Method, system and apparatus for joint error correction coding and decoding of self-decodable payload and combined payload

Abstract

Joint error correction coding includes error correction coding of a plurality of individual payloads to generate a codeword. The codeword includes a self-decodable encoded block generated by error correction encoding of a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by error correction encoding of a second individual payload combined with a portion of the first individual payload. The portion of the first individual payload is determined to be combined with the second individual payload according to an ordering of bits in the first individual payload. The individual payloads or encoded blocks can be decoded independently of each other, and the self-decodable encoded blocks and the other encoded blocks can also be jointly decoded.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to error correction encoding and decoding for wireless communication. Background Art

[0002] Packet loss resistance and error resilience are fundamental characteristics that need to be urgently addressed in sixth generation (6G) communication. For example, according to some technical visions of future factories and industries, high-reliability low-latency wireless communication is a key driving factor for large-scale automated manufacturing.

[0003] The latest developments in 6G also show two trends. From a technical perspective, millimeter-wavelength (mmWave) communication and massive multiple input multiple output (MIMO) may become more prevalent because they can significantly expand existing bandwidth resources. From a business perspective, a single communication device may need to support multiple services with different latency and reliability requirements.

[0004] When multiple services converge onto a single physical wireless link, a scenario may occur. The purpose of convergence is to provide multiple quality of service (QoS) levels for multiple services over only one wireless link. Given the high carrier frequencies and large-scale antennas in some communication systems, beamforming can be implemented more efficiently, enabling multiple services to converge onto one wireless link. At the same time, the key performance indicators (KPIs) of these services can be very diverse. For example, ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC), massive machine type communications (mMTC), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), and terabit per second (Tbps) communication can all be integrated into one link. This is quite challenging because different KPIs, such as signal to noise ratio (SNR), fading, etc., must be supported over the same wireless channel. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The present invention encompasses embodiments that may help address various technical deficiencies of existing encoding and decoding methods. Under the prior art, there is a trade-off between high-reliability communication and low-latency communication. To achieve high reliability, existing systems employ hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) to reduce the block error rate (BLER) level by several orders of magnitude. However, the round-trip latency caused by negative acknowledgement (NACK) signaling, rescheduling, and retransmission may not meet the low-latency requirements in 6G. A simple solution is to reduce the code rate and modulation order, but this comes at the cost of spectral efficiency and is thus generally not encouraged in system design.

[0006] Prior disclosure, namely the international patent application with application number PCT / CN2022 / 122852 filed on September 29, 2022, proposed an encoding and decoding method to enhance reliability without requesting retransmission after decoding failure. A second joint decoding attempt is made after decoding failure to decode using the received symbols of multiple coupled codewords instead of the new retransmitted symbols received in response to a HARQ NACK. This method can be referred to as a HARQ-free method because no immediate automatic retransmission request is made after decoding failure.

[0007] Certain types of hard-output (also known as hard-decision) decoders perform sequential decisions on the information bits in a codeword. Once a hard decoding is performed on a particular coded bit, the decision on that bit cannot be recovered. For example, this may pose a challenge to supporting a second decoding attempt according to the HARQ-free encoding and decoding method mentioned above.

[0008] Providing good encoding and decoding performance in mixed-traffic and low-latency communication applications remains a challenge. For example, HARQ-based methods may incur long round-trip latencies and may not meet the low-latency requirements, and hard-output decoding may not work well in the HARQ-free encoding and decoding method mentioned above, i.e., it cannot enhance reliability without requesting retransmission after decoding failure.

[0009] The present invention includes detailed encoding and decoding embodiments that are particularly applicable to joint forward error correction (FEC) encoding and decoding involving multiple coupled codewords. In each codeword, bit-by-bit hard decision or block-by-block hard decision can be supported. Self-decoding of a single codeword and enhanced joint decoding of multiple codewords can be achieved by coupling the codewords with shared payload bits, which can be or include information bits, systematic bits, or coded bits.

[0010] In some embodiments of the present invention, joint reduction or avoidance of retransmission latency can be achieved by supporting other decoding operations in hard-output decoding after decoding failure of latency-sensitive payloads. Requesting retransmission may not be feasible in some applications for the following reasons: the round-trip latency generated by requesting retransmission may exceed the maximum tolerable latency; performing other decoding operations after decoding failure may avoid the retransmission request, but according to the hard-output decoding method, such operations are not possible because once a hard decision is made, it cannot be restored. For example, the additional decoding latency generated when performing a second decoding attempt without requesting retransmission may be much smaller than the additional latency generated by the round-trip latency of retransmission.

[0011] Joint encoding and decoding according to some embodiments can help improve the performance of hard-output decoding implementations because multiple services can actually enhance each other in joint encoding and decoding.

[0012] Unequal error protection can be provided for different payloads (e.g., payloads related to different services). For example, the target BLER of URLLC payloads may be at least one order of magnitude smaller than the target BLER of eMBB payloads. Even for hard-output decoding applications, the embodiments disclosed herein can achieve this unequal error protection.

[0013] For example, for each individual service, self-decoding capability can be provided additionally or alternatively. To support the different latency requirements of multiple services, each service can perform self-decoding according to the proportion of its encoded bits in the codeword, or in other words, according to its corresponding part in the longer codeword. For example, it may be possible to decode a shorter URLLC payload once a part rather than all of the encoded bits of the longer codeword (e.g., log-likelihood ratio or LLR) are received. Thus, the payload can be self-decoded without having to wait for the entire longer joint codeword to be received. The embodiments disclosed herein can provide such self-decoding capability and / or joint decoding capability for hard-output decoding.

[0014] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method includes: a first communication device in a wireless communication network sending a codeword to a second communication device, where the codeword includes a plurality of encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on corresponding individual payloads. The encoded blocks include a self-decodable encoded block generated by performing error correction coding on a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on a second individual payload encoded in combination with a part of the first individual payload.

[0015] Another method includes: obtaining a first individual payload and a second individual payload; performing error correction coding on the first individual payload to generate a self-decodable coded block; performing error correction coding on the second individual payload that is error correction coded in combination with a portion of the first individual payload to generate other coded blocks; and outputting a codeword including the self-decodable coded block and the other coded blocks.

[0016] In such a method, the portion of the first individual payload may be determined to be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload. The self-decodable coded block can be decoded independently of the other coded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other coded blocks.

[0017] Another method embodiment includes: a second communication device in a wireless communication network receiving a codeword from a first communication device, where the codeword includes a plurality of coded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on corresponding individual payloads. As described above, the coded blocks include a self-decodable coded block generated by performing error correction coding on a first individual payload and other coded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on a second individual payload that is error correction coded in combination with a portion of the first individual payload.

[0018] A method may include: decoding a first individual payload and a second individual payload from a codeword, where the codeword includes a self-decodable coded block generated by performing error correction coding on the first individual payload and other coded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on the second individual payload that is combined with a portion of the first individual payload; and outputting the first individual payload and the second individual payload.

[0019] As in other method embodiments, the portion of the first individual payload may be determined to be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload, the self-decodable coded block can be decoded independently of the other coded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other coded blocks.

[0020] In a device embodiment, a device may include a processor and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium coupled to the processor. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium stores a program for execution by the processor.

[0021] The storage medium does not necessarily need to be or only needs to be implemented in or in combination with such a device. For example, a computer program product may be or include a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a program for execution by a processor.

[0022] A program stored on a computer-readable storage medium may include instructions for or causing a processor to perform, implement, support, or enable any of the methods disclosed herein.

[0023] For example, the program may include instructions for or causing a processor to perform the following operations: a first communication device in a wireless communication network sends a codeword to a second communication device, where the codeword includes a plurality of encoded blocks generated by error-correcting encoding of corresponding individual payloads; a second communication device in the wireless communication network receives the codeword from the first communication device, where the codeword includes a plurality of encoded blocks generated by error-correcting encoding of corresponding individual payloads. The encoded blocks include self-decodable encoded blocks generated by error-correcting encoding of a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by error-correcting encoding of a second individual payload encoded in combination with a part of the first individual payload.

[0024] The program may include instructions for or causing a processor to perform the following operations: obtain a first individual payload and a second individual payload; perform error-correcting encoding on the first individual payload to generate self-decodable encoded blocks; perform error-correcting encoding on the second individual payload encoded in combination with a part of the first individual payload to generate other encoded blocks; output a codeword including the self-decodable encoded blocks and the other encoded blocks.

[0025] According to another aspect of the present invention, the program may include instructions for or causing a processor to perform the following operations: decode a first individual payload and a second individual payload from a codeword, where the codeword includes self-decodable encoded blocks generated by error-correcting encoding of the first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by error-correcting encoding of the second individual payload encoded in combination with a part of the first individual payload; output the first individual payload and the second individual payload.

[0026] In any of these program examples, the part in the first individual payload may be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload, the self-decodable encoded blocks can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks, and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

[0027] Also disclosed is a system, which may include a first communication device and a second communication device. The first communication device is used to send a codeword, where the codeword includes a plurality of encoded blocks generated by encoding corresponding individual payloads using an error correction code. The encoded blocks include self-decodable encoded blocks generated by performing error correction encoding on a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error correction encoding on a second individual payload that is error correction encoded in combination with a part of the first individual payload. The second communication device is used to receive the codeword including the encoded blocks from the first communication device, and decode the self-decodable encoded blocks from the codeword to obtain the first individual payload. As in other embodiments, the part in the first individual payload may be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of the bits in the first individual payload.

[0028] The present invention covers these and other aspects or embodiments. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] To more fully understand the embodiments of the present invention and their advantages, the following description is made by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0030] Figure 1 is a simplified schematic diagram of a communication system.

[0031] Figure 2 is Figure 1 a block diagram of an exemplary communication system in

[0032] Figure 3 shows an example of an exemplary electronic device and a base station.

[0033] Figure 4 shows units or modules in a device.

[0034] Figure 5 is a block diagram of an exemplary multi-service scenario.

[0035] Figure 6 is a block diagram of encoding and decoding provided by an embodiment.

[0036] Figure 7 is a block diagram of an example of encoding provided by an embodiment.

[0037] Figure 8 is a block diagram of an example of decoding provided by an embodiment.

[0038] Figure 9 is a block diagram of an exemplary encoding chain provided by an embodiment.

[0039] Figure 10It is a flowchart of an exemplary method provided by an embodiment.

[0040] Figure 11 It is a simulation result diagram. Detailed implementation manners

[0041] For illustrative purposes, specific exemplary embodiments are explained in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0042] The embodiments described herein represent that the information is sufficient to practice the claimed subject matter and illustrate the methods of practicing such subject matter. After reading the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings, those skilled in the art will understand the concepts of the claimed subject matter and will recognize that the applications of these concepts are not specifically mentioned herein. It should be understood that these concepts and applications are within the scope of the present invention and the appended claims.

[0043] Reference Figure 1 , Figure 1 FIG. 1 is a simplified schematic diagram of a communication system, which is a non-limiting illustrative example. The communication system 100 includes a radio access network 120. The radio access network 120 may be a next-generation (e.g., sixth-generation “6G” or higher) radio access network or a traditional (e.g., 5G, 4G, 3G, or 2G) radio access network. One or more communication electronic devices (EDs) 110a, 110b, 110c, 110d, 110e, 110f, 110g, 110h, 110i, 110j (generally referred to as 110) may be interconnected with each other or connected to one or more network nodes (170a and 170b, generally referred to as 170) in the radio access network 120. The core network 130 may be part of the communication system and may depend on or be independent of the radio access technology used in the communication system 100. In addition, the communication system 100 includes a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 140, the Internet 150, and other networks 160.

[0044] Figure 2An exemplary communication system 100 is shown. Generally speaking, the communication system 100 enables multiple wireless or wired units to transmit data and other content. The purpose of the communication system 100 can be to provide content such as voice, data, video, and / or text through broadcasting, multicasting, unicasting, etc. The communication system 100 can operate by sharing resources such as carrier spectrum bandwidth among its constituent units. The communication system 100 can include a terrestrial communication system and / or a non-terrestrial communication system. The communication system 100 can provide a variety of communication services and applications (e.g., earth monitoring, remote sensing, passive sensing and positioning, navigation and tracking, autonomous delivery and mobility, etc.). The communication system 100 can provide a high degree of availability and robustness through the joint operation of the terrestrial communication system and the non-terrestrial communication system. For example, integrating a non-terrestrial communication system (or its components) into a terrestrial communication system can result in a heterogeneous network including multiple layers. Compared with traditional communication networks, a heterogeneous network can achieve better overall performance through efficient multi-link joint operation, more flexible function sharing, and faster physical layer link switching between the terrestrial network and the non-terrestrial network.

[0045] The terrestrial communication system and the non-terrestrial communication system can be subsystems in the communication system. In Figure 2 the example shown, the communication system 100 includes electronic devices (ED) 110a, 110b, 110c, 110d (generally referred to as ED 110), radio access networks (RAN) 120a, 120b, a non-terrestrial communication network 120c, a core network 130, a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 140, the Internet 150, and other networks 160. The RANs 120a, 120b include corresponding base stations (BS) 170a, 170b, and the BSs 170a, 170b can generally be referred to as terrestrial transmit and receive points (T-TRP) 170a, 170b. The non-terrestrial communication network 120c includes access nodes 172, and the access nodes 172 can generally be referred to as non-terrestrial transmit and receive points (NT-TRP) 172.

[0046] Any ED 110 can alternatively or additionally be used to connect to, access, or communicate with any of T-TRP 170a, 170b, and NT-TRP 172, Internet 150, Core Network 130, PSTN 140, Other Network 160, or any combination of the foregoing. In some examples, ED 110a can perform uplink and / or downlink transmissions with T-TRP 170a via terrestrial air interface 190a. In some examples, ED 110a, 110b, 110c, and 110d can also communicate directly with each other via one or more sidelink air interfaces 190b. In some examples, ED 110d can perform uplink and / or downlink transmissions with NT-TRP 172 via non-terrestrial air interface 190c.

