Transmit configuration indicator (TCI) status indication for sidelink channel transmission and reception

Abstract

Techniques and devices for indicating a transmit configuration indicator (TCI) state in sidelink (SL) communications are disclosed. A method for SL beam management includes transmitting, by a first communication device, a TCI state indicating a quasi-co-location (QCL) type for SL transmission between the first communication device and a second communication device. The method may further include the first communication device transmitting a reference signal associated with the QCL. The method may further include the first communication device receiving a second TCI state, the second TCI state associated with an SL transmission from the second communication device to the first communication device.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] This application relates to wireless devices and wireless networks, including devices, computer-readable media, and methods for transmitting and receiving transmission configuration indicator (TCI) state indications for physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH). BACKGROUND

[0002] The use of wireless communication systems is rapidly increasing. In recent years, wireless devices such as smartphones and tablet computers have become increasingly sophisticated. In addition to supporting telephone calls, many mobile devices today also provide access to the Internet, email, text messaging, and navigation using the global positioning system (GPS), and the devices can operate sophisticated, complex applications that utilize these functions. Additionally, there are numerous different wireless communication technologies and wireless communication standards. Some examples of wireless communication standards include GSM, UMTS (e.g., associated with the WCDMA or TD-SCDMA air interfaces), LTE, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), HSPA, 3GPP2 CDMA2000 (e.g., lxRTT, lxEV-DO, HRPD, eHRPD), IEEE 802.11 (WLAN or Wi-Fi), Bluetooth ™ and others.

[0003] The introduction of an ever-increasing number of features and functions in wireless communication devices also requires continued improvements in wireless communication and in wireless communication devices. To increase coverage and better serve the increasing demand and range of intended uses of wireless communication, in addition to the above communication standards, there are wireless communication technologies under development, including fifth generation (5G) new radio (NR) communication. Thus, there is a need for improvements in areas that support such development and design.

[0004] A sidelink (SL) communication link is a communication link established between terminals acting as user equipment (UE) devices. In a SL communication link, a physical channel can be associated with a set of resource elements that carry information originating from higher layers. These resource elements can be transmitted via sidelink physical signals used by the physical layer without carrying information originating from higher layers. These physical signals can include indexing information signaling and synchronization information signaling.

[0005] In current 5G NR communications between a node and a UE (e.g., a Uu link), TCI state indication and quasi co-location (QCL) relationship configuration are key components in beam management. These features are used for beam selection for UE transmission and reception with respect to downlink beams used by the network. Separate indications can be made in uplink and downlink, and different QCL source reference signals (RSs) can be indicated.

[0006] More specifically, the unified TCI framework includes two transmission modes. Mode 1 uses a combined TCI applied to both uplink and downlink signals. The source RS is configured using a QCL type D indicator in both uplink and downlink.

[0007] Mode 2 uses separate TCI indicators for uplink and downlink. DL TCI is used for downlink beam indication, and UL TCI is used for uplink beam indication. In this mode, the source RS can be configured with appropriate QCL indication.

[0008] However, the unified TCI framework is built on the node-to-UE connection (i.e., the Uu link). In order to incorporate the TCI framework into SL communication, the framework must include references to the different UEs involved in the sidelink communication. Summary of the Invention

[0009] Generally, implementation schemes relate to devices, computer-readable media, and methods for a TCI framework used in SL communication. These aspects include a method for SL beam management, the method comprising a first communication device transmitting a TCI state indicating the QCL type for SL transmission between the first communication device and a second communication device.

[0010] In another aspect, the method further includes the first communication device transmitting a reference signal associated with the QCL. In some embodiments, the reference signal may be a Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) for beam acquisition in the SL or a Side Link Synchronization Signal Block (S-SSB).

[0011] In another aspect, the method further includes the first communication device receiving a second TCI state, the second TCI state being associated with an SL transmission from the second communication device to the first communication device. The TCI state is associated with an SL transmission from the first communication device to the second communication device, and the second TCI is associated with an SL transmission from the second communication device to the first communication device.

[0012] The techniques described herein can be implemented in and / or used with a variety of different types of devices, including but not limited to any one of cellular phones, wireless devices, tablet computers, wearable computing devices, portable media players, and various other computing devices.

[0013] The present invention is intended to provide a brief overview of some of the subjects described in this document. Therefore, it should be understood that the above features are merely illustrative and should not be construed as narrowing the scope or substance of the subjects described herein in any way. Other features, aspects, and advantages of the subjects described herein will become apparent from the following detailed description, drawings, and claims. Attached Figure Description

[0014] A better understanding of the subject matter can be obtained by considering the following detailed description of the various aspects in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0015] Figure 1 An example wireless communication system is illustrated based on some aspects.

[0016] Figure 2 Example block diagrams of a UE based on some aspects are shown.

[0017] Figure 3 An example is given of a base station (BS) that communicates with a user equipment (UE) device based on some aspects.

[0018] Figure 4A and Figure 4B Examples of different sidelink communications based on some aspects are shown.

[0019] Figure 5 An example of TCI communication relative to an RS transmitting communication device is given.

[0020] Figure 6 An example of TCI communication relative to the transmitting communication device is given based on some aspects.

[0021] Figure 7A and Figure 7B Different timings for TCI state activation are illustrated based on several aspects.

[0022] Although the features described herein may be subject to various modifications and alternatives, their specific aspects are shown by way of example in the accompanying drawings and described in detail herein. However, it should be understood that the drawings and their detailed description are not intended to limit one to the specific forms disclosed, but rather to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the substance and scope of the subject matter as defined by the appended claims. Detailed Implementation

[0023] In some wireless communication systems, a wireless device can communicate directly with another wireless device without going through a wireless node, for example. For instance, a wireless device can establish a Single Message (SL) session with another peer wireless device. Once an SL session is established, the wireless device can monitor messages from that peer wireless device, and vice versa.

[0024] SL transmission can be configured according to the resource allocation mode provided by the gNB. The resource allocation mode can provide dynamic granting of sidelink resources, as well as semi-static granting of periodic sidelink resources through sidelink-configured granting. To improve the reliability of SL transmission, Dynamic Sidelink Granting (DCI) can provide resources for one or more transmissions of a transport block. Sidelink-configured granting can be SL transmissions configured to be used by the UE immediately before these grants are released via RRC signaling.

