarriers (carrier system bandwidth), subframes within that subcarrier set are dedicated to both DL and UL. Figure 2A , Figure 2C In the example provided, the 5G NR frame structure is assumed to be TDD, where subframe 4 is configured with slot format 28 (most of which are DL), where D is DL, U is UL, and F is flexible between DL / UL, and subframe 3 is configured with slot format 1 (all of which are UL). Although subframes 3 and 4 are shown as having slot formats 1 and 28, respectively, any particular subframe may be configured with any of the various available slot formats 0-61. Slot formats 0 and 1 are full DL and full UL, respectively. Other slot formats 2-61 include a mix of DL, UL and flexible symbols. The UE is configured with the slot format through the received slot format indicator (SFI) (dynamically configured through DL control information (DCI) or semi-statically / statically configured through radio resource control (RRC) signaling). Note that the following description also applies to the 5G NR frame structure as TDD.

[0058] FIG. 2A to FIG. 2D The frame structure is illustrated, and various aspects of the present disclosure may be applicable to other wireless communication technologies that may have different frame structures and / or different channels. A frame (10ms) may be divided into 10 subframes of equal size (1ms). Each subframe may include one or more time slots. A subframe may also include a microslot, which may include 7, 4, or 2 symbols. Each time slot may include 14 or 12 symbols, depending on whether the cyclic prefix (CP) is normal or extended. For a normal CP, each time slot may include 14 symbols, and for an extended CP, each time slot may include 12 symbols. The symbol on the DL may be a CP orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) (CP-OFDM) symbol. The symbol on the UL may be a CP-OFDM symbol (for high throughput scenarios) or a discrete Fourier transform (DFT) extended OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) symbol (also known as a single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) symbol) (for power-limited scenarios; limited to single-stream transmission). The number of slots within a subframe is based on the CP and the parameter set. The parameter set defines the subcarrier spacing (SCS) and effectively defines the symbol length / duration, which is equal to 1 / SCS (see Figure 1 ).

[0059]

[0060] Table 1: Parameter set, SCS and CP

[0061] For normal CP (14 symbols / slot), different parameter sets μ0 to 4 allow 1, 2, 4, 8, and 16 slots per subframe, respectively. For extended CP, parameter set 2 allows 4 slots per subframe. Thus, for normal CP and parameter set μ, there are 14 symbols / slot and 2 μ timeslots / subframe. The subcarrier spacing can be equal to 2 μ *15kHz, where μ is parameter set 0 to 4. Therefore, the subcarrier spacing for parameter set μ=0 is 15kHz, and the subcarrier spacing for parameter set μ=4 is 240kHz. The symbol length / duration is inversely related to the subcarrier spacing. FIG. 2A to FIG. 2D An example is provided for a normal CP with 14 symbols per slot and a parameter set μ=2 with 4 slots per subframe. The slot duration is 0.25 ms, the subcarrier spacing is 60 kHz, and the symbol duration is about 16.67 μs. Within a frame set, there may be one or more different bandwidth parts (BWPs) that are frequency-division multiplexed (see Figure 2B ). Each BWP may have a specific parameter set and CP (normal or extended).

[0062] A resource grid may be used to represent the frame structure. Each slot includes a resource block (RB) (also referred to as a physical RB (PRB)) extending over 12 consecutive subcarriers. The resource grid is divided into a number of resource elements (REs). The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0063] like Figure 2A As illustrated, some of the REs carry reference (pilot) signals (RS) for the UE. The RS may include a demodulation RS (DM-RS) (indicated as R for one particular configuration, but other DM-RS configurations are possible) and a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) for channel estimation at the UE. The RS may also include a beam measurement RS (BRS), a beam refinement RS (BRRS), and a phase tracking RS (PT-RS).

[0064] Figure 2BExamples of various DL channels within a subframe of a frame are illustrated. A physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) carries DCI within one or more control channel elements (CCEs) (e.g., 1, 2, 4, 8, or 16 CCEs), each CCE including six RE groups (REGs), each REG including 12 consecutive REs in an OFDM symbol of an RB. A PDCCH within a BWP may be referred to as a control resource set (CORESET). The UE is configured to monitor PDCCH candidates in a PDCCH search space (e.g., a common search space, a UE-specific search space) during a PDCCH monitoring opportunity on a CORESET, wherein the PDCCH candidates have different DCI formats and different aggregation levels. Additional BWPs may be located at higher and / or lower frequencies on the channel bandwidth. A primary synchronization signal (PSS) may be within symbol 2 of a particular subframe of a frame. The PSS is used by UE 104 to determine subframe / symbol timing and physical layer identification. A secondary synchronization signal (SSS) may be within symbol 4 of a particular subframe of a frame. The SSS is used by the UE to determine the physical layer cell identity group number and the radio frame timing. Based on the physical layer identity and the physical layer cell identity group number, the UE can determine the physical cell identifier (PCI). Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the location of the DM-RS. The physical broadcast channel (PBCH) carrying the master information block (MIB) can be logically grouped with the PSS and SSS to form a synchronization signal (SS) / PBCH block (also referred to as an SS block (SSB)). The MIB provides the number of RBs in the system bandwidth and the system frame number (SFN). The physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) carries user data, broadcast system information not sent via the PBCH (such as a system information block (SIB)), and paging messages.

[0065] like Figure 2C As illustrated, some of the REs carry DM-RS (indicated as R for a particular configuration, but other DM-RS configurations are possible) for channel estimation at the base station. The UE may send a DM-RS for a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) and a DM-RS for a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). The PUSCH DM-RS may be sent in the first or first two symbols of the PUSCH. Depending on whether a short PUCCH or a long PUCCH is sent and depending on the specific PUCCH format used, the PUCCH DM-RS may be sent in different configurations. The UE may send a sounding reference signal (SRS). The SRS may be sent in the last symbol of a subframe. The SRS may have a comb structure, and the UE may send the SRS on one of the teeth of the comb. The SRS may be used by the base station for channel quality estimation to achieve frequency-dependent scheduling of the UL.

[0066] Figure 2DExamples of various UL channels within a subframe of a frame are illustrated. The PUCCH may be located at a position as indicated in one configuration. The PUCCH carries uplink control information (UCI), such as scheduling requests, channel quality indicators (CQI), precoding matrix indicators (PMI), rank indicators (RI), and hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) acknowledgement (ACK) (HARQ-ACK) feedback (i.e., one or more HARQ ACK bits indicating one or more ACKs and / or negative ACKs (NACKs)). The PUSCH carries data and may be used to carry, among other things, a buffer status report (BSR), a power headroom report (PHR), and / or UCI.