[0047] Air interfaces 190a and 190b can use similar communication technologies. For example, any suitable radio access technology. For example, communication system 100 can implement one or more channel access methods in air interfaces 190a and 190b, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), space division multiple access (SDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), or single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA). Air interfaces 190a and 190b can utilize other high-dimensional signal spaces, which can include a combination of orthogonal and / or non-orthogonal dimensions.

[0048] Non-terrestrial air interface 190c can enable communication between ED 110d and one or more NT-TRP 172 via a wireless link or a simple link. In some examples, the link is a dedicated connection for unicast transmission, a connection for broadcast transmission, or a connection for multicast transmission between a group of ED 110 and one or more NT-TRP 175.

[0049] RANs 120a and 120b communicate with the core network 130 to provide various services, such as voice, data, and other services, to the EDs 110a, 110b, 110c. The RANs 120a and 120b and / or the core network 130 may communicate directly or indirectly with one or more other RANs (not shown), which may or may not be directly served by the core network 130, and may or may not employ the same radio access technology as the RAN 120a, the RAN 120b, or both. The core network 130 may also serve as a gateway access between (i) the RANs 120a and 120b or the EDs 110a, 110b, 110c or both and (ii) other networks, such as the PSTN 140, the Internet 150, and other networks 160. Additionally, some or all of the EDs 110a, 110b, 110c may include functionality for communicating with different wireless networks via different wireless links using different radio technologies and / or protocols. Instead of (or in addition to) wireless communication, the EDs 110a, 110b, 110c may communicate with a service provider or a switch (not shown) and with the Internet 150 via a wired communication channel. The PSTN 140 may include a circuit-switched telephone network for providing plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet 150 may include computer networks and / or subnets (intranets) and includes protocols such as the Internet Protocol (IP), the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), and the User Datagram Protocol (UDP). The EDs 110a, 110b, 110c may be multimode devices capable of operating according to multiple radio access technologies and may include multiple transceivers required to support these technologies.

[0050] Figure 3Another example of the ED 110 and base stations 170a, 170b, and / or 170c is shown. The ED 110 is used to connect people, objects, machines, etc. The ED 110 can be widely used in various scenarios, such as cellular communication, device-to-device (D2D), vehicle to everything (V2X), peer-to-peer (P2P), machine-to-machine (M2M), machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of things (IOT), virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wearables, smart transportation, smart city, drones, robots, remote sensing, passive sensing, positioning, navigation and tracking, autonomous delivery and mobility, etc.

[0051] Each ED 110 represents any suitable end-user device for wireless operation and can include the following devices (or can be referred to as): user equipment / device (UE), wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU), mobile station, fixed or mobile subscriber unit, cellular phone, station (STA), machine type communication (MTC) device, personal digital assistant (PDA), smartphone, laptop computer, computer, tablet, wireless sensor, consumer electronic device, smartbook, vehicle, car, truck, bus, train, or IoT device, industrial device, or a device in the above devices (e.g., communication module, modem, or chip), etc. The next-generation ED 110 can be referred to using other terms. Base stations 170a and 170b are both T-TRPs and are hereinafter referred to as T-TRP 170. Similarly, as Figure 3 shown, the NT-TRP is hereinafter referred to as NT-TRP 172. Each ED 110 connected to the T-TRP 170 and / or NT-TRP 172 can be dynamically or semi-statically initiated (i.e., established, activated, or enabled), shut down (i.e., released, deactivated, or disabled), and / or configured in response to one or more of connection availability and connection necessity.

[0052] ED 110 includes a transmitter 201 and a receiver 203 coupled to one or more antennas 204. Only one antenna 204 is shown. One, some, or all of the antennas 204 may alternatively be a panel. The transmitter 201 and the receiver 203 may be integrated, for example, integrated as a transceiver. The transceiver is used to modulate data or other content for transmission via at least one antenna 204 or a network interface controller (NIC). The transceiver may also be used to demodulate data or other content received via at least one antenna 204. Each transceiver includes any suitable structure for generating signals for wireless or wired transmission and / or for processing signals received wirelessly or wiredly. Each antenna 204 includes any suitable structure for transmitting and / or receiving wireless or wired signals.

[0053] ED 110 includes at least one memory 208. The memory 208 stores instructions and data used, generated, or collected by ED 110. For example, the memory 208 may store software instructions or modules for implementing some or all of the functions and / or embodiments described herein and executed by one or more processing units (e.g., processor 210). Each memory 208 includes any suitable one or more volatile and / or non-volatile storage and retrieval devices. Any suitable type of memory may be used, for example, random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), hard disk, optical disk, subscriber identity module (SIM) card, memory stick, secure digital (SD) card, processor cache, etc.

[0054] ED 110 may also include one or more input / output devices (not shown) or interfaces (e.g., a wired interface connected to Figure 1 the Internet 150 in). The input / output devices support interaction with users or other devices in the network. Each input / output device includes any suitable structure for providing information to the user or receiving information from the user (e.g., by operation), such as a speaker, microphone, keypad, keyboard, display, or touch screen, including network interface communication.

[0055] ED 110 includes a processor 210 for performing operations related to uplink transmissions to be sent to NT-TRP 172 and / or T-TRP 170, operations related to processing downlink transmissions received from NT-TRP 172 and / or T-TRP 170, and operations related to processing sidelink transmissions sent to and received from other EDs 110. Processing operations related to preparing to send an uplink transmission may include operations such as encoding, modulation, transmit beamforming, and generating symbols for transmission. Processing operations related to processing a downlink transmission may include operations such as receive beamforming, demodulation, and decoding received symbols. According to an embodiment, the downlink transmission may be received by a receiver 203 using receive beamforming, and the processor 210 may extract signaling from the downlink transmission (e.g., by detecting and / or decoding the signaling). An example of the signaling may be a reference signal sent by NT-TRP 172 and / or T-TRP 170. In some embodiments, the processor 210 implements transmit beamforming and / or receive beamforming according to a beam direction indication received from T-TRP 170 (e.g., beam angle information (BAI)). In some embodiments, the processor 210 may perform operations related to network access (e.g., initial access) and / or downlink synchronization, such as operations related to detecting a synchronization sequence, decoding, and obtaining system information. In some embodiments, the processor 210 may perform channel estimation using, for example, a reference signal received from NT-TRP 172 and / or T-TRP 170.

[0056] The processor 210 may be part of the transmitter 201 and / or part of the receiver 203, but is not shown. The memory 208 may be part of the processor 210, but is not shown.

[0057] The processor 210, the processing components in the transmitter 201, and the processing components in the receiver 203 may be implemented by the same or different one or more processors respectively, which are used to execute instructions stored in a memory (e.g., memory 208). Alternatively, some or all of the processor 210, the processing components in the transmitter 201, and the processing components in the receiver 203 may be implemented respectively using dedicated circuits such as a programmed field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a graphical processing unit (GPU), or an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC).

[0058] In some implementations, T-TRP 170 may be represented by other names. For example, base station, base transceiver station (BTS), radio base station, network node, network device, network side device, transmitting / receiving node, NodeB, evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB), home eNodeB, next generation NodeB (gNB), transmission point (TP), site controller, access point (AP), wireless router, relay station, ground node, ground network device, ground base station, base band unit (BBU), remote radio unit (RRU), active antenna unit (AAU), remote radio head (RRH), central unit (CU), distributed unit (DU), positioning node, and so on. T-TRP 170 may be a macro BS, pico BS, relay node, donor node, etc. or a combination thereof. T-TRP 170 may refer to the above devices or the devices (e.g., communication module, modem or chip) in the above devices.

[0059] In some embodiments, the various parts of T-TRP 170 may be distributed. For example, some modules in T-TRP 170 may be remote from the device that houses the antenna 256 of T-TRP 170 and may be coupled to the device that houses the antenna 256 through a communication link (not shown) sometimes referred to as fronthaul (e.g., common public radio interface (CPRI)). Thus, in some embodiments, the term "T-TRP 170" may also refer to network side modules that perform the following processing operations: for example, determining the location of ED 110, resource allocation (scheduling), message generation and encoding / decoding, and these modules are not necessarily part of the device that houses the antenna 256 of T-TRP 170. These modules may also be coupled to other T-TRPs. In some embodiments, T-TRP 170 may actually be multiple T-TRPs that operate together to serve ED 110 through coordinated multi-point transmission and the like.

[0060] The T-TRP 170 includes at least one transmitter 252 and at least one receiver 254 coupled to one or more antennas 256. Only one antenna 256 is shown. One, some, or all of the antennas 256 may alternatively be panels. The transmitter 252 and the receiver 254 may be integrated into a transceiver. The T-TRP 170 further includes a processor 260 for performing operations related to the following: preparing a downlink transmission to be sent to the ED 110; processing an uplink transmission received from the ED 110; preparing a fronthaul transmission to be sent to the NT-TRP 172; processing a transmission received from the NT-TRP 172 via the fronthaul. The processing operations related to preparing a downlink transmission or a fronthaul transmission may include operations such as encoding, modulation, precoding (e.g., multiple input multiple output (MIMO) precoding), transmit beamforming, and generating symbols for transmission. The processing operations related to processing a received transmission on the uplink or on the fronthaul may include operations such as receive beamforming, demodulating received symbols, and decoding received symbols. The processor 260 may also perform operations related to network access (e.g., initial access) and / or downlink synchronization, such as generating the content of a synchronization signal block (SSB), generating system information, and so on. In some embodiments, the processor 260 also generates a beam direction indication that the scheduler 253 may schedule for transmission, such as a BAI. The processor 260 may perform other network-side processing operations described herein, such as determining the location of the ED 110, determining the location where the NT-TRP 172 is deployed, and so on. In some embodiments, the processor 260 may generate signaling to configure one or more parameters of the ED 110 and / or one or more parameters of the NT-TRP 172, and so on. Any signaling generated by the processor 260 is sent by the transmitter 252. Note that the "signaling" used herein may alternatively be referred to as control signaling. Dynamic signaling may be sent in a control channel such as a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), while static or semi-static higher-layer signaling may be included in a data packet that is sent in a data channel such as a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH).

[0061] The scheduler 253 may be coupled to the processor 260. The scheduler 253 may be included within the T-TRP 170 or may operate separately from the T-TRP 170. The scheduler 253 may schedule uplink transmissions, downlink transmissions, and / or backhaul transmissions, including issuing scheduling grants and / or configuring grant-free (“configured grant”) resources. The T-TRP 170 also includes a memory 258 for storing information and data. The memory 258 stores instructions and data used, generated, or collected by the T-TRP 170. For example, the memory 258 may store software instructions or modules for implementing some or all of the functions and / or embodiments described herein and executed by the processor 260.

[0062] The processor 260 may be part of the transmitter 252 and / or part of the receiver 254, but is not shown. Additionally, the processor 260 may implement the scheduler 253, but is not shown. The memory 258 may be part of the processor 260, but is not shown.

[0063] The processing components in the processor 260, the scheduler 253, the transmitter 252, and the receiver 254 may be implemented by the same or different one or more processors, respectively, for executing instructions stored in a memory (e.g., the memory 258). Alternatively, some or all of the processing components in the processor 260, the scheduler 253, the transmitter 252, and the receiver 254 may be implemented using a dedicated circuit such as an FPGA, a GPU, or an ASIC.

[0064] Note that only NT-TRP 172 is exemplified as a drone, and NT-TRP 172 can be implemented using any suitable non-ground form. Additionally, NT-TRP 172 may use other names such as non-ground nodes, non-ground network devices, or non-ground base stations in some implementations. NT-TRP 172 includes a transmitter 272 and a receiver 274 coupled to one or more antennas 280. Only one antenna 280 is shown. One, some, or all of the antennas may alternatively be panels. The transmitter 272 and the receiver 274 may be integrated as a transceiver. NT-TRP 172 also includes a processor 276 for performing operations related to: preparing a downlink transmission to be sent to ED 110; processing an uplink transmission received from ED 110; preparing a backhaul transmission to be sent to T-TRP 170; processing a transmission received from T-TRP 170 via the backhaul. The processing operations related to preparing a downlink transmission or a backhaul transmission may include operations such as encoding, modulation, precoding (e.g., MIMO precoding), transmit beamforming, and generating symbols for transmission. The processing operations related to processing a received transmission on the uplink or the backhaul may include operations such as receive beamforming, demodulating the received signal, and decoding the received symbols. In some embodiments, the processor 276 implements transmit beamforming and / or receive beamforming according to beam direction information (e.g., BAI) received from T-TRP 170. In some embodiments, the processor 276 may generate signaling to configure one or more parameters of ED 110, etc. In some embodiments, NT-TRP 172 implements physical layer processing but does not implement high-layer functions, e.g., functions in the medium access control (MAC) layer or the radio link control (RLC) layer. Since this is just an example, in addition to physical layer processing, NT-TRP 172 may generally also implement high-layer functions.

[0065] NT-TRP 172 also includes a memory 278 for storing information and data. The processor 276 may be part of the transmitter 272 and / or part of the receiver 274, but not shown. The memory 278 may be part of the processor 276, but not shown.

[0066] The processing components in the processor 276, the transmitter 272, and the receiver 274 can be implemented by the same or different one or more processors, respectively, which are used to execute instructions stored in a memory (e.g., the memory 278). Alternatively, some or all of the processing components in the processor 276, the transmitter 272, and the receiver 274 can be implemented using dedicated circuits such as programmed FPGAs, GPUs, or ASICs. In some embodiments, the NT-TRP 172 can actually be multiple NT-TRPs that operate together to serve the ED 110 through coordinated multi-point transmission or the like.

[0067] The T-TRP 170, NT-TRP 172, and / or ED 110 may include other components, but these components are omitted for clarity.