[0025] Generally speaking, the implementation schemes disclosed herein relate to a TCI framework for SL communication. As noted above, for TCI indication in SL, the TCI status indication must be defined relative to the UE in SL communication.

[0026] In some implementations, the TCI status indication is controlled by the UE transmitting a periodic or semi-persistent RS. In other implementations, the TCI status indication is controlled by the transmitting UE. The QCL relationship of the source RS is configured appropriately. The implementation also includes a method for transmitting TCI status indication information in the SL. Signaling indications can be transmitted using PC5-Radio Resource Control (PC5-RRC) signaling, MAC Control Elements (MAC CE), Side Link Control Information (SCI), and combinations thereof.

[0027] The following is a glossary of terms that may be used in this disclosure:

[0028] Memory medium – any device of any type of nontransitory memory device or storage device. The term “memory medium” is intended to include mounting media, such as CD-ROM, floppy disk, or magnetic tape devices; computer system memory or random access memory, such as DRAM, DDR RAM, SRAM, EDO RAM, Rambus RAM, etc.; non-volatile memory, such as flash memory; magnetic media, such as hard disk drives or optical storage devices; registers or other similar types of memory elements, etc. Memory medium may also include other types of nontransitory memory or combinations thereof. Furthermore, the memory medium may reside in a first computer system executing a program, or it may reside in a different second computer system connected to the first computer system via a network (such as the Internet). In the latter example, the second computer system may provide program instructions to the first computer for execution. The term “memory medium” may include two or more memory media residing in different locations in different computer systems connected via, for example, a network. The memory medium may store program instructions (e.g., embodied in a computer program) that can be executed by one or more processors.

[0029] Carrier medium – as described above, memory media and physical transmission media, such as buses, networks and / or other physical transmission media for transmitting signals (such as electrical signals, electromagnetic signals or digital signals).

[0030] Programmable hardware elements encompass a variety of hardware devices that include multiple programmable functional blocks connected via programmable interconnects. Examples include FPGAs (Field-Programmable Gate Arrays), PLDs (Programmable Logic Devices), FPOAs (Field-Programmable Object Arrays), and CPLDs (Complex PLDs). Programmable functional blocks can range from fine-grained (combinational logic or lookup tables) to coarse-grained (arithmetic logic units or processor cores). Programmable hardware elements may also be referred to as "configurable logic units."

[0031] Computer system—any of all types of computing or processing systems, including personal computer systems (PCs), mainframe computer systems, workstations, networked appliances, internet-connected appliances, personal digital assistants (PDAs), television systems, grid computing systems, or other devices or combinations thereof. In general, the term "computer system" can be broadly defined to encompass any device (or combination of devices) having at least one processor that executes instructions from a memory medium.

[0032] User equipment (UE) (also referred to as "user equipment" or "UE device")—any of various types of computer systems or devices that are mobile or portable and perform wireless communication. Examples of UE devices include mobile phones or smartphones (e.g., iPhone). ™ Based on Android ™ Telephones), portable gaming devices (e.g., Nintendo DS) ™ PlayStation Portable ™ Gameboy Advance ™ iPhone ™This includes laptops, wearable devices (e.g., smartwatches, smart glasses), PDAs, portable internet devices, music players, data storage devices, other handheld devices, in-vehicle infotainment (IVI), in-vehicle entertainment (ICE) devices, instrument clusters, head-up displays (HUD) devices, on-board diagnostics (OBD) devices, dashboard moving equipment (DME), mobile data terminals (MDTs), electronic engine management systems (EEMS), electronic / engine control units (ECUs), electronic / engine control modules (ECMs), embedded systems, microcontrollers, control modules, engine management systems (EMS), connected or "smart" appliances, machine-type communication (MTC) devices, machine-to-machine (M2M) devices, and Internet of Things (IoT) devices. Generally, the term "UE" or "UE device" can be broadly defined as including any electronic, computing, and / or telecommunications device (or combination of devices) that can be carried by a user and is capable of wireless communication.

[0033] A wireless device is any of various types of computer systems or devices that perform wireless communication. A wireless device can be portable (or mobile), or it can be stationary or fixed in a location. A UE is an example of a wireless device.

[0034] A communication device is any of various types of computer systems or devices that perform communication, which may be wired or wireless. A communication device may be portable (or mobile), or it may be stationary or fixed in a location. A wireless device is one example of a communication device. A UE is another example of a communication device.

[0035] Base station—The term “base station” or “wireless station” has the full range of its common meaning and includes at least a wireless communication station that is installed in a fixed location and used for communication as part of a wireless telephone system or radio system. For example, if a base station is implemented in an LTE environment, it may alternatively be referred to as an “eNodeB” or “eNB”. If a base station is implemented in a 5G NR environment, it may alternatively be referred to as a “gNodeB” or “gNB”. Although certain aspects are described in the context of LTE or 5G NR, references to “eNB,” “gNB,” “nodeB,” “base station,” “NB,” etc., may also refer to one or more wireless nodes serving a cell to provide wireless connectivity between user equipment and, generally, a wider network, and the concepts discussed are not limited to any particular wireless technology. Although certain aspects are described in the context of LTE or 5G NR, references to “eNB,” “gNB,” “nodeB,” “base station,” “NB,” etc., are not intended to limit the concepts discussed herein to any particular wireless technology, and the concepts discussed can be applied to any wireless system.

[0036] Node – As used herein, the term “node” or “wireless node” can refer to one or more devices associated with a cell that provides a wireless connection between a user equipment and a typically wired network.

[0037] A processing element (or processor) – refers to a variety of elements or combinations of elements capable of performing the functions of a device, such as user equipment or cellular network equipment. A processing element may include, for example: a processor and associated memory, a portion or circuitry of a single processor core, an entire processor core, a single processor, a processor array, circuitry such as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), programmable hardware elements such as a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), and any combination thereof.

[0038] A channel is a medium used to transmit information from a transmitter to a receiver. It should be noted that because the characteristics of the term "channel" can vary depending on the wireless protocol, the term "channel" as used herein can be considered to be used in a standard manner consistent with the type of device to which the term is referenced. In some standards, the channel width can be variable (e.g., depending on device capabilities, band conditions, etc.). For example, LTE can support scalable channel bandwidths from 1.4 MHz to 20 MHz. In contrast, WLAN channels can be 22 MHz wide, while Bluetooth channels can be 1 MHz wide. Other protocols and standards may include different definitions of channels. Furthermore, some standards may define and use multiple types of channels, for example, different channels for uplink or downlink and / or different channels for different purposes such as data, control information, etc.