[0067] Figure 3 375. The Controller / Processor 375 is a block diagram of a base station 310 in an access network communicating with a UE 350. In the DL, Internet Protocol (IP) packets may be provided to a controller / processor 375. The controller / processor 375 implements layer 3 and layer 2 functionality. Layer 3 includes a radio resource control (RRC) layer, and layer 2 includes a service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer, a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a medium access control (MAC) layer. The controller / processor 375 provides RRC layer functionality associated with broadcasting of system information (e.g., MIB, SIB), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), inter-radio access technology (RAT) mobility, and measurement configuration for UE measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions; RLC layer functionality associated with transfer of upper layer packet data units (PDUs), error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), re-segmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through HARQ, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0068] The transmit (TX) processor 316 and receive (RX) processor 370 implement layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1 (which includes the physical (PHY) layer) may include error detection on the transport channel, forward error correction (FEC) coding / decoding of the transport channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping to the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. The TX processor 316 handles the mapping to the signal constellation based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-order phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-order quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols may then be separated into parallel streams. Each stream may then be mapped to an OFDM subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., pilot) in the time and / or frequency domain, and then combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM stream is spatially pre-coded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator 374 may be used to determine the coding and modulation schemes, as well as for spatial processing. Channel estimates may be derived from reference signals and / or channel state feedback sent by the UE 350. Each spatial stream may then be provided to a different antenna 320 via a separate transmitter 318Tx. Each transmitter 318Tx may modulate a radio frequency (RF) carrier for transmission using a corresponding spatial stream.

[0069] At the UE 350, each receiver 354Rx receives a signal through its corresponding antenna 352. Each receiver 354Rx recovers the information modulated onto the RF carrier and provides the information to a receive (RX) processor 356. The TX processor 368 and the RX processor 356 implement layer 1 functionality associated with various signal processing functions. The RX processor 356 can perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial stream destined for the UE 350. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 350, they can be combined into a single OFDM symbol stream by the RX processor 356. The RX processor 356 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal includes a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols on each subcarrier and the reference signal are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation point sent by the base station 310. These soft decisions can be based on channel estimates calculated by the channel estimator 358. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally sent on the physical channel by base station 310. The data and control signals are then provided to controller / processor 359, which implements layer 3 and layer 2 functionality.

[0070] The controller / processor 359 may be associated with a memory 360 that stores program codes and data. The memory 360 may be referred to as a computer readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 359 provides demultiplexing between transport channels and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets. The controller / processor 359 is also responsible for error detection using ACK and / or NACK protocols to support HARQ operations.

[0071] Similar to the functionality described in conjunction with DL transmissions performed by the base station 310, the controller / processor 359 provides RRC layer functionality associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) acquisition, RRC connection, and measurement reporting; PDCP layer functionality associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification); RLC layer functionality associated with delivery of upper layer PDUs, error correction through ARQ, concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUs, resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs; and MAC layer functionality associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto TBs, demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction through HARQ, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0072] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator 358 based on a reference signal or feedback sent by the base station 310 may be used by the TX processor 368 to select the appropriate coding and modulation schemes and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the TX processor 368 may be provided to different antennas 352 via separate transmitters 354Tx. Each transmitter 354Tx may modulate an RF carrier with a corresponding spatial stream for transmission.

[0073] UL transmissions are processed at the base station 310 in a manner similar to that described in conjunction with the receiver functionality at the UE 350. Each receiver 318Rx receives a signal through its respective antenna 320. Each receiver 318Rx recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to the RX processor 370.

[0074] The controller / processor 375 may be associated with a memory 376 that stores program codes and data. The memory 376 may be referred to as a computer readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 375 provides demultiplexing between transport channels and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, control signal processing to recover IP packets. The controller / processor 375 is also responsible for error detection using ACK and / or NACK protocols to support HARQ operations.

[0075] At least one of the TX processor 368, the RX processor 356, and the controller / processor 359 may be configured to combine Figure 1 The security component 198 performs various aspects.

[0076] At least one of the TX processor 316, the RX processor 370, and the controller / processor 375 may be configured to combine Figure 1 The security component 199 performs various aspects.

[0077] In the upcoming wireless communication system, the radio unit may support multiple streams for communicating in the sub-THz frequency band. The throughput of different use cases (such as fronthaul or even headsets) can reach several gigabits per second (Gbps). In such a system, time domain waveforms (e.g., for DFT-s-OFDM) and time division multiplexing (TDM)-based communications can be considered, where TDM-based communications can be used to accommodate multiple UEs. In TDM-based communications, each UE may have a dedicated transmission time period during which the UE can transmit across the full bandwidth. In such cases, the start / end time of each time slot may be known. In addition, the bandwidth (which may correspond to the SCS and one or more carrier frequency offsets) may be constant. The known start / end time and constant bandwidth of each time slot may allow an eavesdropper (e.g., a device performing an eavesdropping attack) to access a large amount of data.

[0078] Thus, in one or more configurations, one or more time slots may start (and / or end) at random times associated with a random timestamp. For example, the time at which a transmission associated with a time slot may start / end may be random. In addition, the bandwidth (i.e., the size of the bandwidth) may be randomized. In other words, the SCS and / or one or more carrier frequency offsets may be random. In the following, references to randomness may also include references to pseudo-randomness. A pseudo-random variable may appear random to an external observer who may not have sufficient information, but may actually be deterministic and predictable to an internal observer who has sufficient information about the pseudo-random variable. Therefore, in other words, the random time and / or random bandwidth at which a transmission associated with a time slot may start / end may appear random, unpredictable, and a priori unknowable to an external observer (e.g., a malicious device, an attacker, etc.). However, for a legitimate transmitter and a legitimate receiver of the communication, the moment and bandwidth at which the transmission associated with the time slot can start / end can be predictable and a priori identifiable based on one or more preconfigured or pre-exchanged secret parameters or configurations, so that the communication can be performed between the legitimate transmitter and the legitimate receiver as expected. Because the time slot structure can be randomized as described herein, the time-frequency resources used for transmission (e.g., spectrum resources in which frequency is the spectrum of the frequency band and time is the duration in which the spectrum is used) may appear to be not aligned with the time slot grid. Therefore, communication based on a randomized time slot structure may also be referred to as off-grid communication. Therefore, off-grid communication may correspond to time slots at moments with non-constant periodicity and / or time slots allocated in a frequency domain with non-uniform frequency offsets, subcarrier frequencies and / or bandwidths. In addition, devices performing off-grid communication may not be orthogonal to devices communicating using conventional OFDM.