[0068] One or more steps of the exemplary methods provided herein may be performed by Figure 4 the corresponding units or modules provided. Figure 4 Units or modules in a device (e.g., in the ED 110, T-TRP 170, or NT-TRP 172) are shown. For example, a signal may be sent by a transmitting unit or module. A signal may be received by a receiving unit or module. A signal may be processed by a processing unit or module. Other steps may be performed by an artificial intelligence (AI) module or a machine learning (ML) module. The corresponding units or modules may be implemented using hardware, one or more components or devices that execute software, or a combination thereof. For example, one or more of these units or modules may be integrated circuits such as programmed FPGAs, GPUs, or ASICs. It should be understood that if these modules are implemented using software for a processor or the like to execute, then these modules may be retrieved in whole or in part as needed by the processor, retrieved individually or collectively for processing, retrieved in one or more instances, and these modules themselves may include instructions for further deployment and instantiation.

[0069] Other details regarding the ED 110, T-TRP 170, and NT-TRP 172 are known to those skilled in the art. Therefore, these details are omitted here.

[0070] After the above extensive discussion of communication, the attention will be turned to specific exemplary embodiments below.

[0071] As described above, multiple services can be aggregated or integrated into a single physical wireless link, and these services may have different key performance indicators (KPIs).Figure 5 is a block diagram of an exemplary multi-service scenario, in which the services integrated into one link may include any one of URLLC, mMTC, eMBB, and Tbps services. In Figure 5 , the communication devices include a network device 502, a vehicle-mounted device represented by 504, a home or other premises device represented by 506, a user equipment represented by 508, and an industrial or machine device represented by 510, and each device has an exemplary service as shown in the figure.

[0072] The present invention is not limited to these or any other types of devices or services. Figure 5 An exemplary scenario is intended to be provided, in which the embodiments disclosed herein may be particularly useful. More generally, the disclosed embodiments may be implemented in next-generation mobile and wireless network services, cloud and edge computing services, and sensing services, etc. Some embodiments may be particularly useful for automated manufacturing systems and / or other intelligent vertical scenarios (such as ports, delivery systems, and medical systems) in smart factories. The possible applications of these embodiments are also illustrative and non-limiting examples.

[0073] The multi-service scenario (such as, Figure 5 the scenario illustrated by way of example in can be regarded as a form of multiple access (MA) within a user equipment (UE). MA within a UE refers to a terminal device transmitting multiple services simultaneously.

[0074] According to the types of soft-output and hard-output decoders, there are mainly two types of channel encoding and decoding.

[0075] For example, soft-output iterative decoding codes include convolutional codes, turbo codes, low density parity check (LDPC) codes, product codes, and woven codes. These codes generally adopt parallel and soft cancellation decoding methods, in which all parts of the code block are decoded simultaneously, and then soft decision information such as likelihood, probability, or LLR of all bits is exchanged between the entire code blocks, and then the next iteration is entered. Such codes can also be jointly decoded. For example, after independently decoding two codes, soft information about shared bits (also referred to as coupling bits in this article) can be exchanged between the two codes (in the inter-code iteration), and then the two codes are further decoded.

[0076] Hard output successive decoding codes include polar codes, polarization-adjusted convolutional (PAC) codes, Reed-Muller (RM) codes, Bose-Chaudhuri-Hocquenghem (BCH) codes, and Reed-Solomon (RS) codes. These codes can implement successive hard cancellation decoding methods, where first a portion of a code block in the received signal is decoded, then the hard decision of the decoded portion is removed from the received signal, and then the next portion of the code block is decoded. These codes can also be decoded by successive cancellation jointly. For example, after decoding one codeword, the shared bits can be deleted from other codewords, and then the other codewords can be decoded. Since there are decoders with higher compatibility for any type of code, it is more convenient to decode these codes together. Therefore, in embodiments implementing or supporting joint decoding, it is preferably to use the same type of code (i.e., soft code or hard code). However, different types of codes can also be used in other embodiments.

[0077] The decoding type has a direct impact on the design of the non-HARQ encoding and decoding method, and the present invention mainly focuses on embodiments involving hard output decoding.

[0078] Hard output successive cancellation (SC) or successive cancellation list (SCL) decoding of polar codes, PAC codes, or RM codes is used to perform sequential decisions on information bits. Once a certain encoded bit is decoded, the decision cannot be restored. Some embodiments disclosed herein introduce new mechanisms for specific codes (e.g., polar codes using SC / SCL decoding) to support further decoding attempts after decoding failure without requesting retransmission. This method is also referred to as non-HARQ encoding and decoding herein. The embodiments herein can also support self-decoding characteristics and joint decoding characteristics, enabling individual payloads (which can correspond to corresponding different services, etc.) to be self-decoded, and can also support joint decoding to further improve performance.

[0079] The joint FEC includes multiple coupled codewords. For each codeword, bit-by-bit hard decision decoding or block-by-block hard decision decoding can be supported. In some embodiments, self-decoding of a codeword and enhanced joint decoding of multiple codewords can be achieved by coupling the codewords with shared payload bits, which can be or include information bits, systematic bits, coded bits, or may be or include a combination of different types of bits. Such shared payload bits may be referred to herein or elsewhere as shared bits, common bits, coupled bits, coupling bits, or other names.

[0080] The placement of the shared or common payload bits may affect one or both of the following: (a) the decoding time of the bits and (b) the reliability of decoding the bits. For example, without loss of generality, assume there are two codewords, including codeword 1 to be decoded with a higher priority (e.g., for URLLC data) and codeword 2 to be decoded with a lower priority (e.g., for eMBB data). In this example, according to the higher priority of codeword 1, joint decoding of codeword 1 should be supported for a second decoding attempt with the help of the lower-priority codeword 2. The second decoding attempt does not involve HARQ or other retransmissions.

[0081] For completeness, for the coupled codewords in this example, joint decoding can be used in the second decoding attempt of codeword 2, but this is likely not a common application of joint decoding in the second decoding attempt. It is expected that joint decoding attempts will be made for the codeword with a higher decoding priority (codeword 1 in this example), rather than for the codeword with a lower decoding priority.

[0082] Figure 6 It is a block diagram of encoding and decoding provided by an embodiment. Payload bits are shown as 610 and 620, and can be associated with different services (e.g., URLLC and eMBB) in the shown example. The payload bits 610 with a higher decoding priority include shared bits 612, and the shared bits 612 are also replicated for encoding together with the payload bits 620. Codeword 1 and codeword 2 are shown as 630 and 640 respectively, and joint decoding is shown as 650.

[0083] Figure 6 The shown example illustrates an embodiment where encoding includes copying a part or subset 612 of the payload bits 610 of codeword 1 (630) to the starting position 622 of the payload bits 620 of codeword 2 (640). Figure 6The bit copy direction from 612 to 622 is intended to represent copying the shared bit 612 (i.e., a subset of the payload bit 610) into the payload bit 620. That is, in this example, the shared bit is prefixed to the starting position 622 of the payload bit 620. Thus, the number of payload bits used for encoding to generate codeword 2 is increased.

[0084] Figure 6 The encoding of the payload bit 610 provides different reliabilities, and the figure shows the way in which the payload bits 610 are arranged in ascending order of reliability. Encoding is performed on the payload bit 610 to generate codeword 1 (630). The increased payload bit 620 includes the shared bit 622 copied from the payload bit 610 and can also be referred to as a combined payload, etc., as shown in Figure 6 shown in the decoding order. The decoding order refers to the order in which the encoded bits are decoded at the receiver or receiving end or decoder or decoding end. Encoding is performed on the increased payload bit 620 to generate codeword 2 (640).

[0085] Turning now to decoding, in one embodiment, first, only the received symbols of codeword 1 are used to attempt self-decoding, and codeword 1 (630) is decoded. If self-decoding fails, the decoding continues to joint decoding, where the payload bit 620 is decoded from codeword 2 (640). When all the shared bits 622 are decoded from codeword 2, a second attempt is made to decode the payload bit 610 from codeword 1, treating the corresponding shared bit 612 as known. Since these shared bits 612 have already been decoded from codeword 2, there is no need to decode them again. When the shared bit 622 has been decoded, the decoding of codeword 2 can be stopped or paused while the second attempt to decode codeword 1 is still in progress. After all the payload bits 610 have been decoded from codeword 1, the process can return to complete the decoding of codeword 2.

[0086] Polar codes will be discussed below to provide a more detailed example. However, the embodiments are in no way limited to polar codes. The features disclosed herein can be implemented additionally or alternatively with other types of codes involving hard decision decoding.

[0087] For a polar code, payload bits are mapped to information bit indices, which in turn are associated with sub-channels. Sub-channels are also referred to as bit channels. In polar encoding and decoding, frozen bits are also mapped to other bit indices and sub-channels or bit channels. Each bit index or sub-channel is associated with a reliability metric. For example, in the 5G standard, reliability is specified in a table by an index sequence of reliability orderings and corresponding reliability weights. The decoding order of the polar code follows the bit index order because the SC / SCL decoder decodes all the frozen bits and information bits in sequence according to the bit index order.

[0088] Various coding characteristics or parameters can be associated with the embodiments disclosed herein. At least illustrative examples are provided below, and these examples can be implemented individually or in any combination.

[0089] In a first example, an order of selection of code rates and code lengths for different types of payloads can be specified or supported. In a multi-service scenario, the order of selection can be based on the service associated with the payload type. For example, selecting the code rate and code length for URLLC payloads and / or mMTC payloads via a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) index or other identifier can be performed after selecting one or more code rates and one or more code lengths of one or more eMBB codes for encoding and decoding eMBB data. The selection of the MCS index of one or more URLLC / mMTC codes in this example can take the selected eMBB MCS index as input or otherwise take the selected eMBB MCS index into account such that the selection of the MCS index of one or more URLLC / mMTC codes in this example is based on the selected eMBB MCS index selection. More generally, the code rate and code length for encoding and decoding one type of payload can be selected at least in part based on the code rate and code length selected for encoding and decoding other types of payloads.

[0090] According to another example, the relative code lengths of codes that specify or support different types of payloads are specified. Again considering the URLLC / mMTC and eMBB scenarios, one or more URLLC / mMTC codes that are shorter than one or more eMBB codes can be specified or supported, and / or in other words, one or more eMBB codes that are longer than one or more URLLC / mMTC codes. Thus, when a URLLC / mMTC payload or codeword is to be coupled to an eMBB payload or codeword, a longer eMBB code with more encoded bits needs to be selected for eMBB encoding and decoding. More generally, in some embodiments, the code selected for encoding the payload from which shared bits are copied is shorter than the code selected for encoding the payload to which the shared bits are copied, or in other words, has a shorter code length or fewer encoded bits. In other words, in some embodiments, the code selected for encoding the payload to which the shared bits are copied is longer than the code selected for encoding the payload from which the shared bits are copied, or in other words, has a longer code length or more encoded bits.

[0091] Another example of an encoding characteristic that can be specified or supported in some embodiments is the relative code rate of codes for different types of payloads. In the URLLC / mMTC and eMBB scenarios, one or more URLLC / mMTC code rates that are less than one or more eMBB code rates may be preferred. For example, when a URLLC / mMTC payload or codeword is to be coupled to an eMBB payload or codeword, an eMBB code with a higher code rate needs to be selected for eMBB encoding and decoding. More generally, in some embodiments, the code rate of the code selected for encoding the payload from which shared bits are copied may be less than the code rate of the code selected for encoding the payload to which the shared bits are copied, or in other words, the code rate of the code selected for encoding the payload to which the shared bits are copied may be greater than the code rate of the code selected for encoding the payload from which the shared bits are copied.

[0092] Yet another example of an encoding characteristic that can be specified or supported relates to the selection and positioning of shared or common bits. The shared or common bits in one payload can be selected or otherwise determined according to any of a variety of criteria (such as, for example, reliability, decoding order, or both) and placed or positioned in other payloads. Reliability and decoding order are cited herein as illustrative and non-limiting examples. The embodiments are in no way limited to determining which bits in one payload are the common or shared bits that are copied and combined with bits in other payloads. Other examples are provided elsewhere herein.

[0093] In the URLLC-eMBB scenario where shared information bits are to be copied from the URLLC payload to the eMBB payload, the shared bits in the URLLC payload can be the least reliable information bits; these shared bits are placed as the first decoded information bits in the eMBB payload and have the smallest bit indices in the eMBB payload. Here, URLLC is taken as an example, but more generally, any other delay-sensitive service can achieve performance improvement by selecting or determining the shared bits according to one or both of reliability and decoding order.

[0094] Considering the mMTC-eMBB scenario where shared information bits are to be copied from the mMTC payload to the eMBB payload, the shared bits in the mMTC payload can be the least reliable information bits; these shared bits can also be placed at the least reliable bit positions in the eMBB payload. Here, mMTC is taken as an example, but more generally, any other delay-tolerant service can achieve performance improvement by selecting or determining the shared bits according to reliability.

[0095] For the URLLC-eMBB and mMTC-eMBB scenarios, these examples of information bit copying illustrate that the shared bits can be selected or otherwise determined according to reliability and decoding order (as in the URLLC-eMBB scenario) or according to reliability (as in the mMTC-eMBB scenario), and placed or located in different payloads. In other embodiments, the shared bits can be selected or otherwise determined according to decoding order and / or placed in other payloads.

[0096] Regarding reliability, the information bits at the least reliable positions are less likely to be correctly decoded. Therefore, copying these information bits as shared bits to different payloads can achieve the maximum performance improvement through a second joint decoding attempt. Copying such shared information bits to the least reliable bit positions in other payloads (as in the mMTC-eMBB scenario described above) provides the following advantage: if the first self-decoding attempt fails, a second joint decoding attempt can be made. Copying the shared bits from the least reliable information bit positions in the first payload to the most reliable information bit positions in the second payload can provide a greater advantage for the first payload, but at the cost that the other information bits in the second payload are no longer mapped to their most reliable information bit positions, and the shared bits in the first payload are copied to these positions. Although in some embodiments it may be desirable for all the shared bits in the first payload to be the least reliable information bits, in other embodiments it is also possible that only some, rather than all, of the shared bits in the first payload are the least reliable information bits, but beneficial effects can still be achieved. Therefore, one or more shared bits may be more reliable than one or more information bits that are not shared bits. Similarly, although it may be desirable to copy all the shared bits to the least reliable information bit positions in the second payload, in other embodiments it is also possible to copy only some, rather than all, of the shared bits to the least reliable information bit positions in the second payload, but beneficial effects can still be achieved. Therefore, one or more shared bits can be copied to one or more information bit positions that are more reliable than one or more information bit positions in the second payload that do not correspond to the shared bits.