[0039] Frequency band—The term “frequency band” has the full range of its general meaning and includes at least a segment of spectrum (e.g., radio frequency spectrum) in which a channel is used or reserved for the same purpose.

[0040] Automatic—means an action or operation performed by a computer system (e.g., software executed by the computer system) or device (e.g., circuits, programmable hardware elements, ASICs, etc.) without requiring direct user input to specify or perform that action or operation. Therefore, the term "automatic" contrasts with an action performed or specified manually by the user (where the user provides input to directly perform the action). An automatic process may be initiated by user-provided input, but the subsequent actions performed "automatically" are not specified by the user; that is, they are not performed "manually," where the user specifies each action to be performed. For example, a user filling out a form by selecting each field and providing input to specify information (e.g., by typing information, selecting a checkbox, radio selection, etc.) is considered manually filling out the form, even though the computer system must update the form in response to the user's actions. The form can be filled out automatically by a computer system (e.g., software executed on the computer system) which analyzes the fields of the form and fills it out without any user input of answers to specify the fields. As indicated above, a user may invoke the autofill function of a form, but the user does not participate in the actual filling out of the form (e.g., the user does not manually specify the answers to the fields; instead, they are completed automatically). This specification provides various examples of operations that are automatically performed in response to actions taken by the user.

[0041] Approximately—means a value close to the correct or precise value. For example, approximately can refer to a value within 1% to 10% of the precise (or expected) value. However, it should be noted that the actual threshold (or tolerance) can be application-dependent. For example, in some respects, “approximately” may mean within 0.1% of some specified or expected value, while in various other respects, the threshold may be, for example, 2%, 3%, 5%, etc., depending on the expectations or requirements of a particular application.

[0042] Concurrency refers to the parallel execution or implementation of tasks, processes, or programs in a manner that overlaps at least partially. For example, concurrency can be achieved using “strong” or strict parallelism, where tasks are executed in parallel (at least partially) on corresponding computing elements; or using “weak parallelism,” where tasks are executed in an interleaved manner (e.g., by time multiplexing of execution threads).

[0043] "Configured as"—Various components can be described as being "configured as" to perform one or more tasks. In this context, "configured as" is a broad expression generally meaning "having" a "structure" that performs one or more tasks during operation. Therefore, a component can be configured to perform a task even when it is not currently performing one (e.g., a set of electrical conductors can be configured to electrically connect one module to another, even when the two modules are not connected). In some contexts, "configured as" can be a broad expression generally meaning a structure that "has" a "circuit" that performs one or more tasks during operation. Therefore, a component can be configured to perform a task even when it is not currently powered on. Generally, the circuit forming the structure corresponding to "configured as" can include hardware circuitry.

[0044] For ease of description, various components may be described as performing one or more tasks. Such descriptions should be interpreted as including the phrase "configured to". Statements describing a component as configured to perform one or more tasks are explicitly intended not to invoke the interpretation of 35 USC § 112(f) for that component.

[0045] Example wireless communication system

[0046] Now go to Figure 1 This illustrates a simplified example of a wireless communication system based on some aspects. It should be noted that... Figure 1 The system described herein is merely a non-limiting example of possible systems, and the features of this disclosure can be implemented in any of various systems as needed.

[0047] As shown in the figure, the example wireless communication system includes a base station 102A, which communicates with one or more user equipments 106A, 106B to 106Z via a transmission medium. Each user equipment may be referred to herein as a "user equipment" (UE). Therefore, user equipment 106 is referred to as a UE or UE device.

[0048] Base station (BS) 102A may be a transceiver base station (BTS) or a cell site (e.g., a “cellular base station”), and may include hardware that enables wireless communication with UEs 106A to 106Z.

[0049] The communication area (or coverage area) of a base station may be referred to as a "cell". Base station 102A and UE 106 can be configured to communicate via a transmission medium using any of a variety of Radio Access Technologies (RATs), also known as wireless communication technologies or telecommunications standards, such as GSM, UMTS (associated with air interfaces such as WCDMA or TD-SCDMA), LTE, LTE-A, 5G NR, HSPA, and 3GPP2 CDMA2000. Note that if base station 102A is implemented in an LTE context, it may alternatively be referred to as an "eNodeB" or "eNB". Note that if base station 102A is implemented in a 5G NR environment, it may alternatively be referred to as a "gNodeB" or "gNB".

[0050] In some aspects, UE 106 can be an IoT UE, which may include a network access layer designed to utilize low-power IoT applications with short-lived UE connections. The IoT UE may utilize technologies such as M2M or MTC to exchange data with an MTC server or device via a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), Proximity Service (ProSe), or Device-to-Device (D2D) communication, sensor network, or IoT network. M2M or MTC data exchange may be machine-initiated data exchange. The IoT network describes interconnected IoT UEs, which may include uniquely identifiable embedded computing devices (within the Internet infrastructure) with short-lived connections. As an example, Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) may utilize ProSe features using a PC5 interface to communicate directly between devices. The IoT UE may also execute background applications (e.g., keeping track of activity messages, status updates, etc.) to facilitate connectivity within the IoT network.

[0051] As shown in the figure, UEs 106 (such as UE 106A and UE 106B) can directly exchange communication data via PC5 interface 108A. Furthermore, UEs 106C, 106N, and 106Z can exchange communication data together via PC5 interfaces 108B, 108C, and 108D. Generally, this type of PC5 interface is referred to as an SL connection.

[0052] PC5 interface 108 may include one or more physical channels, including but not limited to Physical Side Link Shared Channel (PSSCH), Physical Side Link Control Channel (PSCCH), Physical Side Link Broadcast Channel (PSBCH), and Physical Side Link Feedback Channel (PSFCH). According to the embodiments disclosed herein, PC5 interface 108 can handle direct communication (unicast) between devices, selective group message transmission and reception (multicast) between devices, and broadcast message transmission and reception.

