Device and method for cross-slot scheduling adaptation

Abstract

To provide an integrated circuit, a method, and an apparatus that control the processing of a transceiver device and facilitate UE power saving.SOLUTION: A method includes a step of receiving data after receiving scheduling information, and a step of determining whether to apply a restriction to a time domain resource allocation (TDRA) table according to a minimum scheduling gap. The determining includes determining whether a common TDRA table is configured. The method also includes a step of comparing the minimum scheduling gap with scheduling gaps included in the TDRA table if it is determined that the common TDRA table is configured, determining not to apply a restriction to the TDRA table if it is determined that the common TDRA table is not configured, and determining not to apply a restriction to the TDRA table if the scheduling gaps included in the TDRA table are equal to each other.SELECTED DRAWING: None

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE The present disclosure relates to transmitting and receiving signals in a communication system. In particular, the present disclosure relates to methods and apparatus for such transmission and reception. [Background technology]

[0002] Currently, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP®) is working on technical specifications for the next generation of cellular technology, also known as the fifth generation (5G).

[0003] One objective is to provide a single technical framework that addresses all usage scenarios, requirements, and deployment scenarios (see, for example, Section 6 of Non-Patent Document 1), including at least enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC), and massive machine type communication (mMTC). For example, deployment scenarios for eMBB may include indoor hotspots, dense urban areas, suburban areas, urban areas, and high-speed. Deployment scenarios for URLLC may include industrial control systems, mobile health management (remote monitoring, remote diagnosis, and remote treatment), real-time control of vehicles, and wide-area monitoring and control systems for smart grids. Deployment scenarios for mMTC may include scenarios using a large number of devices with low latency sensitive data transmission, such as smart wearables and sensor networks. eMBB and URLLC services are similar in that both require extremely high bandwidth, but differ in that URLLC services preferably require extremely low latency.

[0004] A second objective is to achieve forward compatibility: backward compatibility to Long Term Evolution (LTE, LTE-A) cellular systems is not required, which facilitates the design of entirely new systems and / or the introduction of new features. [Prior art documents] [Non-patent literature]

[0005] [Non-Patent Document 1] TR 38.913 version 15.0.0 [Non-Patent Document 2] 3GPP TS 38.300 v15.6.0 [Non-Patent Document 3] 3GPP TR 38.801 v14.0.0 [Non-Patent Document 4] 3GPP TS 38.211 v15.6.0 [Non-Patent Document 5] TS 23.501 v16.1.0 [Non-Patent Document 6] TS 38.212 v15.6.0 [Non-Patent Document 7] TS 38.211 V15.0.0(2017-12) Summary of the Invention

[0006] One non-limiting, exemplary embodiment facilitates providing improved procedures that facilitate UE power conservation, including procedures involving cross-slot scheduling.

[0007] A main aspect of the present invention is an integrated circuit for controlling processing of a transceiver device, the processing comprising: receiving data after receiving scheduling information; and determining whether to apply a restriction to a time domain resource allocation (TDRA) table according to a minimum scheduling gap, the determining comprising determining whether a common TDRA table is configured; the TDRA table comprising a plurality of entries, each entry specifying a time domain resource allocation including a scheduling gap indicator indicating a gap between reception of the scheduling information and a scheduled resource; the determining further comprising comparing the minimum scheduling gap with a scheduling gap included in the TDRA table if it is determined that the common TDRA table is configured; the determining comprises determining not to apply the restriction to the TDRA table if it is determined that the common TDRA table is not configured; and the determining comprises determining not to apply the restriction to the TDRA table if the scheduling gaps included in the TDRA table are equal to each other.

[0008] In one embodiment, the technology disclosed herein features a transceiver device having a transceiver that, during operation, receives data after receiving a scheduling grant, and circuitry that, during operation, determines whether to apply restrictions to a time domain resource allocation (TDRA) table according to a minimum scheduling gap, the determination including determining whether a common TDRA table is configured.

[0009] In one embodiment, the technology disclosed herein features a transceiver device having: a transceiver that, during operation, transmits data after receiving a scheduling grant; and circuitry that, during operation, determines whether to apply a restriction to a time domain resource allocation (TDRA) table according to a minimum scheduling gap, the TDRA table including a plurality of entries, each entry specifying a time domain resource allocation including a scheduling gap indicator indicating a gap between receipt of the scheduling grant and a scheduled resource, the determination including comparing the minimum scheduling gap with the scheduling gap included in the TDRA table.

[0010] It should be noted that the general or specific embodiments may be implemented as a system, a method, an integrated circuit, a computer program, a storage medium, or any selective combination thereof.

[0011] Further benefits and advantages of the disclosed embodiments will become apparent from the specification and drawings. These benefits and / or advantages may be obtained individually by various embodiments and features of the specification and drawings, however, they need not all be present in order to obtain one or more of such benefits and / or advantages. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] Exemplary embodiments will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an example architecture of a 3GPP NR system. [Diagram 2] Schematic diagram showing the division of functions between NG-RAN and 5GC [Diagram 3] Sequence diagram of RRC connection setup / reconfiguration procedure [Figure 4]Schematic showing the usage scenarios for enhanced mobile broadband, massive machine type communications (mMTC), and ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC) [Diagram 5] Block diagram illustrating an exemplary 5G system architecture for a non-roaming scenario [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary TDRA table. [Figure 7] Schematic diagram showing cross-slot scheduling [Figure 8] Block diagram showing a transceiver device and a scheduling device [Figure 9] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary restriction of an exemplary TDRA table due to a minimum scheduling gap; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] 5G NR System Architecture and Protocol Stack

[0015] 3GPP is working on the next release of fifth-generation cellular technology (known simply as 5G), which includes the development of a new radio access technology (NR) that will operate in frequencies up to 100 GHz. The first version of the 5G standard will be completed at the end of 2017, which will allow smartphones compliant with the 5G NR standard to proceed to testing and commercial deployment.

[0016] In particular, the overall system architecture envisages an NG-RAN (Next Generation - Radio Access Network) with gNBs terminating NG radio access user plane (SDAP / PDCP / RLC / MAC / PHY) and control plane (RRC) protocols. The gNBs are interconnected with each other by an Xn interface. The gNBs are also connected to an NGC (Next Generation Core) by a Next Generation (NG) interface, more specifically to an AMF (Access and Mobility Management Function) (e.g., a specific core entity that runs the AMF) by an NG-C interface, and to a UPF (User Plane Function) (e.g., a specific core entity that runs the UPF) by an NG-U interface. The NG-RAN architecture is shown in Figure 1 (see, for example, Section 4 of Non-Patent Document 2).

[0017] A variety of different deployment scenarios can be supported (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 3). In this document, for example, a decentralized deployment scenario (see, for example, Section 5.2 of Non-Patent Document 3; a centralized deployment is shown in Section 5.4) is presented, in which base stations supporting 5G NR can be deployed. The new eNB of NR 5G can be exemplarily called gNB. The eLTE eNB is an evolution of the eNB and supports connectivity to EPC (Evolved Packet Core) and NGC (Next Generation Core).