[0097] Regarding the decoding order, for latency-sensitive payloads such as URLLC payloads, the decoding time or latency is very important. For such payloads, it is preferable to copy the shared bits to the positions of the information bits that are decoded first in other payloads. In this way, if a decoding failure occurs during the first self-decoding attempt for the latency-sensitive payload, the additional decoding latency added by the second joint-decoding attempt can be minimized. The shared bits in other payloads are decoded first and can be used earlier for the second decoding attempt for the latency-sensitive payload than in the case where the shared bits are copied to the positions of the bits that are decoded later in other payloads. This placement of the shared bits according to the decoding order also has an impact on the other payloads to which the shared bits are copied, that is, it delays the decoding of the other bits in the other payloads because the shared bits are decoded before the other bits. However, the other payloads may have a higher latency tolerance (less sensitive to latency) than the payload from which the shared bits are copied. Although in some embodiments it may be desirable to copy all the shared bits to the positions of the first decoded information bits in the second payload, in other embodiments it is also possible to copy some rather than all of the shared bits to the positions of the first decoded information bits in the second payload, but still achieve beneficial effects. Therefore, one or more shared bits can be copied to one or more positions of the information bits that are decoded later than one or more positions of the information bits in the second payload that do not correspond to the shared bits.

[0098] The shared bits can enable or support decoding features that help improve performance. Again considering the URLLC-eMBB scenario, if the URLLC self-decoding (which can also be referred to as local decoding) is successful, the corresponding shared bits copied to the eMBB payload can be set to the URLLC decoding value and can be regarded as parity check frozen (PC frozen) or known frozen bits. In this way, the eMBB performance can be improved. Otherwise, if the URLLC local decoding fails, it is still very likely that the minimum-index information bits can be correctly decoded from the eMBB codeword, and the corresponding shared bits in the URLLC payload can be set to PC frozen bits to assist URLLC decoding.

[0099] These exemplary encoding and decoding features illustrate the different features disclosed herein and help provide multiple services with unequal error protection capabilities and local decoding capabilities.

[0100] The above provides at least examples of encoding features or parameters that can be specified or supported in some embodiments. Decoding features or parameters can be specified or supported additionally or alternatively, and the following provides at least illustrative examples of such decoding features or parameters. These examples can all be implemented individually or in any combination.

[0101] Regarding the first decoding attempt, the payload with a higher priority can be decoded first, and then, if the payload with a higher priority is correctly decoded, the payload with a lower priority can be decoded. Taking the URLLC-eMBB polar code scenario as an example, URLLC decoding may have a higher priority and includes: decoding a shorter polar code using a shorter codeword, and making the first decoding attempt to decode all bits in one or more short polar codes (URLLC), and then decoding all bits in one or more long polar codes (eMBB) using a longer codeword. This is an example of the decoding order that can be specified or supported.

[0102] When the decoding of the payload with a higher priority fails, the second decoding attempt that can be specified or supported includes attempting to jointly decode one or more payloads with a higher priority using the shared bits correctly decoded in the lower-priority decoding. In the above URLLC-eMBB example, if the URLLC decoding fails, the second decoding attempt to be performed can include: decoding the shared bits in the long polar code (eMBB), setting the shared bits in one or more short polar codes (URLLC) to PC freeze bits, decoding one or more short polar codes, and continuing to decode the long polar code (eMBB).

[0103] Although it can be expected that this example of the second decoding attempt may be more common in order to enhance the protection of the payload with a higher priority (URLLC in this example), other second decoding attempts that can be specified or supported include attempting to jointly decode one or more payloads with a lower priority using the shared bits correctly decoded in the higher-priority decoding. In the exemplary URLLC-eMBB scenario, if the eMBB decoding fails, a second decoding attempt can be performed to decode the eMBB payload. This is another example of joint decoding in the second decoding attempt and can include: decoding the shared bits from one or more short polar codes (URLLC), setting the shared bits in one or more long polar codes (eMBB) to PC freeze bits, decoding one or more long polar codes (eMBB), and continuing to decode one or more short polar codes (URLLC). In this example, other possible variants are to first complete the URLLC decoding and then perform the first and (if necessary) second eMBB decoding attempts.

[0104] URLLC is only intended to illustrate services with a higher decoding priority. mMTC is another example of a service with a higher decoding priority than eMBB. Embodiments can be implemented in any of a variety of multi-service scenarios (e.g., URLLC-eMBB scenario, mMTC-eMBB scenario, or a three-service scenario of URLLC, mMTC, and eMBB). In the latter example, the mMTC codeword can be considered part of a joint codeword together with the URLLC and eMBB codewords.

[0105] Figure 7 is a block diagram of an example of encoding provided by an embodiment, Figure 8 is a block diagram of an example of decoding provided by an embodiment. Figure 7 and Figure 8 The examples in illustrate a three-service scenario where separate payloads associated with three services (URLLC, eMBB, and mMTC) are coupled to a joint FEC. For those skilled in the art, Figure 7 and Figure 8 Variations of the examples in, e.g., coupling fewer or more than three exemplary services and / or different exemplary services, will be apparent and are not elaborated herein to avoid unnecessary repetition.

[0106] First, referring to Figure 7 the encoding example 700 in, polar encoding is shown as 702, 704, 706, as an example of an encoding that can be applied to a separate payload. Shared bits are copied from the URLLC separate payload and the mMTC separate payload into the eMBB separate payload. The shared bits are the least reliable bits in the URLLC separate payload and the mMTC separate payload. The shared bits in the URLLC separate payload are copied to the smallest index bit positions in the eMBB separate payload, and the shared bits in the mMTC separate payload are copied to the least reliable bit positions in the eMBB separate payload. This is just an example, and other embodiments that copy shared bits according to one or more other parameters (e.g., decoding order in addition to or instead of reliability) can also be used. Figure 7 The code rate R shown is also an example and may be the same or different in other embodiments.

[0107] In some embodiments, rate matching may be provided, and rate matching may include puncturing and / or shortening, etc. Rate matching for URLLC, eMBB, and mMTC encoding and decoding is shown as 712, 714, and 716 in Figure 7 respectively. This is to illustrate other features or operations, which may or may not include rate matching, and rate matching can be implemented in combination with the encoding disclosed herein.

[0108] In the example shown, the URLLC and mMTC "local" codewords can be self - decoded, and the eMBB codeword is labeled as a "global" codeword, indicating that it is generated based on a payload that includes not only eMBB payload bits but also shared bits, where the shared bits include corresponding subsets of the URLLC - specific payload and the mMTC - specific payload. The two local codewords and the global codeword can be considered and referred to jointly as the combined codeword.

[0109] Figure 8 The decoding example 800 in Figure 7 shows decoding characteristics relative to the encoding characteristics shown. Optional rate - matching decoding is shown as 812, 814, 816, and as an example of decoding characteristics that can be provided in some embodiments, polar decoding is shown as 802, 804, 806.

[0110] For example, the separate decoding of the URLLC - specific payload is shown as the first decoding step. The first decoding step or the first decoding attempt can alternatively or additionally include the separate decoding of mMTC and / or eMBB. The joint decoding in step 2 is intended to illustrate the second decoding attempt disclosed herein. In the example shown, if URLLC decoding fails, the joint decoding can at least assist URLLC decoding. The shared, least - reliable URLLC payload bits can be successfully decoded at 804 and used at 802 to decode the remaining URLLC payload bits. To avoid overcrowding the figure, the shared bits decoded at 804 are shown as part of the decoded URLLC payload output from 804, but those shared bits decoded at 804 can alternatively or additionally be used to set the shared bits as PC freeze bits at 802 to assist in decoding the received URLLC local codeword at 802.

[0111] The shared mMTC bits are shown in Figure 8 in a similar manner and can be used to assist in decoding the mMTC payload from the received mMTC local codeword at 806. If the separate decoding of mMTC fails, the joint decoding of mMTC may be the second decoding attempt.

[0112] The shared bits are shown in Figure 8 as the decoded output from 804, but in other embodiments, the shared bits can be used for joint decoding of the received global codeword. The successfully decoded shared bits from 802 and / or 806 can be used to set the shared bits as PC freeze bits at 804.

[0113] Figure 9Block diagram of an exemplary coding chain provided by an embodiment. The exemplary coding chain 900 is for the URLLC-eMBB scenario, but as described elsewhere herein, can also be used in other embodiments.

[0114] Figure 9 The features or functions shown include: adding transport block (TB) cyclic redundancy check (CRC) to eMBB data at 912, code block (CB) segmentation of eMBB data at 914, adding CB or CB group (CBG) CRC to eMBB data at 916, adding CB CRC to URLLC data at 936, encoding eMBB data and URLLC data at 918 and 938 respectively, rate matching eMBB data and URLLC data at 920 and 940 respectively, bit interleaving eMBB data and URLLC data at 922 and 942 respectively, CB concatenation of eMBB data at 924, modulating eMBB data and URLLC data with scrambling at 926 and 946 respectively, and performing priority-aware resource mapping at 950. Other embodiments may include more, fewer, or different elements interconnected in similar or different ways.

[0115] The coding chain features or functions can be implemented in any of various ways, such as in hardware, firmware, or one or more components executing software. The present invention is not limited to any particular type of implementation, for example, implementation details may vary between different devices.

[0116] Figure 9 Many of the features in can be provided or supported according to traditional coding and decoding techniques. However, the exemplary coding chain 900 exhibits several differences. For example, in some embodiments, URLLC data is limited to within one CB, and thus only TB CRC addition, CB segmentation, and CB concatenation are shown for eMBB data at 912, 914, and 924 respectively in the figure. The shared bit replication that couples eMBB and URLLC data and codewords at 918 and 938 is another difference. The priority-aware resource mapping at 950, for example, preferentially ensures reliable and low-latency reception of URLLC symbols by mapping URLLC data to frequency (subcarrier) and / or spatial (layer) resources with better channel quality and / or mapping to earlier transmitted time slots.

[0117] For example, after CB segmentation and CRC addition, the bits in the eMBB data in the CB are represented as e0, e1... e K–1, where K is the number of payload bits. For simplicity, the CB numbering is omitted in this notation. For URLLC, the bits after CRC addition are denoted as u0, u1... u K'–1 , where K' is the number of payload bits. A subset of the K' URLLC payload bits (including K'' bits such that the size of the subset is K'') is copied and appended to the start of the eMBB payload. This subset is also referred to as shared bits, common bits, or coupled bits in this document. The new eMBB bits for encoding become u0, u1... u K”–1 , e0, e1... e K–1 , which can be denoted as c0, c1... c K”+K–1 .

[0118] In some embodiments, the new eMBB bits c0, c1... c K”+K–1 are mapped to the information bit positions in the eMBB code in ascending order of bit index, as an example of copying the shared payload bits from one payload to other payloads according to the decoding order. In some embodiments, the URLLC bits u0, u1... u K'–1 are mapped to the information bit positions in the URLLC code in ascending order of reliability, as an example of selecting or determining the shared payload bits to be copied according to reliability. For example, according to the general process of polar coding, the new eMBB payload (including c0, c1... c K”+K–1 ) and the URLLC payload (including u0, u1... u K'–1 ) are encoded at 918 and 938 respectively.

[0119] For example, in vertical scenarios such as industrial applications, there are likely to be services with different traffic volumes, which have different payload sizes and different QoS requirements. Control instructions and data generated by different types of sensors or monitors of a single device are examples of different traffic volumes that may involve different services. For example, a robotic arm can communicate with network devices such as a base station and support URLLC, eMBB, and mMTC services. In one possible implementation of how to use these services, the video stream data transmission of a camera on the robotic arm can belong to the eMBB service, the signaling for controlling each of one or more joints of the robotic arm can belong to the URLLC service, and the latency-insensitive sensing or monitoring of data reporting can belong to the mMTC service. Such differences can be resolved by appropriate signaling according to the embodiments in this document.

[0120] With the joint encoding and decoding proposed in this article, it is possible to improve the encoding and decoding gain of smaller payload data and help support the fast decoding of such smaller payload data, which may have more stringent QoS requirements or higher decoding priorities than other data. The signaling indicating one or more joint encoding and decoding parameters may be or include downlink control information (DCI) with one or more joint encoding and decoding parameter indications. Examples of joint encoding and decoding parameters include encoding and decoding structures, data partitioning, and the priority order of individual payloads. Any one or more of these joint encoding and decoding parameters and / or other parameters may be indicated in the signaling.

[0121] Without loss of generality, assume there are three services, including S1 = URLLC, S2 = eMBB, and S3 = mMTC. Signaling examples for this embodiment are provided below. However, it should be understood that these examples are for illustrative purposes only, and the present invention is in no way limited to the three-service scenario or these specific signaling examples.

[0122] In one embodiment, the signaling indicates the encoding and decoding mode. The encoding and decoding mode may specify whether to use individual encoding and decoding or joint encoding and decoding. If joint encoding and decoding is to be used, the encoding and decoding mode may also specify how many services and which services are to be jointly encoded to support joint decoding. In the three-service scenario mentioned above, joint encoding and decoding of up to three services is supported, and the indication or specification of the encoding and decoding mode can be summarized as shown in Table 1 below.

[0123] Table 1: Specifying the encoding and decoding mode

[0124]

[0125] Table 1 is an example, and there may be variations. For example, if the quantity indicator indicates the total number of services, the combination indicator need not be included in the signaling because the quantity indicator provides an implicit indicator that all service data is to be jointly encoded. The quantity indicator may not be used in all embodiments because the combination indicator can provide an implicit indicator of the number of services for which the data is to be jointly encoded. Other embodiments may be implemented in these variations and / or other variations of specifying the encoding and decoding mode or encoding and decoding parameters.

