Methods, communication devices and infrastructure equipment

Abstract

There is provided a method of operating a communications device configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from infrastructure equipment of a wireless communications network. The method comprises: receiving, from the infrastructure equipment, a first slot format configuration for one or more time divided slots of a radio access interface between the communications device and the infrastructure equipment, wherein the one or more time divided slots each comprise one or more sub-band full duplex, SBFD, symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first slot format configuration indicates a first pattern of SBFD symbols of the one or more time divided slots and / or non-SBFD symbols of the one or more time divided slots; receiving, from the infrastructure equipment, a second slot format configuration indicating a second pattern of a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second pattern is different to the first pattern for the subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols; determining, based on the second slot format configuration, a first modification of non-SBFD symbols of the subset; and determining, based on the second slot format configuration, a second modification of SBFD symbols of the subset, wherein the first modification is different to the second modification.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to communication equipment, infrastructure equipment, and methods for transmitting and / or receiving data more efficiently and effectively in wireless communication networks.

[0002] This application claims priority under the Paris Convention, based on European patent application EP24166551.2 filed on March 26, 2024, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Background Technology

[0003] The “background” description provided herein is intended to generally present the context of this disclosure. The work done by the inventors listed herein, within the scope described in this background section, and in other aspects of the description that may not have constituted prior art as of the date of filing, is neither expressly acknowledged nor implied to be prior art to this invention.

[0004] Previous-generation mobile communication systems, such as those based on the 3GPP-defined UMTS and LTE architectures, could support a wider range of services than the simple voice and messaging services offered by previous generations. For example, thanks to the improved radio interface and enhanced data rates provided by LTE systems, users could enjoy high-data-rate applications such as mobile video streaming and mobile video conferencing, which were previously only available through wired data connections. Therefore, the demand for deploying such networks is very strong, and the coverage areas of these networks—that is, the geographical locations where access to these networks is possible—are expected to continue to expand rapidly.

[0005] Current and future wireless communication networks are expected to routinely and efficiently support communication with an ever-expanding range of devices, whose associated data traffic profiles and types are broader than those optimized for by existing systems. For example, future wireless communication networks are expected to efficiently support communication with a wide variety of devices, including low-complexity devices, machine-type communication (MTC) devices, high-resolution video displays, virtual reality headsets, extended reality (XR), and so on. Some of these different types of devices may be deployed in very large numbers, such as low-complexity devices supporting the “Internet of Things” (IoT), and are typically associated with relatively small amounts of data and relatively high latency tolerance. Other types of devices, such as those supporting high-definition video streaming, may be associated with relatively large amounts of data and relatively low latency tolerance. Other types of devices, such as those used for autonomous vehicle communication and other critical applications, can be characterized as requiring data to be transmitted over the network with low latency and high reliability. Even a single type of device may be associated with different traffic profiles / characteristics depending on the application it runs. For example, different considerations may apply to efficient data exchange with a smartphone when it is running a video streaming application (high downlink data), an internet browsing application (intermittent uplink and downlink data), or when it is used by emergency responders for voice communication in an emergency scenario (where data is subject to strict reliability and latency requirements).

[0006] In light of this, it is expected that current wireless communication networks, such as those that may be called 5G or New Radio Access Technology (NR) systems / New Radio Access Technology (RAT) systems, as well as future 6G wireless communication, and future iterations / versions of existing systems, should be able to efficiently support connectivity for a wide range of devices with different applications and data traffic profiles and requirements. Summary of the Invention

[0007] This disclosure helps to resolve or mitigate at least some of the aforementioned problems.

[0008] Implementations of this technology can provide a method for operating a communication device configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from infrastructure equipment of a wireless communication network. The method includes: receiving from the infrastructure equipment a first time slot format configuration for one or more time-division multiplexing (TDM) slots for a radio access interface between the communication device and the infrastructure equipment, wherein each of the one or more TDM slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex (SBFD) symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode for the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols of the one or more TDM slots; receiving from the infrastructure equipment a second time slot format configuration indicating a second mode for a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode differs from the first mode of the subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols; determining a first modification of the non-SBFD symbols of the subset based on the second time slot format configuration; and determining a second modification of the SBFD symbols of the subset based on the second time slot format configuration, wherein the first modification differs from the second modification.

[0009] Such embodiments of the present technology, in addition to methods of operating communication equipment, also relate to methods of operating infrastructure equipment, communication equipment and infrastructure equipment, circuits for communication equipment and infrastructure equipment, wireless communication systems, computer programs, and computer-readable storage media, which enable more efficient and effective utilization of wireless resources in wireless communication networks.

[0010] Each aspect and feature of this disclosure is defined in the appended claims.

[0011] It should be understood that the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are merely exemplary of the present technology and are not intended to limit the technology. The described embodiments and their further advantages will be best understood by reading the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Attached Figure Description

[0012] As the understanding of this disclosure deepens, its many advantages will become more fully apparent from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings, wherein the same reference numerals refer to the same or corresponding parts throughout the views, and wherein: Figure 1 Some aspects of an LTE-type wireless telecommunications system are schematically illustrated, which can be configured to operate according to certain embodiments of this disclosure; Figure 2 Some aspects of a new radio access technology (RAT) wireless telecommunication system are schematically illustrated, which can be configured to operate according to certain embodiments of this disclosure; Figure 3This is a schematic block diagram of exemplary infrastructure equipment and communication equipment that may be configured to operate according to certain embodiments of this disclosure; Figure 4 A first example of non-overlapping subbands for uplink and downlink transmissions is schematically shown; Figure 5 The second and third examples of non-overlapping subbands for uplink and downlink transmissions are schematically shown; Figure 6 An example of cross-link interference within a cell is illustrated schematically; Figure 7 An example of transmit power leakage is shown; Figure 8 An example of receive power selectivity is shown; Figure 9 An example of inter-subband interference is shown; Figure 10 Examples of different types of TDD slot format configurations are provided; Figure 11 The sub-band full-duplex (SBFD) symbol configuration is shown; Figure 12 An exemplary wireless communication system, including communication equipment and infrastructure equipment, is shown in part schematically and partly in the form of a message flow diagram, which conforms to an implementation of the present technology; Figure 13 This demonstrates how to use a slot format indicator (SFI) to disable uplink subband for a user equipment (UE) with SBFD capability, according to an implementation of this technology; Figure 14 This demonstrates how to disable downlink subbands for a User Equipment (UE) with SBFD capability using the Radio Resource Control (RRC) parameter TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated according to an implementation of this technology; Figure 15 This illustrates how to configure a user equipment (UE) with SBFD capability to reactivate a deactivated subband according to an embodiment of this technology; and Figure 16 A flowchart is shown, illustrating an example process of communication in a communication system conforming to embodiments of the present technology. Detailed Implementation

[0013] 4G (Long Term Evolution) Advanced Radio Access Technology

[0014] Figure 1Schematic diagrams are provided to illustrate some of the basic functions of the mobile telecommunications network / system 6. This network / system generally operates according to LTE principles, but may also support other radio access technologies and can be adapted to implement the embodiments of this disclosure described herein. Figure 1 The various elements and certain aspects of their operating modes are well known and defined in the relevant standards managed by the 3GPP (RTM) organization, and described in many books on the subject, such as Holma H. ​​and Toskala A [1]. It should be understood that the operating aspects of the telecommunications network discussed herein that are not specifically described (e.g., those related to the specific communication protocols and physical channels used for communication between different elements) can be implemented in any known technology, such as in accordance with the relevant standards and well known modifications and additions to the relevant standards.

[0015] Network 6 includes multiple base stations 1 connected to the core network 2. Each base station provides a coverage area 3 (i.e., a cell) within which data can be transmitted and received with communication equipment 4. Although each base station 1... Figure 1 While shown as a single entity, those skilled in the art will understand that some functions of a base station can be performed by distributed, interconnected elements, such as antennas, remote radio heads, amplifiers, etc. One or more base stations together can constitute a wireless access network.

[0016] Data is transmitted from base station 1 to communication device 4 within its coverage area 3 via the wireless downlink (DL). Data is transmitted from communication device 4 to base station 1 via the wireless uplink (UL). Core network 2 routes data to communication device 4 via base station 1 and provides functions such as authentication, mobility management, and billing. Communication device may also be referred to as mobile station, user equipment (UE), user terminal, mobile radio, mobile terminal, terminal equipment, radio transceiver unit (WTRU), etc. Services provided by core network 2 may include connectivity to the Internet or external telephone services. Core network 2 can also further track the location of communication device 4, thereby enabling efficient contact (i.e., paging) of communication device 4 to send downlink data to it.

[0017] A base station is an example of network infrastructure equipment and may also be referred to as a transceiver station, nodeB, e-nodeB, eNB, g-nodeB, gNB, etc. In this regard, elements providing broadly comparable functionality are often associated with different terms used in different generations of wireless telecommunications systems. However, some embodiments of this disclosure can also be implemented in different generations of wireless telecommunications systems, and for simplicity, certain terms may be used regardless of the underlying network architecture. That is, the use of specific terms when referring to certain exemplary implementations is not intended to indicate that these implementations are limited to a particular generation of networks most closely associated with those specific terms.

[0018] New radio access technology (5G)

[0019] Systems employing NR technology are expected to support diverse services (or different types of services), characterized by varying latency, data rate, and / or reliability requirements. For example, enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) service, characterized by high capacity, requires support up to 20 Gb / s. Ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC) service requires the transmission of a single 32-byte packet from the Radio Layer 2 / 3 Service Data Unit (SDU) entry point to the Radio Layer 2 / 3 SDU exit point at the radio interface within 1 millisecond, with a reliability of 1–10. -5 (99.999%) or higher (99.9999%)[2].

[0020] Massive Machine-Type Communication (mMTC) is another example of a service that NR communication networks may support. Furthermore, the system is expected to support further enhancements related to the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) to support services with new requirements, namely high availability, high reliability, low latency, and in some cases, high-precision positioning.

[0021] Figure 2 An example configuration of a wireless communication network is shown, using some of the terminology proposed and used for NR and 5G. Figure 2 In this configuration, multiple Transmit and Receive Points (TRPs) 10 are connected to Distributed Control Units (DUs) 41, 42 via connection interfaces indicated by line 16. Each TRP 10 is configured to transmit and receive signals within the available radio frequency bandwidth of the wireless communication network via a wireless access interface. Thus, within the range of wireless communication performed via the wireless access interface, each TRP 10 forms a cell of the wireless communication network, as indicated by circle 12. Accordingly, wireless communication devices 14 within the wireless communication range provided by cell 12 can transmit and receive signals with TRPs 10 via the wireless access interface. Each Distributed Unit 41, 42 is connected to a Central Unit (CU) 40 (which may be referred to as a control node) via interface 46. The Central Unit 40 is then connected to a core network 20, which may contain all other functions required for communication by transmitting data to wireless communication devices, and the core network 20 may be connected to other networks 25.