[0018] The user plane protocol stack in NR (see, for example, Section 4.4.1 of Non-Patent Document 2) includes a PDCP (Packet Data Convergence Protocol, see Section 6.4 of Non-Patent Document 2), a RLC (Radio Link Control, see Section 6.3 of Non-Patent Document 2), and a MAC (Medium Access Control, see Section 6.2 of Non-Patent Document 2) sublayer, which terminate at the gNB on the network side. In addition, a new sublayer (SDAP, Service Data Adaptation Protocol) of the access stratum (AS) is introduced on top of the PDCP (see, for example, Section 6.5 of Non-Patent Document 2). A control plane protocol stack is also defined in NR (see, for example, Section 4.4.2 of Non-Patent Document 2). An overview of the functions of Layer 2 is described in Section 6 of Non-Patent Document 2. The functions of the PDCP sublayer, the RLC sublayer, and the MAC sublayer are described in clauses 6.4, 6.3, and 6.2, respectively, of 3GPP TS 2011-010111. The functions of the RRC layer are described in clause 7 of 3GPP TS 2011-010111.

[0019] For example, the medium access control layer handles scheduling and scheduling-related functions, including multiplexing of logical channels, as well as handling of various numerologies.

[0020] The physical layer (PHY) is responsible for e.g. coding, PHY HARQ processing, modulation, multi-antenna processing, and mapping of signals to appropriate physical time-frequency resources. The physical layer also handles mapping of transport channels to physical channels. The physical layer provides services to the MAC layer in the form of transport channels. A physical channel corresponds to a set of time-frequency resources used for the transmission of a particular transport channel, and each transport channel is mapped to a corresponding physical channel. One physical channel is the PRACH (Physical Random Access Channel), which is used for random access.

[0021] NR use cases / deployment scenarios include enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable and low latency communications (URLLC), and massive machine type communications (mMTC), which have diverse requirements in terms of data rates, latency, and coverage. For example, eMBB is expected to support peak data rates (20 Gbps downlink and 10 Gbps uplink) and user-perceived data rates on the order of three times those offered by IMT-Advanced. In contrast, URLLC has more stringent requirements, including extremely low latency (user plane latency of 0.5 ms for UL and DL, respectively) and high reliability (1-10 Mbps within 1 ms). -5 ) and mMTC requires high connection density (1 km 2 1,000,000 devices per second), wide coverage in harsh environments, and extremely long battery life (15 years) to lower device costs may be preferably required.

[0022] Thus, an OFDM numerology (e.g., subcarrier spacing, OFDM symbol duration, cyclic prefix (CP) duration, number of symbols per scheduling interval) suitable for one use case may not work well for another use case. For example, low latency services may preferably require a shorter symbol duration (and therefore a larger subcarrier spacing) and / or fewer symbols per scheduling interval (also referred to as TTI) than mMTC services. Furthermore, deployment scenarios with large channel delay spreads may preferably require a longer CP duration than scenarios with small delay spreads. To maintain a comparable CP overhead, the subcarrier spacing should be optimized depending on the delay spread. In NR, more than one value of subcarrier spacing may be supported. Thus, subcarrier spacings of 15 kHz, 30 kHz, 60 kHz, ... are currently considered. Symbol duration T u and the subcarrier spacing Δf is expressed by the formula (Δf=1 / T u ), as in LTE systems, the term "resource element" can be used to denote the smallest resource unit consisting of one subcarrier for the length of one OFDM / SC-FDMA symbol.

[0023] In the new radio system 5G-NR, for each numerology and carrier, a resource grid of subcarriers and OFDM symbols is defined in the uplink and downlink, respectively. Each element in the resource grid is called a resource element and is identified based on a frequency index in the frequency domain and a symbol position in the time domain (see Non-Patent Document 4).

[0024] Split of 5G NR functions between NG-RAN and 5GC

[0025] Figure 2 shows the division of functions between NG-RAN and 5GC. The logical nodes of NG-RAN are gNB or ng-eNB. The logical nodes of 5GC are AMF, UPF, and SMF.

[0026] In particular, the gNB and ng-eNB handle the following key functions: - Radio Resource Management functions, such as Radio Bearer Control, Radio Admission Control, Connection Mobility Control, dynamic resource allocation (scheduling) to UEs in both uplink and downlink directions - IP header compression, encryption, and data integrity protection - Selection of AMF at UE attach time when routing to AMF cannot be determined from information provided by the UE - Routing user plane data to the UPF - Routing control plane information to AMF - Establishing and releasing connections - Scheduling and sending paging messages - Scheduling and transmission of system broadcast information (sent from AMF or OAM) - Configuring measurements and measurement reporting for mobility and scheduling - Transport-level packet marking in the uplink - Session Management - Network slicing support - QoS flow management and mapping to data radio bearers - Support for UEs in RRC_INACTIVE state - NAS message delivery function - Wireless Access Network Sharing - Dual Connectivity - Tight interworking between NR and E-UTRA

[0027] The Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) handles the following main functions: - Termination of Non-Access Stratum (NAS) signalling - NAS signaling security - Access Stratum (AS) security control - Core Network (CN) inter-node signaling for mobility between 3GPP access networks - Reachability for idle mode UEs (including control and execution of paging retransmissions) - Registration Area Management - Support for intra-system and inter-system mobility - Access Authentication - Access authentication, including roaming rights checks - Mobility management controls (subscriptions and policies) - Network slicing support - Selection of Session Management Function (SMF)

[0028] In addition, the User Plane Function (UPF) handles the following main functions: - Anchor points for intra-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (when applicable) - External PDU session points for interconnection with data networks - Packet routing and forwarding - User plane part of packet inspection and policy rule enforcement - Traffic usage reports - An uplink classifier to support routing of traffic flows to the data network. - Branching points to support multi-homed PDU sessions - User plane QoS processing (e.g. packet filtering, gating, UL / DL rate enforcement) - Validation of uplink traffic (mapping of SDF to QoS flows) - Downlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering

[0029] Finally, the Session Management Function (SMF) handles the following major functions: - Session Management - UE IP address allocation and management - UP function selection and control - Configuring traffic steering in the User Plane Function (UPF) to route traffic to the correct destination - Policy enforcement and QoS control parts - Downlink data notification

[0030] RRC connection setup and reconfiguration procedures

[0031] Figure 3 shows the interactions between the UE, gNB, and AMF (5GC entities) in the NAS part when the UE transitions from RRC_IDLE to RRC_CONNECTED (see Non-Patent Document 2)

[0032] RRC is a higher layer signaling (protocol) used for the configuration of the UE and the gNB. In particular, in this transition, the AMF prepares UE context data (including, for example, PDU session context, security keys, UE radio capabilities, and UE security capabilities, etc.) and sends it to the gNB by an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST. The gNB then activates AS security with the UE, which is performed by the gNB sending a SecurityModeCommand message to the UE and the UE responding with a SecurityModeComplete message to the gNB. The gNB then performs a reconfiguration to establish a signaling radio bearer 2 (SRB2) and a data radio bearer (DRB), which is performed by the gNB sending an RRCReconfiguration message to the UE and the gNB receiving an RRCReconfigurationComplete from the UE in response. In the case of a signaling-only connection, these steps related to RRCReconfiguration are skipped since SRB2 and DRB are not established. Finally, the gNB informs the AMF that the establishment procedure is complete via an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE.

[0033] Therefore, in the present disclosure, a fifth generation core (5GC) entity (e.g., AMF, SMF, etc.) is provided that has a control circuit that, in operation, establishes a next generation (NG) connection with a gNodeB, such that a signaling radio bearer is established between the gNodeB and a user equipment (UE), and a transmitter that, in operation, transmits an initial context setup message to the gNodeB via the NG connection. In particular, the gNodeB transmits radio resource control (RRC) signaling including a resource allocation setting information element to the UE via the signaling radio bearer. The UE then performs uplink transmission or downlink reception based on the resource allocation setting.

