METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SIDELINK RESOURCE ALLOCATION - Patent application

Abstract

A method of data transmission performed by a first user equipment (UE) includes receiving, by the first UE, one or more configuration parameters indicating a first set of time and frequency resources associated with partial sensing in sidelink communication, monitoring sidelink control information (SCI) in one or more resources determined based on the partial sensing and further based on the one or more configuration parameters, receiving the SCI from a second UE based on the monitoring, and receiving sidelink data from the second UE based on the SCI. The first set of time and frequency resources can include one or more time slots in a same frequency subband, and the first set of time and frequency resources may include one or more time slots in one or more frequency subbands.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 242,132, filed September 9, 2021 (the "Provisional Patent Application"), the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. [Background technology]

[0002] The present invention relates to the fifth generation mobile network, 5G, which is the new global wireless standard after 1G, 2G, 3G and 4G networks. 5G enables networks designed to connect machines, objects and devices.

[0003] The present invention relates more particularly to a method of data transmission dependent on one or more configuration parameters indicating a first set of time and frequency resources associated with partial sensing in sidelink communication. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In one embodiment, the present invention provides a method of data transmission implemented by a first user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving, by the first UE, one or more configuration parameters indicating a first set of time and frequency resources associated with partial sensing in sidelink communication; monitoring sidelink control information (SCI) in the one or more resources determined based on the partial sensing and further based on the one or more configuration parameters; receiving the SCI from a second UE based on the monitoring; and receiving sidelink data from the second UE based on the SCI. The first set of time and frequency resources may include one or more time slots in a same frequency subband, and the first set of time and frequency resources may include one or more time slots in one or more frequency subbands.

[0005] The one or more configuration parameters may be transmitted via a dedicated channel defined for transmission of the first set of time and frequency resources. The one or more configuration parameters may be transmitted quasi-statically via a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH). Receiving the sidelink data may be based on a second set of time and frequency resources, and the second set of time and frequency resources may be selected based on sensing the first set of time and frequency resources such that no collisions occur within the second set of time and frequency resources. The method performs a preemption check before receiving traffic in the second set of time and frequency resources to determine whether any other traffic collides with resources in the second set. The sidelink data may be periodic traffic. The sidelink data may be aperiodic traffic. The base station (BS) may configure resources in the first set of time and frequency resources.

[0006] In the method, a first user equipment (UE) may be configured with discontinuous reception (DRX). The first set of time and frequency resources may be within a DRX-on period. In that regard, the first user equipment (UE) may be configured with a wake-up signal (WUS), which may inform the first UE to wake up and monitor sidelink control information (SCI) within the first set of time and frequency resources.

[0007] In one embodiment, the present invention provides a user equipment (UE) having one or more processors and a memory storing instructions, which when executed by the one or more processors, cause the UE to: receive one or more configuration parameters indicating a first set of time and frequency resources associated with partial sensing in sidelink communication; monitor sidelink control information (SCI) in one or more resources determined based on the partial sensing and further based on the one or more configuration parameters; receive the SCI from a second UE based on the monitoring; and receive sidelink data from the second UE based on the SCI. Preferably, the first set of time and frequency resources includes one or more time slots in a same frequency subband. The first set of time and frequency resources may include one or more time slots in one or more frequency subbands. The one or more configuration parameters may be transmitted via a dedicated channel defined for transmission of the first set of time and frequency resources. The one or more configuration parameters may be transmitted semi-statically via a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH).

[0008] In the user equipment (UE), receiving sidelink data can be based on a second set of time and frequency resources, and the second set of time and frequency resources can be selected based on sensing the first set of time and frequency resources such that no collision occurs within the second set of time and frequency resources. The instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, may further cause the UE to perform a preemption check before receiving traffic in the second set of time and frequency resources to determine whether any other traffic collides with resources in the second set. The sidelink data may be periodic or aperiodic traffic. In that regard, the base station (BS) may configure resources in the first set of time and frequency resources. The first user equipment (UE) may also be configured with discontinuous reception (DRX). The first set of time and frequency resources is preferably within a DRX on period. A first user equipment (UE) may be configured with a wake-up signal (WUS) that informs the first UE to wake up and monitor sidelink control information (SCI) within a first set of time and frequency resources.

[0009] In one embodiment, the present invention provides a method of data transmission implemented by a base station. The method includes transmitting, by the base station, to a first user equipment (UE), one or more configuration parameters indicating a first set of time and frequency resources associated with partial sensing in sidelink communication, where sidelink control information (SCI) is monitored in one or more resources determined based on the partial sensing and further based on the one or more configuration parameters, the SCI is received from a second UE based on the monitoring, and sidelink data is received from the second UE based on the SCI. The first set of time and frequency resources may include one or more time slots in a same frequency subband. The first set of time and frequency resources may include one or more time slots in one or more frequency subbands. The method may also include transmitting the one or more configuration parameters via a dedicated channel defined for transmission of the first set of time and frequency resources.

[0010] The one or more configuration parameters may be transmitted semi-statically via a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH). Receiving the sidelink data may be based on a second set of time and frequency resources, which may be selected based on sensing the first set of time and frequency resources such that no collisions occur within the second set of time and frequency resources. A preemption check may be performed before receiving traffic in the second set of time and frequency resources to determine whether any other traffic collides with resources of the second set. The sidelink data may be periodic traffic or aperiodic traffic. The method may further include configuring, by the base station, resources in the first set of time and frequency resources. The method may further include configuring the first user equipment (UE) with discontinuous reception (DRX). The first set of time and frequency resources may be within a DRX on period. A first user equipment (UE) may be configured with a wake-up signal (WUS) that informs the first UE to wake up and monitor sidelink control information (SCI) within a first set of time and frequency resources.

[0011] In one embodiment, the present invention provides a base station having one or more processors and a memory storing instructions, the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, causing the base station to transmit to a first user equipment (UE) one or more configuration parameters indicating a first set of time and frequency resources associated with partial sensing in sidelink communication, sidelink control information (SCI) is monitored in one or more resources determined based on the partial sensing and further based on the one or more configuration parameters, the SCI is received from a second UE based on the monitoring, and sidelink data is received from the second UE based on the SCI. The first set of time and frequency resources may include one or more time slots in a same frequency subband. The first set of time and frequency resources may include one or more time slots in one or more frequency subbands.

[0012] The instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, may further cause the base station to transmit one or more configuration parameters over a dedicated channel defined for transmission of the first set of time and frequency resources. The one or more configuration parameters may be transmitted semi-statically over a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH). Receiving the sidelink data may be based on a second set of time and frequency resources, which may be selected based on sensing the first set of time and frequency resources such that no collisions occur within the second set of time and frequency resources. A preemption check may be performed before receiving traffic in the second set of time and frequency resources to determine whether any other traffic collides with resources of the second set. The sidelink data may be periodic or aperiodic traffic.

[0013] The instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, may further cause the base station to configure resources of the first set of time and frequency resources. The instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, may further cause the UE to configure a first user equipment (UE) with discontinuous reception (DRX). The first set of time and frequency resources may be within a DRX on period. The first user equipment (UE) may be configured with a wake-up signal (WUS), which informs the first UE to wake up and monitor sidelink control information (SCI) in the first set of time and frequency resources.

[0014] In one embodiment, the present invention provides a system comprising: a base station; and a user equipment (UE), the UE comprising one or more processors and a memory storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the UE to: receive from the base station one or more configuration parameters indicating a first set of time and frequency resources associated with partial sensing in sidelink communication; monitor sidelink control information (SCI) on the one or more resources determined based on the partial sensing and further based on the one or more configuration parameters; receive the SCI from a second UE based on the monitoring; and receive sidelink data from the second UE based on the SCI. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a mobile communication system in accordance with some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 2A] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a radio protocol stack for the user plane and the control plane, in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 2B]FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a radio protocol stack for the user plane and the control plane, in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 3A] FIG. 2 illustrates an example mapping between logical channels and transport channels in the downlink in accordance with some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 3B] FIG. 2 illustrates an example mapping between logical channels and transport channels in the uplink in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 3C] FIG. 1 illustrates an example mapping between logical channels and transport channels in a sidelink in accordance with some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 4A] FIG. 2 illustrates an example mapping between transport channels and physical channels in the downlink in accordance with some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 4B] FIG. 2 illustrates an example mapping between transport channels and physical channels in the uplink in accordance with some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 4C] FIG. 1 illustrates an example mapping between transport channels and physical channels in a sidelink in accordance with some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 5A] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a radio protocol stack for NR sidelink communications in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 5B] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a radio protocol stack for NR sidelink communications in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 5C] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a radio protocol stack for NR sidelink communications in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 5D]FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a radio protocol stack for NR sidelink communications in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 illustrates example physical signals in the downlink, uplink, and sidelink in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of Radio Resource Control (RRC) states and transitions between different RRC states in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 illustrates an example frame structure and physical resources in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 9] 1A-1C are diagrams illustrating example component carrier configurations in different carrier aggregation scenarios in accordance with certain aspects of various example embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 10] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a sidelink (SL) communication system in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 11] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a SL resource allocation process in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 12] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a SL resource allocation process in different frequency subbands in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 13] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a SL resource allocation process with preemption for periodic traffic in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 14] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a SL resource allocation process with preemption for non-periodic traffic in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 15] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a SL resource allocation process for a UE configured with discontinuous reception (DRX) in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 16] FIG. 2 illustrates example components of a user equipment for transmission and / or reception in accordance with some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 17] FIG. 2 illustrates example components of a base station for transmission and / or reception in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 18] FIG. 1 is a flow diagram illustrating a resource allocation method performed by a remote UE in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 19] FIG. 11 is a flow diagram illustrating a resource allocation method implemented by a relay UE in accordance with certain aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0016] 1 illustrates an example of a mobile communication system 100 according to some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. The mobile communication system 100 may be operated by a wireless communication system operator, such as a mobile network operator (MNO), a private network operator, a multi-system operator (MSO), an Internet of Things (IOT) network operator, etc., and may provide services such as voice, data (e.g., wireless Internet access), messaging, vehicular communication services such as vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication services, safety services, mission-critical services, IoT, industrial IOT (IIOT) and other services in residential, commercial, or industrial environments.