[0079] In one or more configurations, the (slot structure) randomization may be performed in a distributed or continuous manner. When the randomization is performed in a continuous manner, there may be an infinite number of possible slot positions (in the time domain) and possible bandwidth / bandwidth positions (in the frequency domain). The large number of randomization possibilities may significantly increase the complexity and difficulty associated with eavesdropping attacks.

[0080] Some aspects of the present disclosure may be described with respect to a network node (eg, a base station) and a UE. However, it should be appreciated that the present disclosure is not limited thereto and that the various aspects may be suitable for use with any suitable pair of devices that can communicate with each other via a wireless communication system.

[0081] In one or more configurations, upon connection establishment, the UE may report (e.g., to a network node) its capabilities regarding off-slot grid communication (e.g., whether the UE supports off-slot grid communication). In one or more configurations, the network node may define one or more parameters associated with off-slot grid communication. These parameters may be described in more detail below. In addition, the network node may indicate these parameters to the UE.

[0082] In one or more configurations, boundaries or parameters associated with time slot structure randomization may include, for example, one or more carrier frequency offsets (e.g., maximum carrier frequency, minimum carrier frequency), SCS, and / or one or more time slot offsets (e.g., time offsets with respect to a time slot grid associated with actual start / end times of transmissions associated with the time slots).

[0083] In one or more configurations, randomization parameters associated with the time slot structure may be identified based on, for example, one or more of a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI) of the UE, a time slot index, a PBCH index, or one or more key numbers (e.g., a (large) prime number for security). In addition, randomization parameters associated with the time slot structure may be identified based on a preconfigured calculation. For example, a randomized time slot structure parameter associated with an initial time slot may be determined based on the UE's RNTI multiplied / divided by the time slot index (or PBCH index) and / or one or more key numbers, where the result may be further passed through an operator with another key number (e.g., a modulo operator or any other suitable operator). The output of the modulo operator may be used to determine, for example, one or more carrier frequency offsets, an SCS, and / or one or more time slot offsets.

[0084] In one or more configurations, before off-slot mesh communication begins, the UE and the network node may securely exchange parameters associated with off-slot mesh communication (e.g., key numbers). For example, the parameters may be exchanged in an RRC connection establishment message. In one or more other configurations, at least some parameters (e.g., key numbers) may be predefined and stored at the UE (e.g., stored in a subscriber identity module (SIM) at the UE).

[0085] In one or more configurations, when the randomized time slot is located on a regular time slot grid and compared to the regular time slot grid, there may be a gap in the time-frequency resource. A transmitting device (e.g., a network node) may send a dummy sample or a dummy subcarrier at the gap so that the gap may be filled with the dummy sample or dummy subcarrier. In order to send the dummy sample or dummy subcarrier, the transmitting device may send power that may not be associated with the communication payload (the dummy subcarrier may have a power similar to that of a data subcarrier). The energy corresponding to the dummy sample / subcarrier may be located at a time-frequency resource different from the time-frequency resource occupied by the off-grid time slot. In addition, the dummy sample may not be mapped to a constellation that is a data subcarrier.

[0086] The dummy samples or dummy subcarriers may increase the uncertainty associated with the PDSCH parameters, which may increase the difficulty associated with eavesdropping on the PDSCH. Because the bandwidth parameter may change as the slot index changes (because, for example, the bandwidth parameter may be determined based on the product of the slot index and one or more key numbers), it may be much more difficult for an eavesdropping attacker to track (trace) where the actual time-frequency resources associated with the PDSCH are and / or to steal / collect data.

[0087] For example, in order to learn the slot structure parameters associated with the next time slot, the attacker may need to first know the UE's RNTI, slot index, and predefined key number. It may be a difficult or impossible task for the attacker to collect all the information. Alternatively, the attacker can search an almost infinite number of slot structure parameter hypotheses (this number may be large because the slot structure parameter randomization may be associated with a small randomization resolution) in an attempt to find the correct slot structure parameters, which may also be a difficult or impossible task. Therefore, communication security can be improved. On the other hand, in some cases, there may be limitations to the reduction of randomization resolution because if the randomization resolution is not appropriately selected, the randomization parameters may not be sufficient to undermine the attacker's ability to decode the transmission (i.e., the randomization parameters may become negligible). For example, if the slot time offset is much smaller than the CP, the attacker may perceive the randomized slot time offset as corresponding to a channel that does not exceed that which can be equalized.

[0088] Figure 4A is a diagram 400A illustrating allocation of time-frequency resources associated with an example conventional communication. Figure 4B 400B is a diagram illustrating the allocation of time-frequency resources associated with example off-slot grid communications in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. Figure 4A and Figure 4B4 illustrates the allocation of time-frequency resources associated with the transmission of SSB (SSB may include PSS (e.g., PSS 410 and PSS 460), SSS (e.g., SSS 412 and SSS 462), and PBCH (e.g., PBCH 414 and PBCH 464)). In addition, Figure 4A and Figure 4B A set of empty REs (e.g., empty RE 420 and empty RE 470) is depicted. Figure 4A As shown, the PDSCH 402 based on conventional communication may have a known time slot structure (e.g., a known time offset, a known carrier frequency offset, a known SCS, etc.). Therefore, it may not be very difficult for an eavesdropping attacker to eavesdrop on the PDSCH 402 to steal or collect the data sent therein. Figure 4B As shown, the PDSCH 452 based on off-slot grid communication may have a randomized slot structure (e.g., randomized time offset, randomized carrier frequency offset, randomized SCS, etc.). In addition, the randomized slot structure may change in different slots. Therefore, it may be difficult or impossible for an eavesdropping attacker to eavesdrop on the PDSCH 452 because the parameters associated with the randomized slot structure may be unpredictable and a priori unknowable to the attacker. In addition, as Figure 4B As shown, gaps in the time-frequency resources between randomized time slots (eg, time slots corresponding to PDSCH 452) and regular time slots corresponding to a regular time slot grid may be filled by a transmitting device with dummy samples 454 and / or dummy subcarriers.

[0089] In one or more configurations, since TDM-based communications can be used to accommodate multiple UEs and a particular UE may not know which exact time slots include data for that UE, the conventional PDCCH process can be retained and used, where the UE can search all time slots and multiple DCI location hypotheses as well as all time slots. In addition, transmissions in different time slots can be associated with different randomized bandwidth parameters (e.g., one or more carrier frequency offsets and / or SCSs). In other words, in different time slots, the DCI can be located in different REs.

[0090] The overhead associated with randomization of the slot structure as described herein may depend on the boundaries or parameters used for the randomization. In general, the wider (higher) the boundaries, the higher the security, as there may be more time-frequency resource locations in which the PDSCH may be located.