[0034] Usage scenarios for IMT-2020 and beyond

[0035] Figure 4 shows some of the use cases for 5G NR. The 3rd generation partnership project new radio (3GPP NR) considers three use cases that are envisaged to support a wide variety of services and applications by IMT-2020. The specifications for Phase 1 of enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) have been finalized. Current and upcoming work will include standardization for ultra-reliable and low latency communications (URLLC) and large-scale machine-type communications, in addition to further extending eMBB support. Figure 4 shows some examples of usage scenarios envisaged for IMT beyond 2020.

[0036] URLLC use cases have stringent requirements on capabilities such as throughput, latency and availability, and are envisioned as one of the enablers of future vertical applications such as wireless control of industrial manufacturing or production processes, remote medical surgery, power distribution automation in smart grids, and transportation safety. The ultra-high reliability of URLLC is supported by identifying technologies to meet the requirements set by NR URLLC in Release 15. For NR URLLC in Release 15, key requirements include a user plane target latency of 0.5 ms for UL (uplink) and 0.5 ms for DL ​​(downlink). A typical URLLC requirement for a single transmission of a packet is a BLER (block error rate) of 1E-5 for a packet size of 32 bytes with a user plane latency of 1 ms.

[0037] From a RAN1 perspective, reliability can be improved in many possible ways. Current scope for improving reliability includes defining separate CQI tables for URLLC, more compact DCI formats, PDCCH repetition, etc. However, as NR becomes more stable and developed (for a key requirement of NR URLLC), the scope for achieving ultra-high reliability may increase. Specific use cases for NR URLLC in Release 15 include augmented reality / virtual reality (AR / VR), e-health, e-safety, and mission-critical applications.

[0038] Furthermore, technology enhancements targeted by NR URLLC target latency improvement and reliability improvement. Technology enhancements for latency improvement include configurable numerology, non-slot-based scheduling with flexible mapping, grant-free (configured grant) uplink, slot-level repetition of data channel, and preemption for downlink. Preemption means that a transmission for which resources are already allocated is aborted and the already allocated resources are used for another transmission with smaller latency / higher priority requirement requested later. Thus, an already granted transmission is preempted by a later transmission. Preemption applies regardless of the specific service type. For example, a transmission of service type A (URLLC) can be preempted by a transmission of service type B (eMBB, etc.). Technology enhancements for reliability improvement include dedicated CQI / MCS tables for a target BLER of 1E-5.

[0039] The mMTC (Massive Machine Type Communication) use case is characterized by a very large number of connected devices transmitting relatively small amounts of data that are generally not sensitive to latency. The devices need to be low cost and have extremely long battery life. From an NR perspective, utilizing very narrow bandwidth portions is one possible solution to achieve power savings from the UE perspective to enable long battery life.

[0040] As mentioned above, it is expected that the range of reliability in NR will increase. One key requirement for all cases, especially for URLLC and mMTC, is high or ultra-high reliability. Several mechanisms can be considered to improve reliability from a radio perspective and from a network perspective. In general, there are several key areas that can help improve reliability. These areas include compact control channel information, data channel / control channel repetition, and diversity related to frequency, time, and / or spatial domains. These areas are generally applicable to reliability, regardless of the specific communication scenario.

[0041] For NR URLLC, further use cases with more stringent requirements have been identified, e.g. in factory automation, the transport industry, power supply, etc. Depending on the use case, the more stringent requirements are higher reliability (up to the level of 10-6), higher availability, packet sizes up to 256 bytes, time synchronization on the order of a few μs (values ​​can be from 1 to a few μs depending on the frequency range), and low latency on the order of 0.5-1 ms (in particular the target latency for the user plane is 0.5 ms).

[0042] Furthermore, for NR URLLC, several technology enhancements are recognized from the RAN1 perspective. In particular, PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel) enhancements related to compact DCI, PDCCH repetition, and increased PDCCH monitoring. Furthermore, UCI (Uplink Control Information) enhancements related to HARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request) enhancements and CSI feedback enhancements. Also, PUSCH enhancements related to minislot level hopping and retransmission / repetition are recognized. The term "minislot" refers to a Transmission Time Interval (TTI) that contains fewer symbols than a slot (a slot containing 14 symbols).

[0043] QoS Control

[0044] The 5G Quality of Service (QoS) model is based on QoS flows and supports both QoS flows that require guaranteed flow bitrates (GBR QoS flows) and QoS flows that do not require guaranteed flow bitrates (non-GBR QoS flows). Thus, at the NAS level, QoS flows are the finest granularity of QoS differentiation in a PDU session. Within a PDU session, QoS flows are identified by a QoS Flow Identifier (QFI) that is conveyed in the encapsulation header over the NG-U interface.

[0045] The 5GC establishes one or more PDU sessions for each UE. The NG-RAN establishes at least one Data Radio Bearer (DRB) for each UE together with the PDU sessions, and can then configure additional DRBs for the QoS flows of that PDU session (NG-RAN decides when to do so), e.g. as described above with reference to Fig. 3. The NG-RAN maps packets belonging to different PDU sessions to different DRBs. NAS-level packet filters in the UE and 5GC associate UL and DL packets with QoS flows, and AS-level mapping rules in the UE and NG-RAN associate UL and DL QoS flows with DRBs.

[0046] FIG. 5 shows the 5G NR non-roaming reference architecture (see section 4.23 of 3GPP 5). Application Functions (AFs) (e.g., external application servers handling 5G services exemplarily described in FIG. 4) interact with the 3GPP Core Network to provide services. For example, they support application influence on traffic routing, access Network Exposure Functions (NEFs), or interact with a policy framework (see Policy Control Function PCF) for policy control (e.g., QoS control). Based on the operator's deployment, application functions (AFs) that are considered trusted by the operator can be allowed to interact directly with the relevant network functions. Application functions (AFs) that are not allowed by the operator to directly access network functions interact with the relevant network functions using an external exposure framework via the NEF.

[0047] Figure 5 shows further functional units of the 5G architecture: Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF), Network Repository Function (NRF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Authentication Server Function (AUSF), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), and Data Network (DN) (e.g. operator services, internet access or third party services).

[0048] The terminal is referred to as user equipment (UE) in LTE and NR. It may be, for example, a mobile device such as a wireless phone, a smartphone, a tablet computer, or a universal serial bus (USB) stick with user equipment functionality. However, the term mobile device is not limited thereto, and in general, a relay may also have the functionality of such a mobile device, and a mobile device may also act as a relay.

[0049] Downlink control channel monitoring, PDCCH, DCI

[0050] Many of the functions operated by a UE include, for example, monitoring a downlink control channel (eg, PDCCH, see section 5.2.3 of 3GPP TS 2003-010363) to receive specific control information or data intended for the UE.

[0051] A non-exhaustive list of these features is provided below. Paging message monitoring function - System information acquisition function, Signaling monitoring operation for discontinuous reception (DRX) function Inactive monitoring operation for discontinuous reception (DRX) function Receiving random access responses for random access functions Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer reordering function

[0052] As mentioned above, PDCCH monitoring is performed by the UE to identify and receive information destined for the UE, such as control information and user traffic (e.g., DCI on the PDCCH and user data on the PDSCH indicated by the PDCCH).