[0017] The mobile communication system 100 may enable various types of applications with different requirements in terms of latency, reliability, throughput, etc. Examples of supported applications include enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC), and massive machine-type communications (mMTC). eMBB may support stable connections with high peak data rates and moderate rates for cell-edge users. URLLC may support applications with stringent requirements in terms of latency and reliability, and moderate requirements in terms of data rates. An exemplary mMTC application includes a network of a large number of IoT devices that are only sporadically active and transmit small data payloads.

[0018] The mobile communication system 100 may include a radio access network (RAN) portion and a core network portion. The example shown in FIG. 1 illustrates a Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN) 105 and a 5G Core Network (5g-CN) 110 as examples of the RAN and the core network, respectively. Other examples of the RAN and the core network may be implemented without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Other examples of the RAN include an Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (EUTRAN), a Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRAN), and the like. Other examples of the core network include an Evolved Packet Core (EPC), a UMTS Core Network (UCN), and the like. The RAN implements a radio access technology (RAT) and resides between the user equipment (UE) 125 and the core network. Examples of such RATs include New Radio (NR), Long Term Evolution (LTE), also known as Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (EUTRA), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), and the like. The RAT of the exemplary mobile communication system 100 may be NR. The core network resides between the RAN and one or more external networks (e.g., data networks) and is responsible for functions such as mobility management, authentication, session management, bearer setup, and application of different Quality of Service (QoS). The functional layer between the UE 125 and the RAN (e.g., the NG-RAN 105) may be referred to as the Access Stratum (AS), and the functional layer between the UE 125 and the core network (e.g., the 5G-CN 110) may be referred to as the Non-Access Stratum (NAS).

[0019] The UE 125 may include wireless transmitting and receiving means for communicating with one or more nodes in a RAN, one or more relay nodes, or one or more other UEs, etc. Examples of UEs include, but are not limited to, smartphones, tablets, laptops, computers, wireless transmitting and / or receiving units in vehicles, V2X or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) devices, wireless sensors, IoT devices, IIOT devices, etc. Other names may be used for a UE, such as mobile station (MS), terminal equipment, terminal node, client device, mobile device, etc.

[0020] The RAN may include nodes (e.g., base stations) for communicating with UEs. For example, the NG-RAN 105 of the mobile communication system 100 may include nodes for communicating with the UE 125. Different names may be used for the RAN nodes depending, for example, on the RAT used for the RAN. The RAN nodes may be referred to as Node Bs (NBs) in a RAN using the UMTS RAT. The RAN nodes may be referred to as Evolved Node Bs (eNBs) in a RAN using the LTE / EUTRA RAT. In the illustrative example of the mobile communication system 100 in FIG. 1, the nodes of the NG-RAN 105 may be either Next Generation Node Bs (gNBs) 115 or Next Generation Evolved Node Bs (ng-eNBs) 120. In this specification, the terms base station, RAN node, gNB, and ng-eNB may be used interchangeably. The gNBs 115 may provide NR user plane and control plane protocol terminations to the UE 125. The ng-eNBs 120 may provide E-UTRA user plane and control plane protocol terminations to the UE 125. The interface between the gNB 115 and the UE 125, or between the ng-eNB 120 and the UE 125, may be referred to as a Uu interface. The Uu interface may be established using a user plane protocol stack and a control plane protocol stack. For the Uu interface, the direction from the base station (e.g., the gNB 115 or the ng-eNB 120) to the UE 125 may be referred to as a downlink, and the direction from the UE 125 to the base station (e.g., the gNB 115 or the ng-eNB 120) may be referred to as an uplink.

[0021] The gNB 115 and the ng-eNB 120 may be interconnected using an Xn interface. The Xn interface may comprise an Xn User Plane (Xn-U) interface and an Xn Control Plane (Xn-C) interface. The transport network layer of the Xn-U interface may be built on Internet Protocol (IP) transport, and GPRS Tunneling Protocol (GTP) may be used on top of User Datagram Protocol (UDP) / IP to carry user plane protocol data units (PDUs). Xn-U may provide non-guaranteed delivery of user plane PDUs and may support data forwarding and flow control. The transport network layer of the Xn-C interface may be built on Stream Control Transport Protocol (SCTP) on top of IP. The application layer signaling protocol may be referred to as XnAP (Xn Application Protocol). The SCTP layer may provide guaranteed delivery of application layer messages. At the transport IP layer, point-to-point transmission may be used to deliver the signaling PDUs. The Xn-C interface may support Xn interface management, UE mobility management including context transfer and RAN paging, and dual connectivity.

[0022] The gNB 115 and the ng-eNB 120 may also be connected to the 5GC 110 by an NG interface, more specifically to the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 130 of the 5GC 110 by an NG-C interface, and further to the User Plane Function (UPF) 135 of the 5GC 110 by an NG-U interface. The transport network layer of the NG-U interface may be built on IP transport, and the GTP protocol may be used on top of UDP / IP to carry user plane PDUs between the NG-RAN node (e.g., the gNB 115 or the ng-eNB 120) and the UPF 135. The NG-U may provide non-guaranteed delivery of user plane PDUs between the NG-RAN node and the UPF. The transport network layer of the NG-C interface may be built on IP transport. SCTP may be added on top of IP for reliable transport of signaling messages. The application layer signaling protocol may be referred to as NGAP (NG Application Protocol). The SCTP layer may provide guaranteed delivery of application layer messages. For transport, IP layer point-to-point transmission may be used to deliver signaling PDUs. The NG-C interface may provide the following functions: NG interface management; UE context management; UE mobility management; forwarding of NAS messages; paging; PDU session management; configuration forwarding; and alert message transmission.

[0023] The gNB 115 or ng-eNB 120 may host one or more of the following functions: radio resource management functions such as radio bearer control, radio admission control, connection mobility control, dynamic allocation of resources to UEs in both uplink and downlink (e.g., scheduling); IP and Ethernet header compression, encryption and integrity protection of data; selection of the AMF at UE attachment if routing to the AMF cannot be determined from information provided by the UE; routing of user plane data to the UPF; routing of control plane information to the AMF; connection setup and release; scheduling of paging messages. NR and E-UTRA; maintaining security and radio configuration for user plane 5G System (5GS) Cellular IoT (CIoT) optimization.

[0024] The AMF130 may host one or more of the following functions: NAS signaling termination; NAS signaling security; AS security control; CN inter-node signaling for mobility between 3GPP access networks; idle mode UE reachability (including control and execution of paging retransmissions); registration area management; support for intra-system and inter-system mobility; access authentication; access authorization including verification of roaming rights; mobility management control (subscription and policy); support for network slicing; Session Management Function (SMF) selection; and 5GS CIoT optimization selection.

[0025] The UPF 135 may host one or more of the following functions: anchor point for intra / inter-RAT mobility (if applicable); external PDU session point of interconnection to the data network; packet routing and forwarding; packet inspection and user plane part of policy rule enforcement; traffic usage reporting; uplink classifier to support routing of traffic flows to the data network; branching point to support multi-homed PDU sessions; QoS processing for the user plane, e.g., packet filtering, gating, UL / DL rate enforcement; uplink traffic validation (Service Data Flow (SDF) to QoS flow mapping); downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 1, the NG-RAN 105 may support a PC5 interface between two UEs 125 (e.g., UE 125A and UE 125B). In the PC5 interface, the direction of communication between the two UEs (e.g., from UE 125A to UE 125B or vice versa) may be referred to as a sidelink. Sidelink transmission and reception over the PC5 interface may be supported when the UE 125 is within NG-RAN 105 coverage and when the UE is out of NG-RAN 105 coverage, regardless of which RRC state the UE 125 is in. Support for V2X services over the PC5 interface may be provided by NR sidelink communication and / or V2X sidelink communication.