[0126] The signaling may additionally or alternatively be used to indicate the MCS for all services (e.g., via the MCS index). There are several options.

[0127] One MCS option for joint encoding and decoding is to use the same MCS for all services. For example, the MCS table of one service (e.g., URLLC or other services with high decoding priority) can be used for joint encoding and decoding. Other embodiments include defining a new MCS table for joint encoding and decoding, where the modulation order (e.g., smaller) and target code rate (e.g., lower) used in this table are different from those specified in the MCS table of one of the services. For example, compared with the modulation order and target code rate specified in the eMBB MCS table, the MCS table for joint encoding and decoding uses a smaller modulation order and a lower target code rate, thus sacrificing a certain eMBB spectral efficiency to help improve URLLC performance.

[0128] For joint encoding and decoding, all services can use the same modulation order, but each service can use a different code rate. For example, a new MCS table can be defined, where each MCS index is associated with a modulation order and multiple code rates. Multiple MCS tables can be used to cover cases where there are different numbers of jointly encoded services, and each MCS table corresponds to the corresponding number of jointly encoded services. For example, according to the quantity indicator in Table 1 above, one of Table 2 and Table 3 below can be selected.

[0129] Table 2: MCS Table for Two Jointly Encoded Services

[0130]

[0131] Table 3: MCS Table for Three Jointly Encoded Services

[0132]

[0133] The priority order of each service Si is another example of the joint encoding and decoding parameters that can be indicated in the signaling. For example, such priority can be indicated by the priority metric or priority order index of each service. In some embodiments, the priority order may affect the priority-aware resource mapping, and / or the service or payload from which the shared data bits are copied and to which the shared data bits are copied. In one embodiment, the priority is represented as positive numbers {1, 2, 3...}, and the smaller (or larger) the number, the higher the priority.

[0134] Other joint encoding and decoding parameters that may be used or supported in some embodiments are the encoding and decoding structure. One aspect of the encoding and decoding structure is the code type for the data associated with each service, which can be represented in any of various ways, such as {S1 = RM, S2 = PAC, S3 = Polar...}. The bit selection order is another possible aspect of the encoding and decoding structure and can be an order or one or more criteria according to which shared bits are selected to be copied from and / or placed relative to the payload bits of different services. The order can be represented as {reliability, bit index, decoding order}, etc. Yet another aspect of the encoding and decoding structure is the "target" service into which the shared bits are copied to couple one service or payload to other services or payloads. The target service can be indicated by an index or other identifier (as in the examples of S1, S2, S3 above), and a zero value can indicate that no bits are copied as shared bits from a particular service to other services. A service that does not have a target service indicated can be the target service for other services. In other words, a service that itself has no target service can be used as a target service, effectively having bits from one or more other services appended for joint encoding and decoding.

[0135] The partitioning method is another possible joint encoding and decoding parameter and relates to how the payload bits in each service are partitioned, or in other words, how many bits or what fraction or other relative proportion of the payload is to be shared. The partitioning can be represented using an integer number of bits or a fraction or other relative ratio.

[0136] Based on the above examples, Table 4 below summarizes some of the joint encoding and decoding parameters that can be used and indicated in signaling in some embodiments.

[0137] Table 4: Joint Encoding and Decoding Parameters

[0138]

[0139]

[0140] Table 4, like the other examples in this document, is not restrictive. Other embodiments can support any one or more of these joint encoding and decoding parameters, and / or different joint encoding and decoding parameters. The above parameter examples are not exhaustive, and other parameters include: the number of available resource elements (REs) for each service; the number of layers (MIMO groups) for each service; the mapping method from the service to one or more corresponding layers, e.g., frequency - time or time - frequency. These other examples are also illustrative, and general embodiments can use and / or indicate in signaling any one or more of various joint encoding and decoding parameters, which can include but are not limited to the specific examples provided herein.

[0141] The various aspects of the present invention have been described above and are illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings. Figure 10 is a flowchart of a more general exemplary method provided by an embodiment. In Figure 10 , 1000 on the left shows the operations or features that an encoding or transmitting side device can provide or support, and 1050 on the right shows the operations or features that a decoding or receiving side device can provide or support. For ease of reference, in the following description of Figure 10 , a device that can implement or support encoding and / or transmitting features is referred to as a first communication device, and a device that can implement or support decoding and / or receiving features is referred to as a second communication device. Embodiments can relate to one or both of the devices.

[0142] Referring first to 1000, from the perspective of the transmitting device, the transmission at 1008 is intended to represent a first communication device in a wireless communication network transmitting a codeword to a second communication device. The codeword is or includes an encoded block generated by performing error correction coding on corresponding individual payloads. These encoded blocks include self-decodable encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on a second individual payload that is error correction coded in combination with a portion of the first individual payload. The self-decodable encoded blocks can be decoded independently of other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with other encoded blocks.

[0143] Figure 10 Also shown are operations that may be included in generating the codeword. At 1002, Figure 10 obtaining individual payloads is shown, which individual payloads include at least a first individual payload and a second individual payload, and these payloads can be or include data of different devices and / or data associated with different services, etc. Obtaining the payloads at 1002 can include collecting or otherwise receiving data outputs of one or more devices and / or services, or accessing payload data in a memory, etc.

[0144] 1004 is intended to illustrate performing error correction coding on the individual payloads separately. In one embodiment, this includes performing error correction coding on the first individual payload to generate self-decodable encoded blocks, and performing error correction coding on the second individual payload that is error correction coded in combination with a portion of the first individual payload to generate other encoded blocks.

[0145] As shown at 1006, a method may further include outputting a codeword that includes the self-decodable encoded blocks and other encoded blocks generated at 1004. The codeword can be output for storage in a memory and / or transmitted at 1008, etc.

[0146] In some embodiments, a method may include obtaining as shown at 1002, encoding as shown at 1004, and outputting as shown at 1006. Other embodiments may include transmitting a codeword as shown at 1008. These embodiments are not mutually exclusive, and various methods may include obtaining a separate payload and encoding the separate payload as shown at 1002 and 1004, and further include transmitting a codeword as shown at 1006.

[0147] As described herein, a self - decodable encoded block is capable of being decoded independently of one or more other encoded blocks and is also capable of being jointly decoded with one or more other encoded blocks. In the context of the above example of a self - decodable encoded block and other encoded blocks generated by error - correcting encoding of a first separate payload and a second separate payload combined with a portion of the first separate payload, the self - decodable encoded block is capable of being decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and is also capable of being jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

[0148] The portion of a separate payload (the first separate payload in the above example) combined with other separate payloads (the second separate payload in the above example) connects or couples these payloads and the encoded blocks together to provide or support the joint - decoding capability. The joint - decoding capability of a self - decodable encoded block can provide or enable any of the various other features disclosed herein. For example, a self - decodable encoded block being further capable of being jointly decoded with one or more other encoded blocks in a codeword can enable joint decoding of one or more other encoded blocks based on successful decoding of the self - decodable encoded block independently of the other encoded blocks. In the context of the above example, a self - decodable encoded block being further capable of being jointly decoded with other encoded blocks can enable joint decoding of the self - decodable encoded block after a decoding failure occurs during decoding of the self - decodable encoded block independently of the other encoded blocks.

[0149] The portion of a particular separate payload combined with other separate payloads can be selected, identified, or otherwise determined according to any of various criteria. Several examples are provided here, which can be summarized as a portion in one (the first in the above example) separate payload being determined to be combined with other (the second in the above example) separate payloads according to the ordering of bits in this (first) separate payload.

[0150] Such bit ordering or ranking can be or include an ordering based on the attributes of the bits in the first separate payload. The attribute can be or include any one or more of the following: decoding reliability, decoding order, bit - position index, and reliability weight.

[0151] The decoding reliability was discussed above at least by way of illustrative examples. The common or shared bits to be copied from one (the first-mentioned above) individual payload to other (the second-mentioned above) individual payloads can be determined according to the decoding reliability, etc. of the information bit positions in this one (the first) individual payload. It should be noted that the reliability itself does not need to be explicitly specified, configured, or indicated. For example, the decoding reliability can be mapped to an index or an integer through a table or a formula to represent the reliability without explicitly mentioning the reliability. Determining the part of one (the first-mentioned above) individual payload that is to be combined with other (the second-mentioned above) individual payloads for error correction coding according to the decoding reliability can include determining whether the information bits in this part included in the one (the first) individual payload have the lowest decoding reliability, and so on. The sequence of reliability sorting is an example of the decoding reliability order, and a part or shared bits in the individual payload can be determined according to this order.

[0152] The decoding order mentioned above is mainly used to determine where the shared bits in an individual payload should be placed for combination with other individual payloads. However, the decoding order can be additionally or alternatively considered when determining the shared bits, which are also referred to herein as the part of one (the first-mentioned above) individual payload that is to be combined with other (the second-mentioned above) individual payloads for error correction coding. For example, it may be advantageous to determine the part or shared bits of one (the first-mentioned above) individual payload that is to be combined with other (the second-mentioned above) individual payloads for error correction coding to include the bits that are first decoded from the self-decodable coded blocks, so that it can be known earlier during the decoding process whether the decoding of this part or the shared bits is successful.

[0153] The bit position index is another example of an attribute according to which the information bits in the individual payload can be sorted and a part for combination with other individual payloads can be determined. This part or the shared bits can be selected or otherwise determined as the first X bits (the lowest bit position index) or the last Y bits (the highest bit position index) in the individual payload, and so on.

[0154] This part or the shared bits to be copied from the individual payload can be additionally or alternatively determined according to the sorting of the reliability weights. The reliability weight value W in 3GPP TS 38.212 version 15.2.0 is an example of the reliability weight according to which a part or the shared bits in the individual payload can be determined.

[0155] The reliability weight is also an example of a calculated weight attribute, based on which the information bit positions in a separate payload can be sorted to determine the partial or shared bits to be replicated and combined with the information bits in other separate payloads. The sorting of the bits in a separate payload can alternatively or additionally be based on one or more other types of weight values. The polarization weight disclosed in WO2018 / 019044 is an example of another type of weight value, based on which the bits in a separate payload can be sorted.

[0156] These exemplary attributes may overlap or be mutually exclusive. For example, the reliability sorting sequence in 3GPP TS 38.212 version 15.2.0 specifies the reliability order according to the information bit positions. Thus, determining the partial or shared bits in one (the first above-mentioned) separate payload that are combined with the bits in other (the second above-mentioned) separate payloads can be regarded as a form of determining such partial or shared bits based on the sorting of decoding reliability and / or bit position index. It should also be understood that multiple attributes can be used to sort the information bits in order to select the partial or shared bits to be copied from one (the first above-mentioned) separate payload and combined with the bits in other (the second above-mentioned) separate payloads.

[0157] The above example refers to determining the partial or shared bits to be copied from one (the first above-mentioned) separate payload and combined with the bits in other (the second above-mentioned) separate payloads. How to combine such partial or shared bits with the bits in other (the second above-mentioned) separate payloads can be determined in any of various ways. Generally, the partial bits in one (the first above-mentioned) separate payload are combined with the bits in other (the second above-mentioned) separate payloads according to the sorting of the bits used for error correction coding to generate the combined payload.

[0158] The sorting of the bits in the combined separate payloads used for error correction coding can be or include a sorting based on the attributes of these bits. The attribute can be or include any one or more of the following: decoding order, decoding reliability, bit position index, and reliability weight. These attributes were described above in the context of the "source" separate payload from which a part or shared bits are copied, but can alternatively or additionally be used to determine how to combine the payload or shared bits with the bits in the "destination" separate payload.

[0159] The decoding order regarding determining how to combine a part or shared bits in one (the first above-mentioned) individual payload with bits in other (the second above-mentioned) individual payloads refers to the order of decoded bits in other encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on the combined payload. The decoding reliability regarding determining how to combine a part or shared bits refers to the reliability of correctly decoding the bits in other encoded blocks, and the sequence of reliability values mentioned above is an example. The bit position index regarding determining how to combine a part or shared bits refers to the index of the bit positions in the combined payload used for error correction coding to generate other encoded blocks. The reliability weight refers to the weight related to the reliability of the information bit positions in the combined payload when considering the context of determining how to combine a part or shared bits, and the sequence of reliability values mentioned above is an example of the reliability weight.

[0160] These attributes are merely examples, and other attributes can be used additionally or alternatively to determine how to combine a part or shared bits in one individual payload with bits in other individual payloads. For example, in other embodiments, other weight values can be used, and multiple attributes can be used in combination.

[0161] Although Figure 10 not explicitly shown in, some embodiments may include determining a part in one (the first above-mentioned) individual payload that is combined with other (the second above-mentioned) individual payloads according to the sorting of the bits in the one (first) individual payload, and / or determining how to combine the part with other (second) individual payloads, e.g., at 1002 or 1004. Some embodiments may additionally or alternatively include combining the part with other (second) individual payloads at 1002 or 1004.

[0162] The self-decodable encoded block is also capable of being jointly decoded with other encoded blocks, such that after a decoding failure occurs in decoding the self-decodable encoded block, the self-decodable encoded block can be jointly decoded. The second decoding attempt and possibly one or more subsequent attempts may include attempting to jointly decode the self-decodable encoded block after a decoding failure, rather than requesting a retransmission after a decoding failure. This can be referred to as a non-HARQ method by way of example.

[0163] Some embodiments may include: from the perspective of an encoder or a transmitter, receiving a retransmission request, which may be or include a negative acknowledgment signaling or other forms of retransmission requests; retransmitting incremental redundancy (IR) information, which may be or include a redundancy version (RV), etc. In one embodiment, a method may include: at 1010, a first communication device receives a first retransmission request from a second communication device after a decoding failure occurs during independent decoding of a self-decodable encoded block and joint decoding of a self-decodable encoded block. It should be noted that the received request in this example is the first retransmission request after multiple decoding failures. As shown at 1012, a method may further include, in response to the first retransmission request, the first communication device retransmitting the IR information in the self-decodable encoded block to the second communication device. For example, other IR information in other encoded blocks may also be transmitted at 1012.