[0053] The implementation scheme disclosed herein can operate in frequency range 2 (FR2) above 24.25 GHz. It is known that the frequency band in this range has a shorter range than other frequency bands, but there is available bandwidth for sidelink extension.

[0054] In a V2X scenario, one or more base stations in base station 102 may be roadside units (RSUs) or act as RSUs. The term RSU can refer to any transport infrastructure entity used for V2X communications. An RSU may be implemented in or by a suitable radio node or fixed (or relatively fixed) UE, wherein the RSU is implemented in or by a UE, eNB, or gNB. For example, an RSU is a computing device coupled to radio frequency circuitry located on the roadside that provides connectivity support to UEs in passing vehicles.

[0055] As shown in the figure, base station 102A can also be configured to communicate with network 100 (e.g., the core network of a cellular service provider, telecommunications networks such as the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) and / or the Internet, and various other possibilities). Therefore, base station 102A facilitates communication between user equipments and / or between user equipments and network 100. Specifically, cellular base station 102A can provide UE 106 with various telecommunications capabilities such as voice, SMS, and / or data services.

[0056] Base station 102A and other similar base stations (such as base stations 102B to 102N) operating according to the same or different cellular communication standards can therefore be provided as a network of cells that can provide continuous or nearly continuous overlapping services to UEs 106A to 106Z and similar devices over a geographical area via one or more cellular communication standards.

[0057] Therefore, although base station 102A can act as such Figure 1 The illustrated "serving cells" are UEs 106A to 106Z, but each UE 106 may also be able to receive signals (and possibly within its communication range) from one or more other cells (which may be provided by base stations 102B to 102Z and / or any other base stations), which may be referred to as "neighboring cells." Such cells may also facilitate communication between user equipments and / or between user equipments and network 100. These cells may include "macro" cells, "micro" cells, "pecimen" cells, and / or any other cells of various other granularities providing service area size. For example, in Figure 1 Base stations 102A and 102B illustrated can be macro cells, while base station 102Z can be a micro cell. Other configurations are also possible.

[0058] In some respects, base station 102A may be a next-generation base station (e.g., a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station or "gNB"). In some respects, the gNB may connect to a legacy evolved packet core (EPC) network and / or to an NR core (NRC) / 5G core (5GC) network. Furthermore, the gNB cell may include one or more transition and receive points (TRPs). Additionally, a UE capable of operating under 5G NR may be connected to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs. For example, base station 102A and one or more other base stations 102 may support joint transmission, enabling UE 106 to receive transmissions from multiple base stations (and / or multiple TRPs provided by the same base station). For example, as... Figure 1 As illustrated, both base station 102A and base station 102C are shown as serving UE 106A.

[0059] It should be noted that UE 106 may be able to communicate using multiple wireless communication standards. For example, in addition to some of the cellular communication protocols discussed herein, UE 106 may also be configured to communicate using wireless networking (e.g., Wi-Fi) and / or peer-to-peer wireless communication protocols (e.g., Bluetooth and Wi-Fi pairs, etc.). If desired, UE 106 may additionally or alternatively be configured to communicate using one or more Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) (e.g., GPS or GLONASS), one or more mobile television broadcasting standards (e.g., ATSC-M / H), and / or any other wireless communication protocol. Other combinations of wireless communication standards (including more than two wireless communication standards) are also possible.

[0060] In one or more embodiments, UE 106 can be a cellular communication-enabled device, such as a mobile phone, handheld device, computer, laptop, tablet, smartwatch or other wearable device or virtually any type of wireless device.

[0061] UE 106 may include a processor (processing element) configured to execute program instructions stored in memory. UE 106 may execute any method aspect of the method aspects described herein by executing such stored instructions. Alternatively or additionally, UE 106 may include any of the following programmable hardware elements: an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), an integrated circuit, and / or various other possible hardware components configured to execute (e.g., individually or in combination) any method aspect of the method aspects described herein or any part of any method aspect of the method aspects described herein.

[0062] UE 106 may include one or more antennas for communicating using one or more wireless communication protocols or technologies. In some aspects, UE 106 may be configured to communicate using, for example, NR or LTE using at least some shared radio components. As an additional possibility, UE 106 may be configured to communicate using CDMA2000 (1xRTT / 1xEV-DO / HRPD / eHRPD) or LTE using a single shared radio component and / or GSM or LTE using a single shared radio component. The shared radio component may be coupled to a single antenna or may be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., for a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) configuration) for performing wireless communication. Generally, the radio component may include any combination of baseband processors, analog RF signal processing circuitry (e.g., including filters, mixers, oscillators, and amplifiers) or digital processing circuitry (e.g., for digital modulation and other digital processing). Similarly, the radio component may use the aforementioned hardware to implement one or more receive chains and transmit chains. For example, UE 106 may share one or more portions of the receive chain and / or transmit chain among various wireless communication technologies, such as those discussed above.

[0063] In some aspects, UE 106 may include separate transmit and / or receive chains (e.g., including separate antennas and other radio components) for each wireless communication protocol configured to communicate therein. As another possibility, UE 106 may include one or more radio components shared among multiple wireless communication protocols, as well as one or more radio components uniquely used by a single wireless communication protocol. For example, UE 106 may include shared radio components for communicating using either LTE or 5G NR (or either LTE or 1xRTT, or either LTE or GSM, and various other possibilities), and separate radio components for communicating using each of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Other configurations are also possible.

[0064] In some respects, the downlink resource grid can be used for downlink transmission from any of the base stations in base station 102 to UE 106, while uplink transmission can utilize similar techniques. This grid can be a time-frequency grid, referred to as a resource grid or time-frequency resource grid, which represents the physical resources in the downlink within each time slot. Such a time-frequency plane representation is standard practice for Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) systems, making radio resource allocation intuitive. Each column and row of the resource grid corresponds to an OFDM symbol and an OFDM subcarrier, respectively. The duration of the resource grid in the time domain corresponds to a time slot in a radio frame. The smallest time-frequency unit in the resource grid is represented as a resource element. Each resource grid can include multiple resource blocks, which describe the mapping from a specific physical channel to resource elements. Each resource block includes a set of resource elements. Such resource blocks are used to transmit several different physical downlink channels.