[0022] Figure 2 The elements of the wireless access network shown can be represented in a manner similar to that described above. Figure 1 The example describes how the corresponding element operates in an LTE network. It should be understood that... Figure 2The operational aspects of the telecommunications networks shown herein, as well as other networks discussed in accordance with various embodiments of this disclosure but not specifically described (e.g., specific communication protocols and physical channels for communication between different elements), can be implemented in any known technology, such as methods currently used to implement such operational aspects of wireless telecommunications systems (e.g., in accordance with relevant standards).

[0023] Figure 2 The TRP (Transmitter Receiver Point) 10 in the new RAT network may partially have functions corresponding to a base station or eNodeB in an LTE network. Similarly, the communication device 14 may have functions corresponding to a User Equipment (UE) 4 known for operation on an LTE network. Therefore, it should be understood that the operational aspects of the new RAT network (e.g., the specific communication protocols and physical channels for communication between different elements) may differ from those known from LTE or other known mobile communication standards. However, it should also be understood that the core network components, base stations, and communication devices of the new RAT network will be functionally similar to those of the core network components, base stations, and communication devices of an LTE wireless communication network, respectively.

[0024] In a broad sense, high-level functions can be generally considered to be connected to Figure 2 The core network 20 of the new RAT telecommunications system shown is... Figure 1 Corresponding to the core network 2 shown, and generally considered to be their respective central unit 40 and its associated distributed unit / TRP 10 providing the same... Figure 1 The functions corresponding to base station 1. The term "network infrastructure equipment / access node" can be used to cover these elements as well as more traditional base station type elements in wireless telecommunications systems. Depending on the application at hand, the responsibility for scheduling those transmissions scheduled on the radio access interface between their respective distributed units and communication equipment may be borne by the control node / central unit and / or distributed unit / TRP. Figure 2 A communication device 14 is represented within the coverage area of ​​the first communication cell 12. Therefore, the communication device 14 can exchange signaling with the first central unit 40 within the first communication cell 12 via one of the distributed units / TRPs 10 associated with the first communication cell 12.

[0025] It should also be further understood that, Figure 2 This document merely illustrates an example of a proposed architecture for a telecommunications system based on the new RAT, in which methods conforming to the principles described herein can be employed, and the functionality disclosed herein can also be applied to wireless telecommunications systems with different architectures.

[0026] Therefore, certain embodiments of this disclosure discussed herein can be implemented in wireless telecommunications systems / networks according to various different architectures, such as in Figure 1 and Figure 2 The exemplary architecture shown is illustrated. Therefore, it should be understood that the specific wireless telecommunications architecture in any given implementation is not primarily important to the principles described herein. In this regard, certain embodiments of this disclosure can be generally described in the context of communication between network infrastructure devices / access nodes and communication devices, wherein the specific nature of the network infrastructure devices / access nodes and communication devices will depend on the network infrastructure used for the implementation at hand. For example, in some scenarios, the network infrastructure device / access node may include a base station, such as in… Figure 1 The base station 1 shown is of the LTE type and is configured to provide functionality in accordance with the principles described herein; while in other examples, network infrastructure equipment may be included in... Figure 2 The control unit / control node 40 and / or TRP 10 shown are configured to provide functionality in accordance with the principles described herein.

[0027] Figure 3 Provided Figure 2 A more detailed block diagram of some components in the network is shown. Figure 3 middle, Figure 2 The TRP 10 shown, as a simplified representation, includes: a wireless transmitter 30, a wireless receiver 32, and a controller or control processor 34 operable to control the transmitter 30 and the wireless receiver 32 to transmit and receive wireless signals to one or more user equipment (UE) 14 within the cell 12 formed by the TRP 10. Figure 3 As shown, the example UE 14 shown includes a corresponding transmitter 49, receiver 48, and controller 44, which is configured to control the transmitter 49 and receiver 48 to transmit signals representing uplink data to the wireless communication network via the wireless access interface formed by TRP 10, and to receive downlink data transmitted by transmitter 30 and received by receiver 48 as signals in normal operation.

[0028] Transmitters 30, 49 and receivers 32, 48 (and other transmitters, receivers, and transceivers described in the examples and embodiments of this disclosure) may include radio frequency filters and amplifiers, as well as signal processing components and devices, to transmit and receive wireless signals, for example, in accordance with 5G / NR standards. Controllers 34, 44 (and other controllers described in the examples and embodiments of this disclosure) may be, for example, microprocessors, CPUs, or dedicated chipsets, configured to execute instructions stored on a computer-readable medium (e.g., non-volatile memory). The processing steps described herein may be executed by, for example, a microprocessor along with random access memory, according to instructions stored on a computer-readable medium. The transmitters, receivers, and controllers in Figure 3 These are schematically shown as separate elements for ease of representation. However, it should be understood that the functionality of these elements can be provided in various different ways, such as using one or more appropriately programmed programmable computers, or one or more appropriately configured application-specific integrated circuits / circuits / chips / chipsets. As will be understood, infrastructure equipment / TRP / base stations and UE / communication equipment generally include various other elements associated with their operational functions.

[0029] like Figure 3 As shown, TRP 10 also includes a network interface 50, which is connected to the distributed unit (DU) 42 via a physical interface 16. Therefore, network interface 50 provides a communication link for data traffic and signaling traffic from TRP 10 through DU 42 and CU (central unit) 40 to the core network 20.

[0030] The interface 46 between DU 42 and CU 40 is referred to as the F1 interface, which can be a physical interface or a logical interface. The F1 interface 46 between CU and DU can operate according to 3GPP TS 38.470 and 3GPP TS 38.473 specifications and can be constructed using fiber optic or other wired or wireless high-bandwidth connections. In one example, the connection 16 from TRP 10 to DU 42 is made via fiber optic. The connection between TRP 10 and the core network 20 can generally be referred to as backhaul, which includes the interface 16 from the network interface 50 of TRP 10 to DU 42 and the F1 interface 46 from DU 42 to CU 40.

[0031] In order for a UE such as UE 4 or 14 to transmit uplink data to the network (e.g., on the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) or Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), such as to base station 1 or TRP 10), the UE must first ensure that it is synchronized with the network on the uplink. Since a particular eNB or gNB (gNR base station) is expected to receive communications from many UEs, it needs to ensure that it shares a common timing understanding with each of these UEs (i.e., they are synchronized in terms of the start time of frames and Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbols). In this way, the eNB can schedule communications with each of them in a collision-avoiding manner and ensure the orthogonality of the uplink signals, thereby avoiding or mitigating inter-carrier interference.

[0032] Although references are made to 5G networks, the discussions in this specification are equally applicable to 6G networks (and beyond), where significantly higher throughput, lower latency, and higher reliability are expected to be achieved using sub-THz (Asia Pacific Hertz) frequencies.

[0033] Full-duplex time-division duplex (FD-TDD)

[0034] NR / 5G networks can operate using time division duplex (TDD), where an entire frequency band or carrier is switched to downlink or uplink transmission for a period of time and can be switched to the other of downlink or uplink transmission for a later period of time. Currently, TDD operates in half-duplex mode (HD-TDD), where a gNB or UE can transmit or receive packets at a given time, but not both at the same time. As wireless networks transition from NR to 5G-Advanced networks, one of the proposed new features for such networks is to enhance the duplex operation of time division duplex (TDD) to enable full-duplex operation (FD-TDD) in TDD [3], [4].

[0035] In FD-TDD, the gNB can simultaneously transmit and receive data to and from the UE on the same frequency band. Furthermore, the UE can operate in either half-duplex (HD-TDD) or FD-TDD mode depending on its capabilities. For example, when the UE only supports HD-TDD, FD-TDD is implemented at the gNB by scheduling downlink transmissions from the first UE and uplink transmissions from the second UE within the same Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbol (i.e., at the same time). Conversely, when the UE supports FD-TDD, FD-TDD is implemented both at the gNB and the UE, where the gNB can simultaneously schedule downlink and uplink transmissions for the UE within the same OFDM symbol when downlink and uplink transmissions are scheduled at different frequencies of the system bandwidth (e.g., Physical Resource Blocks (PRBs)). UEs supporting FD-TDD require more complex hardware than those supporting only HD-TDD. Current 5G network development primarily focuses on enabling FD-TDD at the gNB while the UE operates in HD-TDD mode.

[0036] The motivations for enhancing TDD duplex operation include improved system capacity, reduced latency, and improved uplink coverage. For example, in current HD-TDD systems, OFDM symbols are allocated only semi-statically in either the downlink or uplink direction. Therefore, if one direction experiences little or no data, idle resources cannot be used in the other direction, or at best, are underutilized. However, if resources can be used for both downlink and uplink data simultaneously (as in FD-TDD), resource utilization in the system can be improved. Furthermore, in current HD-TDD systems, UEs can receive downlink data but cannot simultaneously transmit uplink data, resulting in latency. Allowing the gNB or UE to transmit and receive data simultaneously (as in FD-TDD) would improve service latency. Additionally, UEs are often coverage-limited in their uplink transmissions when they are near the cell edge. Allocating more time-domain resources (e.g., for repetition) to uplink transmissions can improve UE coverage at cell edges. However, for HD-TDD systems, allocating more time resources for the uplink leaves less time resources available for the downlink, potentially leading to system imbalance. In contrast, in FD-TDD, uplink resources can be continuously allocated for repetition opportunities while allowing downlink traffic to occur within those resources, thus enhancing uplink coverage without causing system imbalance.

[0037] Sub-band Full-Duplex (SBFD)

[0038] In Subband Full-Duplex (SBFD), the frequency resources of the TDD system bandwidth or bandwidth portion (BWP) (i.e., at the UE / gNB) are divided into two or more non-overlapping subbands, each of which can be downlink or uplink[5]. Guard subbands can be used between downlink and uplink subbands to reduce inter-subband interference. In current 5G systems, only one uplink subband can be configured in one OFDM symbol.

[0039] Figure 4 An example is shown where simultaneous downlink and uplink transmissions occur in three different non-overlapping subbands 401 to 403, i.e., in different sets of frequency resource blocks (RBs): subband #1 401, subband #2 402, and subband #3 403. Figure 4 The example is referred to as {DUD} because two subbands (subband #1 401 and subband #3 403) are used for downlink transmission, while one subband (subband #2 402) is used for uplink transmission. To reduce leakage from one subband (401 to 403) to the other, a guard subband 410 can be configured between the uplink and downlink subbands 401 to 403. The guard subband 410 is configured between downlink subband #3 403 and uplink subband #2 402, and between uplink subband #2 402 and downlink subband #1 401.

[0040] Figure 5 Two other examples are shown with downlink and uplink subbands separated by guard subbands, where the uplink subband can be configured to occupy the lower frequency domain portion of the BWP, while the downlink subband occupies the higher frequency domain portion {UD} of the BWP; or the uplink subband occupies the higher frequency domain portion of the BWP, while the downlink subband occupies the lower frequency domain portion {DU} of the BWP. Here, in Figure 5 On the left, uplink subband #1 501 is separated from downlink subband #2 503 by guard subband 502—this subband arrangement is referred to as {UD}. In this case, downlink subband #2 503 occupies a higher frequency domain portion of the system bandwidth than uplink subband #1 501. Figure 5 On the right side, downlink subband #1 504 is separated from uplink subband #2 506 by guard subband 505—this subband arrangement is referred to as {DU}. In this case, uplink subband #2 506 occupies a higher frequency domain portion of the system bandwidth than downlink subband #1 504.