[0091] In one or more configurations, an overhead of 1 OFDM symbol (which may be much longer than the CP) may be used / incurred. In upcoming wireless communication systems, the overhead of 1 OFDM symbol may be affordable in higher frequency bands because upcoming systems in higher frequency bands may achieve extremely high throughput. In addition, the bandwidth overhead incurred by randomization of the SCS and / or carrier frequency (Fc) offset may be in the range of a few percentage points.

[0092] As described above, the randomization parameters associated with the time slot structure may be identified based on, for example, one or more of the UE's RNTI, a time slot index, a PBCH index, or one or more key numbers (e.g., a (large) prime number for security). In addition, the randomization parameters associated with the time slot structure may be identified based on a preconfigured calculation. In one example, the time offset of the start (initial) time of the PDSCH transmission associated with the time slot may be calculated as:

[0093]

[0094] Where mod() can be a modulus operator, tSlot max can be the maximum slot offset, and tSlot min It can be the minimum slot offset. Other randomization parameters such as SCS, frequency allocation, carrier frequency offset, etc. can be calculated similarly.

[0095] In one or more configurations, samples without data (ie, samples corresponding to gaps in the time-frequency resources between randomized time slots and time slots based on a regular time slot grid) may be filled with dummy samples (and with a different bandwidth) by the transmitting device.

[0096] In one or more configurations, multi-user (MU)-MIMO (MU-MIMO) can be used with slot structure randomization / off-slot grid communication as described herein because the streams from different UEs can be orthogonal due to the good spatial separation between UEs in the sub-THz frequency band. Due to the orthogonality of the streams from different UEs, frequency division multiplexing (FDM) can be used without interference between UEs. Therefore, MU-MIMO can be used with slot structure randomization / off-slot grid communication.

[0097] The overhead associated with the various aspects described herein may not be negligible, but may still be affordable because the bandwidth is high enough in the sub-THz bands (e.g., up to 7.5 GHz) and the system capacity based on the sufficient bandwidth may far exceed the specified or desired UE throughput target.

[0098] Figure 5is an illustration of a communication flow 500 of a method of wireless communication. At 506, UE 502 may send to network node 504 an indication of UE capabilities associated with off-slot grid communications.

[0099] At 508, the network node 504 may send to the UE 502 at least one parameter associated with off-slot grid communications.

[0100] At 510, UE 502 may identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with network node 504. The set of time-frequency resources may include different time-frequency resources in different time slots. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations.

[0101] At 512, the network node 504 may identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with the UE 502. The set of time-frequency resources may include different time-frequency resources in different time slots. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations.

[0102] In one or more configurations, the set of time-frequency resources may correspond to at least one of a time offset, a (carrier) frequency offset, a carrier frequency, an SCS, or a bandwidth associated with a time slot. In one or more configurations, the set of time-frequency resources may be identified based on at least one of an RNTI of the UE 502, a time slot index, a PBCH index, or at least one key number.

[0103] In one or more configurations, to identify the set of time-frequency resources at 510, the UE 502 may receive (eg, at 508) an indication of the set of time-frequency resources from a network node via RRC signaling.

[0104] In one or more configurations, the set of time-frequency resources may be preconfigured. The configuration of the set of time-frequency resources may be stored at a SIM at the UE 502. In one or more configurations, the configuration of the set of time-frequency resources may include at least one key number.

[0105] At 514, the UE 502 and the network node 504 may communicate with each other based on the set of time-frequency resources and off-slot grid communications.

[0106] In one or more configurations, the communication at 514 may be associated with at least one of a PDSCH or a PDCCH. Thus, the network node 504 may send at least one transmission to the UE 502 via at least one of the PDSCH or the PDCCH based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communication, and the UE 502 may receive the at least one transmission from the network node 504 via at least one of the PDSCH or the PDCCH based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communication.

[0107] In one or more configurations, there may be a gap between the set of time-frequency resources and a second set of time-frequency resources corresponding to the grid of time slots.

[0108] At 516, the network node 504 may send one or more of at least one dummy sample or at least one dummy subcarrier at a gap between the set of time-frequency resources and a second set of time-frequency resources corresponding to the time slot grid.

[0109] Figure 6 600 is a flow chart of a method of wireless communication. The method may be performed by a UE (e.g., UE 104 / 350 / 502; apparatus 1004). At 602, the UE may identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with a network node. The set of time-frequency resources may include different time-frequency resources in different time slots. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. For example, 602 may be performed by Fig.10 Component 198 in the implementation. Figure 5 At 510 , UE 502 may identify a set of time-frequency resources for communicating with network node 504 off the time slot grid.

[0110] At 604, the UE may communicate with the network node based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-time slot grid communication. For example, 604 may be performed by Fig.10 Component 198 in the implementation. Figure 5 At 514, UE 502 may communicate with network node 504 based on the set of time-frequency resources and off-slot grid communications.

[0111] Figure 7 700 is a flow chart of a method of wireless communication. The method may be performed by a UE (e.g., UE 104 / 350 / 502; apparatus 1004). At 706, the UE may identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with a network node. The set of time-frequency resources may include different time-frequency resources in different time slots. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. For example, 706 may be performed by Fig.10 Component 198 in the implementation. Figure 5 At 510 , UE 502 may identify a set of time-frequency resources for communicating with network node 504 off the time slot grid.

[0112] At 708, the UE may communicate with the network node based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communication. For example, 708 may be performed by Fig.10 Component 198 in the implementation. Figure 5 At 514, UE 502 may communicate with network node 504 based on the set of time-frequency resources and off-slot grid communications.

[0113] In one configuration, the set of time-frequency resources may correspond to at least one of a time offset, a frequency offset, a carrier frequency, an SCS, or a bandwidth associated with a time slot.

[0114] In one configuration, reference Figure 5 The time-frequency resource set may be identified based on at least one of an RNTI of the UE 502, a timeslot index, a PBCH index, or at least one key number.

[0115] In one configuration, reference Figure 5 To identify the set of time-frequency resources, the UE 502 may receive an indication of the set of time-frequency resources from the network node 504 via RRC signaling. This may be performed as part of 508.

[0116] In one configuration, the set of time-frequency resources may be preconfigured. The configuration of the set of time-frequency resources may be stored at the SIM.

[0117] In one configuration, the configuration of the set of time-frequency resources may include at least one key number.

[0118] In one configuration, reference Figure 5 , the communication with the network node 504 at 514 may be associated with at least one of the PDSCH or the PDCCH.