[0027] PC5-S signaling may be used for unicast link establishment with direct communication request / accept messages. A UE may self-assign a source Layer 2 ID for a PC5 unicast link, for example based on the V2X service type. During the unicast link establishment procedure, a UE may send its source Layer 2 ID for a PC5 unicast link to a peer UE, for example a UE for which the destination ID was received from a higher layer. The source Layer 2 ID and destination Layer 2 ID pair may uniquely identify a unicast link. The receiving UE may verify that the destination ID belongs to it and may accept the unicast link establishment request from the source UE. During the PC5 unicast link establishment procedure, PC5-RRC procedures on the access stratum may be invoked for the purpose of UE sidelink context establishment as well as for AS layer configuration, capability exchange, etc. PC5-RRC signaling may enable the exchange of AS layer configurations such as UE capabilities and sidelink radio bearer configurations between the pair of UEs for which the PC5 unicast link is established.

[0028] NR sidelink communication may support one of three types of transmission modes (e.g., unicast transmission, groupcast transmission, and broadcast transmission) for a pair of source Layer 2 ID and destination Layer 2 ID in an AS. The unicast transmission mode may be characterized by: support of one PC5-RRC connection between peer UEs for the pair; transmission and reception of control information and user traffic between peer UEs in the sidelink; support of sidelink HARQ feedback; support of sidelink transmit power control; support of RLC acknowledged mode (AM); and detection of radio link failure for PC5-RRC connection. The groupcast transmission may be characterized by: transmission and reception of user traffic between UEs belonging to a group in the sidelink; and support of sidelink HARQ feedback. The broadcast transmission may be characterized by: transmission and reception of user traffic between UEs in the sidelink.

[0029] For NR sidelink communication, a source Layer-2 ID, a destination Layer-2 ID, and a PC5 link identifier may be used. The source Layer-2 ID may identify the source of data in the NR sidelink communication. The source Layer-2 ID may be 24 bits long and may be split into two bit strings at the MAC layer. One bit string may be the LSB portion (8 bits) of the source Layer-2 ID and may be forwarded to the sender's physical layer. This may identify the intended source of data in the sidelink control information and may be used for packet filtering at the receiver's physical layer, and the second bit string may be the MSB portion (16 bits) of the source Layer-2 ID and may be carried in a medium access control (MAC) header. This may be used for packet filtering at the receiver's MAC layer. The destination Layer-2 ID may identify the target of data in the NR sidelink communication. For NR sidelink communication, the destination Layer 2 ID may be 24 bits long and may be split into two bit strings at the MAC layer, one bit string may be the LSB part (16 bits) of the destination Layer 2 ID and may be forwarded to the sender's physical layer. This may identify the target of the intended data in the sidelink control information and may be used for packet filtering at the receiver's physical layer, and the second bit string may be the MSB part (8 bits) of the destination Layer 2 ID and may be carried in the MAC header. This may be used for packet filtering at the receiver's MAC layer. The PC5 link identifier may uniquely identify a PC5 unicast link in the UE for the lifetime of the PC5 unicast link. The PC5 link identifier may be used to indicate the PC5 unicast link for which a sidelink Radio Link Failure (RLF) declaration has been made and the PC5-RRC connection has been released.

[0030] 2A and 2B illustrate example radio protocol stacks for the user plane and control plane, respectively, in accordance with some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 2A, the protocol stack for the user plane of the Uu interface (between the UE 125 and the gNB 115) includes Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) 201 and SDAP 211, Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) 202 and PDCP 212, Radio Link Control (RLC) 203 and RLC 213, MAC 204 and MAC 214 sublayers of Layer 2, and Physical (PHY) 205 and PHY 215 layers (Layer 1 is also referred to as L1).

[0031] The PHY 205 and PHY 215 provide transport channels 244 to the MAC 204 and MAC 214 sublayers. The MAC 204 and MAC 214 sublayers provide logical channels 243 to the RLC 203 and RLC 213 sublayers. The RLC 203 and RLC 213 sublayers provide RLC channels 242 to the PDCP 202 and PCP 212 sublayers. The PDCP 202 and PDCP 212 sublayers provide radio bearers 241 to the SDAP 201 and SDAP 211 sublayers. The radio bearers can be classified into two groups: Data Radio Bearers (DRBs) for user plane data and Signaling Radio Bearers (SRBs) for control plane data. The SDAP 201 and SDAP 211 sublayers provide QoS flows 240 to the 5GC.

[0032] The main services and functions of the MAC204 or MAC214 sublayer include mapping between logical channels and transport channels; multiplexing / demultiplexing of MAC Service Data Units (SDUs) belonging to one or different logical channels to / from Transport Blocks (TBs) passed to / from the physical layer on transport channels; scheduling information reporting; error correction with Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) (one HARQ entity per cell in case of Carrier Aggregation (CA)); priority handling between UEs with dynamic scheduling; priority handling between logical channels of one UE with Logical Channel Prioritization (LCP); priority handling between overlapped resources of one UE; and padding. A single MAC entity may support multiple numerologies, transmission timings and cells. Mapping restrictions in logical channel prioritization control which numerologies, cells and transmission timings a logical channel may use.

[0033] The HARQ function may ensure delivery between peer entities at Layer 1. If the physical layer is not configured for downlink / uplink spatial multiplexing, a single HARQ process may support one TB, and if the physical layer is configured for downlink / uplink spatial multiplexing, a single HARQ process may support one or multiple TBs.

[0034] The RLC 203 or RLC 213 sublayer may support three transmission modes: Transparent Mode (TM); Unacknowledged Mode (UM); and Acknowledged Mode (AM). The RLC configuration may be per logical channel independent of the numerology and / or transmission time, and Automatic Repeat Request (ARQ) may operate on any of the numerologies and / or transmission times for which the logical channel is configured.

[0035] The main services and functions of the RLC203 or RLC213 sublayer depend on the transmission mode (e.g., TM, UM, or AM) and may include: transfer of higher layer PDUs; sequence numbers independent of the PDCP sequence numbers (UM and AM); error correction with ARQ (AM only); segmentation (AM and UM) and resegmentation (AM only); reassembly of SDUs (AM and UM); duplicate detection (AM only); RLC SDU discard (AM and UM); RLC re-establishment; and protocol error detection (AM only).

[0036] The automatic repeat request in the RLC203 or RLC213 sublayer may have the following properties: ARQ retransmits an RLC SDU or an RLC SDU segment based on an RLC status report; polling for RLC status notification may be used if required by RLC; the RLC receiver may also trigger an RLC status notification after detecting a missing RLC SDU or an RLC SDU segment.

[0037] The main services and functions of the PDCP202 or PDCP212 sublayer may include: forwarding of data (user plane or control plane); maintaining the PDCP sequence number (SN); header compression and decompression using the Robust Header Compression (ROHC) protocol; header compression and decompression using the EHC protocol; encryption and decryption; integrity protection and integrity verification; timer-based SDU discard; split bearer routing; duplication; reordering and in-order delivery; out-of-order delivery; and duplicate discarding.

[0038] The main services and functions of the SDAP 201 or SDAP 211 may include: mapping between QoS flows and data radio bearers; and marking of QoS Flow ID (QFI) in both downlink and uplink packets. A single protocol entity of the SDAP may be configured for each individual PDU session.

[0039] As shown in FIG. 2B, the control plane protocol stack of the Uu interface (between UE 125 and gNB 115) includes the PHY layer (Layer 1), the MAC, RLC and PDCP sublayers of Layer 2, and further the RRC 206 and RRC 216 sublayers, as described above. The main services and functions of the RRC206 and RRC216 sublayers on the Uu interface include: broadcast of system information related to AS and NAS; paging initiated by 5GC or NG-RAN; establishment, maintenance, and release of RRC connection between UE and NG-RAN (including adding, modifying, and releasing carrier aggregation; adding, modifying, and releasing dual connectivity between NR or E-UTRA and NR); security functions including key management; establishment, configuration, maintenance, and release of SRB and DRB; mobility functions (including handover and context transfer; UE cell selection and reselection and control of cell selection and reselection; and inter-RAT mobility); QoS management functions; UE measurement reporting and reporting control; radio link failure detection and recovery; and NAS message transfer to and from the NAS to and from the UE. The NAS207 and NAS227 layers are control protocols (terminated in the AMF on the network side) that implement functions such as authentication, mobility management, security control, etc.

[0040] Sidelink specific services and functions of the RRC sublayer over the Uu interface may include: configuration of sidelink resource allocation via system information or dedicated signaling; reporting of UE sidelink information; sidelink related measurement configuration and reporting; and reporting of UE assistance information for SL traffic patterns.