[0041] although Figure 4 and Figure 5The diagram illustrates system bandwidth divided into two or three subbands, but those skilled in the art will understand that the concept of SBFD (e.g., in later versions of the 3GPP specification) can be extended to enable the use of any number of subbands, if deemed advantageous. For example, system bandwidth could be divided into four subbands, which utilize… Figure 4 Examples could include two downlink subbands 401 and 403, one uplink subband 402, and another uplink subband, although other subband arrangements are also envisioned. Guard subbands can be used in virtually any subband arrangement.

[0042] Intra-cell cross-link interference (CLI)

[0043] FD-TDD (Frequency Division Duplex-Time Division Duplex) using SBFD (Subband Full Duplex) will suffer intra-cell cross-link interference (CLI) at both the gNR base station (gNB) and user equipment (UE). An example is shown below. Figure 6 The gNR base station (gNB) 610 has FD-TDD capability, simultaneously receiving uplink transmissions 631 from UE1 621 and transmitting downlink transmissions 642 to UE2 622. At the gNR base station (gNB) 610, intra-cell CLI is caused by self-interference 641 of the downlink transmission 642 from the gNR base station (gNB) transmitter while it is attempting to decode the uplink signal 631 from the receiver. At UE2 622, intra-cell CLI 632 is caused by the transmitting UE (e.g., UE1 621) transmitting a signal in uplink 631, while the victim UE (e.g., UE2 622) is receiving downlink signal 642.

[0044] Intra-cell CLI at a gNR base station (gNB) caused by self-interference can be significant, as downlink transmission can be more than 100 dB stronger than uplink reception in some cases. Therefore, sophisticated RF hardware and interference cancellation are required to isolate this self-interference. As mentioned above, this can be achieved in situations such as... Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, a guard band is inserted between the two subbands in different link directions as described above. Furthermore, separate antenna panels can be used for transmission and reception at the gNR base station (gNB) to provide spatial isolation between DL (downlink) and UL (uplink), thereby reducing self-interference at the gNR base station (gNB).

[0045] Subband Interference

[0046] Using SBFD (Subband Full-Duplex) is considered a way to reduce self-interference at gNR base stations (gNBs). However, SBFD can suffer from inter-subband (and indeed intra-subband) interference, caused by transmit leakage and receiver selectivity. Although transmissions are typically scheduled within a specific frequency channel (or subband), i.e., a specific set of RBs (Resource Blocks), transmit power can leak into other channels. This is because channel filters are not perfect, and therefore filter roll-off can cause power leakage into channels adjacent to the intended specific frequency channel. While the term "channel" is used in the following discussion, the same applies to subbands, such as... Figure 4 and Figure 5 The sub-band shown.

[0047] An example of an emission that causes adjacent channel leakage is shown in Figure 7 Here, the desired transmit (Tx) power is the transmit power in the selected frequency band (i.e., the assigned channel 710). Due to the roll-off of the transmit filter and the nonlinearity of the components in the transmitter, some transmit power leaks into adjacent channels (including adjacent channel 720), such as... Figure 7 As shown. The ratio of power in the allocated frequency channel 710 to power in the adjacent channel 720 is the adjacent channel leakage ratio (ACLR). The leakage power 750 will cause interference at the receiver receiving the signal in the adjacent channel 720.

[0048] Similarly, the receiver's filter is not perfect and, due to its own filter roll-off, will receive unwanted power from adjacent channels. An example of filter roll-off at the receiver is shown in... Figure 8 Here, the receiver is configured to receive transmissions in assigned channel 810. However, imperfections in the receiver filter mean that some transmit power 850 can be received in adjacent channel 820. Therefore, if signal 830 is transmitted in adjacent channel 820, the receiver will, to some extent, unexpectedly receive that adjacent channel signal 830 in adjacent channel 820. The ratio of the power received in assigned frequency channel 810 to the power 850 received in adjacent channel 820 is the adjacent channel selectivity (ACS).

[0049] The combination of adjacent channel leakage (ACL) from the transmitter and adjacent channel interference (ACS) from the receiver results in adjacent channel interference (ACI) at the receiver, also known as inter-subband interference. An example is shown below. Figure 9 The transmitter transmits signal 910 in an adjacent channel at a frequency lower than that of the receiver's channel 920. Interference 950 caused by the transmitter's transmission includes the transmitter's transmit filter ACL 951 and the receiver's receive filter ACS 952. In other words, the receiver will... Figure 9 The ACI frequency range shown experiences 950° of interference.

[0050] Therefore, due to adjacent channel interference (ACI), even in FD-TDD cells, different subbands 401 to 403 are used for DL ​​and UL transmission (e.g., Figure 4 (as shown in the example), or Figure 5 In the example, subbands 501 and 503, 504 and 506, cross-link interference (CLI) will still occur.

[0051] Time slot format configuration

[0052] In traditional TDD (Time Division Duplex) systems, OFDM symbols can be configured as downlink (DL), uplink (UL), or flexible (FL). DL OFDM symbols can be used by the gNR base station (gNB) to transmit downlink data to the user equipment (UE), while UL OFDM symbols can be used by the UE to transmit uplink data to the gNR base station (gNB). FL OFDM symbols can be further configured as either DL or UL OFDM symbols. There are four ways to configure the TDD slot format, two of which are semi-static configurations and the other two are dynamic configurations, namely: Semi-static configuration: o Community-specific configuration; and o User Equipment (UE) Dedicated Configuration; Dynamic configuration: o Slot Format Indicator (SFI); and o DL or UL authorized.

[0053] Figure 10 An example of indicating TDD slot format configuration using all four methods is shown. Cell-specific configuration 1001 is indicated via signaling in the System Information Block (SIB) using the Radio Resource Control (RRC) parameter TDD-UL-DL-ConfigCommon, where up to two TDD modes can be configured (where the second TDD mode is optional). Within each TDD mode, the number of consecutive DL slots and DL OFDM symbols is configured from the beginning of the TDD mode, and the number of consecutive UL slots and UL OFDM symbols is configured from the end of the TDD mode. Any remaining OFDM symbols not configured as DL or UL are FLOFDM symbols.

[0054] For example, in Figure 10 The configuration includes two TDD modes: a first TDD mode 1011 and a second TDD mode 1012, each lasting for five time slots (note that the two TDD modes can have different durations). Figure 10 In the example, in the first TDD mode 1011 occupying time slots n to n+4, starting from the beginning of the mode, N1DL-Slot = Two consecutive time slots are DL, followed by N1 DL-Symbol = 7 DL OFDM symbols. From the end of the first TDD mode 1011, N1 UL-Slot = 1 slot is UL, followed by N1 UL-Symbol = 6 UL OFDM symbols. The remaining OFDM symbols between the DL OFDM symbols and the UL OFDM symbols in the first TDD mode 1011 are FL OFDM symbols, occupying a portion of time slot n+2 and a portion of time slot n+3. For the second TDD mode 1012, occupying time slots n+5 to n+9, the DL OFDM symbols are in the first N2 of the second TDD mode 1012. DL-Slot = Configured in 1 time slot, followed by N2 DL-Symbol = 8 OFDM symbols. UL OFDM symbols start from N2 at the end of the second TDD mode 1012. UL-Slot = 2 time slots configured, followed by N2 UL-Symbol = 7 UL OFDM symbols. Similar to the first TDD mode 1011, the OFDM symbol indicated in the second TDD mode 1012 between the DL OFDM symbol and the UL OFDM symbol, occupying a portion of time slot n+6 and a portion of time slot n+7, is the FL OFDM symbol.

[0055] The TDD slot format can be further configured using UE-specific configuration 1002 configured via the RRC parameter TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated, where the FL OFDM symbol configured from cell-specific TDD slot format configuration 1001 can be further configured as DL, UL, or retained as the FL OFDM symbol. Figure 10 In the example, the first 6 FL OFDM symbols and the first 7 FL OFDM symbols in slots n+3 and n+7 are respectively reconfigured as DL and ULOFDM symbols by the semi-static UE-specific configuration 1002, as shown below. Figure 10 The black dashed boxes in the diagram represent the cell-specific configuration 1001 and the UE-specific configuration 1002.

[0056] After the semi-static configuration is applied, the remaining FL OFDM symbols can be dynamically designated as DL or UL symbols, or they can remain as FL OFDM symbols, and this can be dynamically configured using a Slot Format Indicator (SFI) 1003, which is transmitted in the PDCCH using a group common DCI with DCI format 2_0, where the Cyclic Redundancy Code (CRC) is scrambled by the SFI - Radio Network Temporary Identifier (SFI-RNTI). The SFI indicates the index of an entry in a lookup table, which is Table 11.1.1-1 in [6], where each entry in the lookup table indicates a slot format, i.e., the position of the DL, UL, and FLOFDM symbols within the slot. Figure 10 In the example, an SFI is transmitted to a group of User Equipments (UEs) in time slot n+1 to configure the time slot format for time slot n+2, where the SFI indicates index = 33. This will actually configure the 7 FL OFDM symbols in time slot n+2 after UE-specific configuration 1002 as 2 DL, 3 FL, and 2 UL OFDM symbols, as shown below. Figure 10 The black dashed box is shown in the diagram for SFI configuration 1003.

[0057] OFDM symbols maintained as FL OFDM symbols (e.g., after semi-static configurations 1001, 1002, and / or SFI dynamic indication 1003) can be further dynamically indicated as DL or UL OFDM symbols 1004 respectively via DL grant or UL grant. This is achieved by scheduling PDSCH (Physical Downlink Shared Channel) or PUSCH (Physical Uplink Shared Channel) on the FL OFDM symbol, thereby dynamically configuring it as DL and UL OFDM symbols respectively. Figure 10 In the example, the DL grant carried by the PDCCH is transmitted to the User Equipment (UE) in time slot n+2 to schedule PDSCHs from the fourth to the twelfth OFDM symbols in time slot n+2, where the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth OFDM symbols in time slot n+2 are FL OFDM symbols. That is, the DL grant dynamically configures itself as a DL OFDM symbol by scheduling PDSCHs on FL OFDM symbols. Similarly, the UL grant in time slot n+5 schedules PUSCHs in the last four FL OFDM symbols in time slot n+6, thereby dynamically configuring these FL OFDM symbols as UL OFDM symbols. Again, this is... Figure 10 The black dashed box indicates the DL / UL authorization configuration 1004.