[0119] In one configuration, reference Figure 5 To communicate with the network node 504 based on the set of time-frequency resources, at 514, the UE 502 may receive at least one transmission from the network node 504 via at least one of the PDSCH or the PDCCH based on the set of time-frequency resources.

[0120] In one configuration, there may be a gap between the set of time-frequency resources and a second set of time-frequency resources corresponding to the time slot grid.The gap may include one or more of at least one dummy sample or at least one dummy subcarrier.

[0121] In one configuration, at 702, the UE may send an indication of UE capabilities associated with off-time slot grid communications to a network node. For example, 702 may be sent by Fig.10 Component 198 in the implementation. Figure 5 At 506, UE 502 may send to network node 504 an indication of UE capabilities associated with off-slot grid communications.

[0122] In one configuration, at 704, the UE may receive at least one parameter associated with off-slot grid communication from a network node. For example, 704 may be performed by Fig.10 Component 198 in the implementation. Figure 5 At 508, UE 502 may receive at least one parameter associated with off-slot grid communication from network node 504.

[0123] Figure 8 800 is a flow chart of a method of wireless communication. The method may be performed by a base station / network node (e.g., base station 102 / 310; network node 504; network entity 1002). At 802, the network node may identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with a UE. The set of time-frequency resources may include different time-frequency resources in different time slots. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. For example, 802 may be performed by Fig.11 Component 199 in the reference Figure 5 At 512, the network node 504 may identify a set of time-frequency resources for communicating with the UE 502 off the time slot grid.

[0124] At 804, the network node may communicate with the UE based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-time slot grid communication. For example, 804 may be performed by Fig.11 Component 199 in the reference Figure 5 At 514, the network node 504 may communicate with the UE 502 based on the set of time-frequency resources and off-slot grid communications.

[0125] Fig. 9 900 is a flow chart of a method of wireless communication. The method may be performed by a base station / network node (e.g., base station 102 / 310; network node 504; network entity 1002). At 906, the network node may identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with the UE. The set of time-frequency resources may include different time-frequency resources in different time slots. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. For example, 906 may be performed by Fig.11 Component 199 in the reference Figure 5At 512, the network node 504 may identify a set of time-frequency resources for communicating with the UE 502 off the time slot grid.

[0126] At 908, the network node may communicate with the UE based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-time slot grid communication. For example, 908 may be performed by Fig.11 Component 199 in the reference Figure 5 At 514, the network node 504 may communicate with the UE 502 based on the set of time-frequency resources and off-slot grid communications.

[0127] In one configuration, the set of time-frequency resources may correspond to at least one of a time offset, a frequency offset, a carrier frequency, an SCS, or a bandwidth associated with a time slot.

[0128] In one configuration, reference Figure 5 The time-frequency resource set may be identified based on at least one of an RNTI of the UE 502, a timeslot index, a PBCH index, or at least one key number.

[0129] In one configuration, at 904a, the network node may send an indication of the time-frequency resource set to the UE via RRC signaling. Fig.11 Component 199 in the reference Figure 5 At 508, the network node 504 may send an indication of the set of time-frequency resources to the UE 502 via RRC signaling.

[0130] In one configuration, the set of time-frequency resources may be preconfigured.

[0131] In one configuration, reference Figure 5 , the communication with the UE 502 at 514 may be associated with at least one of the PDSCH or the PDCCH.

[0132] In one configuration, reference Figure 5 To communicate with the UE 502 based on the set of time-frequency resources, at 514, the network node 504 may send at least one transmission to the UE via at least one of the PDSCH or the PDCCH based on the set of time-frequency resources.

[0133] In one configuration, at 910, the network node may send one or more of at least one dummy sample or at least one dummy subcarrier at a gap between the set of time-frequency resources and a second set of time-frequency resources corresponding to the time slot grid. For example, 910 may be performed by Fig.11 Component 199 in the reference Figure 5At 516, the network node 504 may send one or more of at least one dummy sample or at least one dummy subcarrier at a gap between the set of time-frequency resources and a second set of time-frequency resources corresponding to the time slot grid.

[0134] In one configuration, at 902, the network node may receive from the UE an indication of UE capabilities associated with off-time slot grid communications. For example, 902 may be Fig.11 Component 199 in the reference Figure 5 At 506, the network node 504 may receive from the UE 502 an indication of UE capabilities associated with off-slot grid communications.

[0135] In one configuration, at 904, the network node may send at least one parameter associated with off-time slot grid communication to the UE. For example, 904 may be performed by Fig.11 Component 199 in the reference Figure 5 At 508, the network node 504 may send at least one parameter associated with off-slot grid communication to the UE 502.

[0136] Fig.101000 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for an apparatus 1004. The apparatus 1004 may be a UE, a component of a UE, or may implement UE functionality. In some aspects, the apparatus 1004 may include a cellular baseband processor 1024 (also referred to as a modem) coupled to one or more transceivers 1022 (e.g., a cellular RF transceiver). The cellular baseband processor 1024 may include on-chip memory 1024'. In some aspects, the apparatus 1004 may also include one or more subscriber identity module (SIM) cards 1020 and an application processor 1006 coupled to a secure digital (SD) card 1008 and a screen 1010. The application processor 1006 may include on-chip memory 1006'. In some aspects, the device 1004 may also include a Bluetooth module 1012, a WLAN module 1014, an SPS module 1016 (e.g., a GNSS module), one or more sensor modules 1018 (e.g., an atmospheric pressure sensor / altimeter; a motion sensor such as an inertial measurement unit (IMU), a gyroscope, and / or an accelerometer; light detection and ranging (LIDAR), radio-aided detection and ranging (RADAR), sound navigation and ranging (SONAR), a magnetometer, audio, and / or other technologies for positioning), an additional memory module 1026, a power source 1030, and / or a camera 1032. The Bluetooth module 1012, the WLAN module 1014, and the SPS module 1016 may include an on-chip transceiver (TRX) (or in some cases, only a receiver (RX)). The Bluetooth module 1012, the WLAN module 1014, and the SPS module 1016 may include their own dedicated antennas and / or communicate using antennas 1080. The cellular baseband processor 1024 communicates with the UE 104 and / or with the RU associated with the network entity 1002 through the transceiver 1022 via one or more antennas 1080. The cellular baseband processor 1024 and the application processor 1006 can each include a computer-readable medium / memory 1024', 1006', respectively. The additional memory module 1026 can also be considered as a computer-readable medium / memory. Each computer-readable medium / memory 1024', 1006', 1026 can be non-transitory. The cellular baseband processor 1024 and the application processor 1006 are each responsible for general processing, including executing software stored on the computer-readable medium / memory. The software enables the cellular baseband processor 1024 / application processor 1006 to perform the various functions described above when executed by the cellular baseband processor 1024 / application processor 1006. The computer-readable medium / memory can also be used to store data manipulated by the cellular baseband processor 1024 / application processor 1006 when executing the software.The cellular baseband processor 1024 / application processor 1006 may be a component of the UE 350 and may include the memory 360 and / or at least one of the TX processor 368, the RX processor 356, and the controller / processor 359. In one configuration, the device 1004 may be a processor chip (modem and / or application) and include only the cellular baseband processor 1024 and / or the application processor 1006, and in another configuration, the device 1004 may be the entire UE (e.g., see. Figure 3 350) and includes additional modules of device 1004.