[0041] 3A, 3B, and 3C show example mappings between logical channels and transport channels in the downlink, uplink, and sidelink, respectively, according to some aspects of various example embodiments of the present disclosure. Different types of data transfer services may be provided by the MAC. Each logical channel type may be defined according to what type of information is transferred. The logical channels may be classified into two groups: control channels and traffic channels. The control channels may be used only for transfer of control plane information. The Broadcast Control Channel (BCCH) is a downlink channel for broadcasting system control information. The Paging Control Channel (PCCH) is a downlink channel that carries paging messages. The Common Control Channel (CCCH) is a channel for transmitting control information between the UE and the network. This channel may be used for UEs that do not have an RRC connection with the network. The Dedicated Control Channel (DCCH) is a point-to-point bidirectional channel that transmits dedicated control information between the UE and the network, and may be used by UEs that have an RRC connection. The traffic channels may be used only for transfer of user plane information. A Dedicated Traffic Channel (DTCH) is a point-to-point channel dedicated to one UE for transferring user information. A DTCH can exist in both uplink and downlink. A Sidelink Control Channel (SCCH) is a sidelink channel for transmitting control information (e.g., PC5-RRC and PC5-S messages) from one UE to other UEs. A Sidelink Traffic Channel (STCH) is a sidelink channel for transmitting user information from one UE to other UEs. A Sidelink Broadcast Control Channel (SBCCH) is a sidelink channel for broadcasting sidelink system information from one UE to other UEs.

[0042] Downlink transport channel types include Broadcast Channel (BCH), Downlink Shared Channel (DL-SCH), and Paging Channel (PCH). BCH may be characterized by a fixed, predefined transport format; a requirement to be broadcast throughout the coverage area of ​​a cell, either as a single message or by beamforming different BCH instances. DL-SCH may be characterized by support for HARQ; support for dynamic link adaptation by varying modulation, coding, and transmit power; the possibility of being broadcast throughout the cell; the possibility of using beamforming; support for both dynamic and semi-static resource allocation; and support for UE discontinuous reception (DRX) to enable UE power saving. DL-SCH may be characterized by support for HARQ; support for dynamic link adaptation by varying modulation, coding, and transmit power; the possibility of being broadcast throughout the cell; the possibility of using beamforming; support for both dynamic and semi-static resource allocation; and support for UE discontinuous reception (DRX) to enable UE power saving. The PCH may be characterized by: support for UE Discontinuous Reception (DRX) to enable UE power saving (DRX cycle is indicated to the UE by the network); the requirement to be broadcast throughout the coverage area of ​​a cell, either as a single message or by beamforming different BCH instances; mapping to physical resources that can also be dynamically used for traffic / other control channels.

[0043] In the downlink, the following connections may exist between logical channels and transport channels: BCCH may be mapped to BCH; BCCH may be mapped to DL-SCH; PCCH may be mapped to PCH; CCCH may be mapped to DL-SCH; DCCH may be mapped to DL-SCH; DTCH may be mapped to DL-SCH.

[0044] Uplink transport channel types include the Uplink Shared Channel (UL-SCH) and the Random Access Channel (RACH). The UL-SCH may be characterized by: the possibility of using beamforming; support for dynamic link adaptation by varying transmit power and potentially modulation and coding; support for HARQ; support for both dynamic and quasi-static resource allocation. The RACH may be characterized by limited control information; and collision risk.

[0045] In the uplink, the following connections may exist between logical channels and transport channels: CCCH may be mapped to UL-SCH; DCCH may be mapped to UL-SCH; DTCH may be mapped to UL-SCH.

[0046] Sidelink transport channel types include a Sidelink Broadcast Channel (SL-BCH) and a Sidelink Shared Channel (SL-SCH). The SL-BCH may be characterized by a predefined transport format. The SL-SCH may be characterized by support for unicast, groupcast, and broadcast transmissions; support for both UE autonomous resource selection and scheduled resource allocation by the NG-RAN; support for both dynamic and semi-static resource allocation when the UE is assigned resources by the NG-RAN; support for HARQ; and support for dynamic link adaptation by varying transmit power, modulation, and coding.

[0047] In the sidelink, the following connections may exist between logical channels and transport channels: SCCH may be mapped to SL-SCH; STCH may be mapped to SL-SCH; SBCCH may be mapped to SL-BCH.

[0048] 4A, 4B, and 4C illustrate example mappings between transport channels and physical channels in the downlink, uplink, and sidelink, respectively, in accordance with some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. The physical channels in the downlink include a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), and a physical broadcast channel (PBCH). The PCH and DL-SCH transport channels are mapped to the PDSCH. The BCH transport channel is mapped to the PBCH. The transport channels are not mapped to the PDCCH, and downlink control information (DCI) is transmitted via the PDCCH.

[0049] The physical channels in the uplink include the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), and the Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH). The UL-SCH transport channel may be mapped to the PUSCH, and the RACH transport channel may be mapped to the PRACH. The transport channels are not mapped to the PUCCH, and the uplink control information (UCI) is transmitted via the PUCCH.

[0050] The sidelink physical channels include the physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), the physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), the physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH), and the physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH). The physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) may indicate resources and other transmission parameters used by the UE for the PSSCH. The physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) may transmit TBs of the data itself as well as control information such as HARQ procedures and CSI feedback triggers. At least six OFDM symbols in one slot may be used for PSSCH transmission. The physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH) may carry HARQ feedback over the sidelink from the UE that is the intended recipient of the PSSCH transmission to the UE that performed the transmission. The PSFCH sequence may be transmitted in one PRB that is repeated across two OFDM symbols near the edge of the sidelink resources in the slot. The SL-SCH transport channel may be mapped to the PSSCH. The SL-BCH may be mapped to the PSBCH. The transport channel is not mapped to the PSFCH, but the sidelink feedback control information (SFCI) may be mapped to the PSFCH. The transport channel is not mapped to the PSCCH, but the sidelink control information (SCI) may be mapped to the PSCCH.

[0051] 5A, 5B, 5C, and 5D illustrate examples of radio protocol stacks for NR sidelink communication according to some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. The AS protocol stack for the user plane in the PC5 interface (i.e., for STCH) may consist of SDAP, PDCP, RLC and MAC sublayers, and a physical layer. The user plane protocol stack is shown in FIG. 5A. The AS protocol stack for the SBCCH in the PC5 interface may consist of RRC, RLC, MAC sublayers, and a physical layer, as shown below in FIG. 5B. To support the PC5-S protocol, PC5-S is placed above the PDCP, RLC, and MAC sublayers, and a physical layer in the control plane protocol stack for SCCH for PC5-S, as shown in FIG. 5C. The AS protocol stack for the control plane for SCCH for RRC in the PC5 interface consists of RRC, PDCP, RLC and MAC sublayers, and a physical layer. The control plane protocol stack for SCCH for RRC is shown in FIG. 5D.

[0052] Sidelink Radio Bearers (SLRBs) may be classified into two groups: Sidelink Data Radio Bearers (SL DRBs) for user plane data and Sidelink Signaling Radio Bearers (SL SRBs) for control plane data. Separate SL SRBs using different SCCHs may be configured for PC5-RRC and PC5-S signaling, respectively.

[0053] The MAC sublayer may provide the following services and functions over the PC5 interface: radio resource selection; packet filtering; priority handling between uplink and sidelink transmissions for a given UE; and sidelink CSI reporting. Due to the restriction of logical channel prioritization in the MAC, only sidelink logical channels belonging to the same destination may be multiplexed into the MAC PDU for each unicast, groupcast, and broadcast transmission that may be associated with the destination. For packet filtering, a SL-SCH MAC header may be added to the MAC PDU, which includes both the source Layer 2 ID and the destination Layer 2 ID parts. A logical channel identifier (LCID) included in the MAC subheader may uniquely identify a logical channel within the combination of the source Layer 2 ID and the destination Layer 2 ID.

[0054] The services and functions of the RLC sublayer may be supported for the sidelink. Both RLC unacknowledged mode (UM) and acknowledged mode (AM) may be used for unicast transmission, while for groupcast or broadcast transmission, only UM may be used. For UM, only one-way transmission may be supported for groupcast and broadcast.

[0055] The services and functions of the PDCP sublayer for the Uu interface may be supported for the sidelink with some restrictions: out-of-order delivery may only be supported for unicast transmission, and duplication may not be supported over the PC5 interface.

[0056] The SDAP sublayer may provide the following services and functions over the PC5 interface: mapping between QoS flows and sidelink data radio bearers. There may be one SDAP entity per destination for one of unicast, groupcast, and broadcast associated with the destination.

[0057] The RRC sublayer may provide the following services and functions over the PC5 interface: forwarding PC5-RRC messages between peer UEs; maintaining and releasing a PC5-RRC connection between two UEs; detecting sidelink radio link failure for a PC5-RRC connection based on an indication from MAC or RLC. A PC5-RRC connection may be a logical connection between two UEs for a pair of source Layer 2 ID and destination Layer 2 ID that may be considered established after a corresponding PC5 unicast link is established. There may be a one-to-one correspondence between PC5-RRC connections and PC5 unicast links. A UE may have multiple PC5-RRC connections with one or multiple UEs for different pairs of source Layer 2 ID and destination Layer 2 ID. Separate PC5-RRC procedures and messages may be used for a UE to forward UE capabilities and sidelink configurations, including SL-DRB configurations, to a peer UE. Both peer UEs may exchange their UE capabilities and sidelink configurations using separate bidirectional procedures in both sidelink directions.