[0058] Technical issues in instructing SBFD (Subband Full-Duplex) User Equipment (UE) on subsequent time slot format configuration

[0059] In addition to the DL, UL, and FL OFDM symbols, the SBFD OFDM symbol was introduced in Rel-19 (version 19). The SBFD OFDM symbol consists of one UL sub-band and one or two DL sub-bands, such as... Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown. In Rel-19, SBFD OFDM symbols are semi-statically configured, where SBFD OFDM symbols can be configured on cell-specific DLOFDM symbols and / or FL OFDM symbols. One of the goals of duplex evolution is to increase UL capacity; therefore, at least for Rel-19, SBFD (subband full-duplex) is only configured on DL and / or FL OFDM symbols, i.e., by configuring UL subbands on DL and / or FL OFDM symbols. That is, DL OFDM symbols and FL OFDM symbols with cell-specific configuration using the parameter TDD-UL-DL-ConfigCommon can be further semi-statically configured as SBFD OFDM symbols using a new RRC configuration message. The DL, UL, and FL OFDM symbols configured using TDD-UL-DL-ConfigCommon are referred to herein as the original DL, UL, and FL OFDM symbols, respectively.

[0060] An example is shown in Figure 11 The TDD slot format {DDDSU} consists of three DL slots, one slot with DL and FLOFDM symbols, and one UL slot, configured cell-specifically using the RRC parameter TDD-UL-DL-ConfigCommon 1101. In this example, slots n+1 and n+2 (which consist of the original DL OFDM symbols), and slot n+3 (which consists of the original DL and original FL OFDM symbols), are configured (e.g., by another RRC configuration 1102, such as a UE-specific configuration) as SBFD OFDM symbols with a {DUD} subband arrangement—as shown in the example. Figure 11 As shown in the black dashed box in Rel-19, the original UL OFDM symbol, i.e., the UL OFDM symbol configured via TDD-UL-DL-ConfigCommon, is not used to configure the SBFD OFDM symbol as described above.

[0061] In Rel-19, SBFD OFDM symbol configuration is not dynamically configured to reduce the complexity of managing CLIs between gNR base stations (gNBs). Therefore, the original DL or FL OFDM symbols configured as SBFD OFDM symbols, such as... Figure 11Examples of this technology cannot be dynamically configured back to non-SBFD OFDM symbols. The behavior of a SBFD-capable User Equipment (UE) upon receiving an SFI needs to be specified. In addition to the SFI, the behavior of a SBFD-capable UE when receiving UE-specific timeslot format configuration via UL-DL-ConfigDedicated also needs to be specified. Implementations of this technology aim to provide solutions to meet these requirements.

[0062] Behavior of SBFD (Subband Full-Duplex) User Equipment (UE) configured with traditional time slot format

[0063] Figure 12 A partial schematic diagram and a partial message flow diagram of a wireless communication system according to at least some embodiments of the present technology are shown. The wireless communication system includes a communication device 1210 (e.g., user equipment (UE) 14) and an infrastructure device 1220 (e.g., an access point, such as a gNR base station (gNB) / TRP (transmitter-receiver point) 10). The communication device 1210 can be configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from a wireless communication network, for example, to and / or from the infrastructure device 1220. Specifically, the communication device 1210 can be configured to transmit data to and / or receive data from the wireless communication network (e.g., the infrastructure device 1220) via a radio access interface provided by the wireless communication network (e.g., a Uu interface between the communication device 1210 and a radio access network (RAN), the RAN including the infrastructure device 1220). Both the communication device 1210 and the infrastructure device 1220 include transceivers (or transceiver circuits) 1211, 1221, and controllers (or controller circuits) 1212, 1222. Each controller 1212, 1222 can be, for example, a microprocessor, CPU, or dedicated chipset. Controllers 1212 and 1222 may also each be equipped with a storage unit (not included in...). Figure 12 (As shown in the image).

[0064] like Figure 12As shown in the example, the controller 1212 of the communication device 1210 is configured to control the transceiver 1211 of the communication device 1210 to receive, 1230, a first time slot format configuration of one or more time-division time slots of the radio access interface between the communication device 1210 and the infrastructure device 1220 from the infrastructure device 1220, wherein each of the one or more time-division time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex (SBFD) symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols of the one or more time-division time slots, to receive, 1240, a second time slot format configuration indicating a second mode of a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols from the infrastructure device 1220, wherein the second mode is different from the first mode of the subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, 1250 determining a first modification of the non-SBFD symbols of the subset based on the second time slot format configuration, and 1260 determining a second modification of the SBFD symbols of the subset based on the second time slot format configuration, wherein the first modification and the second modification are different.

[0065] Here, prior to configuring the first time slot format, there may be conditions as described in the reference above. Figure 10 The cell-specific configuration or similar configuration, and can be configured, for example, via RRC signaling, such as using the parameter TDD-UL-DL-ConfigCommon to indicate a first mode (the mode of downlink, uplink, and FL symbols) for non-SBFD symbols in time-division slots (i.e., prior to any subsequent SBFD subband configuration for SBFD-capable UEs), applies to both SBFD-capable UEs and non-SBFD-capable (i.e., conventional) UEs. The first slot format configuration can then include a new semi-static slot format configuration (e.g., a new RRC message, a new Information Element (IE) in an existing RRC message, or a System Information Block (SIB)) to configure SBFD OFDM symbols only for SBFD-capable UEs, along with the first mode—wherein the first mode may have been indicated to both SBFD and non-SBFD UEs in a previous slot format configuration as described above. In other words, the first slot format configuration can be an SBFD configuration, where the SBFD configuration indicates one or more SBFD symbols in one or more time-division slots, and where the SBFD configuration is received from the infrastructure equipment in RRC signaling. Here, Figure 12 The communication device 1210 in the example is a user equipment (UE) with SBFD capability, which means that it can understand the SBFD configuration and use the configured SBFD UL and DL subbands to send and receive signals simultaneously (i.e., operate in full-duplex mode).

[0066] Here, the second time slot format configuration can be, for example, a UE-specific configuration, configured for a UE (which may or may not have SBFD capability) via RRC signaling, such as using the parameter TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated. Alternatively, the second time slot format configuration can be a time slot format indicator (SFI) dynamically indicated to one or more UEs using group common downlink control information (GC-DCI) or the like. Here, both the first and second modes refer to different modes of uplink, downlink, and flexible symbols, where flexible symbols in a subset can be reconfigured by the second time slot format configuration, or any type of symbol can be reconfigured.

[0067] In essence, embodiments of this disclosure, for example, are... Figure 12 Taking an example wireless communication system as an example, this paper proposes that a UE with SBFD capability interprets the subsequent time slot format configuration in different ways for SBFD OFDM symbols and non-SBFD OFDM symbols.

[0068] In some arrangements of this technical implementation, a UE with SBFD capability interprets the subsequent time slot format configuration for an SBFD OFDM symbol as the activation or deactivation of a specific subband for that SBFD OFDM symbol. In other words, the second modification may include the activation or deactivation of one or more subbands from a subset of one or more SBFD symbols. That is, the link direction of the OFDM symbol indicated by the subsequent time slot format configuration indicates that subbands with the same link direction are active, while subbands with the opposite link direction are deactivated.

[0069] The activated DL subband and activated UL subband are used for DL ​​reception and UL transmission, respectively. In other words, after one or more subbands in one or more SBFD symbols of the subset are activated, the communication device can be configured to: transmit uplink signals to the infrastructure device in at least one activated subband if at least one activated subband is an uplink subband, and / or receive downlink signals from the infrastructure device in at least one activated subband if at least one activated subband is a downlink subband.

[0070] However, the deactivated DL subband and deactivated UL subband are not used for DL ​​reception and UL transmission, respectively. In other words, after one or more active subbands in one or more SBFD symbols of a subset are deactivated, the communication device can be configured to transmit uplink signals to and / or receive downlink signals from the infrastructure device only in radio resources located in one or more time-division slots outside the one or more deactivated subbands, without transmitting and / or receiving within the deactivated subbands. It is recognized that for OFDM symbols indicated as DL or UL by the subsequent slot format configuration, particularly the original FL OFDM symbols, a legacy UE may assume that all frequency resources in that OFDM symbol are used for that purpose and perform reception or transmission separately. This can lead to higher CLI, especially when a legacy UE receives in frequency resources that overlap with those symbols in the uplink subbands of a UE with SBFD capability.

[0071] In some arrangements of this technical implementation, the deactivated UL subband can be used for DL ​​reception. This allows the deactivated frequency resources to be used for traffic targeting the SBFD UE. Alternatively, the deactivated DL subband can be used for UL transmission in some arrangements. In other words, after one or more active subbands in one or more SBFD symbols of a subset are deactivated, the communication device can be configured to: receive downlink signals from the infrastructure device in at least one deactivated subband if at least one deactivated subband is an uplink subband, and / or transmit uplink signals to the infrastructure device in at least one deactivated subband if at least one deactivated subband is a downlink subband.

[0072] In some arrangements of this technical implementation, a UE with SBFD capability interprets the subsequent timeslot format configuration for an SBFD OFDM symbol as the activation or deactivation of guard subbands (if they are configured). That is, the link direction indicated by the subsequent timeslot format configuration is used for transmission or reception by the guard subband. In other words, one or more active subbands can be guard subbands. For example, if the subsequent timeslot format configuration indicates that the SBFD OFDM symbol is DL, then a UE with SBFD capability can use the guard subband (if configured) for DL ​​reception, and if the subsequent timeslot format configuration indicates that the SBFD OFDM symbol is UL, then a UE with SBFD capability can use the guard subband (if configured) for UL transmission. It is recognized that since the DL or UL subbands are deactivated, the function of the guard subbands is no longer needed, and therefore it is advantageous to use the frequency resources occupied by the guard subbands for transmission or reception.

[0073] In some arrangements of this technical implementation, a UE with SBFD capability disables a subband only when the SBFD OFDM symbol is configured on the original FL OFDM symbol. In other words, the SBFD symbol on which one or more active subbands of one or more SBFD symbols are disabled can be a (originally configured) flexible symbol in which a communication device can transmit uplink signals to or receive downlink signals from a communication device. It is recognized that conventional subsequent slot format configurations such as SFI and TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated are only used for FL OFDM symbols, and conventional UEs do not expect non-FL OFDM symbols to be further changed to UL or DL ​​OFDM symbols.

[0074] In some arrangements of this technical implementation, the SBFD-capable UE interprets the subsequent slot format configuration for non-SBFD OFDM symbols according to conventional behavior as described above. That is, for FL OFDM symbols, the SBFD-capable UE will use them as UL, DL, or retain them as FL OFDM symbols according to the link direction indicated for these FL OFDM symbols in the subsequent slot format configuration. In other words, the first modification may include determining that a second mode covers the first mode for a subset of non-SBFD symbols.

[0075] In some arrangements of this technical implementation, the subsequent timeslot format configuration is a conventional dynamic SFI. In other words, the second timeslot format configuration can be a timeslot format indicator, an SFI, and wherein the SFI is received from the infrastructure equipment in a Group Common Downlink Control Information (GC-DCI), which can be transmitted by the infrastructure equipment to the communication equipment and one or more other communication devices. The link direction of the SBFD OFDM symbol indicated in the SFI determines whether the UL subband or DL ​​subband is activated or deactivated. That is, for an SBFD OFDM symbol, if the SFI indicates that the OFDM symbol is DL, then the DL subband is activated and the UL subband is deactivated; and if the SFI indicates that the OFDM symbol is UL, then the UL subband is activated and the DL subband is deactivated.