[0053] The control information in the downlink, which can be called downlink control information (DCI), has the same purpose in 5G NR as DCI in LTE, i.e. it is a special set of control information for scheduling, for example, a downlink data channel (e.g., PDSCH) or an uplink data channel (e.g., PUSCH). In 5G NR, there are many different DCI formats already defined (see 3GPP TS 2013-01011, section 7.3.1).

[0054] The DCI format refers to a predefined format in which the respective information is formed and transmitted. In particular, DCI formats 0_1 and 1_1 are used to schedule PUSCH and PDSCH in one cell, respectively.

[0055] Strengthen power saving

[0056] It is important to study UE power consumption to ensure that 5G NR UE power efficiency can be better than that of LTE and to identify and adopt techniques and designs for improvement. 3GPP is currently studying UE power saving methods that take into account latency and performance in NR systems. For example, power saving signals / channels / procedures are used to trigger adaptation of UE power consumption characteristics. This may include reducing UE power consumption for UE paging procedures.

[0057] Cross-slot Scheduling

[0058] Cross-slot scheduling has been envisioned in 3GPP RAN1 Study Items (SI) and Work Items (WI) due to its potential to facilitate power saving. One of the main objectives is to specify procedures for cross-slot scheduling to enable communication devices to take advantage of power saving techniques. The present disclosure provides a more efficient cross-scheduling framework that facilitates power saving options for some communication devices.

[0059] For scheduling purposes, a communication device such as a user equipment (UE) may be informed about resources on which it (i.e., the UE itself) transmits / receives data in Downlink Control Information (DCI), which is received by the UE in a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH). For example, if the UE receives data, the DCI may include a corresponding indication of resources in a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) and / or if the UE transmits data, the DCI may include a corresponding indication of resources in a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH). Such indications may indicate the location of the resources in the frequency and / or time domain and / or may indicate the length in symbols, as described in more detail below. In addition to this, the DCI may provide further transmission parameters, such as, for example, modulation and coding scheme (MCS), beamforming / precoding, or other Multiple-Output Multiple-Input (MIMO) parameters. The PDCCH is transmitted from a transmitter in a network (access) node, such as a base station, to a communication device. To receive the PDCCH, the communication device must monitor certain resources, commonly called the search space or CORESET (control resource set). Monitoring means blind decoding to see if there is control information intended for the monitoring communication device. This is achieved, for example, by providing (by the scheduling node) a cyclic redundancy check on the control information scrambled with the identity of the communication device to which the control information is destined.

[0060] In LTE, the concept of CORESET does not explicitly exist. Instead, downlink control signaling in LTE uses the entire carrier bandwidth, known as the control region in LTE. In NR, a more flexible structure is used.

[0061] The CORESET is a set of physical resources (i.e., a specific area on the NR Downlink Resource Grid) and parameters used to carry the PDCCH / DCI. It is equivalent to the LTE PDCCH region (the first 1, 2, 3, or 4 OFDM symbols in a subframe). However, while in the LTE PDCCH region, the PDCCH is always spread across the entire channel bandwidth, the NR CORESET region is localized to a specific region in the frequency domain.

[0062] A CORESET may occur anywhere within a slot and anywhere within the frequency range of the carrier, but a device is not expected to process a CORESET outside of its active BWP.

[0063] The first CORESET (CORESET0) is provided by the master information block (MIB) as part of the initial BWP configuration to allow it to receive system information and additional configuration information from the network. After connection setup, in addition to using RRC signaling, the device can be configured with multiple, potentially overlapping CORESETs.

[0064] The network may define a common control region and a UE-specific control region. In NR, the number of CORESETs is limited to three per BWP, including both common and UE-specific CORESETs. The common CORESET is shared by multiple UEs in a cell, and therefore the network handles the alignment with all UEs in this configuration.

[0065] Each search space is a set of control channel elements of different aggregation levels, and there is a mapping between the CORESET and the search spaces. The CORESET may have multiple search spaces that the UE attempts to blind decode.

[0066] For instances specified in Release 15 (NR), the scheduling timing (e.g., for scheduling of resources as described above) may be indicated in the DCI by using a Time Domain Resource Allocation (TDRA) table. In particular, the UE may be informed of the allocated resources by indicating one entry (usually a row of the table) of said TDRA table in the DCI, e.g., by signaling an entry (row) index. The term table is used herein as a logical term since in standard specifications TDRA entries may be summarized as a table. However, it should be noted that the present disclosure is not limited to any particular physical storage organization and the TDRA table may be implemented in any manner as a set of entries associated with each entry index.

[0067] 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary TDRA table. The TDRA table has columns that specify a row index that labels the entry (row of the table) that contains the value of each column. The exemplary TDRA table includes a column that specifies dmrs-TypeA-Position, a column that specifies the PDSCH mapping type, K 0 There is a column that specifies a value (i.e., a scheduling gap), a column that specifies an S value, and / or a column that specifies an L value. Thus, the DCI indication for a row in the TDRA table (one value of the row index) is dmrs-TypeA-Position, PDSCH mapping type, K 0 The reference corresponds to an indication of a particular combination of values ​​of the S value, the S value, and / or the L value.

[0068] In this example, dmrs-TypeA-Position is a parameter related to the position of the demodulation reference signal. This parameter is specified by another signaling parameter. Based on whether the parameter has a value of 2 or 3, the row index refers to a slightly different time domain resource allocation. The parameters dmrs-TypeA-Position and PDSCH mapping type are not of further importance to this disclosure and details can be found in the NR standard specifications. In general, the TDRA table may contain more or less parameters as shown with reference to FIG. 6. For this exemplary downlink TDRA table, the actual resource allocation is determined by the parameter K 0 , S, and L. In NR, there is a set of TDRA tables for downlink resource allocation, and the TDRA table in FIG. 6 is one of them. In addition, there is a set of TDRA tables for uplink resource allocation that is different from the downlink table set. For the uplink TDRA table, the three parameters that specify the resource allocation (resource grant) are K2, S, and L. It should be noted that the present disclosure can be easily adopted for NR including currently defined tables, but is not limited thereto. The present disclosure can also be applied to the sidelink, and even to resource allocations organized (signaled) in different tables or in different ways.

[0069] K0, indicated by the row index of the TDRA table in the DCI, indicates the gap in slots between the slots of the PDCCH and the slots of the PDSCH. Here, the slots of the PDCCH are the slots in which the DCI indicating the respective K0 is received, hereafter also referred to as scheduling slots or slot-carrying scheduling information or slot-carrying scheduling grants. Furthermore, the slots of the PDSCH may be the slots (or the first / starting slots) in which the scheduled resources are located, e.g., the slots in which data are transmitted or received. In other words, K0 may indicate the relative position (in the time domain) of the slots containing the resources scheduled for transmission and reception with respect to a reference slot. This reference slot may be the slot of the DCI indicating said K0. More specifically, K0 may indicate the size or relative position of the gap in slots. It should be noted that a particular value of K0, e.g., value 0 in the case of the table shown in FIG. 6, may indicate that there is no gap and that the resources in which data are transmitted and received are located in the same slot as the DCI indicating K0. Moreover, this is just an example, and in general, the scheduling gap may be indicated with or without including the first slot (PDCCH slot) and / or the slot where the assigned resources start (first PDSCH slot, also called resource slot or scheduled slot). In general, the scheduling gap (denoted as K0 for downlink and K2 for uplink in NR) specifies the gap (time interval) between scheduled resources.