[0065] One such channel is the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) that carries user data and higher-layer signaling to UE 106. The Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) can carry information such as transmission formats and resource allocations related to the PDSCH channel. It can also inform UE 106 of transmission formats, resource allocations, and HARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request) information related to the uplink shared channel. Typically, downlink scheduling (assigning control and shared channel resource blocks to UE 102 within the cell) can be performed at any base station in base station 102 based on channel quality information fed back from any UE in UE 106. Downlink resource assignment information can be transmitted on the PDCCH used for (e.g., assigned to) each UE in the UE.

[0066] The PDCCH can use Control Channel Elements (CCEs) to transmit control information. Before being mapped to resource elements, the complex-valued symbols of the PDCCH are first organized into quadruplets, which are then arranged using a sub-block interleaver for rate matching. Each PDCCH can be transmitted using one or more of these CCEs, where each CCE corresponds to a set of four physical resource elements (REGs) of nine. Four Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK) symbols can be mapped to each REG. Depending on the size of the Downlink Control Information (DCI) and channel conditions, one or more CCEs can be used to transmit the PDCCH. Four or more different PDCCH formats defined in LTE with different numbers of CCEs (e.g., aggregation levels, L=1, 2, 4, or 8) can exist.

[0067] Example communication device

[0068] Figure 2Example of a user equipment 106 (e.g., one of devices 106A to 106N) or another user equipment 106 communicating with base station 102 according to some aspect. UE 106 can be a device with cellular communication capabilities, such as a mobile phone, handheld device, computer, laptop, tablet, smartwatch or other wearable device, or virtually any type of wireless device.

[0069] UE 106 may include a processor (processing element) configured to execute program instructions stored in memory. UE 106 may execute any of the method aspects described herein by executing such stored instructions. Alternatively or additionally, UE 106 may include any of the programmable hardware elements, such as any FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), integrated circuit, and / or various other possible hardware components configured to perform (e.g., individually or in combination) any of the method aspects described herein or any portion thereof.

[0070] UE 106 may include one or more antennas for communicating using one or more wireless communication protocols or technologies. In some aspects, UE 106 may be configured to communicate using, for example, NR or LTE using at least some shared radio components. As an additional possibility, UE 106 may be configured to communicate using CDMA2000 (1xRTT / 1xEV-DO / HRPD / eHRPD) or LTE using a single shared radio component and / or GSM or LTE using a single shared radio component. The shared radio component may be coupled to a single antenna or may be coupled to multiple antennas (e.g., for MIMO) for performing wireless communication. Generally, the radio component may include any combination of baseband processors, analog RF signal processing circuitry (e.g., including filters, mixers, oscillators, amplifiers, etc.) or digital processing circuitry (e.g., for digital modulation and other digital processing). Similarly, the radio component may use the aforementioned hardware to implement one or more receive chains and transmit chains. For example, UE 106 may share one or more portions of the receive chain and / or transmit chain among multiple wireless communication technologies (such as those discussed above).

[0071] In some aspects, UE 106 may include separate transmit and / or receive chains (e.g., including separate antennas and other radio components) for each wireless communication protocol configured to communicate therein. As another possibility, UE 106 may include one or more radio components shared among multiple wireless communication protocols, as well as one or more radio components used uniquely by a single wireless communication protocol. For example, UE 106 may include shared radio components for communicating using either LTE or 5G NR (or either LTE or 1xRTT, or either LTE or GSM, and various other possibilities), and separate radio components for communicating using each of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Other configurations are also possible.

[0072] Figure 2 A simplified block diagram illustrating a communication device 106 according to some aspects is shown. Note that... Figure 2 The block diagram of the communication device is only one example of a possible communication device. Depending on the aspects, among other devices, the communication device 106 may be a user equipment (UE) device, a mobile device or mobile station, a wireless device or wireless station, a desktop computer or computing device, a mobile computing device (e.g., a laptop, notebook, or portable computing device), a tablet computer, and / or a combination of devices. As shown, the communication device 106 may include a set of components 200 configured to perform core functions. For example, the set of components may be implemented as a system-on-a-chip (SOC), which may include portions for various purposes. Alternatively, the set of components 200 may be implemented as separate components or a set of components for various purposes. The set of components 200 may be (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) coupled to various other circuitry of the communication device 106.

[0073] For example, communication device 106 may include various types of memory (e.g., including NAND flash memory 210), input / output interfaces such as connector I / F 220 (e.g., for connection to a computer system; docking station; charging station; input devices such as microphone, camera, keyboard; output devices such as speaker; etc.), a display 260 that may be integrated with or external to communication device 106, and wireless communication circuitry 230 (e.g., for LTE, LTE-A, NR, UMTS, GSM, CDMA2000, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, NFC, GPS, etc.). In some aspects, communication device 106 may include wired communication circuitry (not shown), such as a network interface card for Ethernet, for example.

[0074] The wireless communication circuit 230 may be coupled (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) to one or more antennas, such as antenna 335 as shown in the figure. The wireless communication circuit 230 may include cellular communication circuitry and / or medium-to-short-range wireless communication circuitry, and may include multiple receive chains and / or multiple transmit chains for receiving and / or transmitting multiple spatial streams, such as in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) configuration.

[0075] In some aspects, as further described below, the cellular communication circuitry 230 may include one or more receive chains (including and / or coupled to (e.g., communicatively; directly or indirectly) dedicated processors and / or radio components) of multiple Radio Access Points (RATs) (e.g., a first receive chain for LTE and a second receive chain for 5G NR). Furthermore, in some aspects, the cellular communication circuitry 230 may include a single transmit chain that can be switched between radio components dedicated to a particular RAT. For example, a first radio component may be dedicated to a first RAT (e.g., LTE) and can communicate with a dedicated receive chain and a transmit chain shared with a second radio component. A second radio component may be dedicated to a second RAT (e.g., 5G NR) and can communicate with a dedicated receive chain and a shared transmit chain. In some aspects, the second RAT is capable of operating at millimeter-wave frequencies. Because millimeter-wave systems operate at frequencies higher than those typically found in LTE systems, signals in the millimeter-wave frequency range are significantly attenuated due to environmental factors. To help address this attenuation problem, millimeter-wave systems typically utilize beamforming and include more antennas compared to LTE systems. These antennas may be organized into antenna arrays or panels consisting of individual antenna elements. These antenna arrays can be coupled to a radio link.