[0058] FIG. 6 illustrates example physical signals in the downlink, uplink, and sidelink according to some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. Demodulation reference signals (DM-RS) may be used in the downlink, uplink, and sidelink and may be used for channel estimation. DM-RS is a UE-specific reference signal that may be transmitted with the downlink, uplink, or sidelink physical channel and may be used for channel estimation and coherent detection of the physical channel. Phase tracking reference signals (PT-RS) may be used in the downlink, uplink, and sidelink and may be used to track phase and mitigate performance loss due to phase noise. PT-RS may be primarily used to estimate and minimize the impact of common phase error (CPE) on system performance. Due to phase noise characteristics, PT-RS signals may have low density in the frequency domain and high density in the time domain. PT-RS may occur when PT-RS is configured to exist in combination with DM-RS. Positioning reference signals (PRS) may be used in the downlink for positioning using different positioning techniques. The PRS may be used to measure the delay of the downlink transmission by correlating the received signal from the base station with a local replica in the receiver. The Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) may be used in the downlink and the sidelink. The CSI-RS may be used for, among other things, channel state estimation, Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) measurement for mobility and beam management, time / frequency tracking for demodulation. The CSI-RS may be configured UE-specific, but multiple users may share the same CSI-RS resource. The UE may determine the CSI reports and transmit them in the uplink to the base station using the PUCCH or PUSCH. The CSI reports may be carried in the sidelink MAC CE. The Primary Synchronization Signal (PSS) and Secondary Synchronization Signal (SSS) may be used for radio frame synchronization. The PSS and SSS may be used for cell search procedures during initial attach or for mobility purposes.A Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) may be used in the uplink for uplink channel estimation. Similar to CSI-RS, the SRS may serve as a QCL reference for other physical channels, such that it may be configured to be transmitted quasi-collocated with the SRS. Sidelink PSS (S-PSS) and Sidelink SSS (S-SSS) may be used in the sidelink for sidelink synchronization.

[0059] FIG. 7 illustrates an example frame structure and physical resources according to some aspects of various example embodiments of the present disclosure. Downlink or uplink or sidelink transmissions may be organized into frames with a duration of 10 ms consisting of ten 1 ms subframes. Each subframe may consist of 1, 2, 4, ... slots, and the number of slots per subframe may depend on the subcarrier spacing of the carrier on which the transmission takes place. The slot duration may be 14 symbols with normal cyclic prefix (CP) and 12 symbols with extended CP, and may be scaled in time as a function of the subcarrier spacing used such that there is an integer number of slots in a subframe. FIG. 7 illustrates a resource grid in the time and frequency domain. Each element of the resource grid containing one symbol in time and one subcarrier in frequency is referred to as a resource element (RE). A resource block (RB) may be defined as 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain.

[0060] In some examples, with non-slot-based scheduling, the transmission of a packet may occur over a portion of a slot, e.g., 2, 4, or 7 OFDM symbols, which may also be referred to as a minislot. Minislots may be used for low latency applications such as URLLC and operation in unlicensed bands. In some embodiments, minislots may also be used for fast flexible scheduling of services (e.g., preemption of URLLC for eMBB).

[0061] FIG. 8 illustrates example component carrier configurations in different carrier aggregation scenarios according to some aspects of various example embodiments of the present disclosure. In carrier aggregation (CA), two or more component carriers (CCs) may be aggregated. A UE may simultaneously receive or transmit on one or more CCs depending on its capabilities. CA may be supported for both contiguous and non-contiguous CCs in the same band or different bands as shown in FIG. 8. The gNB and the UE may communicate using a serving cell. The serving cell may be associated with at least one downlink CC (e.g., may be associated with only one downlink CC or may be associated with a downlink CC and an uplink CC). The serving cell may be a primary cell (PCell) or a secondary cell (SCell).

[0062] The UE may adjust the timing of its uplink transmission using an uplink timing control procedure. A timing advance (TA) may be used to adjust the uplink frame timing relative to the downlink frame timing. The gNB may determine a desired timing advance setting and provide it to the UE. The UE may use the provided TA to determine its uplink transmission timing relative to the UE's observed downlink receive timing.

[0063] In the RRC connected state, the gNB may be responsible for maintaining the timing advance to keep L1 synchronized. Serving cells with uplinks to which the same timing advance is applied and using the same timing reference cell are grouped into a Timing Advance Group (TAG). A TAG may contain at least one serving cell with a configured uplink. The mapping of serving cells to TAGs may be configured by RRC. For a primary TAG, the UE may use the PCell as the timing reference cell, except for shared spectrum channel access where the SCell may also be used as the timing reference cell in some cases. For a secondary TAG, the UE may use any of the activated SCells of this TAG as the timing reference cell and may not change it unless necessary.

[0064] Timing advance updates may be signaled by the gNB to the UE via a MAC CE command. Such a command may restart a TAG-specific timer that may indicate whether L1 can be synchronized or not; when the timer is running, L1 may be considered synchronized, otherwise L1 may be considered unsynchronized (uplink transmissions may only be made on the PRACH in this case).

[0065] A UE with single timing advance capability for CA may simultaneously receive and / or transmit multiple CCs corresponding to multiple serving cells (multiple serving cells grouped into one TAG) sharing the same timing advance. A UE with multiple timing advance capability for CA may simultaneously receive and / or transmit multiple CCs corresponding to multiple serving cells (multiple serving cells grouped into multiple TAGs) with different timing advances. NG-RAN may ensure that each TAG contains at least one serving cell. A non-CA capable UE may receive on a single CC and transmit on a single CC corresponding to only one serving cell (one serving cell in one TAG).

[0066] The multi-carrier property of the physical layer in case of CA may be exposed to the MAC layer and one HARQ entity may be required per serving cell. If CA is configured, the UE may have one RRC connection with the network. In RRC connection establishment / re-establishment / handover, one serving cell (e.g., PCell) may provide NAS mobility information. Depending on the UE capabilities, the SCell may be configured to form a set of serving cells together with the PCell. The set of serving cells configured for the UE may consist of one PCell and one or more SCells. Reconfiguration, addition, and removal of SCells may be performed by RRC.

[0067] In a dual connectivity scenario, a UE may be configured with multiple cells including a Master Cell Group (MCG) for communicating with a master base station, a Secondary Cell Group (SCG) for communicating with a secondary base station, and two MAC entities, one for the MCG for communicating with the master base station and one for the SCG for communicating with the secondary base station.

[0068] FIG. 9 illustrates an example bandwidth portion configuration and switching according to some aspects of various example embodiments of the present disclosure. A UE may be configured with one or more bandwidth portions (BWPs) 910 in a given component carrier. In some examples, one of the one or more bandwidth portions may be activated at a time. The active bandwidth portion may define the UE's operating bandwidth within the operating bandwidth of the cell. For initial access, an initial bandwidth portion 920 determined from system information may be used until the UE's configuration in the cell is received. In bandwidth adaptation (BA), for example, by BWP switching 940, the UE's reception and transmission bandwidths may not be as large as the cell's bandwidth and may be adjusted. For example, the widths may be sequenced to change (e.g., shrink during low activity periods to save power), the positions may move in the frequency domain (e.g., to increase scheduling flexibility), and the subcarrier spacings may be sequenced to change (e.g., to enable different services). The first active BWP 920 may be the active BWP at the time of RRC (re)configuration of the PCell or activation of the SCell.

[0069] For a downlink BWP or an uplink BWP in a set of downlink or uplink BWPs, respectively, the UE may be provided with the following configuration parameters: subcarrier spacing (SCS); cyclic prefix; common RBs and a number of consecutive RBs; index in the set of downlink or uplink BWPs by the respective BWP-Id; a set of BWP common parameters and a set of BWP-specific parameters. A BWP may be associated with an OFDM numerology according to the subcarrier spacing and cyclic prefix configured for the BWP. For a serving cell, the UE may be provided with a default downlink BWP among the configured downlink BWPs. If the UE is not provided with a default downlink BWP, the default downlink BWP may be the initial downlink BWP.

[0070] A downlink BWP may be associated with a BWP inactivity timer. If a BWP inactivity timer associated with an active downlink BWP expires and a default downlink BWP is configured, the UE may perform a BWP switch to the default BWP. If a BWP inactivity timer associated with an active downlink BWP expires and a default downlink BWP is not configured, the UE may perform a BWP switch to an initial downlink BWP.

[0071] FIG. 10 illustrates an example of a sidelink communication scheme 1000 for forward / reverse link operation according to some aspects of the present disclosure. The scheme 1000 may be employed by UEs 125A-125B in a network, such as the network 100, for sidelink communication. In particular, a sidelink UE may employ the scheme 1000 for sidelink control information (SCI) and sidelink data over a sidelink link. For example, a relay UE 1005 may transmit SCI / sidelink data to a remote UE 1003 over a forward link 1009, and the remote UE 1003 may transmit SCI / sidelink data to the relay UE 1005 over a reverse link 1012. In the scheme 1000, the relay UE 1005, which is within the coverage area 1004 of the BS 1003 and communicates with the BS 1003 over a link 1007, may operate as a relay for the remote UE 1003. For example, the UE 1005 may relay DL SCI / Data from the BS 1003 to the UE 1003 via a forward link 1009 and / or relay UL SCI / Data from the UE 1003 to the BS 1003 via a reverse link 1012. The BS 1004 may be similar to the gNBs 11A-11B. The relay UE 1005 may be similar to the relay UE 125A and the remote UE 125B may be similar to the remote UE 125B. In some examples, the relay UE 1005 may act as a relay for a group of remote UEs 1003.