[0137] As discussed above, component 198 is configured to identify a time-frequency resource set for off-slot grid communication with a network node. Based on the off-slot grid communication, each time-frequency resource in the time-frequency resource set can be a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot. At least two time slots can be associated with different durations. Component 198 can be configured to communicate with a network node based on the time-frequency resource set and the off-slot grid communication. Component 198 can be in a cellular baseband processor 1024, an application processor 1006, or both a cellular baseband processor 1024 and an application processor 1006. Component 198 can be one or more hardware components, which are specifically configured to perform the stated process / algorithm, implemented by one or more processors configured to perform the stated process / algorithm, stored in a computer-readable medium so as to be implemented by one or more processors, or some combination of the above. As shown, device 1004 may include a variety of components configured for various functions. In one configuration, the apparatus 1004 (and in particular the cellular baseband processor 1024 and / or the application processor 1006) includes means for identifying a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with a network node. Based on the off-slot grid communication, each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources may be a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. The apparatus 1004 (and in particular the cellular baseband processor 1024 and / or the application processor 1006) includes means for communicating with a network node based on the set of time-frequency resources and off-slot grid communication.

[0138] In one configuration, the time-frequency resource set may correspond to at least one of a time offset, a frequency offset, a carrier frequency, an SCS, or a bandwidth associated with a time slot. In one configuration, the time-frequency resource set may be identified based on at least one of an RNTI of the UE, a time slot index, a PBCH index, or at least one key number. In one configuration, the means for identifying the time-frequency resource set may be configured to receive an indication of the time-frequency resource set from a network node via RRC signaling. In one configuration, the time-frequency resource set may be preconfigured. The configuration of the time-frequency resource set may be stored at a SIM. In one configuration, the configuration of the time-frequency resource set may include at least one key number. In one configuration, communication with the network node may be associated with at least one of a PDSCH or a PDCCH. In one configuration, the means for communicating with the network node based on the time-frequency resource set may be configured to receive at least one transmission from the network node via at least one of a PDSCH or a PDCCH based on the time-frequency resource set. In one configuration, there may be a gap between the set of time-frequency resources and a second set of time-frequency resources corresponding to the time slot grid. The gap may include one or more of at least one dummy sample or at least one dummy subcarrier. In one configuration, the device 1004 (and in particular the cellular baseband processor 1024 and / or the application processor 1006) includes a component for sending an indication of UE capabilities associated with off-time slot grid communication to a network node. In one configuration, the device 1004 (and in particular the cellular baseband processor 1024 and / or the application processor 1006) includes a component for receiving at least one parameter associated with off-time slot grid communication from a network node.

[0139] A means may be a component 198 of the apparatus 1004 configured to perform the functions recited by the means. As described above, the apparatus 1004 may include the TX processor 368, the RX processor 356, and the controller / processor 359. Thus, in one configuration, a means may be the TX processor 368, the RX processor 356, and / or the controller / processor 359 configured to perform the functions recited by the means.

[0140] Fig.111100 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for a network entity 1102. The network entity 1102 may be a BS, a component of a BS, or may implement BS functionality. The network entity 1102 may include at least one of a CU 1110, a DU 1130, or a RU 1140. For example, depending on the layer functionality handled by the component 199, the network entity 1102 may include a CU 1110; both a CU 1110 and a DU 1130; each of the CU 1110, the DU 1130, and the RU 1140; the DU 1130; both the DU 1130 and the RU 1140; or the RU 1140. The CU 1110 may include a CU processor 1112. The CU processor 1112 may include an on-chip memory 1112'. In some aspects, the CU 1110 may also include an additional memory module 1114 and a communication interface 1118. CU 1110 communicates with DU 1130 via a midhaul link, such as an F1 interface. DU 1130 may include a DU processor 1132. DU processor 1132 may include on-chip memory 1132'. In some aspects, DU 1130 may also include an additional memory module 1134 and a communication interface 1138. DU 1130 communicates with RU 1140 via a fronthaul link. RU 1140 may include a RU processor 1142. RU processor 1142 may include on-chip memory 1142'. In some aspects, RU 1140 may also include an additional memory module 1144, one or more transceivers 1146, an antenna 1180, and a communication interface 1148. RU 1140 communicates with UE 104. On-chip memory 1112', 1132', 1142' and additional memory modules 1114, 1134, 1144 may each be considered a computer-readable medium / memory. Each computer readable medium / memory may be non-transitory. Each of the processors 1112, 1132, 1142 is responsible for general processing, including executing software stored on the computer readable medium / memory. The software, when executed by the corresponding processor, causes the processor to perform the various functions described above. The computer readable medium / memory may also be used to store data manipulated by the processor when executing the software.

[0141] As discussed above, component 199 is configured to identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with a UE. Based on the off-slot grid communication, each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources may be a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. Component 199 is configured to communicate with the UE based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communication. Component 199 may be within one or more processors of one or more of CU 1110, DU 1130, and RU 1140. Component 199 may be one or more hardware components that are specifically configured to perform the stated process / algorithm, implemented by one or more processors configured to perform the stated process / algorithm, stored in a computer-readable medium so as to be implemented by one or more processors, or some combination of the above. Network entity 1102 may include multiple components configured for various functions. In one configuration, network entity 1102 includes a component for identifying a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with a UE. Based on the off-slot grid communication, each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources may be a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. The network entity 1102 includes components for communicating with the UE based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communication.