[0076] The communication device 106 may also include one or more user interface elements and / or be configured for use with one or more user interface elements. The user interface elements may include any of a variety of elements, such as a display 260 (which may be a touch screen display), a keyboard (which may be a separate keyboard or may be implemented as part of the touch screen display), a mouse, a microphone and / or a speaker, one or more cameras, one or more buttons, and / or any other element among a variety of other elements capable of providing information to the user and / or receiving or interpreting user input.

[0077] The communication device 106 may further include one or more smart cards 245 with user identity module (SIM) functionality, such as one or more universal integrated circuit cards (UICC) 245.

[0078] As shown in the figure, the SOC 200 may include a processor 202 and display circuitry 204. The processor executes program instructions from the communication device 106, and the display circuitry performs graphics processing and provides display signals to the display 260. The processor 202 may also be coupled to a memory management unit (MMU) 240, which may be configured to receive addresses from the processor 202 and translate those addresses into locations in memory (e.g., memory 206, read-only memory (ROM) 250, NAND flash memory 210), and / or coupled to other circuitry or devices, such as display circuitry 204, wireless communication circuitry 230, connector I / F 220, and / or display 260. The MMU 240 may be configured to perform memory protection and page table translation or setup. In some aspects, the MMU 240 may be included as part of the processor 202.

[0079] As noted above, communication device 106 may be configured to communicate using wireless and / or wired communication circuitry. As described herein, communication device 106 may include hardware and software components for implementing any of the various features and techniques described herein. The processor 202 of communication device 106 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein, for example, by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable memory medium). Alternatively (or further), processor 202 may be configured as a programmable hardware element (such as a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)) or as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). Alternatively (or further), in conjunction with one or more of other components 200, 204, 206, 210, 220, 230, 240, 245, 250, 260, the processor 202 of communication device 106 may be configured to implement some or all of the features described herein.

[0080] Furthermore, as described herein, processor 202 may include one or more processing elements. Therefore, processor 202 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 202. Additionally, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor 202.

[0081] Furthermore, as described herein, the wireless communication circuit 230 may include one or more processing elements. In other words, one or more processing elements may be included in the wireless communication circuit 230. Therefore, the wireless communication circuit 230 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of the wireless communication circuit 230. Additionally, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of the wireless communication circuit 230.

[0082] Example base station

[0083] Figure 3 An example block diagram of a base station 102 according to some aspects is illustrated. It should be noted that the base station in Figure 4 is merely one example of a possible base station. As shown, base station 102 may include a processor 304 that executes program instructions for base station 102. Processor 304 may also be coupled to a memory management unit (MMU) 340, which may be configured to receive addresses from processor 304 and translate those addresses into locations in memory (e.g., memory 360 and read-only memory (ROM) 350), and / or coupled to other circuitry or devices.

[0084] Base station 102 may include at least one network port 370. Network port 370 may be configured to couple to a telephone network and provide access to multiple devices, such as UE device 106, as described above. Figure 1 and Figure 2 Access to the described telephone network.

[0085] Network port 370 (or an additional network port) may also be configured, or alternatively configured, to couple to a cellular network, such as the core network of a cellular service provider. The core network may provide mobility-related services and / or other services to multiple devices, such as UE device 106. In some cases, network port 370 may be coupled to a telephone network via the core network, and / or the core network may provide the telephone network (e.g., in other UE devices served by a cellular service provider).

[0086] In some respects, base station 102 may be a next-generation base station, such as a 5G New Radio (5G NR) base station or a “gNB”. In such respects, base station 102 may connect to a legacy evolved packet core (EPC) network and / or to an NR core (NRC) / 5G core (5GC) network. Furthermore, base station 102 may be considered a 5G NR cell and may include one or more transition and receive points (TRPs). Additionally, UEs capable of operating according to 5G NR may be connected to one or more TRPs within one or more gNBs.

[0087] Base station 102 may include at least one antenna 334, and may include multiple antennas. At least one antenna 334 may be configured to operate as a wireless transceiver, and may be further configured to communicate with UE device 106 via radio component 330. Antenna 334 communicates with radio component 330 via communication link 332. Communication link 332 may be a receive link, a transmit link, or both. Radio component 330 may be configured to communicate via various wireless communication standards, including but not limited to 5G NR, LTE, LTE-A, GSM, UMTS, CDMA2000, Wi-Fi, etc.

[0088] Base station 102 can be configured to perform wireless communication using multiple wireless communication standards. In some instances, base station 102 may include multiple radio components that enable base station 102 to communicate according to multiple wireless communication technologies. For example, as one possibility, base station 102 may include an LTE radio component for performing communication according to LTE and a 5G NR radio component for performing communication according to 5G NR. In this case, base station 102 may be able to operate as both an LTE base station and a 5G NR base station. When base station 102 supports millimeter wave, the 5G NR radio component may be coupled to one or more millimeter wave antenna arrays or panels. As another possibility, base station 102 may include a multimode radio component capable of performing communication according to any of multiple wireless communication technologies, such as 5G NR and LTE, 5G NR and Wi-Fi, LTE and Wi-Fi, LTE and UMTS, LTE and CDMA2000, UMTS and GSM, etc.

[0089] As further described herein, BS 102 may include hardware and software components for implementing or supporting specific implementations of the features described herein. The processor 304 of base station 102 may be configured, for example, to implement or support some or all of the methods described herein by executing program instructions stored on a memory medium (e.g., a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium). Alternatively, processor 304 may be configured as a programmable hardware element (such as a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)) or as an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or a combination thereof. Alternatively (or further), in conjunction with one or more of other components 330, 332, 334, 340, 350, 360, 370, the processor 304 of BS 102 may be configured to implement or support some or all of the features described herein.

[0090] Furthermore, as described herein, processor 304 may include one or more processing elements. Therefore, processor 304 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of processor 304. Additionally, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of processor 304.

[0091] Furthermore, as described herein, radio component 330 may include one or more processing elements. Therefore, radio component 330 may include one or more integrated circuits (ICs) configured to perform the functions of radio component 330. Additionally, each integrated circuit may include circuitry (e.g., a first circuit, a second circuit, etc.) configured to perform the functions of radio component 330.