[0076] Figure 13An example is shown where a cell-specific TDD slot format configuration 1301 uses the RRC parameter TDD-UL-DL-ConfigCommon, which is {DDDSU}, where the "S" slot (slot n+3) is entirely composed of FL OFDM symbols. The network further uses SBFD configuration 1302 to configure SBFD-capable UEs in the cell with the SBFD slot format {XXXSU}, where "X" is the SBFD slot, and the "S" slot (slot n+3) consists of the SBFD OFDM symbols in the first half of the slot and the FL OFDM symbols in the remaining half. Then, the network transmits the GC-DCI carrying SFI in slot n+2 to dynamically configure the slot format of slot n+3 for a UE group consisting of SBFD and legacy UEs. Figure 13 In the example, SFI indicates index = 28, which corresponds to the slot format [ddddddddddfu], where “d” = DL OFDM symbol, “u” = UL OFDM symbol, and “f” = FL OFDM symbol.

[0077] For UEs with SBFD capability, since the first 7 OFDM symbols in time slot n+3 are SBFD OFDM symbols and these OFDM symbols are indicated as DL by SFI, such SBFD-capable UEs disable the 1310 UL subband, meaning they avoid transmitting uplink signals in these OFDM symbols. The remaining OFDM symbols in time slot n+3 are FL OFDM (non-SBFD) symbols. Therefore, SBFD-capable UEs follow traditional behavior, using the 8th to 12th OFDM symbols as DL, keeping the 13th OFDM symbol as FL, and using the 14th (i.e., the last) OFDM symbol as UL.

[0078] For a legacy UE (which does not understand or therefore apply SBFD configuration 1302), time slot n+3 consists of all FLOFDM symbols. Since a legacy UE cannot be configured to have SBFD OFDM symbols, it uses these symbols according to the SFI's instructions: the first 12 OFDM symbols are DL, the 13th OFDM symbol is FL, and the last OFDM symbol is UL. Therefore, if a legacy UE receives PDSCH in time slot n+3 on a frequency overlapping with the frequency of the UL subband of a UE with SBFD capability, it will not experience CLI interference from that SBFD-capable UE because the UL subband in time slot n+3 has been disabled by such SBFD-capable UEs 1310.

[0079] In some arrangements of this technical implementation, the subsequent time slot format configuration is a conventional semi-static UE-specific time slot format configuration configured using the RRC parameter TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated. In other words, the second time slot format configuration can be a semi-static UE-specific time slot format configuration, wherein the UE-specific time slot format configuration is received from the infrastructure equipment in RRC signaling. Similarly, in the case where the second / subsequent time slot format configuration is SFI as described above, the link direction of the SBFD OFDM symbol configured by the conventional semi-static UE-specific time slot format configuration indicates that the subband with the indicated link direction is active, while the subband with the opposite link direction is deactivated.

[0080] Figure 14 An example is shown where the cell-specific TDD slot format configuration TDD-UL-DL-ConfigCommon configuration 1401 slot format {DDDSU} is further configured for SBFD operation, for example, using another RRC configuration 1402, becoming {XXXSU}. The network sends the legacy semi-static UE-specific slot configuration TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated signaling to SBFD-capable UE 1403 and legacy UE 1404, which configures slot n+3 as a full UL slot. The legacy UE follows configuration 1404 from TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated and changes all FLOFDM symbols in slot n+3 to UL OFDM symbols. The legacy UE is then scheduled with a PUSCH using UL authorization, which is transmitted in slot n+3.

[0081] For SBFD-capable UEs receiving traditional semi-static UE-specific time slot format configuration 1403 TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated, it interprets SBFD OFDM symbols and non-SBFD OFDM symbols differently. For non-SBFD OFDM symbols, namely the FL OFDM symbols in the 8th to 14th OFDM symbols of time slot n+3, these symbols are used as UL OFDM symbols. For SBFD OFDM symbols in the 1st to 7th OFDM symbols of time slot n+3, the DL subband is disabled 1410; that is, the UE only transmits in the UL subband and does not expect DL reception in the DL subband because DL transmission at the gNR base station (gNB) would result in CLI for UL transmissions from traditional UEs.

[0082] It should be understood that in the above-described embodiments of this technology, the subsequent time slot format configuration, which is the conventional SFI and the conventional TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated, can be implemented together or separately. That is, in future specifications, it can be defined that subband deactivation is implemented using only SFI and not TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated, and vice versa. In another implementation, both SFI and TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated can be used to deactivate subbands. The arrangements of this technology suggest that any suitable subsequent time slot format configuration can be used to configure the activation or deactivation of SBFD subbands for SBFD-enabled UEs (e.g.).

[0083] In some arrangements of this technical implementation, the disabling of the subband is to disable only a subset of the subbands, for cases where there is more than one DL subband or UL subband. In other words, the one or more active subbands to be disabled can be a subset of the active subbands in the subset's SBFD symbols, and one or more other active subbands in the subset's SBFD symbols are not disabled. For example, in Rel-19 SBFD operation, two DL subbands can exist in an SBFD OFDM symbol, and for such SBFD frequency configurations, the disabling will disable only one of the DL subbands. Which DL subband should be disabled is semi-statically configured before the signaling of subsequent slot format configuration messages.

[0084] In some arrangements of this technical embodiment, where the semi-static configuration indicates which subset of subbands to disable in subsequent time slot format configuration messages, the subset of subbands to be disabled is configured independently for each subsequent time slot format configuration. In other words, the communication device can be configured to receive Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling or the like from the infrastructure device before receiving the second time slot format configuration, wherein the RRC signaling includes an indication of a subset of active subbands to be disabled, the disabling occurring after receiving the second time slot format configuration.

[0085] The subset of active subbands to be disabled can depend on the type of subsequent time slot format configuration used. For example, in a scenario with two downlink (DL) subbands configured, the upper DL subband can be disabled under an SFI directive, and the lower DL subband can be disabled under a dedicated time-division duplex uplink-downlink configuration (TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated). In another example, both DL subbands are disabled under an SFI directive, but only the upper DL subband is disabled under a TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated configuration. In other words, the subset of active subbands to be disabled can depend on the type of the second time slot format configuration. Here, with regard to different types of subsequent time slot format configurations, the subset of subbands to be deactivated can be indicated in radio resource control (RRC) signaling or defined in the specification. The RRC message can provide multiple indications for different subband subsets, each of which can be associated with a different type of subsequent time slot format configuration.

[0086] In some configurations of this technical embodiment, a user equipment (UE) supporting sub-band full duplex (SBFD) may be instructed to ignore one or more subsequent timeslot format configuration messages. This instruction may be received from a gNB (next-generation base station) or may be a fixed instruction in the specification, thus known to the communication equipment. That is, ignoring subsequent timeslot format configuration messages does not cause the SBFD-enabled UE to disable any subbands. In other words, the communication equipment can be configured to receive an instruction from the infrastructure equipment that it should ignore the second modification before receiving the second timeslot format configuration. That is, for those SBFD symbols, the communication equipment can effectively treat the second modification as if it had never been made, rather than as if a legacy configuration change had been made or a subband had been enabled or disabled.

[0087] For example, a gNB can instruct a UE that supports SBFD to ignore the TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated configuration but comply with the SFI instruction, so that only the SFI instruction can disable the subband. In other words, the instruction that the communication device should ignore the second modification depends on the type of the second time slot format configuration.

[0088] In another example, a UE supporting SBFD can be pre-configured (in the specification) with a type of setting behavior that depends on the type of slot format configuration message; similarly, it can be configured to ignore the TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated configuration but comply with the SFI instruction, so that only the SFI instruction can disable the subband. In other words, the communication device can be configured to determine whether it should ignore the second modification based on the type of the second slot format configuration.

[0089] In some configurations of this technical embodiment, a deactivated subband is reactivated by a subsequent time slot format configuration, for example, when the subsequent time slot format indicates that the orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol is a flexible (FL) OFDM symbol. In other words, the communication device can be configured to receive a third time slot format configuration from the infrastructure device, which indicates a third mode for at least a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the third mode differs from a second mode for at least that subset of the SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, and based on receiving the third time slot format configuration, it is determined that at least one of one or more deactivated subbands should be reactivated, provided that the at least one of the one or more deactivated subbands is located within one or more SBFD symbols of at least that subset.

[0090] Figure 15 An example is given where an SBFD-enabled UE is configured 1501 from the original slot format {DDDSU} to the SBFD format {XXXSU}. Subsequently, it receives a subsequent slot format configuration 1502, such as a TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated configuration, which configures the "S" slot 1503 as a full UL slot; that is, slot n+3 is indicated as full UL. Accordingly, the DL subband in the "S" slot, i.e., the DL subband in slot n+3, is deactivated 1510. At a later time, the SBFD-enabled UE is configured by another TDD-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated configuration 1504 to change the "S" slot back to full FL; that is, slot m+3 (where m>n) is converted 1520 back to full FL OFDM symbol. Accordingly, according to this structure, the DL subband in the previously deactivated "S" slot (e.g., slot m+3) is reactivated 1520.

[0091] In some configurations of this technical embodiment, an activated guard subband is deactivated by a subsequent timeslot format configuration, for example, when the subsequent timeslot format indicates that the OFDM symbol is an FL OFDM symbol. Deactivating the guard subband means that it functions as intended, i.e., as a frequency gap, to reduce cross-link interference (CLI) by not using it in DL reception or UL transmission. In other words, the communication device can be configured to receive a third timeslot format configuration from the infrastructure device, which indicates a third mode for at least a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the third mode differs from a second mode for at least that subset of the SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, and based on receiving the third timeslot format configuration, it is determined that at least one of one or more activated guard subbands should be deactivated, provided that the at least one of the one or more activated guard subbands is located within one or more SBFD symbols of at least that subset.

[0092] In some configurations of this technical embodiment, when a deactivated subband is reactivated, any activated protective subbands (if any) are deactivated; that is, activated protective subbands used for DL ​​or UL return to their original purpose, i.e., are not used for DL ​​or UL. In other words, the communication device can be configured to determine that one or more deactivated subbands should be reactivated when they are located within one or more SBFD symbols of at least that subset of the portion, and to determine that at least one activated protective subband should be deactivated when it is located within one or more SBFD symbols of at least that subset of the portion.

[0093] In some configurations of this technical embodiment, the deactivated subbands are deactivated for a fixed period of time. That is, after receiving a subsequent slot format configuration that deactivates one or more subbands, the UE supporting SBFD will reactivate one or more deactivated subbands after the fixed period of time. In other words, the communication device can be configured to determine that one or more deactivated subbands are deactivated for a configured period of time after one or more active subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of a subset are deactivated, and to determine that one or more deactivated subbands are reactivated after the configured period of time. The period of time during which the subbands are deactivated can be dynamically indicated using downlink control information (DCI), semi-statically configured, or fixed in the specification.