[0142] In one configuration, the time-frequency resource set may correspond to at least one of a time offset, a frequency offset, a carrier frequency, an SCS, or a bandwidth associated with a time slot. In one configuration, the time-frequency resource set may be identified based on at least one of an RNTI, a time slot index, a PBCH index, or at least one key number of the UE. In one configuration, the network entity 1102 includes a component for sending an indication of the time-frequency resource set to the UE via RRC signaling. In one configuration, the time-frequency resource set may be preconfigured. In one configuration, the communication with the UE may be associated with at least one of a PDSCH or a PDCCH. In one configuration, the component for communicating with the UE based on the time-frequency resource set may be configured to send at least one transmission to the UE via at least one of the PDSCH or the PDCCH based on the time-frequency resource set. In one configuration, the network entity 1102 includes a component for sending one or more of at least one dummy sample or at least one dummy subcarrier at a gap between the time-frequency resource set and a second time-frequency resource set corresponding to the time slot grid. In one configuration, the network entity 1102 includes means for receiving, from the UE, an indication of UE capabilities associated with off-slot grid communications. In one configuration, the network entity 1102 includes means for sending, to the UE, at least one parameter associated with off-slot grid communications.

[0143] A means may be a component 199 of the network entity 1102 configured to perform the functions recited by the means. As described above, the network entity 1102 may include the TX processor 316, the RX processor 370, and the controller / processor 375. Thus, in one configuration, a means may be the TX processor 316, the RX processor 370, and / or the controller / processor 375 configured to perform the functions recited by the means.

[0144] Refer back to Figure 4 to Fig.11 , the UE can identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with the network node. Similarly, the network node can identify a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communication with the UE. Based on the off-slot grid communication, the set of time-frequency resources may include different time-frequency resources in different time slots. At least two time slots may be associated with different durations. The UE and the network node can communicate with each other based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communication. Therefore, improved physical layer security can be achieved. In addition, the improved system can be backward compatible because the time slot structure randomization can be disabled if another device in the communication does not support the randomized time slot structure.

[0145] It should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of the blocks in the disclosed process / flowchart is merely an illustration of the exemplary method. It should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of the blocks in the process / flowchart may be rearranged based on design preferences. Further, some blocks may be combined or omitted. The attached method claims provide the elements of the various blocks in a sample order, but are not limited to the specific order or hierarchy provided.

[0146] The foregoing description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein can be applied to other aspects. Therefore, the claims are not limited to the various aspects described herein, but should be given the full scope consistent with the language claims. Unless otherwise specified, reference to an element in the singular form does not mean "one and only one", but "one or more". Terms such as "if", "when" and "while" do not mean a direct temporal relationship or reaction. That is, these phrases, such as "when ......", do not mean an immediate action in response to the occurrence of an action or during the occurrence of an action, but simply imply that if the conditions are met, the action will occur, but no specific or immediate time limit is required for the occurrence of the action. The word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "used as an example, instance, or illustration". Any aspect described as "exemplary" herein is not necessarily interpreted as being preferred or having advantages over other aspects. Unless otherwise specified, the term "some" refers to one or more. Combinations such as "at least one of A, B, or C", "one or more of A, B, or C", "at least one of A, B and C", "one or more of A, B, and C", and "A, B, C, or any combination thereof" include any combination of A, B, and / or C, and may include multiple A, multiple B, or multiple C. Specifically, combinations such as "at least one of A, B, or C", "one or more of A, B, or C", "at least one of A, B, and C", "one or more of A, B, and C", and "A, B, C, or any combination thereof" may be only A, only B, only C, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A and B and C, wherein any such combination may contain one or more members of A, B, or C. A set should be interpreted as a set of elements, wherein the number of elements is one or more. Thus, for a set of X, X will include one or more elements. If the first device receives data from the second device or sends data to the second device, the data may be received / sent directly between the first device and the second device, or indirectly between the first device and the second device through a collection of devices. All structural and functional equivalents of the elements of the various aspects described throughout the present disclosure that are known or will later be known to a person of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are covered by the claims. In addition, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public, regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly stated in the claims. Words such as "module", "mechanism", "element", "device", etc. cannot replace the word "component". Therefore, no claim element will be understood as a component plus function unless the element is explicitly stated using the phrase "component for..."

[0147] As used herein, the phrase "based on" should not be interpreted as referring to a closed set of information, one or more conditions, one or more factors, etc. In other words, the phrase "based on A" (where "A" can be information, a condition, a factor, etc.) should be interpreted as "based at least on A" unless specifically stated differently.

[0148] The following aspects are merely illustrative and may be combined with other aspects or teachings described herein without limitation.

[0149] Aspect 1 is a method for performing wireless communications at a UE, the method comprising: identifying a set of time-frequency resources for performing off-slot grid communications with a network node, wherein based on the off-slot grid communications, each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources is a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot, and at least two time slots are associated with different durations; and communicating with the network node based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communications.

[0150] Aspect 2 is a method according to aspect 1, wherein the set of time-frequency resources corresponds to at least one of a time offset, a frequency offset, a carrier frequency, an SCS, or a bandwidth related to a time slot.

[0151] Aspect 3 is a method according to any one of aspects 1 and 2, wherein the time-frequency resource set is identified based on at least one of the RNTI, time slot index, PBCH index or at least one key number of the UE.

[0152] Aspect 4 is a method according to any one of aspects 1 to 3, wherein identifying the set of time-frequency resources comprises: receiving an indication of the set of time-frequency resources from the network node via RRC signaling.

[0153] Aspect 5 is a method according to any one of aspects 1 to 3, wherein the time-frequency resource set is preconfigured, and the configuration of the time-frequency resource set is stored at a SIM.

[0154] Aspect 6 is a method according to aspect 5, wherein the configuration of the time-frequency resource set includes at least one key number.

[0155] Aspect 7 is a method according to any one of aspects 1 to 6, wherein the communication with the network node is associated with at least one of a PDSCH or a PDCCH.

[0156] Aspect 8 is a method according to aspect 7, wherein communicating with the network node based on the time-frequency resource set includes: receiving at least one transmission from the network node via at least one of the PDSCH or the PDCCH based on the time-frequency resource set.

[0157] Aspect 9 is a method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 8, wherein there is a gap between the time-frequency resource set and a second time-frequency resource set corresponding to a time slot grid, and the gap includes one or more of at least one dummy sample or at least one dummy subcarrier.

[0158] Aspect 10 is a method according to any one of aspects 1 to 9, the method further comprising: sending an indication of UE capabilities associated with the off-slot grid communication to the network node.

[0159] Aspect 11 is a method according to any one of aspects 1 to 10, the method further comprising: receiving at least one parameter associated with the off-slot mesh communication from the network node.

[0160] Aspect 12 is a method for performing wireless communications at a network node, the method comprising: identifying a time-frequency resource set for performing off-time slot grid communications with a UE, wherein based on the off-time slot grid communications, each time-frequency resource in the time-frequency resource set is a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot, and at least two time slots are associated with different durations; and communicating with the UE based on the time-frequency resource set and the off-time slot grid communications.