[0072] In the scheme 1000, the relay UE 1005 may communicate with the remote UE 1003 using a resource pool. In some examples, the resource pool may be pre-configured by the BS 1004 or the relay UE 1005 and indicated to the remote UE 1003 via the relay UE 1005. In some examples, the remote UE 1003 may randomly select resources in the resource pool. In some variations, the UE 1005 may sense the entire resource pool to enable the entire resource pool to communicate with the relay UE 1005. In some variations, the remote UE 1003 may sense a portion of the resource pool to enable a portion of the resource pool to communicate with the relay UE 1005. For example, the UE 1003 may measure received signal received power (RSRP) in different RBs of the resource pool to enable partial or complete resource selection and avoid collisions in the selected resource pool.

[0073] FIG. 11 illustrates an example of sidelink resource pool selection according to some aspects of the disclosure. The scheme 1100 may be employed by UEs 125A-125B in a network, such as network 100, for sidelink communications. In particular, a sidelink UE may employ the scheme 1100 for SCI monitoring and sidelink data communications over sidelink forward / reverse links. In some aspects, the scheme 1100 may be employed in conjunction with the scheme 1000 of FIG. 10. In FIG. 1100, the x-axis represents time in arbitrary units and the y-axis represents frequency in arbitrary units. The sidelink resource pool 1100 may be on a licensed band or a shared radio frequency band (e.g., in an unlicensed band). The resource pool 1100 may have the same frame structure as the frame structure 700 illustrated in FIG. 7. For example, the resource pool 1100 may include a set of sidelink resource pools 1107, 1110 arranged in multiple slots over time and multiple subbands in frequency, similar to the resource pools 700 illustrated in FIG. 7. Each sidelink resource 1100 may include a sensing window 1107 and a selection window 1113. In some examples, a BS (e.g., 1003) may configure a relay UE (e.g., 1005) with a sidelink resource pool. In some examples, the relay UE (e.g., 1005) may determine the sidelink resource pool 1100 based on a configuration received from a BS (e.g., BS 1003). In some aspects, the resource pool 1100 may be used for transmissions from the relay UE to remote UEs over the forward link 1009. In some aspects, the resource pool 1100 may be used for transmissions from remote UEs to the relay UE over the reverse link.

[0074] The remote UE may perform partial / full sensing within the sensing window 1107 to avoid collisions before communication over the sidelink. In some examples, the remote UE may monitor Y slots 1104 within the sensing window 1107 to enable partial sensing and reserve candidate resources 1100 including Y slots within the selection window 1113 for SCI / data transmission. The candidate resource set is reserved by the remote UE to avoid collisions with other UEs. In some examples, the remote UE may perform long-term partial sensing and resource selection for the UE can be triggered at a specific time (periodic traffic). In some examples, the remote UE may perform short-term sensing and resource selection for the UE may be triggered for non-periodic traffic.

[0075] In full sensing, the remote UE may need to monitor the SCI in all slots in the sensing window 1107 and may need to decode the SCI / PSSSH in all subchannels in the selection window 1107, which may be undesirable for power consumption of a battery-limited remote UE. To reduce the amount of decoding of the SCI and / or PSSSH, the remote UE may perform sensing. In partial sensing, the remote UE may select Y slots 1104 in the resource selection window 1107 and perform sensing on the Y slots. The remote UE may then determine a candidate resource set 1110 in the selection window 1113 based on the results of sensing in each of the slots 1104. To reduce the decoding of the SCI and / or PSSSH, the partial sensing slots may be pre-configured by the BS and signaled to the remote UE.

[0076] In some examples, the BS may determine a subset of time and frequency resources in the Y slots 1104 and configure the remote UE with the SCI monitoring search space. Thus, the remote UE may perform partial sensing on the subset of time and frequency resources configured by the BS. In some examples, the subset of time and frequency resources is transmitted to the remote UE semi-statically via the PSBCH. In some other examples, the subset of time and frequency resources is transmitted to the remote UE dynamically via the SCI on the PSCCH. In yet another example, the subset of time and frequency resources is transmitted to the remote UE via a separate channel dedicated to transmission of the subset of time and frequency resources.

[0077] FIG. 12 illustrates an example of sidelink resource pool selection according to some aspects of the present disclosure. The scheme 1200 may be employed by UEs 125A-125B in a network, such as network 100, for sidelink communication. In particular, a sidelink UE may employ scheme 1100 for SCI monitoring and sidelink data communication over sidelink forward / reverse links. In some aspects, scheme 1200 may be employed in conjunction with scheme 1000 of FIG. 10. In diagram 1200, the x-axis represents time in arbitrary units and the y-axis represents frequency in arbitrary units. The sidelink resource pool 1200 may be on a licensed band or a shared radio frequency band (e.g., in an unlicensed band). The resource pool 1200 may have the same frame structure as the frame structure 700 illustrated in FIG. 7. For example, the resource pool 1200 may include a set of sidelink resource pools 1205, 1206 arranged over multiple slots in time and multiple subbands 1209a-c in frequency, similar to the resource 700 shown in FIG. 7. Each sidelink resource 1200 may include a sensing window 1207 and a selection window 1213. In some examples, a BS (e.g., 1003) may configure a relay UE (e.g., 1005) with the sidelink resource pool. In some examples, the relay UE (e.g., 1005) may determine the sidelink resource pool 1200 based on a configuration received from a BS (e.g., BS 1003). In some aspects, the resource pool 1200 may be used for transmissions from the relay UE to remote UEs over the forward link 1009. In some aspects, the resource pool 1200 may be used for transmissions from remote UEs to relay UEs over the reverse link.

[0078] The remote UE may perform partial / full sensing within the sensing window 1207 to avoid collisions before communication over the sidelink. In some examples, the remote UE may monitor Y slots 1204a, 1204b, 1204c in subbands 1209a, 1209b, 1209c, respectively. The remote UE may perform partial sensing within the sensing window 1207 to enable partial sensing and reserve candidate resources 1206a, 1206b, 1206c in subbands 1209a, 1209b, 1209c, respectively, including Y slots in the selection window 1213 for SCI / data transmission. The candidate resource set is reserved by the remote UE to avoid collisions with other UEs. In some examples, the remote UE may perform long-term partial sensing, and the resource selection for the UE can be triggered at a specific time (periodic traffic). In some examples, the remote UE may perform short-term sensing, and the resource selection for the UE may be triggered for non-periodic traffic.

[0079] In full sensing, the remote UE may need to monitor the SCI in all slots in the sensing window 1207 and may need to decode the SCI / PSSSH in all subchannels in the selection window 1207, which may be undesirable for power consumption of a battery-limited remote UE. To reduce the amount of decoding of the SCI and / or PSSSH, the remote UE may perform sensing. In partial sensing, the remote UE may select Y slots 1204a-c in the resource selection window 1207 and perform sensing on the Y slots. The remote UE may then determine a candidate resource set 1206a-c in the selection window 1213 based on the results of sensing in each of the slots 1204a-c. To reduce the decoding of the SCI and / or PSSSH, the partial sensing slots may be pre-configured by the BS and signaled to the remote UE.

[0080] In some examples, the BS may determine a subset of time and frequency resources within the Y slots 1204a-c and configure the remote UE with the SCI monitoring search space. Thus, the remote UE may perform partial sensing on the subset of time and frequency resources configured by the BS. In some examples, the subset of time and frequency resources is transmitted to the remote UE semi-statically via the PSBCH. In some other examples, the subset of time and frequency resources is transmitted to the remote UE dynamically via the SCI on the PSCCH. In yet another example, the subset of time and frequency resources is transmitted to the remote UE via a separate channel dedicated to transmission of the subset of time and frequency resources.

[0081] FIG. 13 illustrates an example of sidelink resource pool selection and preemption for periodic traffic according to some aspects of the present disclosure. The scheme 1300 may be employed by UEs 125A-125B in a network, such as network 100, for sidelink communication. In particular, a sidelink UE may employ the scheme 1300 for SCI monitoring and sidelink data communication over sidelink forward / reverse links. In some aspects, the scheme 1300 may be employed in conjunction with the scheme 1000 of FIG. 10. In the scheme 1300, the x-axis represents time in arbitrary units and the y-axis represents frequency in arbitrary units. The sidelink resource pool 1300 may be on a licensed band or a shared radio frequency band (e.g., in an unlicensed band). The resource pool 1300 may have the same frame structure as the frame structure 700 illustrated in FIG. 7. For example, the resource pool 1300 may include a set of sidelink resource pools 1303, 1306 arranged over multiple slots over time and multiple subbands in frequency, similar to the resource 700 shown in FIG. 7. Each sidelink resource 1300 may include a sensing window 1303 and a selection window 1306. In some examples, a BS (e.g., 1003) may configure a relay UE (e.g., 1005) with the sidelink resource pool. In some examples, the relay UE (e.g., 1005) may determine the sidelink resource pool 1300 based on a configuration received from a BS (e.g., BS 1003). In some aspects, the resource pool 1300 may be used for transmissions from the relay UE to a remote UE over a forward link 1009. In some aspects, the resource pool 1300 may be used for transmissions from a remote UE to a relay UE over a reverse link.