[0070] In this disclosure, the terms "slot" and "time slot" are generally used interchangeably. In general, in this disclosure, a slot refers to a time domain resource. For NR, the time interval corresponding to a slot depends on the numerology, which is a combination of symbol duration, subcarrier spacing, and cyclic prefix. A slot consists of one or more specified numbers of symbols. A specified number of slots forms a subframe, and multiple subframes may form a radio frame. The term "specified" refers to the fact that both the UE and the gNB have knowledge about it. This may be achieved by signaling such configuration in advance, i.e., before starting the scheduling procedure or simultaneously with the scheduling procedure, and some parameters of the resources provided by the system may be fixed and specified by the standard.

[0071] It is further noted that the case of UL grants in DCI is similar to the above case of DL grants, but the scheduled resources are in PUSCH (not PDSCH) and the number indicating the gap is usually denoted as K2 (not K0). In this disclosure, K is used to refer to K0, K2, or any one of K for other types of links (e.g., sidelink, etc.).

[0072] Furthermore, the S value indicated in the DCI may indicate the position of the starting symbol of the scheduled resource in the slot (the slot in which the scheduled resource is transmitted or received, given by K0 / K2).

[0073] Finally, the L value indicated in the DCI may indicate the length of the PDSCH / PUSCH in symbols and / or the length of the scheduled resource in symbols. Although in FIG. 6 all entries specify a K0 value of 0, in general the TDRA table includes entries with different (integer) values ​​of K0. For example, one entry of the TDRA table may correspond to a K0 value of 1 and another entry of the same TDRA table may correspond to a K0 value of 2. The possibility of non-zero K values ​​allows for cross-slot scheduling. This cross-slot scheduling refers to the case where the DCI scheduling resource and the corresponding resource scheduled in said DCI are located in different slots. In general, cross-slot scheduling may facilitate providing several advantages in terms of power saving.

[0074] For example, cross-slot scheduling may achieve power savings by relaxing the PDCCH processing timeline, e.g., because the UE may not need to decode the PDCCH as fast as in the same-slot scheduling case (where the DCI scheduling resource and the corresponding resource scheduled in the DCI are located in the same slot). Furthermore, cross-slot scheduling may allow slower PDSCH buffering. Unlike the same-slot scheduling case, in the cross-slot scheduling case, the UE may not need to buffer all symbols after receiving the PDCCH until it decodes the PDCCH and knows where the scheduled resource actually is located.

[0075] In particular, if the UE knows the minimum (scheduling) gap between the PDCCH and the scheduled PDSCH, i.e., the minimum K that may be indicated in the DCI / PDCCH, the UE may skip PDSCH buffering at least in the current slot (e.g., the slot in which the PDCCH was received) and the next K-1 slots. Furthermore, the possibility of cross-slot scheduling may allow more microsleep periods in that time interval, especially in the case where the PDCCH is not scheduled until the scheduled resource is received.

[0076] This is illustrated in FIG. 7, which is a schematic diagram illustrating cross-slot scheduling. FIG. 7 illustrates the case where the minimum K value is 2 (more precisely, K0=2 in the diagram). If the UE has knowledge of the minimum K, it does not need to monitor the PDCCH during the remainder of slot #n+2 and slot #n+3, nor does it need to perform measurements during these slots, nor does it need to buffer the received data (PDSCH). The UE can choose to go into microsleep during the remainder of slot #n+2 and / or slot #n+3 in order to save power. However, it should be noted that not all UEs must implement and / or employ power saving. The provision of K increases flexibility and opportunities for power saving, but does not prescribe it.

[0077] Figure 7 is an example based on the current NR specification. It shows a specific case where the PDCCH is transmitted in the entire first BWP, but resources are only scheduled in a subset of the physical resource blocks (PRBs) of the bandwidth portion (BWP). Note that Figure 7 can also be applied to the case where the BWP concept is not used, i.e., the entire bandwidth is always allocable. A PRB refers to a resource unit with a certain number of subcarriers of a certain numerology and a certain number of symbols.

[0078] In the current Release 15NR, each configured TDRA table is signaled within a PDSCH-related configuration on the RRC layer and may be within a specific container related to the Bandwidth Part (BWP-DownlinkDedicated). Thus, if a TDRA table is configured in higher layers, the TDRA table may be BWP-specific. A communication device (e.g., UE) may use a default table or may apply a pdsch-TimeDomainAllocationList configured in higher layers to either pdsch-ConfigCommon or pdsch-Config. However, this is just one possible detailed example of the interaction between the NR TDRA configuration and the BWP concept. The present invention does not assume the use of BWP and is not limited to resource allocation using TDRA tables.

[0079] Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling is used by gNB (gNodeB, an exemplary name for a NR base station corresponding to eNodeB (enhanced NodeB) in LTE (Long Term Evolution)) to semi-statically or statically configure radio access bearer parameters and other parameters of a communication device (UE). As defined in 3GPP TS 2.0, section 4.4.5, a bandwidth portion (or carrier bandwidth portion) is a contiguous set of physical resource blocks, as defined in section 4.4.4.3, selected from a contiguous subset of common resource blocks, as defined in section 4.4.4.2, for a given numerology on a given carrier. The 3GPP TS 2.0 specification defines that a UE can be configured with up to four carrier bandwidth portions in the downlink, with a single downlink carrier bandwidth portion being active at a given time. The UE is not expected to receive PDSCH (Physical Downlink Shared Channel), PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel), CSI-RS (Downlink Reference Signals for Estimation of Channel State Information), or TRS (Tracking Reference Signals for fine time and frequency tracking of channel) outside the active bandwidth portion.

[0080] The specification further defines that the UE can be configured with up to four carrier bandwidth portions in the uplink, with a single uplink carrier bandwidth portion being active at a given time. If the UE is configured with a supplementary uplink, the UE can be further configured with up to four carrier bandwidth portions in the supplementary uplink, with a single additional uplink carrier bandwidth portion being active at a given time. The UE does not transmit PUSCH or PUCCH outside of the active bandwidth portion. The numerology is defined by the subcarrier spacing and the cyclic prefix (CP). A resource block is generally defined as 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain. The physical resource blocks (PRBs) are numbered within the BWP, and the PRB numbering of the BWP starts from 0.

[0081] The size of the BWP can vary from a minimum of one PRB to the maximum size of the system bandwidth. Currently, up to four BWPs can be configured by higher layer parameters, with a single active downlink and uplink BWP in a given TTI (transmission time interval) for each DL (downlink) and UL (uplink). However, the present disclosure is not limited to the case defined in 3GPP TS 2011-010111, in which a UE is configured with a maximum of four bandwidth portions. The number of bandwidth portions can be five or more in uplink and / or downlink. For example, a UE can be configured with eight BWPs.