[0164] Although Figure 10 only the transmission of IR information at 1012 is shown, it should be noted that some embodiments may include generating and outputting the IR information in the self-decodable encoded block in response to receiving the first retransmission request after a decoding failure occurs during self-decoding and joint decoding of the self-decodable encoded block. Figure 10 The generation and output are not shown separately in order to avoid making the drawing more crowded.

[0165] Embodiments may include Figure 10 other features or operations not explicitly shown. For example, the code rate and code length for encoding and decoding one type of payload may be selected at least in part based on the code rate and code length selected for encoding and decoding other types of payloads. In the above example of the first and second individual payloads, the MCS used for error correction coding of the second individual payload combined with the first individual payload may be selected before the MCS used for error correction coding of the first individual payload is selected.

[0166] It should also be understood that the embodiments are not limited to having only two separate payloads. Referring to the first and second separate payloads above, these separate payloads can be one of a plurality of separate payloads that include these separate payloads and one or more other payloads. Each part of the plurality of separate payloads can be combined with a separate payload (e.g., the second separate payload in this example) for error correction coding. MCS characteristics that can be implemented in this embodiment include selecting, from one of a plurality of MCS tables, an MCS for error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with each part of the plurality of separate payloads. The MCS tables respectively correspond to different numbers of separate payloads, and each part of these separate payloads is combined with the second separate payload for error correction coding. This illustrates an embodiment where there are a plurality of MCS tables, each MCS table corresponding to a given number of separate payloads, and if the separate payloads are relevant to corresponding services, each MCS table may correspond to a plurality of services, and these payloads are coupled together for joint decoding, as described herein.

[0167] Other examples of features that may be provided in some embodiments but not explicitly shown in Figure 10 relate to signaling. Some embodiments may include transmitting signaling in a wireless communication network that indicates joint encoding / decoding parameters related to one or both of the following: error correction coding of one (the first above) separate payload and error correction coding of other (the second above) separate payloads combined with a part of this one (first) separate payload.

[0168] Transmitting the signaling can include an encoder / coding device or transmitter / transmitting device that is to send an encoded block sending the signaling to a decoder / decoding device or receiver / receiving device. The transmission can additionally or alternatively include a decoder / decoding device or receiver / receiving device receiving the signaling from the encoder / coding device or transmitter / transmitting device. The signaling does not necessarily have to be between the communication devices that send or receive the encoded block, nor does it have to be only between these communication devices. For example, a network device such as a gNB or a base station can send signaling to configure joint encoding / decoding parameters on one or more communication devices. Thus, a method can include a network device sending signaling, an encoder / coding device or transmitter / transmitting device receiving the signaling from the network device, and / or a decoder / decoding device or receiver / receiving device receiving the signaling from the network device.

[0169] Examples of combined encoding and decoding parameters are provided elsewhere in this document. In general, the combined encoding and decoding parameters may include any one or more of the following, and other combined encoding and decoding parameters may be used additionally or alternatively in other embodiments: encoding and decoding mode; MCS (which may include the respective MCS for each individual payload and / or each service in a multi-service scenario); the respective priority order of the services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload; the encoding and decoding structure of the error correction coding for the first individual payload; the encoding and decoding structure of the error correction coding for the second individual payload combined with a portion of the first individual payload; the manner of partitioning for determining the portion in the (above-mentioned first) individual payload; the respective number of resource units for the services associated with the individual payloads (the above-mentioned first individual payload and the second individual payload); the respective number of data layers for the services associated with the individual payloads (the above-mentioned first individual payload and the second individual payload); the respective mapping methods for mapping the services associated with the individual payloads (the above-mentioned first individual payload and the second individual payload) to the data layers.

[0170] At 1050, Figure 10 Various decoding and / or receiving characteristics are shown that are opposite to the characteristics shown at 1000. From the perspective of the receiving device, the reception at 1052 is intended to represent that a second communication device in a wireless communication network receives a codeword from a first communication device. As in other embodiments, the codeword is or includes an encoded block generated by performing error correction coding on the respective individual payloads. These encoded blocks include self-decodable encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on the first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on the second individual payload combined with a portion of the first individual payload. The self-decodable encoded blocks can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

[0171] Figure 10 Also shown are the operations that may be involved when decoding the codeword. At 1054, Figure 10Illustrated is the decoding of a first individual payload and a second individual payload from a codeword that includes a self - decodable encoded block generated by error - correcting encoding of the first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by error - correcting encoding of the second individual payload combined with a portion of the first individual payload. After successful decoding (the "yes" branch at 1056), as shown at 1058, the individual payloads are output for storage to a memory and / or further processing, etc. The decoding at 1054 may include decoding the self - decodable encoded block to obtain the first individual payload, while in some embodiments, the decoding may include jointly decoding the other encoded blocks (the "no (first attempt)" branch starting from 1056) based on successful decoding of the self - decodable encoded block independent of the other encoded blocks. The joint decoding at 1054 may alternatively include jointly decoding the self - decodable encoded block after a decoding failure occurs when decoding the self - decodable encoded block independent of the other encoded blocks (the "no (first attempt)" branch starting from 1056).

[0172] The receiving and decoding at 1052 and 1054 may include different receiving device components or characteristics, but do not need to be mutually exclusive. Various methods may include receiving a codeword at 1352 and decoding individual payloads from the codeword at 1354.

[0173] The "no (first attempt)" label and return arrow from 1056 to 1054 are intended to represent a second attempt, and there may also be one or more subsequent attempts to jointly decode the self - decodable encoded block after a decoding failure, rather than requesting a re - transmission after a decoding failure. This is at least what is referred to above as a non - HARQ method. If decoding is successful after one or more subsequent attempts, the individual payloads are output at 1058.

[0174] In the above example, a method may include, at 1060, sending, from a second communication device to a first communication device, a first re - transmission request after a decoding failure occurs when decoding the self - decodable encoded block independent of the other encoded blocks and when jointly decoding the self - decodable encoded block. Figure 10The "No (last attempt)" flag and arrow starting from 1056 in [description] indicate this. The request sent is the first retransmission request after multiple decoding failures, which has been described by way of example above. As shown at 1012, IR information may be sent in response to the first request. From the perspective of the receiving device, one method may include that in response to the first retransmission request sent at 1060, the second communication device receives the IR information in the self-decodable coded block from the first communication device. The IR information has also been described by way of example above. For example, in response to the request, other IR information in other coded blocks may also be received.

[0175] Figure 10 The dashed arrow from 1012 to 1052 in [description] is intended to represent the sending and receiving of IR information. The process returning to 1052 is intended to illustrate that in response to the first retransmission request after a decoding failure occurs when decoding the self-decodable coded block independently of other coded blocks and jointly decoding the self-decodable coded block, incremental redundancy decoding is performed based on the IR information obtained for the self-decodable coded block. 1052 represents receiving a codeword, but in the case of retransmission, the same codeword may or may not be received again. The decoding after retransmission may also be different and may include jointly decoding by combining the previously received codeword with the newly received IR information, and so on.

[0176] As in other embodiments, the portion of the first separate payload combined with the second separate payload may be determined according to the ordering of the bits in the first separate payload. Such an ordering may be or include an ordering based on the attributes of the bits in the first separate payload. As described by way of example above, the attribute may be or include any one or more of the following: decoding reliability, decoding order, bit position index, and reliability weight.

[0177] A portion of a (the above-mentioned first) separate payload may be combined with other (the above-mentioned second) separate payloads according to the ordering of the bits in the combined payload used for error correction coding to generate other coded blocks. The ordering of the bits used for error correction coding to generate other coded blocks may be or include an ordering based on the attributes of the bits used for error correction coding to generate other coded blocks. Examples of the attributes described elsewhere herein include the following, any one or more of which may be used as the basis for the ordering of the bits in the combined payload: the decoding order of the bits decoded from other coded blocks; the decoding reliability of the bits decoded from other coded blocks; the bit position index; the reliability weight.

[0178] Similarly, at least as described above, these exemplary attributes are merely examples, and other attributes may be used additionally or alternatively to determine the parts or shared bits to be combined, and / or how to combine a part or shared bit in one individual payload with bits in other individual payloads. For example, in other embodiments, other weight values may be used, and multiple attributes may be used in combination.

[0179] Other features not explicitly shown in may be provided or supported, or at least these features may affect the decoding side or receiving side operations. For example, before selecting the MCS for error correction coding of the first individual payload, selecting the MCS for error correction coding of the second individual payload combined with the first individual payload may be implemented as an operation on the coding side or the transmitting side, but the selected MCS also affects the decoding side or receiving side operations. Figure 10 The above also at least describes additional MCS features of embodiments involving more than two individual payloads, and such features may also affect the decoding side or receiving side operations. For example, the first individual payload and the second individual payload may be two individual payloads among a large number of individual payloads, and each part in the multiple individual payloads may be combined with the second individual payload for error correction coding. The MCS of the second individual payload combined with each part in the multiple individual payloads may be or include an MCS in one of multiple MCS tables, and these MCS tables respectively correspond to different numbers of individual payloads, and each part in these individual payloads is combined with the second individual payload for error correction coding.

[0180] A method consistent with the example shown in 1050 may include transmitting signaling indicating joint encoding and decoding parameters related to one or both of the following: error correction coding of the first individual payload and error correction coding of the second individual payload combined with a part in the first individual payload. The above at least provides examples of transmissions and examples of the joint encoding and decoding parameters that such signaling may indicate.

[0181] The present invention includes various embodiments, including not only method embodiments but also other embodiments, such as device embodiments and embodiments related to non-transitory computer-readable storage media. The embodiments may be combined with the features disclosed herein individually or in combination.

[0182] A device may include: a processor; a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium coupled to the processor and storing a program for the processor to execute. In

[0183] Figure 3 ​Among them, for example, processors 210, 260, and 276 can all be or include one or more processors, and each of memories 208, 258, and 278 is an example of a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium in ED 110 and TRP 170, 172. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium does not necessarily have to be used in combination with a processor and can also be used alone in a computer program product, etc.

[0184] In an illustrative example, a program stored in or on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium can include instructions for or causing a processor to perform the following operations: a first communication device in a wireless communication network sends a codeword to a second communication device, where the codeword includes encoded blocks generated by error-correcting encoding of corresponding individual payloads. These encoded blocks include self-decodable encoded blocks generated by error-correcting encoding of a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by error-correcting encoding of a second individual payload encoded in combination with a portion of the first individual payload.

[0185] In another embodiment, a program stored in or on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium can include instructions for or causing a processor to perform the following operations: obtain a first individual payload and a second individual payload; perform error-correcting encoding on the first individual payload to generate self-decodable encoded blocks; perform error-correcting encoding on the second individual payload encoded in combination with a portion of the first individual payload to generate other encoded blocks; output a codeword including the self-decodable encoded blocks and the other encoded blocks.

[0186] In these and other embodiments, the portion in the first individual payload can be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload.

[0187] Embodiments related to a device or a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium can include any one or more of the following characteristics. For example, these characteristics are also discussed elsewhere in this document:

[0188] The program can also include instructions for or causing a processor to perform the following operations: obtain a first individual payload and a second individual payload;

[0189] The program can also include instructions for or causing a processor to perform the following operations: perform error-correcting encoding on the first individual payload to generate self-decodable encoded blocks, and perform error-correcting encoding on the second individual payload combined with a portion of the first individual payload to generate other encoded blocks;

[0190] The self-decodable encoded block can also be jointly decoded with other encoded blocks, such that based on successful decoding of the self-decodable encoded block independently of other encoded blocks, other encoded blocks can be jointly decoded;

[0191] The self-decodable encoded block can also be jointly decoded with other encoded blocks, such that after a decoding failure occurs when decoding the self-decodable encoded block independently of other encoded blocks, the self-decodable encoded block can be jointly decoded;

[0192] The sorting can be or include sorting based on the attributes of the bits in the first individual payload;

[0193] The attribute can be or include any one or more of the following: decoding reliability, decoding order, bit position index, and reliability weight;

[0194] A part in the first individual payload can be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of the bits used for error correction coding to generate other encoded blocks;

[0195] The sorting of the bits used for error correction coding to generate other encoded blocks can be or include sorting based on the attributes of the bits used for error correction coding to generate other encoded blocks;

[0196] The attributes of the bits used for error correction coding to generate other encoded blocks can be or include any one or more of the following: the decoding order of the bits decoded from other encoded blocks, the decoding reliability of the bits decoded from other encoded blocks, bit position index, and reliability weight;

[0197] The MCS used for error correction coding of the second individual payload combined with the first individual payload can be selected before selecting the MCS used for error correction coding of the first individual payload;

[0198] The first individual payload and the second individual payload can be or include individual payloads among multiple individual payloads;

[0199] Each part of the multiple individual payloads among the multiple individual payloads can be combined with the second individual payload for error correction coding;

[0200] The MCS used for error correction coding of the second individual payload combined with each part of the multiple individual payloads can be selected from one of multiple MCS tables, and these MCS tables respectively correspond to different numbers of individual payloads, and each part of these different numbers of individual payloads is combined with the second individual payload for error correction coding;

[0201] The program may also include instructions for or causing the processor to perform the following: transmitting signaling indicating joint encoding and decoding parameters in a wireless communication network, where the joint encoding and decoding parameters are related to one or both of the following: error correction coding of a first individual payload and error correction coding of a second individual payload combined with a portion of the first individual payload;

[0202] The signaling indicates any one or more of the following: encoding and decoding mode; MCS; the respective priority order of the services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload; the encoding and decoding structure of the error correction coding of the first individual payload; the encoding and decoding structure of the error correction coding of the second individual payload combined with a portion of the first individual payload; the manner of determining the partitioning of the portion in the first individual payload; the respective number of resource units available for the services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload; the respective number of data layers of the services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload; the respective mapping methods for mapping the services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload to the data layers.