[0094] In some configurations of this technical embodiment, the activated guard subband is activated for a fixed period of time. That is, after receiving a subsequent slot format configuration that activates one or more guard subbands, the UE supporting SBFD will deactivate the one or more activated guard subbands after the fixed period of time. In other words, the communication device can be configured to determine that one or more activated guard subbands are activated for a configured period of time after one or more guard subbands within a subset of one or more SBFD symbols are activated, and to determine that one or more activated guard subbands are deactivated after the configured period of time. The period of time during which the guard subbands are activated can be indicated dynamically by DCI, semi-statically configured, or fixed in the specification.

[0095] Figure 16 A flowchart is shown, illustrating an example process of communication in a communication system according to an embodiment of the present technology. Figure 16 The process shown is specifically a method of operating a communication device (e.g., a UE) configured to send signals to and / or receive signals from an infrastructure device (e.g., a gNB) belonging to a wireless communication network.

[0096] The method begins at step S1. The method includes: in step S2, receiving from infrastructure equipment a first time slot format configuration for one or more time-division multiplexed time slots for a radio access interface between the communication equipment and the infrastructure equipment, wherein each of the one or more time-division multiplexed time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex (SBFD) symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode for the SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols of the one or more time-division multiplexed time slots. In step S3, the process includes receiving from infrastructure equipment a second time slot format configuration indicating a second mode for a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode for the subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols differs from the first mode. Subsequently, in step S4, the process includes determining a first modification of the subset of non-SBFD symbols based on the second time slot format configuration, and in step S5, the method includes determining a second modification of the subset of SBFD symbols based on the second time slot format configuration, where the first modification differs from the second modification. The process ends at step S6.

[0097] Those skilled in the art will understand that Figure 16 The method shown can be adapted to embodiments of the present technology. For example, such a method may include other intermediate steps, or these steps may be performed in any logical order. Although embodiments of the present technology have primarily relied on... Figure 12 The example communication system shown is used for description, and further utilizes Figures 13 to 15The embodiments shown are described in this way, but it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that they are equally applicable to other systems described herein, provided they fall within the scope of the claims.

[0098] Those skilled in the art will further appreciate that the infrastructure equipment and / or communication equipment as defined herein can be further defined according to the various structures and embodiments discussed in the preceding paragraphs. Those skilled in the art will also further appreciate that the infrastructure equipment and communication equipment as defined and described herein can form part of other communication systems besides those defined in this disclosure, provided they fall within the scope of the claims.

[0099] The following numbered paragraphs provide further exemplary aspects and features of this technology: Paragraph 1. A method of operating a communication device configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from infrastructure equipment of a wireless communication network, the method comprising: The communication equipment receives a first time slot format configuration for one or more time-division multiplexed time slots for a radio access interface between the communication equipment and the infrastructure equipment, wherein each of the one or more time-division multiplexed time slots includes one or more SBFD symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode for the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols of the one or more time-division multiplexed time slots. Receives from infrastructure equipment a second time slot format configuration indicating a second mode for a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode for the subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols differs from the first mode. The first modification of the non-SBFD symbols of the subset is determined based on the second slot format configuration, and The second modification of the subset of SBFD symbols is determined based on the second time slot format configuration, wherein the first modification is different from the second modification.

[0100] Paragraph 2. According to the method in paragraph 1, wherein the second modification includes the activation of one or more subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset.

[0101] Paragraph 3. According to the method in paragraph 2, wherein the method includes, after one or more subbands are located within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset and are activated, If at least one activated subband is an uplink (UL) subband, then a UL signal is sent to the infrastructure device in at least one of the one or more activated subbands, and / or If at least one activated subband is a downlink (DL) subband, then DL signals are received from the infrastructure device in at least one of the one or more activated subbands.

[0102] Paragraph 4. According to the method in paragraph 2 or paragraph 3, one or more activated subbands are guard subbands.

[0103] Paragraph 5. Based on the method in paragraph 4, including...

[0104] Receives a third time slot format configuration from infrastructure equipment, the third time slot format configuration indicating a third mode for at least a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the third mode differs from a second mode for at least that subset of the SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols.

[0105] Based on the received third time slot format configuration, it is determined that at least one of one or more activated guard subbands should be deactivated, provided that the at least one of the one or more activated guard subbands is located within one or more SBFD symbols of at least that subset of the portion.

[0106] Paragraph 6. Based on the method in paragraph 5, including...

[0107] When one or more deactivated subbands are located within one or more SBFD symbols of at least that subset of the portion, it is determined that one or more deactivated subbands should be reactivated, and

[0108] When at least one activated guard subband is located within one or more SBFD symbols of at least that subset of the portion, it is determined that the at least one activated guard subband should be deactivated.

[0109] Paragraph 7. A method, according to any one of paragraphs 4 to 6, wherein the method comprises, after one or more guard sub-bands within one or more of one or more SBFD symbols (sub-band full-duplex symbols) of a subset are activated: It is determined that one or more activated protection subbands will be activated for a configured time period, and After the configured time period, determine that one or more activated protection subbands are deactivated.

[0110] Paragraph 8. A method, according to any one of paragraphs 1 through 7, wherein the second modification includes deactivating one or more active sub-bands within one or more SBFD symbols of a subset.

[0111] Paragraph 9. A method, according to paragraph 8, wherein the method comprises, after one or more active subbands within one or more of one or more SBFD symbols in a subset are deactivated: Uplink signals are transmitted to the infrastructure equipment and / or downlink signals are received from the infrastructure equipment only in radio resources located outside one or more disabled subbands in one or more time-division time slots.

[0112] Paragraph 10. A method, according to paragraph 8 or paragraph 9, wherein the method includes, after one or more active subbands within one or more of one or more SBFD symbols in a subset are deactivated: If at least one deactivated subband is an uplink subband, then in at least one deactivated subband, downlink signals are received from the infrastructure equipment, and / or If at least one deactivated subband is a downlink subband, then an uplink signal is sent to the infrastructure equipment in at least one deactivated subband.

[0113] Paragraph 11. A method, according to any one of paragraphs 8 to 10, wherein one or more active subbands are stopped therein by one or two SBFD symbols configured on flexible symbols, within which the communication device is capable of sending uplink signals to or receiving downlink signals from the communication device.

[0114] Paragraph 12. A method, according to any one of paragraphs 8 to 11, wherein one or more active subbands that are deactivated are a subset of active subbands within the SBFD symbol of a subset, and one or more other active subbands within the SBFD symbol of the subset are not deactivated.

[0115] Paragraph 13. One method, according to paragraph 12, includes: Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling is received from infrastructure equipment before receiving the second timeslot format configuration. The RRC signaling includes an indication of a subset of active subbands to be deactivated after receiving the second timeslot format configuration.

[0116] Paragraph 14. A method, according to paragraph 13, wherein the indicated subset of active subbands to be deactivated depends on the type of the second time slot format configuration.

[0117] Paragraph 15. A method, based on any one of paragraphs 8 through 14, including: Receives a third timeslot format configuration from infrastructure equipment, the third timeslot format configuration indicating a third mode for at least a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the third mode differs from a second mode for at least a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, and Based on the received third time slot format configuration, it is determined that if at least one or more deactivated subbands are located within one or more SBFD symbols of at least a subset, then at least one or more deactivated subbands shall be reactivated.

[0118] Paragraph 16. A method, according to any one of paragraphs 8 to 15, wherein the method includes, after one or more active subbands within one or more of one or more SBFD symbols of a subset are deactivated: Identify one or more disabled subbands to be disabled for a configured period of time, and After the configured time period, determine one or more deactivated subbands to be reactivated.

[0119] Paragraph 17. A method, based on any one of paragraphs 1 through 16, including: The communication equipment receives an instruction from the infrastructure device prior to receiving the second timeslot format configuration, indicating that the communication device should ignore the second modification.

[0120] Paragraph 18. A method, according to paragraph 17, wherein the communication device shall ignore the instruction of the second modification, depending on the type of the second timeslot format configuration.

[0121] Paragraph 19. A method, based on any one of paragraphs 1 through 18, including: Based on the type of the second timeslot format configuration, it is determined that the communication device should ignore the second modification.

[0122] Paragraph 20. A method, based on any one of paragraphs 1 to 19, wherein a first modification includes determining that a second mode covers a subset of non-SBFD symbols for the first mode.

[0123] Paragraph 21. A method, according to any one of paragraphs 1 to 20, wherein a second time slot format configuration is a time slot format indicator (SFI), and the SFI is received from an infrastructure device in group common downlink control information (GC-DCI).

[0124] Paragraph 22. A method, according to any one of paragraphs 1 to 21, wherein the second time slot format configuration is a semi-static user equipment (UE) dedicated time slot format configuration, and the UE dedicated time slot format configuration is received from the infrastructure equipment in RRC signaling.

[0125] Paragraph 23. A communication device, comprising: Transceiver circuitry is configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from a wireless communication network, and The controller circuit is configured to be combined with the transceiver circuit. Receives a first time slot format configuration from infrastructure equipment for one or more time-division multiplexed time slots for a radio access interface between the communication equipment and the infrastructure equipment, wherein each of the one or more time-division multiplexed time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex (SBFD) symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols for the one or more time-division multiplexed time slots. Receive a second timeslot format configuration from the infrastructure equipment, the second timeslot format configuration indicating a second mode of a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode differs from a first mode of a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols. Based on the second time slot format configuration, the first modification of the non-SBFD symbols in the subset is determined, and Based on the second time slot format configuration, a second modification of the SBFD symbols of a subset is determined, wherein the first modification and the second modification are different.

[0126] Paragraph 24. A circuit for a communication device, the circuit comprising: Transceiver circuitry is configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from a wireless communication network, and The controller circuit is configured to be combined with the transceiver circuit. Receives a first time slot format configuration from infrastructure equipment for one or more time-division multiplexed time slots for a radio access interface between the communication equipment and the infrastructure equipment, wherein each of the one or more time-division multiplexed time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex (SBFD) symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols for the one or more time-division multiplexed time slots. Receive a second timeslot format configuration from the infrastructure equipment, the second timeslot format configuration indicating a second mode of a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode differs from a first mode of a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols. Based on the second time slot format configuration, the first modification of the non-SBFD symbols in the subset is determined, and Based on the second time slot format configuration, a second modification of the SBFD symbols of a subset is determined, wherein the first modification and the second modification are different.

[0127] Paragraph 25. A method of operating infrastructure equipment that forms part of a wireless communication network, the method comprising: A first time slot format configuration is transmitted to the communication equipment for one or more time-division time slots of the radio access interface between the communication equipment and infrastructure equipment, wherein each of the one or more time-division time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex (SBFD) symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols for the one or more time-division time slots. A second timeslot format configuration is sent to the communication device, the second timeslot format configuration indicating a second mode for a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode differs from a first mode for a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols. Based on the second time slot format configuration, the first modification of the non-SBFD symbols of the subset is performed, and Based on the second time slot format configuration, a second modification of the subset of SBFD symbols is performed, wherein the first modification and the second modification are different.

[0128] Paragraph 26. A method, according to paragraph 25, wherein the second modification includes activating one or more subbands within one or more of one or more SBFD symbols of a subset.