[0082] The TTI (Transmission Time Interval) determines the timing granularity of the scheduling assignment. One TTI is the time interval in which a given signal is mapped to the physical layer. The TTI length can vary from 14 symbols (slot-based scheduling) to 2 symbols (non-slot-based scheduling). Downlink and uplink transmissions are specified to be organized into frames (10 ms duration) consisting of 10 subframes (1 ms duration). In slot-based transmissions, the subframes are instead divided into slots, the number of slots being defined by the numerology / subcarrier spacing, with specified values ​​ranging from 10 slots for a subcarrier spacing of 15 kHz to 320 slots for a subcarrier spacing of 240 kHz. The number of OFDM symbols per slot is 14 for normal cyclic prefix and 12 for extended cyclic prefix (see 3GPP TS 2013-011011, Sections 4.1 (General Frame Structure), 4.2 (Numerology), 4.3.1 (Frames and Subframes), and 4.3.2 (Slots) in NR). However, the transmission may be non-slot based. In non-slot based communication, the minimum length of a TTI may be 2 OFDM symbols. The BWP concept in NR is to enable dynamic configuration of a relatively small active bandwidth for small data packets, which allows power savings for the UE, because with a small active BWP, the UE needs to monitor or transmit less frequently.

[0083] The active bandwidth portion for the user equipment (e.g., the bandwidth portion used by the UE for transmitting and receiving signals in a TTI) can be switched between configured BWPs. For example, depending on the current need, the active BWP can be switched to a larger BWP, or to a smaller BWP to save the battery power of the UE. This is possible by dynamic indication in the DCI of the active BWP to be used in the next TTI. The DCI carries downlink and uplink scheduling information (e.g., resource allocation and / or grant), a request for aperiodic CQI reporting, or an uplink power control command for one cell and one RNTI. The DCI coding includes information element multiplexing, CRC (Cyclic Redundancy Check) attachment, channel coding, and rate matching. The DCI carries transmission parameters, such as, for example, MCS, redundancy version, or HARQ process number. The DCI consists of several fields (e.g., bit fields / bitmaps) that carry different types of control information or parameters. The location of certain parameters and the number of bits that code each parameter are known to the base station transmitting the DCI and to the UE receiving the DCI. However, switching the active BWP in this way increases latency because the UE needs to decode the DCI and then initiate hardware tuning to the new active BWP.

[0084] In the current NR discussion, to be able to benefit from power savings, the minimum scheduling gap, i.e. the applicable minimum value of K0 (or K2) for the active downlink (DL) (or uplink (UL)) bandwidth portion, may be indicated by the gNB to the UE.

[0085] The applicable minimum value may be assigned directly, or a value from one or more pre-set or pre-defined values ​​may be indicated explicitly or implicitly.

[0086] When selecting an entry in the DL or UL TDRA table, the indicated minimum applicable value may be applied by filtering out invalid TDRA entries or by reinterpreting the selected K0 (K2) value.

[0087] If an applicable minimum value of K0 (K2) is indicated for an active DL (UL) BWP, the UE may not expect TDRA table entries with K0 (K2) values ​​smaller than the indicated applicable minimum value, or may consider TDRA entries with K0 (K2) values ​​smaller than the indicated applicable minimum value to be invalid.

[0088] According to the current 3GPP discussion, DCI format 0_1 / 1_1 supports an additional field with 1 bit to support cross-slot scheduling adaptation enabling power saving in BR. In particular, one or two values ​​of the minimum K0 / K2 value for limiting the TDRA table are configured by RRC. If one value is configured, the 1-bit indication of DCI indicates whether the limiting of the TDRA table by the configured minimum K0 / K2 value is applied or not. If two values ​​are configured, the 1-bit indication indicates which of the two configured values ​​is used for limiting the TDRA table.

[0089] In the UE-specific search space and any search space not associated with CORESET0, and if the UE is configured with a UE-specific TDRA table, a valid entry is selected and used according to the indicated minimum K0 / K2 value (i.e., the indicated scheduling gap).

[0090] However, applying the minimum value of K0 / K2 to cross-slot scheduling for common search spaces not associated with CORESET0 may pose some difficulties. Some possible problems are described below.

[0091] In particular, in a common search space, if a UE is scheduled by a UE-specific DCI or if a UE-specific TDRA table is not configured, it remains open whether the UE should apply restrictions according to the indicated minimum K0 / K2 values.

[0092] In a trivial approach to handle the above cases, the UE does not restrict any entries in the TDRA table for the common search space using the configured common TDRA table. However, not applying restrictions reduces power saving capabilities. Moreover, always applying restrictions according to the indicated minimum scheduling gap may lead to scheduling losses.

[0093] To solve the above problems, the present invention provides various embodiments described below that facilitate the decision of whether cross slot adaptation is applied or not depending on information about certain conditions, which may include whether a common TDRA table is configured, the result of a comparison between an indicated minimum scheduling gap and the scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table, and / or whether an entry in the TDRA table is selected for uplink (UL) or downlink (DL) transmission of data.

[0094] Since the present disclosure concerns scheduling, both entities participate: a scheduled device (typically a communication device / transceiver device) and a scheduling device (typically a network node). The present invention further provides a system including a scheduled device and a scheduling device, as well as corresponding methods and programs.

[0095] In the following, UEs, base stations, and procedures are described for new radio access technologies envisioned for 5G mobile communication systems, but which may also be used in LTE mobile communication systems. Various implementations and variations are also described. The following disclosure has been facilitated by, and may be based, for example, at least in part on, the above discussion and discoveries.

[0096] In general, it should be noted that many assumptions are made herein to allow the principles underlying the present disclosure to be explained in a clear and understandable manner. However, these assumptions should be understood as merely examples made herein for illustrative purposes, without limiting the scope of the present disclosure. Those skilled in the art will recognize that the principles of the following disclosure and claims can be applied to various scenarios and in ways not explicitly described herein.

[0097] Furthermore, some of the terms such as procedures, entities, layers, etc. used below are closely related to the terms used in the LTE / LTE-A system or in the current 3GPP 5G standardization, even though the specific terms used in the context of new radio access technologies for the upcoming 3GPP 5G communication system have not yet been fully determined or may eventually change. Therefore, the terms may be changed in the future without affecting the functionality of the embodiments. Therefore, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments and their scope of protection should not be limited to the specific terms used illustratively in this specification due to the lack of other more recent or finally agreed upon terms, but should be more broadly understood in terms of the functions and concepts underlying the functions and principles of the present disclosure.

[0098] For example, a mobile station or mobile node or user terminal or user equipment (UE) is a physical entity in a communication network. A node may have several functional entities. A functional entity refers to a software or hardware module that implements and / or provides a given set of functions to other functional entities of the same or other nodes or networks. A node may have one or more interfaces that connect the node to communication facilities or media that allow the node to communicate. Similarly, a network entity may have logical interfaces that connect functional entities to communication facilities or media that allow the node to communicate with other functional entities or corresponding nodes.

[0099] The term "base station" or "radio base station" as used herein refers to a physical entity in a communication network. Similar to a mobile station, a base station may have several functional entities. A functional entity refers to a software or hardware module that implements and / or provides a given set of functions to other functional entities of the same or other nodes or networks. The physical entity performs several control tasks for the communication devices, including one or more scheduling and configuration. It should also be noted that base station functions and communication device functions may be integrated in a single device. For example, a mobile terminal may also implement the functions of a base station for other terminals. The term used in LTE is eNB (or eNodeB), while the term currently used in 5G NR is gNB.

[0100] 8 shows a general and simplified exemplary block diagram of a user equipment (also called a communication device or a transceiver device) 100 and a scheduling device 200 (here illustratively assumed to be located in a base station, e.g., in an eLTE eNB (alternatively called ng-eNB) or in a 5G NR gNB). The UE 100 and the eNB / gNB 200 communicate with each other over a (wireless) physical channel using transceivers 110, 210, respectively.