[0203] The program stored in or on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may additionally or alternatively include instructions for or causing the processor to perform the following: a second communication device in a wireless communication network receives a codeword from a first communication device, where the codeword includes encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on the respective individual payloads. These encoded blocks include self-decodable encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on the first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on the second individual payload combined with a portion of the first individual payload.

[0204] In another embodiment, the program stored in or on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may additionally or alternatively include instructions for or causing the processor to perform the following: decoding the first individual payload and the second individual payload from the codeword, where the codeword includes self-decodable encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on the first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on the second individual payload combined with a portion of the first individual payload; outputting the first individual payload and the second individual payload.

[0205] In these and other embodiments, the portion in the first individual payload may be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of the bits in the first individual payload.

[0206] Embodiments related to an apparatus or a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may include any one or more of the following features, for example, these features are also discussed elsewhere in this document:

[0207] The program may also include instructions for or causing a processor to perform the following operations: decoding a self-decodable encoded block to obtain a first individual payload;

[0208] The program may also include instructions for or causing a processor to perform the following operations: decoding a self-decodable encoded block independently of other encoded blocks; based on successfully decoding the self-decodable encoded block independently of other encoded blocks, jointly decoding other encoded blocks;

[0209] The programming may also include instructions for or causing a processor to perform the following operations: jointly decoding the self-decodable encoded block after a decoding failure occurs when decoding the self-decodable encoded block independently of other encoded blocks;

[0210] The sorting may be or include sorting based on the attributes of the bits in the first individual payload;

[0211] The attribute may be or include any one or more of the following: decoding reliability, decoding order, bit position index, and reliability weight;

[0212] A portion of the first individual payload may be combined with a second individual payload according to the sorting of the bits used for error correction coding to generate other encoded blocks;

[0213] The sorting of the bits used for error correction coding to generate other encoded blocks may be or include sorting based on the attributes of the bits used for error correction coding to generate other encoded blocks;

[0214] The attributes of the bits used for error correction coding to generate other encoded blocks may be or include any one or more of the following: the decoding order of the bits decoded from other encoded blocks, the decoding reliability of the bits decoded from other encoded blocks, bit position index, and reliability weight;

[0215] The MCS used for error correction coding of the second individual payload combined with the first individual payload may be selected before selecting the MCS used for error correction coding of the first individual payload;

[0216] The first individual payload and the second individual payload may be or include individual payloads among a plurality of individual payloads;

[0217] Respective portions of the plurality of individual payloads among the plurality of individual payloads may be combined with the second individual payload for error correction coding;

[0218] The MCS for error correction coding of a second individual payload combined with respective parts of multiple individual payloads can be selected from one of multiple MCS tables, where these MCS tables respectively correspond to different numbers of individual payloads, and respective parts of these different numbers of individual payloads are combined with the second individual payload for error correction coding;

[0219] The program may further include instructions for or causing a processor to perform the following operations: transmitting signaling indicating joint coding and decoding parameters in a wireless communication network, where the joint coding and decoding parameters are related to one or both of the following: error correction coding of a first individual payload and error correction coding of a second individual payload combined with a part of the first individual payload;

[0220] The signaling indicates any one or more of the following: coding and decoding mode; MCS; corresponding priority order of services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload; coding and decoding structure of error correction coding of the first individual payload; coding and decoding structure of error correction coding of the second individual payload combined with a part of the first individual payload; method for determining the partitioning manner of the part in the first individual payload; respective numbers of resource units available for services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload; respective numbers of data layers of services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload; corresponding mapping method for mapping services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload to data layers.

[0221] Embodiments disclosed herein cover various aspects of what can be referred to as in-UE MA coding without HARQ, which coding may be particularly suitable for hard output codes. The embodiments can be applied to a wide range of communication networks, such as 5G+, 6G, Wi-Fi, non-terrestrial network (NTN), and distributed or ad-hoc networks.

[0222] Self-decoding capabilities can be provided for different types of payloads (such as URLLC data and eMBB data, etc.).

[0223] High reliability can be provided additionally or alternatively for certain types of payloads. For example, even if eMBB decoding fails, URLLC performance may be improved.

[0224] Some embodiments can provide lower latency. Shared bits can be copied from the URLLC payload and combined with bits in the eMBB payload, etc., according to the decoding order of other payloads such as the eMBB payload, to support earlier start of joint decoding of the URLLC payload before all eMBB symbols are received.

[0225] For payloads with higher decoding priority, such as URLLC payloads, especially at low BLER, performance can be improved by the significant slope gain of these payloads.

[0226] As described herein, encoding and decoding methods that support HARQ-free second (joint) decoding attempts can enhance packet loss and error resilience or reliability, reduce latency, and improve performance compared to traditional HARQ methods.

[0227] By coupling and encoding multiple payloads into long codewords to achieve self-decoding and joint-decoding capabilities, different KPI requirements for multiple payloads or services, etc., can be supported. For multi-service scenarios or other applications involving different types of payloads, embodiments of the present invention can additionally or alternatively support higher flexibility.

[0228] Figure 11 It is a simulation result diagram of an exemplary scenario.

[0229] In Figure 11 "First URLLC" represents the self-decoding performance and the first attempt of URLLC, "Second URLLC" represents the joint-decoding performance and the second attempt of URLLC, "Only eMBB: N2 = 2048K 2s = 1136PW CRC" represents the self-decoding performance of standalone eMBB (without the coupling disclosed herein), "Only eMBB: N2 = 2048K2 = 1152PW CRC" represents the joint-decoding performance of eMBB (with the coupling disclosed herein). Similar or different results can be observed under simulation conditions similar to or different from those shown in Figure 11 and / or in the deployment of the embodiments.

[0230] In Figure 11 the other notations are as follows:

[0231] C1(128, 64 - 48) represents the first code block, with 128 encoded bits and 64 information bits, where 48 are exclusive information bits and 16 are shared information bits;

[0232] C2(2048, 1152 - 1136) represents the code block 2, with 2048 encoded bits and 64 information bits, where 48 are exclusive information bits and 16 are shared information bits;

[0233] L = 8 represents the list size in the polar SCL decoder;

[0234] T = 8 represents the number of CRC / PC checks in the polar CA / PC-SCL decoder. Among them, the decoder checks the first T paths. If one of the paths passes the CRC / PC check, the path is output as the decoding result;

[0235] N1 = 128 and K1 = 64 represent a code length of 128 and an information (or payload length) of 64;

[0236] PW CRC means constructing a polar code using polarization weight (PW) and CRC-aided polar codes;

[0237] N1 = 128 and K 1j = 48 represents a code length of 128 and an information (or payload length) of 48;

[0238] N2 = 2048 and K 2s = 1136 represents a code length of 2048 and an information (or payload length) of 1136;

[0239] N2 = 2048 and K2 = 1152 represent a code length of 2048 and an information (or payload length) of 1152.

[0240] These are all exemplary simulation conditions. Other simulations and / or deployments may be under similar or different conditions.

[0241] As shown in the figure, the URLLC joint decoding performance after the second decoding attempt is significantly better than that after the first decoding attempt. It is worth noting that the slope is steeper and the performance is thus improved, making the embodiments supporting the second decoding attempt very suitable for implementation in high SNR and low BLER regions. This is exactly the target operating region of URLLC.

[0242] Figure 11 It is also shown that, in order to support joint decoding, the coupled eMBB performance is slightly worse than the uncoupled eMBB performance. This is because additional payload bits are added to the original eMBB payload bits, making the effective code rate greater than that in the uncoupled case. However, this performance cost may be negligible, or at least a worthwhile trade-off, compared to the advantages brought by enhancing URLLC reliability.

[0243] Although the present invention has been described with reference to illustrative embodiments, this specification is not to be construed in a limiting sense. With reference to this document, those skilled in the art will clearly understand various modifications and combinations of the illustrative embodiments and other embodiments of the present invention. Therefore, the appended claims cover any such modifications or embodiments.

[0244] For example, features disclosed herein in the context of method embodiments can also or alternatively be implemented in apparatus or computer program product embodiments. Additionally, while embodiments are primarily described in the context of methods and apparatus, other implementations are also contemplated as instructions stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium or the like. These media can store programs or instructions to execute any of the various methods consistent with the present invention.

[0245] While aspects of the present invention have been described with reference to specific features and embodiments of the present invention, various modifications and combinations can be made to the present invention without departing from the present invention. The specification and drawings are thus to be regarded only as an illustration of some embodiments of the present invention as defined by the appended claims, and are contemplated to cover any and all modifications, variations, combinations or equivalents within the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, while embodiments and their potential advantages have been described in detail, various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made herein without departing from the present invention as defined by the appended claims. In addition, the scope of the present application is not limited to the specific embodiments of the processes, machines, manufactures, compositions of matter, modules, methods and steps described in the specification. It will be readily understood by those of ordinary skill in the art from the disclosure of the present invention that processes, machines, products, compositions of matter, modules, methods or steps existing or to be developed that perform substantially the same function or achieve substantially the same result as the corresponding embodiments described herein can be used in accordance with the present invention. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to cover such processes, machines, manufactures, compositions of matter, components, methods or steps within their scope.

[0246] In addition, any module, component or device that executes instructions illustrated herein can include or otherwise access one or more non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage media to store information, e.g., computer-readable or processor-readable instructions, data structures, program modules, and / or other data. A non-exhaustive list of examples of non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage media includes magnetic tape cartridges, tapes, magnetic disk memories or other magnetic storage devices, compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), digital video disc or digital versatile disc (DVD), Blu-ray TMOptical discs such as, or other optical storage, volatile and non-volatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology, random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other storage technologies. Any of these non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage media may be part of a device or may be accessed or connected by a device. Any application or module described herein may be implemented using computer or processor-readable and executable instructions that may be stored or otherwise maintained by these non-transitory computer-readable or processor-readable storage media.

Claims

1. A method, characterized in that, Comprising: A first communication device in a wireless communication network sends a codeword to a second communication device, where the codeword includes a plurality of encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on corresponding individual payloads. The plurality of encoded blocks includes a self - decodable encoded block generated by performing error correction coding on a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on a second individual payload that is combined with a part of the first individual payload for error correction coding, and the part of the first individual payload is combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload. The self - decodable encoded block can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

2. A method, characterized in that, Comprising: Obtain a first individual payload and a second individual payload; Perform error correction coding on the first individual payload to generate a self - decodable encoded block; Perform error correction coding on the second individual payload that is combined with a part of the first individual payload for error correction coding to generate other encoded blocks, where the part of the first individual payload is combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload; Output a codeword including the self - decodable encoded block and the other encoded blocks, where The self - decodable encoded block can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein Further comprising: Obtain the first individual payload and the second individual payload; Perform error correction coding on the first individual payload to generate the self - decodable encoded block, and perform error correction coding on the second individual payload that is combined with the part of the first individual payload to generate the other encoded blocks.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The self - decodable encoded block can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks, such that based on successful decoding of the self - decodable encoded block independently of the other encoded blocks, the other encoded blocks are jointly decoded.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The self - decodable encoded block can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks, such that after a decoding failure occurs when decoding the self - decodable encoded block independently of the other encoded blocks, the self - decodable encoded block is jointly decoded.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that The sorting includes sorting based on the attributes of the bits in the first individual payload.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein The attributes include any one or more of the following: decoding reliability, decoding order, bit position index, and reliability weight.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that, The part of the first individual payload is combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of the bits used for error correction coding to generate the other encoded blocks.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein The sorting of the bits used for error correction coding to generate the other encoded blocks includes sorting based on the attributes of the bits used for error correction coding to generate the other encoded blocks.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein The attributes of the bits for error correction coding to generate the other encoded blocks include any one or more of the following: the decoding order of decoding the bits from the other encoded blocks, the decoding reliability of decoding the bits from the other encoded blocks, the bit position index, and the reliability weight.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that, The modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with the first separate payload is selected before the MCS selected for error correction coding of the first separate payload.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the first separate payload and the second separate payload include separate payloads among a plurality of separate payloads, each part of the plurality of separate payloads among the plurality of separate payloads is combined with the second separate payload for error correction coding, the modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with each part of the plurality of separate payloads is selected from one MCS table among a plurality of MCS tables, and the plurality of MCS tables respectively correspond to different numbers of separate payloads, and each part of the different numbers of separate payloads is combined with the second separate payload for error correction coding.

13. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that Further comprising: transmitting signaling indicating joint encoding and decoding parameters in the wireless communication network, wherein the joint encoding and decoding parameters are related to one or both of the following: the error correction coding of the first separate payload and the error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with a part of the first separate payload.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein The signaling includes any one or more of the following: encoding and decoding mode; modulation and coding scheme (MCS); the corresponding priority order of the services associated with the first separate payload and the second separate payload; the encoding and decoding structure of the error correction coding of the first separate payload; the encoding and decoding structure of the error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with the part of the first separate payload; the method for determining the partitioning of the part in the first separate payload; the corresponding number of resource units available for the services associated with the first separate payload and the second separate payload; the corresponding number of data layers of the services associated with the first separate payload and the second separate payload; the corresponding mapping method for mapping the services associated with the first separate payload and the second separate payload to the data layers.

15. A method, characterized in that, Comprising: A second communication device in the wireless communication network receives a codeword from a first communication device, wherein the codeword includes a plurality of encoded blocks generated by error correction coding of corresponding separate payloads. The plurality of encoded blocks includes self - decodable encoded blocks generated by error - correcting encoding of a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by error - correcting encoding of a second individual payload that is error - correcting encoded in combination with a portion of the first individual payload, where the portion of the first individual payload is determined to be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload. The self - decodable encoded blocks can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

16. A method, characterized in that, Comprising: Decoding a first individual payload and a second individual payload from a codeword, where the codeword includes self - decodable encoded blocks generated by error - correcting encoding of the first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by error - correcting encoding of the second individual payload that is combined with a portion of the first individual payload; Outputting the first individual payload and the second individual payload, where the portion of the first individual payload is determined to be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload. The self - decodable encoded blocks can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

17. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that Further comprising: Decoding the self - decodable encoded blocks to obtain the first individual payload.

18. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 17, characterized in that Further comprising: Decoding the self - decodable encoded blocks independently of the other encoded blocks; Based on successful decoding of the self - decodable encoded blocks independently of the other encoded blocks, jointly decoding the other encoded blocks.

19. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 18, characterized in that Further comprising: After a decoding failure occurs when decoding the self - decodable encoded blocks independently of the other encoded blocks, jointly decoding the self - decodable encoded blocks.

20. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 19, characterized in that The sorting includes sorting based on the attributes of bits in the first individual payload.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein, The attributes include any one or more of the following: decoding reliability, decoding order, bit - position index, and reliability weight.

22. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 21, characterized in that, The portion of the first individual payload is combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits used for error - correcting encoding to generate the other encoded blocks.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein The sorting of the bits used for error - correcting encoding to generate the other encoded blocks includes sorting based on the attributes of the bits used for error - correcting encoding to generate the other encoded blocks.

24. The method according to claim 23, characterized in that, The attributes of the bits used for error - correcting encoding to generate the other encoded blocks include any one or more of the following: the decoding order of decoding the bits from the other encoded blocks, the decoding reliability of decoding bits from the other encoded blocks, bit - position index, and reliability weight.

25. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 24, characterized in that, The modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for error correction coding of the second individual payload combined with the first individual payload is selected before the MCS for error correction coding of the first individual payload is selected.

26. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 24, wherein the first individual payload and the second individual payload include individual payloads among a plurality of individual payloads, each part of the plurality of individual payloads among the plurality of individual payloads is combined with the second individual payload for error correction coding, the modulation and coding scheme (MCS) of the second individual payload combined with each part of the plurality of individual payloads includes an MCS from one of a plurality of MCS tables, and the plurality of MCS tables respectively correspond to different numbers of individual payloads, and each part of the different numbers of individual payloads is combined with the second individual payload for error correction coding.

27. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 26, characterized in that, It further includes: transmitting signaling indicating joint encoding and decoding parameters in the wireless communication network, wherein the joint encoding and decoding parameters are related to one or both of the following: the error correction coding of the first individual payload and the error correction coding of the second individual payload combined with a part of the first individual payload.

28. The method according to claim 27, wherein The signaling includes any one or more of the following: encoding and decoding mode; modulation and coding scheme (MCS); the corresponding priority order of services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload; the encoding and decoding structure of the error correction coding of the first individual payload; the encoding and decoding structure of the error correction coding of the second individual payload combined with the part of the first individual payload; a method for determining the partitioning manner of the part in the first individual payload; the corresponding number of resource units available for services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload; the corresponding number of data layers of services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload; the corresponding mapping method for mapping services associated with the first individual payload and the second individual payload to data layers.

29. A device, characterized in that, It includes: a processor; a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, coupled to the processor and storing a program for execution by the processor, wherein the program includes instructions for performing the following operations: a first communication device in a wireless communication network sends a codeword to a second communication device, wherein the codeword includes a plurality of encoded blocks generated by error correction coding of corresponding individual payloads, The plurality of encoded blocks includes self - decodable encoded blocks generated by performing error - correcting coding on a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error - correcting coding on a second individual payload that is error - correcting coded in combination with a portion of the first individual payload, and the portion of the first individual payload is combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload. The self - decodable encoded blocks can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

30. A device, characterized in that, Comprising: A processor; A non - transitory computer - readable storage medium coupled to the processor and storing a program for execution by the processor, wherein the program includes instructions for performing the following operations: Obtain a first individual payload and a second individual payload; Perform error - correcting coding on the first individual payload to generate self - decodable encoded blocks; Perform error - correcting coding on the second individual payload that is error - correcting coded in combination with a portion of the first individual payload to generate other encoded blocks, wherein the portion of the first individual payload is combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload; Output a codeword including the self - decodable encoded blocks and the other encoded blocks, wherein The self - decodable encoded blocks can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

31. The device according to claim 29, characterized in that, The program includes instructions for performing the following operations: Obtain the first individual payload and the second individual payload; Perform error - correcting coding on the first individual payload to generate the self - decodable encoded blocks and perform error - correcting coding on the second individual payload combined with the portion of the first individual payload to generate the other encoded blocks.

32. The device according to any one of claims 29 to 31, characterized in that, The self - decodable encoded blocks can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks such that, based on successful decoding of the self - decodable encoded blocks independently of the other encoded blocks, the other encoded blocks are jointly decoded.

33. The device according to any one of claims 29 to 32, characterized in that, The self - decodable encoded blocks can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks such that, after a decoding failure occurs when decoding the self - decodable encoded blocks independently of the other encoded blocks, the self - decodable encoded blocks are jointly decoded.

34. The device according to any one of claims 29 to 33, characterized in that, The sorting includes sorting based on the attributes of the bits in the first individual payload.

35. The device according to claim 34, characterized in that, The attributes include any one or more of the following: decoding reliability, decoding order, bit - position index, and reliability weight.

36. The device according to any one of claims 29 to 35, characterized in that The portion of the first individual payload is combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of the bits used for error - correcting coding to generate the other encoded blocks.

37. The device according to claim 36, characterized in that, The sorting of the bits used for error - correcting coding to generate the other encoded blocks includes sorting based on the attributes of the bits used for error - correcting coding to generate the other encoded blocks.

38. The device according to claim 37, wherein The attributes of the bits for error correction coding to generate the other encoded blocks include any one or more of the following: the decoding order of decoding the bits from the other encoded blocks, the decoding reliability of decoding the bits from the other encoded blocks, the bit position index, and the reliability weight.

39. The device according to any one of claims 29 to 38, characterized in that, The modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with the first separate payload is selected before the MCS selected for error correction coding of the first separate payload.

40. The apparatus according to any one of claims 29 to 38, wherein The first separate payload and the second separate payload include separate payloads among a plurality of separate payloads, Each part of the plurality of separate payloads among the plurality of separate payloads is combined with the second separate payload for error correction coding, The modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with each part among the plurality of separate payloads is selected from one MCS table among a plurality of MCS tables, and the plurality of MCS tables respectively correspond to different numbers of separate payloads, and each part among the different numbers of separate payloads is combined with the second separate payload for error correction coding.

41. The apparatus according to any one of claims 29 to 40, characterized in that The program further includes instructions for performing the following operations: Transmit signaling indicating joint encoding and decoding parameters in the wireless communication network, wherein the joint encoding and decoding parameters are related to one or both of the following: the error correction coding of the first separate payload and the error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with a part of the first separate payload.

42. The device according to claim 41, characterized in that, The signaling includes any one or more of the following: Encoding and decoding mode; Modulation and coding scheme (MCS); The corresponding priority order of the services associated with the first separate payload and the second separate payload; The encoding and decoding structure of the error correction coding of the first separate payload; The encoding and decoding structure of the error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with the part in the first separate payload; A method for determining the division manner of the part in the first separate payload; The corresponding number of resource units available for the services associated with the first separate payload and the second separate payload; The corresponding number of data layers of the services associated with the first separate payload and the second separate payload; The corresponding mapping method for mapping the services associated with the first separate payload and the second separate payload to the data layers.

43. A device, characterized in that, Comprising: A processor; A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, coupled to the processor and storing a program for execution by the processor, wherein the program includes instructions for performing the following operations: A second communication device in a wireless communication network receives a codeword from a first communication device, where the codeword includes a plurality of encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on respective individual payloads. The plurality of encoded blocks includes a self - decodable encoded block generated by performing error correction coding on a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on a second individual payload that is combined with a portion of the first individual payload for error correction coding, and the portion of the first individual payload is combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload. The self - decodable encoded block can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

44. A device, characterized in that, Comprising: A processor; A non - transitory computer - readable storage medium coupled to the processor and storing a program for execution by the processor, where the program includes instructions for performing the following operations: Decode a first individual payload and a second individual payload from the codeword, where the codeword includes a self - decodable encoded block generated by performing error correction coding on the first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on the second individual payload combined with a portion of the first individual payload; Output the first individual payload and the second individual payload, where The portion of the first individual payload is combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload, The self - decodable encoded block can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

45. The device according to claim 43, wherein The program includes instructions for performing the following operations: Decode the self - decodable encoded block to obtain the first individual payload.

46. The device according to any one of claims 43 to 45, characterized in that, The program further includes instructions for performing the following operations: Decode the self - decodable encoded block independently of the other encoded blocks; Based on successfully decoding the self - decodable encoded block independently of the other encoded blocks, jointly decode the other encoded blocks.

47. The device according to any one of claims 43 to 46, characterized in that, The program further includes instructions for performing the following operations: After a decoding failure occurs when decoding the self - decodable encoded block independently of the other encoded blocks, jointly decode the self - decodable encoded block.

48. The device according to any one of claims 43 to 47, characterized in that The sorting includes sorting based on the attributes of the bits in the first individual payload.

49. The device according to claim 48, characterized in that, The attributes include any one or more of the following: decoding reliability, decoding order, bit position index, and reliability weight. The device according to any one of claims 43 to 49, characterized in that The portion of the first individual payload is combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of the bits used for error correction coding to generate the other encoded blocks.

51. The device according to claim 50, wherein, The sorting of the bits used for error correction coding to generate the other encoded blocks includes sorting based on the attributes of the bits used for error correction coding to generate the other encoded blocks.

52. The apparatus according to claim 51, wherein, The attributes of the bits for error correction coding to generate the other coded blocks include any one or more of the following: the decoding order of decoding the bits from the other coded blocks, the decoding reliability of decoding the bits from the other coded blocks, the bit position index, and the reliability weight.

53. The device according to any one of claims 43 to 52, characterized in that, The modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with the first separate payload is selected before the MCS selected for error correction coding of the first separate payload.

54. The apparatus according to any one of claims 43 to 52, characterized in that The first separate payload and the second separate payload include separate payloads among a plurality of separate payloads, Each part of the plurality of separate payloads among the plurality of separate payloads is combined with the second separate payload for error correction coding, The modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with each part among the plurality of separate payloads is selected from one of a plurality of MCS tables, and the plurality of MCS tables respectively correspond to different numbers of separate payloads, and each part among the different numbers of separate payloads is combined with the second separate payload for error correction coding.

55. The device according to any one of claims 43 to 54, characterized in that, The program further includes instructions for performing the following operations: Transmitting signaling indicating joint encoding and decoding parameters in the wireless communication network, where the joint encoding and decoding parameters are related to one or both of the following: the error correction coding of the first separate payload and the error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with a part of the first separate payload.

56. The device according to claim 55, characterized in that, The signaling includes any one or more of the following: Encoding and decoding mode; Modulation and coding scheme (MCS); The corresponding priority order of the services associated with the first separate payload and the second separate payload; The encoding and decoding structure of the error correction coding of the first separate payload; The encoding and decoding structure of the error correction coding of the second separate payload combined with the part of the first separate payload; The method for determining the partitioning of the part in the first separate payload; The corresponding number of resource units available for the services associated with the first separate payload and the second separate payload; The corresponding number of data layers of the services associated with the first separate payload and the second separate payload; The corresponding mapping method for mapping the services associated with the first separate payload and the second separate payload to the data layers.

57. A computer program product, characterized in that, A non-transitory computer-readable medium including a program stored for execution by a processor, where the program includes instructions for performing the following operations: A first communication device in a wireless communication network transmits a codeword to a second communication device, where the codeword includes a plurality of encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on corresponding individual payloads. The plurality of encoded blocks include self - decodable encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on a second individual payload that is combined with a portion of the first individual payload for error correction coding, and the portion of the first individual payload is determined to be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload. The self - decodable encoded blocks can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

58. A computer program product, characterized in that, A non - transitory computer - readable medium storing a program for execution by a processor, where the program includes instructions for performing the following operations: Obtain a first individual payload and a second individual payload; Perform error correction coding on the first individual payload to generate self - decodable encoded blocks; Perform error correction coding on the second individual payload that is combined with a portion of the first individual payload for error correction coding to generate other encoded blocks, where the portion of the first individual payload is determined to be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload; Output a codeword including the self - decodable encoded blocks and the other encoded blocks, where The self - decodable encoded blocks can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

59. A computer program product, characterized in that, A non - transitory computer - readable medium storing a program for execution by a processor, where the program includes instructions for performing the following operations: A second communication device in a wireless communication network receives a codeword from a first communication device, where the codeword includes a plurality of encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on corresponding individual payloads. The plurality of encoded blocks include self - decodable encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error correction coding on a second individual payload that is combined with a portion of the first individual payload for error correction coding, and the portion of the first individual payload is determined to be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload. The self - decodable encoded blocks can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be jointly decoded with the other encoded blocks.

60. A computer program product, characterized in that, A non - transitory computer - readable medium storing a program for execution by a processor, where the program includes instructions for performing the following operations: Decode a first individual payload and a second individual payload from a codeword, where the codeword includes a self - decodable encoded block generated by performing error - correction coding on the first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error - correction coding on the second individual payload combined with a part of the first individual payload; Output the first individual payload and the second individual payload, where the part in the first individual payload is determined to be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload, the self - decodable encoded block can be decoded independently of the other encoded blocks and can also be decoded jointly with the other encoded blocks.

61. A computer program product, characterized in that, A non - transitory computer - readable medium storing a program for execution by a processor, the program including instructions for performing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 28.

62. A system, characterized in that, Comprising: A first communication device for transmitting a codeword, where the codeword includes a plurality of encoded blocks generated by encoding corresponding individual payloads using an error - correction code, the plurality of encoded blocks including a self - decodable encoded block generated by performing error - correction coding on a first individual payload and other encoded blocks generated by performing error - correction coding on a second individual payload combined with a part of the first individual payload, and the part in the first individual payload is determined to be combined with the second individual payload according to the sorting of bits in the first individual payload; A second communication device for receiving the codeword including the plurality of encoded blocks from the first communication device and decoding the self - decodable encoded block from the codeword to obtain the first individual payload.

Images