[0129] Paragraph 27. A method, according to paragraph 26, wherein the method includes, after one or more subbands within one or more of one or more SBFD symbols in a subset are activated: If at least one activated subband is an uplink subband, then in at least one activated subband, an uplink signal is received from the communication device, and / or If at least one activated subband is a downlink subband, then a downlink signal is transmitted to the communication device in at least one activated subband.

[0130] Paragraph 28. A method, according to paragraph 26 or paragraph 27, wherein one or more activated subbands are guard subbands.

[0131] Paragraph 29. One method, according to paragraph 28, includes: A third timeslot format configuration is sent to the communication device, the third timeslot format configuration indicating a third mode for at least a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the third mode differs from a second mode for at least a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, and Based on the transmission of the third time slot format configuration, if at least one or more activated guard subbands are located within one or more SBFD symbols of at least a subset, then at least one or more activated guard subbands are deactivated.

[0132] Paragraph 30. One method, according to paragraph 29, includes: If one or more deactivated subbands are located within one or more SBFD symbols that are at least a subset of the set, then one or more deactivated subbands are reactivated, and If at least one activated protection subband is located within one or more SBFD symbols that constitute at least a subset of the total number of symbols, then at least one activated protection subband is deactivated.

[0133] Paragraph 31. A method, according to any one of paragraphs 28 to 30, wherein the method comprises, after one or more guard subbands within one or more of one or more SBFD symbols in a subset are activated: Determine one or more activated protection subbands to be activated for a configured time period, and After the configured time period, the one or more activated protection subbands are deactivated.

[0134] Paragraph 32. A method, according to any one of paragraphs 25 to 31, wherein the second modification includes deactivating one or more active subbands within one or more of one or more SBFD symbols of a subset.

[0135] Paragraph 33. A method, according to paragraph 32, wherein the method includes, after one or more active subbands within one or more of one or more SBFD symbols in a subset are deactivated: Receive uplink signals from the communication device and / or send downlink signals to the communication device only in radio resources located outside one or more disabled subbands in one or more time-division time slots.

[0136] Paragraph 34. A method, according to paragraph 32 or paragraph 33, wherein the method includes, after one or more active subbands within one or more of one or more SBFD symbols in a subset are deactivated: If at least one disabled subband is an uplink subband, then in at least one disabled subband, a downlink signal is sent to the communication device, and / or If at least one disabled subband is a downlink subband, then uplink signals are received from the communication device in at least one disabled subband.

[0137] Paragraph 35. A method, according to any one of paragraphs 32 to 34, wherein one or more active subbands are stopped therein by one or two SBFD symbols, configured on a flexible symbol, within which infrastructure equipment is capable of receiving uplink signals from or sending downlink signals to communication equipment.

[0138] Paragraph 36. A method, according to any one of paragraphs 32 to 35, wherein one or more active subbands that are deactivated are a subset of active subbands within the SBFD symbol of a subset, and one or more other active subbands within the SBFD symbol of the subset are not deactivated.

[0139] Paragraph 37. One method, according to paragraph 36, includes: Before sending the second timeslot format configuration to the communication equipment, a radio resource control (RRC) signaling is sent to the communication equipment, wherein the RRC signaling includes an indication of a deactivated subset of active subbands that will be deactivated after receiving the second timeslot format configuration.

[0140] Paragraph 38. A method, according to paragraph 37, wherein the indicated subset of active subbands to be deactivated depends on the type of the second time slot format configuration.

[0141] Paragraph 39. A method, based on any one of paragraphs 32 through 38, including: A third timeslot format configuration is sent to the communication device, the third timeslot format configuration indicating a third mode for at least a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the third mode differs from a second mode for at least a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, and Based on the third time slot format configuration, when at least one deactivated subband is within one or more of the full-duplex (SBFD) symbols of at least a portion of the subset, at least one of the one or more deactivated subbands is reactivated.

[0142] Paragraph 40. According to the method of any one of paragraphs 32 to 39, wherein after one or more active subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of a subset are deactivated, the method includes: Determine the duration for which one or more disabled subbands will be disabled in the specified duration configuration, and After the configured time period, reactivate one or more deactivated subbands.

[0143] Paragraph 41. Based on the method used in any of paragraphs 35 through 40, including: Before transmitting the second timeslot format configuration, an instruction is transmitted to the communication device indicating that the communication device should ignore the second modification.

[0144] Paragraph 42. According to the method in paragraph 41, the communication device should ignore the indication of the second modification depending on the type of the second time slot format configuration.

[0145] Paragraph 43. According to the method of any one of paragraphs 25 to 42, wherein the first modification includes the second mode overriding the first mode for non-SBFD symbols of the subset.

[0146] Paragraph 44. According to the method of any one of paragraphs 25 to 43, wherein the second time slot format configuration is a time slot format indicator (SFI), and the SFI is transmitted to the communication device in group common downlink control information (GC-DCI).

[0147] Paragraph 45. The method according to any one of paragraphs 25 to 44, wherein the second time slot format configuration is a semi-static UE-specific time slot format configuration, and the UE-specific time slot format configuration is transmitted to the communication device via Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

[0148] Paragraph 46. An infrastructure device that forms part of a wireless communication network, the infrastructure device comprising: A transceiver circuit configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from a communication device, and The controller circuit, which is combined with the transceiver circuit, is configured as follows: The first time slot format configuration is transmitted to the communication device for one or more time-division time slots of the radio access interface between the communication device and the infrastructure equipment, wherein each of the one or more time-division time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex (SBFD) symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first time slot format configuration indicates a first pattern of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols of the one or more time-division time slots. The communication device is transmitted a second time slot format configuration indicating a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode differs from the first mode for the subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols. Based on the second time slot format configuration, perform the first modification of the non-SBFD symbols of the subset, and Based on the second time slot format configuration, a second modification of the SBFD symbols of a subset is performed, wherein the first modification is different from the second modification.

[0149] Paragraph 47. A circuit for an infrastructure device constituting part of a wireless communication network, the circuit comprising: A transceiver circuit configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from a communication device, and The controller circuit, which is combined with the transceiver circuit, is configured as follows: The first time slot format configuration is transmitted to the communication device for one or more time-division time slots of the radio access interface between the communication device and the infrastructure equipment, wherein each of the one or more time-division time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex (SBFD) symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first time slot format configuration indicates a first pattern of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols of the one or more time-division time slots. The communication device is transmitted a second time slot format configuration indicating a subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode differs from the first mode for the subset of SBFD symbols and / or non-SBFD symbols. Based on the second time slot format configuration, perform the first modification of the non-SBFD symbols of the subset, and Based on the second time slot format configuration, a second modification of the SBFD symbols of a subset is performed, wherein the first modification is different from the second modification.

[0150] Paragraph 48. A wireless communication system comprising a communication device according to paragraph 23 and an infrastructure device according to paragraph 46.

[0151] Paragraph 49. A computer program comprising instructions, when loaded onto a computer, causing the computer to perform a method according to any one of paragraphs 1 to 22 or any one of paragraphs 25 to 45.

[0152] Paragraph 50. A non-transient computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program according to paragraph 49.

[0153] It is understood that, for clarity, the above description refers to different functional units, circuits, and / or processors. However, it will be apparent that any appropriate allocation of functions among the different functional units, circuits, and / or processors may be used without compromising these embodiments.

[0154] The described embodiments can be implemented in any suitable form, including hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. The described embodiments may optionally be implemented, at least in part, as computer software running on one or more data processors and / or digital signal processors. Elements and components of any embodiment can be implemented physically, functionally, and logically in any suitable manner. In fact, the functionality can be implemented in a single unit, in multiple units, or as part of other functional units. Therefore, the disclosed embodiments can be implemented in a single unit or can be physically and functionally distributed among different units, circuits, and / or processors.

[0155] Although this disclosure has been described with reference to some embodiments, it is not intended to limit it to the specific forms set forth herein. Furthermore, while a feature may appear to be described in association with a particular embodiment, those skilled in the art will recognize that the various features of the described embodiments can be combined in any suitable manner to implement the technology.

[0156] References

[0157] [1]Holma H. ​​and Toskala A, "LTE for UMTS OFDMA and SC-FDMA basedradio access", John Wiley and Sons, 2009.

[0158] [2]TR 38.913, "3rd Generation Partnership Project; TechnicalSpecification Group Radio Access Network; Study on Scenarios and Requirements for Next Generation Access Technologies (Release 14)", 3GPP, v14.3.0, August2017.

[0159] [3]RP-213591, “New SI: Study on evolution of NR duplex operation,” CMCC, RAN#94e, December 2021.

[0160] [4]RP-220633, “Revised SID: Study on evolution of NR duplexoperation,” CMCC, RAN#95e, March 2022.

[0161] [5]European Patent No. 3545716.

[0162] [6]TS 38.213, “3rd Generation Partnership Project; TechnicalSpecification Group Radio Access Network; NR; Physical layer procedures forcontrol (Release 18)”, 3GPP, v18.1.0, December 2023.

Claims

1. A method of operating a communication device, said communication device being configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from infrastructure equipment of a wireless communication network, said method comprising: Receives from the infrastructure equipment a first time slot format configuration for one or more time-division time slots of the radio access interface between the communication equipment and the infrastructure equipment, wherein... Each of the one or more time-division time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex SBFD symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode for the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols of the one or more time-division time slots. Receives a second timeslot format configuration from the infrastructure equipment, the second timeslot format configuration indicating a second mode for a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode differs from the first mode for the subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols. Based on the second time slot format configuration, a first modification to the non-SBFD symbols of the subset is determined, and Based on the second time slot format configuration, a second modification of the SBFD symbols of the subset is determined, wherein the first modification is different from the second modification.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The second modification includes the activation of one or more subbands within one or more of the SBFD symbols of the subset.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein, The method includes: after one or more subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset are activated, If at least one active subband is an uplink subband, then an uplink signal is transmitted to the infrastructure device within said at least one active subband, and / or If at least one active subband is a downlink subband, then a downlink signal is received from the infrastructure device within said at least one active subband.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein, One or more of the activated subbands are protection subbands.

5. The method according to claim 4, comprising: Receive a third timeslot format configuration from the infrastructure equipment, the third timeslot format configuration indicating a third mode for at least a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, wherein, For at least a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, the third mode differs from the second mode, and Based on the received third time slot format configuration, it is determined that if at least one of the one or more active guard subbands is located within one or more SBFD symbols of the at least portion of the subset, then the at least one guard subband among the one or more active guard subbands shall be deactivated.

6. The method of claim 5, comprising: If one or more deactivated subbands are located within one or more SBFD symbols of at least a portion of the subset, then the one or more deactivated subbands shall be reactivated, and If at least one active protection subband is located within one or more of the SBFD symbols of the at least portion of the subset, then the at least one active protection subband shall be deactivated.

7. The method according to claim 4, wherein, The method includes activating one or more guard subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset. Determine one or more active protection subbands to be activated for a configured time period, and After the configured time period, it is determined that the one or more active protection subbands are deactivated.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The second modification includes deactivating one or more active subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein, The method includes, after one or more active subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset are deactivated, Uplink signals are transmitted to the infrastructure device and / or downlink signals are received from the infrastructure device only in radio resources located outside one or more deactivated subbands in one or more time-division time slots.