[0161] Aspect 13 is a method according to aspect 12, wherein the set of time-frequency resources corresponds to at least one of a time offset, a frequency offset, a carrier frequency, an SCS, or a bandwidth related to a time slot.

[0162] Aspect 14 is a method according to any one of aspects 12 and 13, wherein the set of time-frequency resources is identified based on at least one of an RNTI, a timeslot index, a PBCH index, or at least one key number of the UE.

[0163] Aspect 15 is a method according to any one of aspects 12 to 14, the method further comprising: sending an indication of the time-frequency resource set to the UE via RRC signaling.

[0164] Aspect 16 is a method according to any one of aspects 12 to 14, wherein the set of time-frequency resources is preconfigured.

[0165] Aspect 17 is a method according to any one of aspects 12 to 16, wherein the communication with the UE is associated with at least one of a PDSCH or a PDCCH.

[0166] Aspect 18 is a method according to aspect 17, wherein communicating with the UE based on the set of time-frequency resources includes: sending at least one transmission to the UE via at least one of the PDSCH or the PDCCH based on the set of time-frequency resources.

[0167] Aspect 19 is a method according to any one of Aspects 12 to 18, the method further comprising: sending one or more of at least one dummy sample or at least one dummy subcarrier at a gap between the time-frequency resource set and a second time-frequency resource set corresponding to a time slot grid.

[0168] Aspect 20 is a method according to any one of aspects 12 to 19, the method further comprising: receiving, from the UE, an indication of UE capabilities associated with the off-slot grid communication.

[0169] Aspect 21 is a method according to any one of aspects 12 to 20, the method further comprising: sending at least one parameter associated with the off-slot grid communication to the UE.

[0170] Aspect 22 is an apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus comprising: at least one processor, the at least one processor being coupled to a memory, and the at least one processor being configured to implement a method as described in any one of Aspects 1 to 21 based at least in part on information stored in the memory.

[0171] Aspect 23 may be combined with Aspect 22, and further comprises a transceiver coupled to the at least one processor.

[0172] Aspect 24 is an apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus comprising means for implementing any one of aspects 1 to 21.

[0173] Aspect 25 is a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable code, wherein the code, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to implement any one of aspects 1 to 21.

[0174] Various aspects have been described herein. These and other aspects are within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. An apparatus for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), the apparatus comprising: Memory; and at least one processor coupled to the memory and based at least in part on the information stored in the memory, the at least one processor configured to: identifying a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communications with a network node, wherein each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources is a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot based on the off-slot grid communications, and at least two time slots are associated with different durations; as well as Communicating with the network node is performed based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communications.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the set of time-frequency resources corresponds to at least one of a time offset, a frequency offset, a carrier frequency, a subcarrier spacing (SCS), or a bandwidth associated with a time slot.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the set of time-frequency resources is identified based on at least one of a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI), a time slot index, a physical broadcast channel (PBCH) index, or at least one key number of the UE.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein to identify the set of time-frequency resources, the at least one processor is configured to receive an indication of the set of time-frequency resources from the network node via radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the set of time-frequency resources is preconfigured, and the configuration of the set of time-frequency resources is stored at a subscriber identity module (SIM). The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the configuration of the set of time-frequency resources comprises at least one key number.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the communication with the network node is associated with at least one of a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) or a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein in order to communicate with the network node based on the set of time-frequency resources, the at least one processor is configured to receive at least one transmission from the network node via at least one of the PDSCH or the PDCCH based on the set of time-frequency resources.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein there is a gap between the set of time-frequency resources and a second set of time-frequency resources corresponding to a time slot grid, and the gap comprises one or more of at least one dummy sample or at least one dummy subcarrier.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: An indication of UE capabilities associated with the off-slot grid communications is sent to the network node.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: At least one parameter associated with the off-slot mesh communication is received from the network node.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a transceiver coupled to the at least one processor.

13. A method of wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: identifying a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communications with a network node, wherein each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources is a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot based on the off-slot grid communications, and at least two time slots are associated with different durations; as well as Communicating with the network node is performed based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communications.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the set of time-frequency resources corresponds to at least one of a time offset, a frequency offset, a carrier frequency, a subcarrier spacing (SCS), or a bandwidth related to a time slot.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the set of time-frequency resources is identified based on at least one of a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI), a time slot index, a physical broadcast channel (PBCH) index, or at least one key number of the UE.

16. An apparatus for wireless communication at a network node, the apparatus comprising: Memory; and at least one processor coupled to the memory and based at least in part on the information stored in the memory, the at least one processor configured to: identifying a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communications with a user equipment (UE), wherein each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources is a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot based on the off-slot grid communications, and at least two time slots are associated with different durations; and Communicating with the UE is performed based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communications.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the set of time-frequency resources corresponds to at least one of a time offset, a frequency offset, a carrier frequency, a subcarrier spacing (SCS), or a bandwidth related to a time slot.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the set of time-frequency resources is identified based on at least one of a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI), a slot index, a physical broadcast channel (PBCH) index, or at least one key number of the UE.

19. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: An indication of the set of time-frequency resources is sent to the UE via radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

20. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the set of time-frequency resources is preconfigured.

21. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the communication with the UE is associated with at least one of a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) or a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein to communicate with the UE based on the set of time-frequency resources, the at least one processor is configured to send at least one transmission to the UE via at least one of the PDSCH or the PDCCH based on the set of time-frequency resources.

23. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: One or more of at least one dummy sample or at least one dummy subcarrier is sent at a gap between the set of time-frequency resources and a second set of time-frequency resources corresponding to a grid of time slots.

24. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: An indication of UE capabilities associated with the off-slot grid communications is received from the UE.

25. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: At least one parameter associated with the off-slot grid communication is sent to the UE.

26. The apparatus of claim 16, further comprising a transceiver coupled to the at least one processor.

27. A method for wireless communication at a network node, the method comprising: identifying a set of time-frequency resources for off-slot grid communications with a user equipment (UE), wherein each time-frequency resource in the set of time-frequency resources is a different time-frequency resource in a different time slot based on the off-slot grid communications, and at least two time slots are associated with different durations; and Communicating with the UE is performed based on the set of time-frequency resources and the off-slot grid communications.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the set of time-frequency resources corresponds to at least one of a time offset, a frequency offset, a carrier frequency, a subcarrier spacing (SCS), or a bandwidth related to a time slot.

29. The method of claim 27, wherein the set of time-frequency resources is identified based on at least one of a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI), a time slot index, a physical broadcast channel (PBCH) index, or at least one key number of the UE.

30. The method of claim 27, further comprising: An indication of the set of time-frequency resources is sent to the UE via radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

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