[0082] The remote UE may perform partial sensing within the sensing window 1303, as described in Figures 11-12, to periodically reserve the candidate resources 1209a-c within the selection window 1306 for the periodic traffic. Since the remote UE knows the arrival time of the data packets, it may perform preemption on the reserved resources 1309a-c for the periodic traffic. The remote UE may perform a preemption check to determine whether there is a resource collision and determine whether resource selection should be triggered.

[0083] FIG. 14 illustrates an example of sidelink resource pool selection and preemption for aperiodic traffic according to some aspects of the present disclosure. The scheme 1400 may be employed by UEs 125A-125B in a network, such as network 100, for sidelink communication. In particular, a sidelink UE may employ the scheme 1400 for SCI monitoring and sidelink data communication over sidelink forward / reverse links. In some aspects, the scheme 1400 may be employed in conjunction with the scheme 1000 of FIG. 10. In the scheme 1400, the x-axis represents time in arbitrary units and the y-axis represents frequency in arbitrary units. The sidelink resource pool 1400 may be on a licensed band or a shared radio frequency band (e.g., in an unlicensed band). The resource pool 1400 may have the same frame structure as the frame structure 700 illustrated in FIG. 7. For example, the resource pool 1400 may include a set of sidelink resource pools 1403, 1406 arranged over multiple slots over time and multiple subbands in frequency, similar to the resource 700 shown in FIG. 7. Each sidelink resource 1400 may include a selection window 1406. In some examples, a BS (e.g., 1003) may configure a relay UE (e.g., 1005) with the sidelink resource pool. In some examples, the relay UE (e.g., 1005) may determine the sidelink resource pool 1400 based on a configuration received from a BS (e.g., BS 1003). In some aspects, the resource pool 1400 may be used for transmissions from the relay UE to a remote UE over a forward link 1009. In some aspects, the resource pool 1300 may be used for transmissions from a remote UE to a relay UE over a reverse link.

[0084] The remote UE may perform partial sensing within the window 1403 in the selection window 1406 as described in FIGS. 11-12 to reserve candidate resources 1409a-c within the selection window 1306 for aperiodic traffic. Since the arrival time of a data packet is not known aperiodically, the remote UE may perform partial sensing within the selection window 1406. When a data packet arrives, the remote UE may perform preemption of the reserved resources 1309a-c. The remote UE may perform a preemption check to determine whether there is a resource collision and determine whether resource selection should be triggered.

[0085] FIG. 15 illustrates an example of sidelink resource pool selection and preemption for discontinuous reception (DRX) mode according to some aspects of the disclosure. The scheme 1500 may be employed by UEs 125A-125B in a network, such as network 100, for sidelink communication. In particular, a sidelink UE may employ scheme 1500 for SCI monitoring and sidelink data communication over sidelink forward / reverse links. In some aspects, scheme 1500 may be employed in conjunction with scheme 1000 of FIG. 10. In scheme 1500, the x-axis represents time in arbitrary units and the y-axis represents frequency in arbitrary units. The sidelink resource pool 1500 may be on a licensed band or a shared radio frequency band (e.g., in an unlicensed band). The resource pool 1500 may have the same frame structure as the frame structure 700 illustrated in FIG. 7. For example, the resource pool 1500 may include a set of sidelink resource pools 1505, 1511 arranged over multiple slots over time and multiple subbands in frequency, similar to the resources 700 shown in FIG. 7. Each sidelink resource 1500 may include a sensing window 1505 and a selection window 1511. In some examples, a BS (e.g., 1003) may configure a relay UE (e.g., 1005) with the sidelink resource pool. In some examples, the relay UE (e.g., 1005) may determine the sidelink resource pool 1500 based on a configuration received from a BS (e.g., BS 1003). In some aspects, the resource pool 1500 may be used for transmissions from the relay UE to a remote UE over a forward link 1009. In some aspects, the resource pool 1500 may be used for transmissions from a remote UE to a relay UE over a reverse link.

[0086] In the resource pool 1500, the remote UE may be configured in DRX mode. In DRX mode, the remote UE may monitor the PSCCH and PSSCH during the on period (1513). The remote UE may power down during the off period 1513 to save power consumption. The remote UE may be configured with a wake-up signal 1503. The WUS signal 1503 may be used to instruct the remote UE to wake up to perform sensing within the sensing window 1507. If the remote UE is configured with WUS, the remote UE may not perform sensing during the off period 1515. When the remote UE receives the WUS signal 1503, the remote UE may perform partial sensing 1505 within the sensing window 1507 for a reduced subset of slots and frequency channels within the selection window 1511. The remote UE may use a mechanism to maximize the overlap between the DRX on period 1513 and the sensing opportunity 1507. This may be pre-configured by the BS and transmitted to the remote UE.

[0087] FIG. 16 illustrates exemplary components of a UE (e.g., UE 1005, 1003) for transmission and / or reception according to some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. All or a subset of the blocks and functions in FIG. 16 may be in the UE 1600 or may be implemented by the user equipment 1600. The antenna 1610 may be used to transmit or receive electromagnetic signals. The antenna 1610 may comprise one or more antenna elements and may enable different input / output antenna configurations including a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) configuration, a multiple-input single-output (MISO) configuration, and a single-input multiple-output (SIMO) configuration. In some embodiments, the antenna 1610 may enable a massive MIMO configuration with tens or hundreds of antenna elements. The antenna 1610 may enable other multi-antenna techniques such as beamforming. In some examples, depending on the capabilities of the UE 1600, the UE 1600 may only support a single antenna.

[0088] The transceiver 1620 may communicate bidirectionally over a wireless link as described herein via the antenna 1610. For example, the transceiver 1620 may represent a wireless transceiver in the UE 1600 and may communicate bidirectionally with a wireless transceiver in a base station, or vice versa. The transceiver 1620 may include a modem for modulating packets and providing the modulated packets to the antenna 1610 for transmission, and demodulating packets received from the antenna 1610.

[0089] The memory 1630 may include RAM and ROM. The memory 1630 may store computer readable computer executable code 1635 that includes instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to perform various functions described herein. In some examples, the memory 1630 may include a basic input / output system (BIOS), which may control basic hardware or software operations such as interaction with peripheral components or devices, among other things.

[0090] The processor 1640 may include a hardware device having processing capabilities (e.g., a general-purpose processor, a DSP, a CPU, a microcontroller, an ASIC, an FPGA, a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof). In some examples, the processor 1640 may be configured to operate a memory using a memory controller. In other examples, the memory controller may be integrated into the processor 1640. The processor 1640 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory (e.g., the memory 1730) to cause the UE 1600 to perform various functions.

[0091] A central processing unit (CPU) 1650 may perform basic arithmetic, logic, control, and input / output (I / O) operations specified by computer instructions in memory 1630. User equipment 1600 and may include additional peripheral components such as a graphics processing unit (GPU) 1660 and a global positioning system (GPS) 1670. GPU 1660 is dedicated circuitry for rapid manipulation and modification of memory 1630 to accelerate processing performance of user equipment 1600 and / or base station 1605. GPS 1670 may be used, for example, to enable location-based services or other services based on the geographic location of user equipment 1600.

[0092] The resource allocation agent 1680 may perform resource pool allocation, SCI monitoring, and data communication management over forward / reverse links as described in FIGS.

[0093] FIG. 17 illustrates exemplary components of a BS (e.g., BS 1003) for transmission and / or reception according to some aspects of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. All or a subset of the blocks and functions in FIG. 17 may be in the BS 1700 or may be implemented by the user equipment 1700. The antenna 1710 may be used to transmit or receive electromagnetic signals. The antenna 1710 may comprise one or more antenna elements and may enable different input / output antenna configurations including a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) configuration, a multiple-input single-output (MISO) configuration, and a single-input multiple-output (SIMO) configuration. In some embodiments, the antenna 1710 may enable a massive MIMO configuration with tens or hundreds of antenna elements. The antenna 1710 may enable other multi-antenna techniques such as beamforming. In some examples, depending on the capabilities of the BS 1700, the UE 1700 may only support a single antenna.

[0094] The transceiver 1720 may communicate bidirectionally over a wireless link as described herein via the antenna 1710. For example, the transceiver 1620 may represent a wireless transceiver in a UE and may communicate bidirectionally with a wireless transceiver in a base station, or vice versa. The transceiver 1720 may include a modem for modulating packets and providing the modulated packets to the antenna 1710 for transmission and demodulating packets received from the antenna 1710.