[0092] In a sidelink scenario, wireless devices communicate directly with each other without needing to be routed through a wireless node. A sidelink (e.g., via a PC5 interface) is a logical direct interface between wireless devices.

[0093] Figure 4A and Figure 4B Examples of different sidelink communications based on some aspects are shown. Figure 4A This demonstrates a typical unicast transmission between UE1 and UE2. Figure 4B This demonstrates other sidelink communications based on several aspects. For example, Figure 4B This demonstrates a multicast transmission from UE 1 to both UE 2 and UE 3, and another multicast transmission from UE 3 to both UE 1 and UE 4. For example... Figure 4B As shown, UE 1 may not communicate directly with UE 4. Furthermore, each of these UEs may or may not communicate with the base station. Sidelink transmission may also include broadcast messages (not shown).

[0094] In the Uu link between the base station and the UE, the TCI state can be configured via Radio Resource Control (RRC) and / or Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE) signaling and / or Downlink Control Information (DCI). The UE can be configured via higher-layer signaling to decode the PDSCH based on the detected PDCCH, which includes Downlink Control Information (DCI) intended for use by the UE and a given serving cell. The number of configurable TCI states may depend on the UE's capabilities. Each configured TCI state includes an RS set TCI-RS-SetConfig. Each TCI-RS-SetConfig may include parameters for configuring the QCL relationship between the RSs in the RS set and the demodulation reference signal (DM-RS) port group of the PDSCH. The RS set may include a reference to one or two DL RSs and an associated QCL-Type for each DL RS configured via a higher-layer parameter quasi-co-location type (QCL-Type). The TCI state enables the UE to select the appropriate beam for UE transmission and reception.

[0095] According to the implementation scheme, for sidelink communication, the TCI status indication must be defined relative to the appropriate UE in the communication. In some implementation schemes, TCI communication is established relative to the device transmitting the RS. In such implementation schemes, the behavior of the UE transmitting reference signals can be considered similar to that of a base station used for TCI status indication in a Uu link.

[0096] Figure 5 An example of TCI communication relative to an RS transmitting communication device is illustrated based on some aspects. Figure 5 In the illustrated implementation, the TCI status indication is transmitted by the UE of the transmitting source RS. That is, UE 1 transmits reference signal 502. Reference signal 502 can be periodic and / or semi-persistent. Reference signal 502 can be a sidelink SSB or a Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) for initial beam acquisition. In some implementations, aperiodic CSI-RS can be configured via PC5-RRC.

[0097] According to the implementation scheme, UE 1 sends a TCI status indication 504 to UE 2. As will be further discussed below with respect to Figure 7, the TCI status indication can be sent via MAC CE and / or SCI. Then, according to the implementation scheme, UE 2 and UE 1 can use the indicated TCI status to transmit services 506. In these examples, UE 1 sends the TCI status indication to UE 2 because the UE is transmitting a reference signal. The TCI status indication will be determined by the received signal or channel and the transmitted signal or channel used by UE 2.

[0098] In unicast services, the indicated TCI state is reflected in relation to the beam pattern of the transmitting UE. That is, the transmitted signal of UE 1 is the received signal of UE 2. Therefore, in unicast services, the TCI state is an indication of the beam pattern of the transmitting UE.

[0099] A person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that too many UEs transmitting reference signals can be detrimental to sidelink operation. This document does not disclose which UE transmits the reference signals. Instead, the embodiments disclosed herein focus on the operation and specific implementation of the TCI framework in the sidelink.

[0100] Similar to the Uu link, there are two transmission modes that can be used in the above implementation scheme. Figure 5 In this context, Mode 1 uses a joint TCI state applied to the received signals and transmitted signals of UE 2. The same TCI state can be applied to the reception and transmission of PSCCH, PSSCH, DMRS, and PSFCH.

[0101] Mode 2 uses separate TCI states for the received signals and the transmitted signals of UE 2. The receive TCI state can be used to receive beam indications for PSCCH, PSSCH, and DMRS. The transmit TCI state can be used to transmit beam indications for PSFCH, PSCCH, PSSCH, and DMRS.

[0102] In a Uu link, for aperiodic CSI-RS (ap-CSI-RS), different TCI states can be indicated for the P2 process (i.e., beam refinement for the transmitting node) and the P3 process (i.e., beam refinement for the receiving UE). In this respect, the embodiments disclosed herein operate similarly, wherein the UE transmitting CSI-RS (e.g., Figure 5 UE 1) behaves like a base station. Therefore, in the implementation scheme, a different TCI state can be configured for the received signal of UE 2 for each ap-CSI-RS resource set. Furthermore, a different TCI state can be configured for the transmitted signal of UE 2 for each ap-CSI-RS resource set.

[0103] In some implementations, the TCI status indication can be controlled by the transmitting UE. Figure 6 Examples of TCI communication relative to a transmitting communication device according to such aspects are illustrated. In these embodiments, the transmitting UE is responsible for transmitting the TCI status indication. Specifically, such as Figure 6 As shown in the upper part, for a service from UE 1 to UE 2 (or another UE), UE 1 sends TCI indication 604. Then, service 606 can be sent to UE 2.

[0104] Consistently, such asFigure 6 As shown in the lower half, for a service from UE 2 to UE 1, UE 2 sends a TCI status indication 608 to UE 1. Then, service 610 can be sent to UE 1.

[0105] For these implementation schemes, a transmission pattern similar to that in the previous implementation schemes can be established. For example, for... Figure 6 In the upper part, Mode 1 can use a joint TCI status indication applied to the signals of UE 2. That is, a joint TCI can be applied to the received signals of UE 2 for PSCCH, PSSCH and DMRS and the transmitted signals of UE 2 for PSFCH.

[0106] Mode 2 uses a separate TCI state for the UE 2's received signals and a separate TCI state for the UE's transmitted signals. That is, the receive TCI can be used for receive beam indication for PSCCH, PSSCH, and DMRS. The transmit TCI indication can be used for transmit PSFCH.

[0107] Similar to the previous implementation, different TCI states can be configured for the received signals of UE 2 for each ap-CSI-RS resource set. Furthermore, different TCI states can be configured for the transmitted signals of UE 2 for each ap-CSI-RS resource set.