[0101] The communication device 100 may have a transceiver 110 and a processing circuit 120. The transceiver 110 may then have a receiver and a transmitter and / or function as a receiver and a transmitter. The processing circuit 120 may be one or more hardware, such as, for example, one or more processors or any LSI. Between the transceiver 110 and the processing circuit 120, there are input / output points (or nodes, not shown), through which the processing circuit 120 can control the transceiver 110 during operation, i.e., control the receiver and / or the transmitter and exchange receive / transmit data. The transceiver 110 may include an RF (radio frequency) front, including one or more antennas, amplifiers, RF modulators / demodulators, etc., as a transmitter and receiver. The processing circuit 120 may implement control tasks, such as controlling the transceiver 110 to transmit user data and control data provided by said processing circuit 120 and / or to receive user data and control data that are further processed by said processing circuit 120. The processing circuitry 120 may also be responsible for performing other processes, such as, for example, making judgments, decisions, calculations, measurements, etc. The transmitter may be responsible for performing the transmitting process and other processes related thereto. The receiver may be responsible for performing the receiving process and other processes related thereto (e.g., monitoring the channel, etc.).

[0102] The scheduling device 200 may have a transceiver 210 and a processing circuit 220. The transceiver 210 may then have a receiver and a transmitter and / or function as a receiver and a transmitter. The processing circuit 220 may be one or more hardware, such as, for example, one or more processors or any LSI. Between the transceiver 210 and the processing circuit 220, there are input / output points (or nodes, not shown), through which the processing circuit 220 can control the transceiver 210 during operation, i.e., control the receiver and / or the transmitter and exchange receive / transmit data. The transceiver 210 may include an RF (radio frequency) front, including one or more antennas, amplifiers, RF modulators / demodulators, etc., as a transmitter and receiver. The processing circuit 220 may implement control tasks, such as controlling the transceiver 210 to transmit user data and control data provided by said processing circuit 220 and / or to receive user data that is further processed by said processing circuit 220. The processing circuitry 220 may also be responsible for performing other processes, such as, for example, making judgments, decisions, calculations, measurements, etc. The transmitter may be responsible for performing the transmitting process and other processes related thereto. The receiver may be responsible for performing the receiving process and other processes related thereto.

[0103] Embodiment

[0104] For scheduling, four scenarios are possible depending on whether a UE-specific TDRA table is configured and whether a common TDRA table is configured.

[0105] In the following, the above cases are described for downlink scheduling, however, a corresponding case can be considered for uplink scheduling, where each TDRA table is configured for UL scheduling.

[0106] If a UE-specific TDRA table is configured, i.e., if pdsch-Config contains pdsch-TimeDomainAllocationList, the UE-specific TDRA table is used for DL ​​scheduling in the user-specific search space (USS) and any common search space (CSS) that is not associated with CORESET0.

[0107] If a UE-specific TDRA table is not configured, the TDRA table used for DL ​​scheduling in a user-specific search space (USS) and a common search space (CSS) not associated with CORESET0 depends on whether a common TDRA table is configured. If a common TDRA table is configured, that is, if pdsch-ConfigCommon contains pdsch-TimeDomainAllocationList, the configured common TDRA table is used for DL ​​scheduling in a user-specific search space (USS) and any common search space (CSS) not associated with CORESET0. On the other hand, if a common TDRA table is not configured, a default TDRA table (default table A) is used for DL ​​scheduling in a user-specific search space (USS) and any common search space (CSS) not associated with CORESET0.

[0108] If a common TDRA table is configured, the common TDRA table is used for DL ​​scheduling of the CSS associated with CORESET0. On the other hand, if a common TDRA table is not configured, a default TDRA table is used for DL ​​scheduling.

[0109] The above mentioned cases are summarized in Table 1.

[0110] [Table 1]

[0111] The present disclosure provides an apparatus and method for determining whether restrictions on a TDRA table used for a CSS not associated with CORESET0 or a TDRA table used for any CSS associated with CORESET0 other than a USS and UE specific TDRA table are applied according to a minimum scheduling gap.

[0112] 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary limitation of an exemplary TDRA table with a minimum scheduling gap, which corresponds to the TDRA table shown in FIG. 6 and described in detail above, and the solid and dashed boxes indicate valid entries of the TDRA table with the TDRA table limited with a minimum scheduling gap of 2 and 3, respectively.

[0113] For example, if a minimum scheduling gap of 2 is indicated, then rows (entries) 1-5 are considered invalid because their corresponding scheduling gaps are smaller than the indicated minimum scheduling gap, and rows (entries) 6-16 are considered valid because their corresponding scheduling gaps are greater than or equal to the indicated minimum scheduling gap. This is indicated by the solid box in FIG. 9.

[0114] As another example, if a minimum scheduling gap of 3 is specified, then rows (entries) 1-8 are considered invalid because their corresponding scheduling gaps are less than the specified minimum scheduling gap, and rows (entries) 9-16 are considered valid because their corresponding scheduling gaps are greater than or equal to the specified minimum scheduling gap. This is indicated by the dashed box in Figure 9.

[0115] If a configured TDRA table row (entry) is deemed invalid, the UE does not need to buffer all symbols after receiving a PDCCH corresponding to the invalid TDRA table entry, and, for example, the UE may save power by relaxing the PDCCH processing timeline, since it may not need to decode the PDCCH as fast as in the same-slot scheduling case.

[0116] If the TDRA table is limited according to the minimum scheduling gap indicated by the DCI, certain entries in the TDRA table are considered invalid. In particular, entries with a scheduling gap smaller than the indicated minimum scheduling gap are invalidated. This allows the UE to skip PDSCH buffering, for example, at least in the current slot (e.g., the slot in which the PDCCH is received) and the next slot according to the minimum scheduling gap. Furthermore, the possibility of cross-slot scheduling may allow for microsleep periods in the time interval, especially in the case where the PDCCH is not monitored until the scheduled resource is received.

[0117] It should be noted that the restrictions according to the present disclosure are not limited to the restrictions described with reference to Fig. 9 above. In particular, a minimum scheduling gap other than 2 or 3 may be indicated. Also, applying a restriction to the TDRA table may refer to the TDRA table skipping all monitoring occasions in the search space used in the slot corresponding to the minimum scheduling gap, for example, or switching to another TDRA table used for the search space, etc. This will be explained in the framework of the following embodiments.

[0118] Embodiment 1 - Downlink

[0119] In an embodiment in the case of scheduling of downlink data transmissions, the transceiver device determines whether to apply a restriction to the TDRA table according to the minimum scheduling gap, which includes determining whether a common TDRA table is configured.

[0120] (A) A common TDRA is not configured.

[0121] As mentioned above, the default table A is used when a common TDRA table is not configured for the CSS associated with CORESET0 in cases 1.2 and 2.2 as shown in Table 1, and for any CSS not associated with USS and CORESET0 in case 2.2. By standard, the default TDRA table for DL ​​only has entries indicating a scheduling gap with value zero. Therefore, applying a restriction to the default TDRA table according to a minimum scheduling gap greater than zero may result in all entries in the default TDRA table being invalidated by the UE, potentially resulting in loss of scheduling information.

[0122] Therefore, if it is determined that a common TDRA table is not configured, the minimum scheduling gap limitation of the TDRA table used for the CSS associated with CORESET0, ie, the default TDRA table, does not apply.