10. The method according to claim 8, wherein, The method includes, after one or more active subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset are deactivated, If at least one deactivated subband is an uplink subband, downlink signals are received from the infrastructure equipment within said at least one deactivated subband, and / or If at least one deactivated subband is a downlink subband, an uplink signal is sent to the infrastructure equipment within the at least one deactivated subband.

11. The method according to claim 8, wherein, One or more of the SBFD symbols containing one or more deactivated subbands are configured on a flexible symbol, within which the communication device is able to send uplink signals to the communication device or receive downlink signals from the communication device.

12. The method according to claim 8, wherein, One or more active subbands that are deactivated are a subset of the active subbands within the SBFD symbols of the subset, wherein one or more other active subbands within the SBFD symbols of the subset are not deactivated.

13. The method of claim 12, comprising: Before receiving the second timeslot format configuration, Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling is received from the infrastructure equipment, wherein... The RRC signaling includes an indication of the subset of the active subbands to be deactivated after the second time slot format configuration is received.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein, The subset of the activated subbands to be deactivated depends on the type of the second time slot format configuration.

15. The method of claim 8, comprising: Receive a third timeslot format configuration from the infrastructure equipment, the third timeslot format configuration indicating a third mode for at least a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, wherein, For at least a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, the third mode differs from the second mode, and Based on the received third time slot format configuration, it is determined that if at least one subband of one or more deactivated subbands is located within one or more SBFD symbols of the at least portion of the subset, then at least one subband of the one or more deactivated subbands shall be reactivated.

16. The method according to claim 8, wherein, The method includes, after one or more active subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset are deactivated, Determine one or more deactivated subbands to be deactivated for a configured time period, and After the configured time period, it is determined that the one or more deactivated subbands are reactivated.

17. The method of claim 1, comprising: Before receiving the second timeslot format configuration, an instruction is received from the infrastructure device, which instructs the communication device to ignore the second modification.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein, The instruction that the communication device should ignore the second modification depends on the type of the second time slot format configuration.

19. The method of claim 1, comprising: Depending on the type of the second timeslot format configuration, it is determined that the communication device should ignore the second modification.

20. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The first modification includes determining that the second mode covers the first mode for the non-SBFD symbols of the subset.

21. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The second time slot format configuration is a time slot format indicator (SFI), wherein the SFI is received from the infrastructure device in the Group Common Downlink Control Information (GC-DCI).

22. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The second time slot format configuration is a semi-static user equipment (UE) dedicated time slot format configuration, wherein the UE dedicated time slot format configuration is received from the infrastructure equipment in RRC signaling.

23. A communication device, comprising Transceiver circuitry is configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from a wireless communication network, and The controller circuit, in combination with the transceiver circuit, is configured as follows: Receives a first time slot format configuration for one or more time-division time slots for the radio access interface between the communication device and the infrastructure device from the infrastructure device, wherein... Each of the one or more time-division time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex SBFD symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode for the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols of the one or more time-division time slots. Receives a second timeslot format configuration from the infrastructure equipment, the second timeslot format configuration indicating a second mode for a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode differs from the first mode for the subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols. Based on the second slot format configuration, a first modification to the non-SBFD symbols of the subset is determined, and Based on the second time slot format configuration, a second modification of the SBFD symbols of the subset is determined, wherein the first modification is different from the second modification.

24. A circuit for a communication device, the circuit comprising: Transceiver circuitry is configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from a wireless communication network, and The controller circuit, in combination with the transceiver circuit, is configured as follows: Receives a first time slot format configuration for one or more time-division time slots for the radio access interface between the communication device and the infrastructure device from the infrastructure device, wherein... Each of the one or more time-division time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex SBFD symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode for the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols of the one or more time-division time slots. Receives a second timeslot format configuration from the infrastructure equipment, the second timeslot format configuration indicating a second mode for a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode differs from the first mode for the subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols. Based on the second slot format configuration, a first modification to the non-SBFD symbols of the subset is determined, and Based on the second time slot format configuration, a second modification of the SBFD symbols of the subset is determined, wherein the first modification is different from the second modification.

25. A method of operating infrastructure equipment, said infrastructure equipment forming part of a wireless communication network, the method comprising: Sending a first time slot format configuration for one or more time-division time slots of the radio access interface between the communication device and the infrastructure equipment to the communication device, wherein, Each of the one or more time-division time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex SBFD symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode for the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols of the one or more time-division time slots. A second timeslot format configuration is sent to the communication device, the second timeslot format configuration indicating a second mode for a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode differs from the first mode for the subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols. Based on the second time slot format configuration, a first modification is performed on the non-SBFD symbols of the subset, and Based on the second time slot format configuration, a second modification is performed on the SBFD symbols of the subset, wherein the first modification is different from the second modification.

26. The method according to claim 25, wherein, The second modification includes the activation of one or more subbands within one or more of the SBFD symbols of the subset.

27. The method according to claim 26, wherein, The method includes activating one or more subbands within one or more of the SBFD symbols in the subset. If at least one active subband is an uplink subband, then an uplink signal is received from the communication device within said at least one active subband, and / or If the at least one active subband is a downlink subband, then a downlink signal is transmitted to the communication device within the at least one active subband.

28. The method according to claim 26, wherein, One or more of the activated subbands are protection subbands.

29. The method of claim 28, comprising: A third time slot format configuration is sent to the communication device, the third time slot format configuration indicating a third mode for at least a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, wherein, For at least a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, the third mode differs from the second mode, and Based on the transmission of the third time slot format configuration, if at least one of the one or more active guard subbands is located within one or more of the SBFD symbols of the at least portion of the subset, then the at least one guard subband among the one or more active guard subbands is deactivated.

30. The method of claim 29, comprising: If one or more deactivated subbands are located within one or more SBFD symbols of at least a portion of the subset, then the one or more deactivated subbands are reactivated, and If at least one active protection subband is located within one or more of the SBFD symbols of the at least portion of the subset, then the at least one active protection subband is deactivated.

31. The method according to claim 28, wherein, The method includes activating one or more guard subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset. Determine one or more active protection subbands to be activated for a configured time period, and After the configured time period, the one or more active protection subbands are deactivated.

32. The method according to claim 25, wherein, The second modification includes deactivating one or more active subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset.

33. The method according to claim 32, wherein, The method includes, after one or more active subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset are deactivated, Uplink signals are received from the communication device and / or downlink signals are sent to the communication device only in radio resources located outside one or more disabled subbands in one or more time-division time slots.

34. The method according to claim 32, wherein, The method includes, after one or more active subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset are deactivated, If at least one deactivated subband is an uplink subband, a downlink signal is transmitted to the communication device within said at least one deactivated subband, and / or If the at least one deactivated subband is a downlink subband, an uplink signal is received from the communication device within the at least one deactivated subband.

35. The method according to claim 32, wherein, One or more of the SBFD symbols containing one or more deactivated subbands are configured on a flexible symbol, within which the infrastructure equipment is able to receive uplink signals from the communication equipment or send downlink signals to the communication equipment.

36. The method according to claim 32, wherein, The one or more active subbands that are deactivated are a subset of the active subbands within the SBFD symbols of the subset, and wherein one or more other active subbands within the SBFD symbols of the subset are not deactivated.

37. The method of claim 36, comprising: Before sending the second timeslot format configuration, a Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling message is sent to the communication device, wherein... The RRC signaling includes an indication of the subset of the active subbands to be deactivated after the second time slot format configuration is received.

38. The method according to claim 37, wherein, The subset of the activated subbands to be deactivated depends on the type of the second time slot format configuration.

39. The method of claim 32, comprising: A third time slot format configuration is sent to the communication device, the third time slot format configuration indicating a third mode for at least a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, wherein, For at least a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, the third mode differs from the second mode, and Based on the third time slot format configuration, if at least one sub-band of one or more deactivated sub-bands is located within one or more SBFD symbols of the at least portion of the subset, then at least one sub-band of the one or more deactivated sub-bands is reactivated.

40. The method according to claim 32, wherein, The method includes, after one or more active subbands within one or more SBFD symbols of the subset are deactivated, Determine one or more deactivated subbands to be deactivated for a configured time period, and After the configured time period, the one or more deactivated subbands are reactivated.

41. The method of claim 25, comprising: Before sending the second timeslot format configuration, an instruction is sent to the communication device, the instruction instructing the communication device to ignore the second modification.

42. The method according to claim 41, wherein, The instruction that the communication device should ignore the second modification depends on the type of the second time slot format configuration.

43. The method according to claim 25, wherein, The first modification includes the second mode overriding the first mode for non-SBFD symbols of the subset.

44. The method according to claim 25, wherein, The second time slot format configuration is a time slot format indicator (SFI), wherein the SFI is transmitted to the communication device in the group common downlink control information (GC-DCI).

45. The method according to claim 25, wherein, The second time slot format configuration is a semi-static user equipment (UE) dedicated time slot format configuration, wherein the UE dedicated time slot format configuration is transmitted to the communication device in RRC signaling.

46. ​​An infrastructure device forming part of a wireless communication network, the infrastructure device comprising: The transceiver circuit is configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from the communication device, and The controller circuit, in combination with the transceiver circuit, is configured as follows: Sending a first time slot format configuration for one or more time-division time slots of the radio access interface between the communication device and the infrastructure equipment to the communication device, wherein, Each of the one or more time-division time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex SBFD symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode for the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols of the one or more time-division time slots. A second timeslot format configuration is sent to the communication device, the second timeslot format configuration indicating a second mode for a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode differs from the first mode for the subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols. Based on the second time slot format configuration, a first modification is performed on the non-SBFD symbols of the subset, and Based on the second time slot format configuration, a second modification is performed on the SBFD symbols of the subset, wherein the first modification is different from the second modification.

47. A circuit for an infrastructure device forming part of a wireless communication network, the circuit comprising: The transceiver circuit is configured to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from the communication device, and The controller circuit, in combination with the transceiver circuit, is configured as follows: Sending a first time slot format configuration for one or more time-division time slots of the radio access interface between the communication device and the infrastructure equipment to the communication device, wherein, Each of the one or more time-division time slots includes one or more sub-band full-duplex SBFD symbols and / or one or more non-SBFD symbols, and wherein the first time slot format configuration indicates a first mode for the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols of the one or more time-division time slots. A second timeslot format configuration is sent to the communication device, the second timeslot format configuration indicating a second mode for a subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols, wherein the second mode differs from the first mode for the subset of the SBFD symbols and / or the non-SBFD symbols. Based on the second time slot format configuration, a first modification is performed on the non-SBFD symbols of the subset, and Based on the second time slot format configuration, a second modification is performed on the SBFD symbols of the subset, wherein the first modification is different from the second modification.

48. A wireless communication system comprising the communication device according to claim 23 and the infrastructure device according to claim 46.

49. A computer program comprising instructions that, when loaded onto a computer, cause the computer to perform the method according to claim 1 or claim 25.

50. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program according to claim 49.

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