[0095] The memory 1730 may include RAM and ROM. The memory 1630 may store computer readable computer executable code 1735 that includes instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to perform various functions described herein. In some examples, the memory 1630 may include a basic input / output system (BIOS) that may control basic hardware or software operations such as interaction with peripheral components or devices, among other things.

[0096] The processor 1740 may include a hardware device having processing capabilities (e.g., a general purpose processor, a DSP, a CPU, a microcontroller, an ASIC, an FPGA, a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof). In some examples, the processor 1740 may be configured to operate a memory using a memory controller. In other examples, the memory controller may be integrated into the processor 1740. The processor 1740 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory (e.g., memory 1630) to cause the BS 1700 to perform various functions.

[0097] A central processing unit (CPU) 1750 may perform basic arithmetic, logical, control, and input / output (I / O) operations specified by computer instructions in memory 1730 .

[0098] Resource allocation agent 1780 may implement resource pool allocation, configure resource parameters for resource allocation, and manage data communications for remote UE links such as those described in FIGS.

[0099] 18 is a flow diagram of a method 1800 for a remote UE to perform resource allocation according to certain aspects of the present disclosure. The method 1800 is performed by a UE (e.g., UE 1003). The steps of the method 1800 may be performed by a computing device (e.g., a processor, processing circuitry, and / or other components) of the UE. As shown, the method 1800 may include additional steps before, after, and between the enumerated steps.

[0100] In step 1805, the remote UE receives a configuration from the relay UE indicating a set of time and frequency resource regions. The set of time and frequency resources may include resources for sensing, transmission of the SCI, and / or data communication over the forward / reverse links. The remote UE may perform sensing on the set of time and frequency resource regions to select resources for data communication over the forward / reverse links.

[0101] In step 1809, the remote UE monitors one or more time and frequency resources of the set of time and frequency resource regions for sidelink control information (SCI).

[0102] In step 1813, the remote UE receives from the relay UE, based on the monitoring, the SCI in a set of time and frequency resource regions indicated by the relay UE. In some aspects, the UE may decode the SCI in all sets of time and frequency regions indicated by the relay UE. The SCI may include information necessary for decoding data. In some examples, if the remote UE is configured with DRX, the remote UE may use the WUS signal to wake up and perform sensing to select resources for data communication over the forward / reverse links.

[0103] In step 1817, the remote UE waits a preconfigured period for the data packet to arrive. In some examples, the remote UE may receive periodic data traffic. In some examples, the remote UE may receive non-periodic data traffic. The UE remote UE may perform preemption to determine if there is a collision on the selected resource and the resource should be triggered.

[0104] In step 1821, the remote UE receives sidelink data in the selected resources from the relay UE based on the SCI.

[0105] 19 is a flow diagram of a method 1900 for a relay UE to perform resource allocation according to certain aspects of the present disclosure. The method 1900 is performed by a BS (e.g., a UE 1005). The steps of the method 1900 may be performed by a computing device (e.g., a processor, processing circuitry, and / or other components) of the UE. As shown, the method 1900 may include additional steps before, after, and between the enumerated steps.

[0106] In step 1905, the relay UE transmits a configuration indicating a set of time and frequency resource regions to the relay UE. The set of time and frequency resources may include resources for sensing, transmission of SCI, and / or data communication over forward / reverse links. In some examples, the set of time and frequency resource regions may be pre-configured by a BS (e.g., BS 1003) and the relay UE may transmit it to the remote UE.

[0107] In step 1909, the relay UE transmits the SCI in the set of time and frequency resource regions to the remote UE. In some aspects, the remote UE may perform sensing on the set of time and frequency resources to select resources for data communication over the forward / reverse links. The SCI may include information necessary for decoding the data.

[0108] In step 1917, the relay UE transmits sidelink data to the remote UE in the selected time and frequency resource region.

[0109] The exemplary blocks and modules described in this disclosure with respect to various exemplary embodiments may be implemented or performed using a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. Examples of general purpose processors include, but are not limited to, a microprocessor, any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. In some examples, a processor may be implemented using a combination of devices (e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in combination with a DSP core, or any other such configuration).

[0110] The functions described in this disclosure may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. Instructions or code may be stored or transmitted to a computer-readable medium to implement the functions. Other examples for implementing the functions disclosed herein are also within the scope of this disclosure. Implementation of the functions may be via physically co-located or distributed elements (e.g., at various locations), including being distributed such that some of the functions are implemented in different physical locations.

[0111] Computer-readable media includes, but is not limited to, non-transitory computer storage media. Non-transitory storage media may be accessed by general-purpose or special-purpose computers. Examples of non-transitory storage media include, but are not limited to, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, compact disk (CD) ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, and the like. Non-transitory media may be used to carry or store desired program code means (e.g., instructions and / or data structures) and may be accessed by general-purpose or special-purpose computers or general-purpose or special-purpose processors. In some examples, the software / program code may be transmitted from a remote source (e.g., a website, a server, etc.) using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, microwave, and the like. In such examples, coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave, and the like, are within the definition of media. Combinations of the above examples are also included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0112] As used in this disclosure, the use of the term "or" in a list of items indicates an inclusive list. A list of items may be prefaced with a phrase such as "at least one" or "one or more." For example, a list of at least one of A, B, or C includes A or B or C or AB (i.e., A and B) or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C). Also, as used in this disclosure, the phrase "based on" preceding a list of conditions should not be interpreted as "based only on" the set of conditions, but rather as "based at least in part on" the set of conditions. For example, a result described as "based on condition A" may be based on both condition A and condition B without departing from the scope of this disclosure.

[0113] As used herein, the terms "comprise", "include" or "contain" may be used interchangeably and have the same meaning and should be construed as inclusive and open ended. The terms "comprise", "include" or "contain" may be used before a list of elements to indicate that at least all of the listed elements in the list are present, but other elements not in the list may also be present. For example, if A comprises B and C, then both {B,C} and {B,C,D} are within the scope of A.

[0114] The present disclosure describes exemplary configurations in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which do not represent all examples that may be implemented or all configurations within the scope of the present disclosure. The term "exemplary" should not be interpreted as "preferred" or "advantageous compared to other examples," but rather as "an example, instance, or example." By reading this disclosure, including the description of the embodiments and drawings, those skilled in the art will understand that the technology disclosed herein may be implemented using alternative embodiments. Those skilled in the art will understand that the embodiments, or specific features of the embodiments described herein, may be combined to arrive at yet other embodiments for implementing the technology described in the present disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure is not limited to the examples and designs described herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A method for data transmission performed by a first user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving, by the first UE, one or more configuration parameters indicating a set of first time and frequency resources related to partial sensing in sidelink communication; monitoring sidelink control information (SCI) in one or more resources determined based on the partial sensing and based on the one or more configuration parameters; receiving the SCI from a second UE based on the monitoring; receiving sidelink data from the second UE based on the SCI. A method comprising the above steps.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the set of first time and frequency resources includes one or more time slots within one or more frequency sub-bands.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the one or more configuration parameters are transmitted quasi-statically via a physical sidelink broadcast channel (PSBCH).

4. The step of receiving the sidelink data is based on a set of second time and frequency resources, wherein the set of second time and frequency resources is selected based on sensing of the set of first time and frequency resources so that no collision occurs within the set of second time and frequency resources. The method according to claim 1.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising performing a preemption check before receiving traffic within the set of second time and frequency resources to determine whether any other traffic collides with resources within the set of second time and frequency resources.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the sidelink data is periodic traffic.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the sidelink data is aperiodic traffic.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein a base station (BS) configures resources within the set of first time and frequency resources.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first UE is configured using discontinuous reception (DRX).

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the set of first time and frequency resources is within a DRX on period. **Claim 11**: The method according to claim 1, wherein the first UE is configured using a wake-up signal (WUS), and the WUS notifies the first UE to wake up and monitor the SCI within a set of first time and frequency resources. **Claim 12**: A user equipment (UE) comprising: one or more processors; and a memory storing instructions, wherein when the instructions are executed by the one or more processors, the UE is caused to: receive one or more configuration parameters indicating a set of first time and frequency resources related to partial sensing in sidelink communication; monitor sidelink control information (SCI) in one or more resources determined based on the partial sensing and based on the one or more configuration parameters; receive the SCI from a second UE based on the monitoring; and receive sidelink data from the second UE based on the SCI. **Claim 13**: The UE according to claim 12, wherein the set of first time and frequency resources includes one or more time slots within the same frequency subband. **Claim 14**: The UE according to claim 12, wherein the one or more configuration parameters are transmitted via a dedicated channel defined for transmission of the set of first time and frequency resources. **Claim 15**: The UE according to claim 14, wherein when the instructions are executed by the one or more processors, the UE is further caused to perform a preemption check before receiving traffic within a set of second time and frequency resources to determine whether any other traffic collides with resources within the set of second time and frequency resources.

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