[0108] In the above implementation, the QCL RS can be explicitly configured. For example, the TCI state can be QCL type D for the RS. The RS can be a periodic and / or semi-persistent SSB or CSI-RS as discussed above. For example, the QCL RS can be explicitly configured as follows:

[0109] tci-StateToAddModList {

[0110] tci-StateID 0,

[0111] qcl-type 1 {

[0112] referenceSignal csi-rs: 0

[0113] qcl-Type typeD}

[0114] tci-StateID 1,

[0115] qcl-type 1 {

[0116] Reference Signals (CSI-RS): 1

[0117] qcl-Type typeD}

[0118] …

[0119] In the example above, for TCI state ID 0, RS CSI-RS is identified, and the QCL type is set to type D. For TCI state ID 1, a similar QCL type is established.

[0120] According to the implementation scheme disclosed herein, SCI, sidelink MAC CE, and combinations thereof can be used to send TCI status.

[0121] In traditional Uu link connections, RRC signaling includes configuration information for multiple TCI states. MAC CE further indicates the TCI state to be used. In such systems, there is a known 3ms processing delay from the acknowledgment transmitted in response to the MAC CE to the receipt of the used TCI state. According to the implementation described herein, this consideration is included in the side link.

[0122] Figure 7A and Figure 7B Different timings for TCI state activation are illustrated based on several aspects. Figure 7A and Figure 7B The timing associated with establishing TCI states using MAC CE and SCI, respectively, according to the implementation scheme described herein, is presented. Figure 7A In this context, a new TCI state is transmitted in the side link using a MAC CE. The transmitting UE assumes a 3ms processing delay from the moment the MAC CE is received before the UE uses the new TCI state. For example, in... Figure 5 In the context of this, UE 1 will include a 3ms processing delay from receiving the acknowledgment of the MAC CE from UE 2 to communicating with UE 2 using the TCI state.

[0123] exist Figure 7B In some implementation schemes, SCI is used to send new TCI status indications. SCI can be sent within a PSSCH transmission. Figure 7B In this implementation, the processing latency of multiple symbols is incorporated between the confirmation of the PSSCH and the use of the new TCI state. The number of symbols can be based on the PSFCH decoding latency. The number of symbols can be established through UE capabilities and / or configured via RRC.

[0124] Implementations can also use a combination of MAC CE and SCI to provide TCI indication. Typically, up to 64 possible TCI states exist in an RRC, with up to 8 TCI states in the MAC CE. Given the limited number of bits in the SCI (e.g., 3 bits) and the 3ms processing latency of the MAC CE, the combination of MAC CE and SCI can be used to help balance overhead and latency in the process. In such implementations, the MAC CE provides one or more TCI states, followed by the SCI that further indicates the active TCI state.

[0125] The implementation scheme disclosed herein further extends TCI framework operation to SL. The implementation scheme defines the TCI state in SL at least relative to the UEs participating in communications within SL. The implementation scheme further facilitates the delivery of TCI state information for UE communications within SL.

[0126] Various aspects of this disclosure can be implemented in any of a variety of forms. For example, some aspects may be implemented as a computer-implemented method, a computer-readable storage medium, or a computer system. Other aspects may be implemented using one or more custom-designed hardware devices such as ASICs. Other aspects may be implemented using one or more programmable hardware elements such as FPGAs.

[0127] In some aspects, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium may be configured to store program instructions and / or data, wherein if the program instructions are executed by a computer system, the computer system performs a method, such as any method aspect of the methods described herein, or any combination of the method aspects described herein, or any subset of any method aspects described herein, or any combination of such subsets.

[0128] In some aspects, the apparatus (e.g., UE 106, BS 102) may be configured to include a processor (or a set of processors) and a memory medium storing program instructions, wherein the processor is configured to read from and execute the program instructions, wherein the program instructions are executable to implement any of the various method aspects described herein (or any combination of the method aspects described herein, or any subset of any method aspects described herein, or any combination of such subsets). The apparatus may be implemented in any of the various forms.

[0129] Although the foregoing aspects have been described in considerable detail, many variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the foregoing disclosure is fully understood. It is intended that the following claims be construed as encompassing all such variations and modifications.

Claims

1. A method for side-link (SL) beam management, the method comprising: The first communication device sends a Transmission Configuration Indicator (TCI) status, which indicates the Quasi-Co-address (QCL) type for SL transmission between the first communication device and the second communication device.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: The first communication device sends a reference signal associated with the QCL.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the reference signal is a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) for beam acquisition in the SL.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the reference signal is a periodic channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) configured by PC5-Radio Resource Control (PC5-RRC) signaling.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein the reference signal is a side link synchronization signal block (S-SSB).

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the reference signal is part of the Physical Side Link Control Channel (PSCCH).

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the TCI state includes a joint TCI state, the joint TCI state being applied to bidirectional services between the first communication device and the second communication device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the TCI state includes: Receive TCI status, the received TCI status being applied to transmissions received by the second communication device; and Sending TCI status, which applies to transmissions sent by the second communication device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the TCI state is used for transmitting at least one of the following: Physical Side Link Control Channel (PSCCH), Physical Side Link Shared Channel (PSSCH), Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS), and Physical Side Link Feedback Channel (PSFCH).

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the TCI state is associated with an SL transmission from the first communication device to the second communication device, and the method further comprises: The first communication device receives a second TCI state, which is associated with an SL transmission from the second communication device to the first communication device.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises: The first communication device sends side link control information (SCI) including the TCI status, the SCI being sent in the physical side link shared channel (PSSCH); Receive confirmation of receipt of the PSSCH; as well as The first communication device delays the use of the TCI state by several symbols after receiving the confirmation.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the number of symbols is based on the decoding delay of the Physical Side Link Feedback Channel (PSFCH).

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the number of symbols is configured via RRC signaling.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the number of symbols is based on the capability of the second communication device.

15. The method according to claim 11, wherein the method further comprises: The first communication device sends a MAC CE including a potential TCI state, the MAC CE including the TCI state.

16. The method according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises: The first communication device sends a Media Access Control (MAC) control element (CE) including the TCI state; Receive confirmation of the MAC CE; as well as The first communication device uses the TCI state after a 3ms delay following receipt of the confirmation.

17. A first communication device configured to perform any one of the methods according to claims 1 to 16.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed, cause to perform any one of the methods according to claims 1 to 16.

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