[0123] Also, if the default TDRA table is used for scheduling in any CSS not associated with a USS and CORESET0 (case 2.2 in Table 1), the minimum scheduling gap restriction does not apply.

[0124] In other words, if a common TDRA table is not configured and a standard TDRA table is used for scheduling in the CSS associated with CORESET0 and / or in the USS and any CSS not associated with CORESET0, the minimum scheduling gap restriction on the default TDRA table does not apply.

[0125] In one variation, if a default TDRA table is used for scheduling in a CSS associated with CORESET0 (as in cases 1.2 and 2.2 in Table 1) or in any CSS not associated with a USS and CORESET0 (as in case 2.2 in Table 1), and the minimum scheduling gap indicated by the previous DCI is greater than zero, the UE may not monitor an occasion of a physical control channel (e.g., a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH)) in each search space. By not monitoring the occasion, paging and system information are not monitored by the UE. In this approach, the gNB may cause the UE to skip the occasion by indicating a minimum scheduling gap greater than zero if no changed system information is indicated in the occasion.

[0126] (B) A common TDRA is configured.

[0127] However, if the common TDRA table is configured as in cases 1.1 and 2.1 above and shown in Table 1, where the common TDRA table is used for scheduling in the CSS associated with CORESET0 in cases 1.1 and 2.1, and in any CSS not associated with USS and CORESET0 in case 2.1, the restriction on such a common TDRA table may also not apply, because in the case of CSS, the UE does not apply cross-slot scheduling for group-common PDCCH with SI-RNTI, RA-RNTI, TC-RNTI, and P-RNTI. However, if no restriction is applied to the common TDRA table, the UE would use a fast PDCCH processing timeline and buffer all PDSCHs, which would result in more power consumption than necessary.

[0128] Therefore, the UE can achieve power savings through cross-slot scheduling adaptation under certain conditions since it does not need to monitor the group-common PDCCH at all possible monitoring occasions since the gc-PDCCH does not appear in all slots.

[0129] According to this embodiment, the UE decides whether to apply a restriction in the common TDRA table according to the minimum scheduling gap depending on a comparison between the indicated minimum scheduling gap and the scheduling gap included in the common TDRA table. The common TDRA table includes a number of entries, each entry specifying a time domain resource allocation including a scheduling gap indicator indicating a gap between the reception of a scheduling grant and a scheduled resource.

[0130] If the minimum scheduling gap is within the range of the scheduling gaps included in the common TDRA table, the UE decides to apply a restriction to the common TDRA table according to the minimum scheduling gap by invalidating entries in the TDRA table that have a scheduling gap smaller than the indicated minimum scheduling gap.

[0131] In other words, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than or equal to the minimum scheduling gap in the common TDRA table and is less than or equal to the maximum scheduling gap in the common TDRA table, the UE determines to apply a restriction to the common TDRA table according to the minimum scheduling gap.

[0132] If the minimum scheduling gap indicated by the previous DCI is larger than the maximum scheduling gap included in the common TDRA table, the transceiver is controlled not to monitor PDCCH monitoring occasions in the search space using the common TDRA table. Thus, if the minimum gap indicated by the DCI is not larger than the maximum scheduling gap included in the common TDRA, the transceiver may be controlled to monitor PDCCH monitoring occasions in the search space using the common TDRA table. For example, the transceiver may be controlled to start monitoring said monitoring occasions again if the minimum scheduling gap indicated by the DCI is smaller than or equal to the maximum scheduling gap value included in the TDRA table.

[0133] Specifically, in the above case 1.1, the PDCCH monitoring occasions in the CSS associated with CORESET0 are skipped. Also, in the above case 2.1, the PDCCH monitoring occasions in the CSS associated with CORESET0 and the PDCCH monitoring occasions in any CSS not associated with USS and CORESET0 are skipped. This approach allows the gNB to skip monitoring of paging and system information when it determines that such monitoring is not required for the UE. In other words, by indicating a minimum scheduling gap larger than the maximum scheduling gap in the common TDRA table, the gNB may prevent the UE from monitoring paging and system information.

[0134] Alternatively, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap included in the common TDRA table, the UE does not apply any restriction to the common TDRA table. Also, for example, the UE may determine a second TDRA table different from the common TDRA table and use the second TDRA table for scheduling. In other words, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap value included in the common TDRA table, the UE may not apply any restriction to the common TDRA table and may instead use another TDRA table for scheduling. For example, the second TDRA table may be the default TDRA table described above. In this approach, no restriction is applied to the common TDRA table and all entries are considered invalid by the UE, thus preventing loss of scheduling information.

[0135] Additionally or alternatively, the UE may not expect a minimum scheduling gap larger than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the common TDRA table to be indicated, i.e. if a minimum scheduling gap larger than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the common TDRA is indicated by the DCI, said minimum scheduling gap is ignored when deciding whether to apply a restriction to the configured common TDRA table. This approach prevents scheduling losses due to incorrectly applied restriction of the common TDRA table by a minimum scheduling gap value, which would not cause a meaningful distinction of TDRA table entries as valid or invalid.

[0136] In one variation, if the scheduling gaps according to the entries of the common TDRA table are equal to each other, the UE decides not to apply restrictions to the common TDRA table according to the minimum scheduling gap indicated by the previous DCI. For example, if all scheduling gaps contained in the common TDRA table are zero, the UE does not apply restrictions according to the minimum scheduling gap. In particular, if all scheduling gaps of the common TDRA table are equal, a meaningful distinction between valid and invalid entries using the minimum scheduling gap is not possible, since either all entries are considered valid or all entries are not considered valid. This variation of the approach makes it possible to prevent such a situation.

[0137] In a further variation, the UE may determine whether it is configured to monitor a group common physical control channel (i.e., group common physical downlink control channel (gc-PDCCH)) in a CSS associated with CORESET0, and depending on the result of this determination, determine whether to apply a restriction to the common TDRA table according to the minimum scheduling gap. Specifically, if the UE is not configured to monitor the gc-PDCCH in a CSS associated with CORESET0, the restriction on the common TDRA table is applied. That is, if the UE is not configured to monitor the gc-PDCCH, the restriction is applied, which enables the power saving measures described above. Note that the UE may be pre-configured to monitor the gc-PDCCH, for example by broadcast.

[0138] In the above embodiment and variations, the transceiver of the UE receives data after receiving a corresponding scheduling grant, specifically, the data is received via a PDSCH on a resource indicated in the scheduling grant, the resource being located within a slot and the time distance to the reception of the scheduling grant is greater than the indicated minimum scheduling gap.

[0139] Embodiment 2 - Uplink

[0140] As mentioned above, according to current 3GPP discussions, the minimum scheduling gaps for the downlink and uplink may be set jointly by RRC signaling and indicated by DCI formats 0_1 and 1_1.

[0141] Similar to the downlink case, if a common TDRA table is not configured, a default TDRA table may be used for scheduling in a CSS associated to CORESET0, and if a UE-specific TDRA table is also not configured, the default table may also be used for scheduling in any CSS not associated to a USS and CORESET0.

[0142] However, the default uplink TDRA table normally contains entries with scheduling gaps greater than zero, in contrast to the default downlink TDRA table.

[0143] Thus, not applying restrictions to the default table for the uplink, but not for the downlink, would prevent power savings achievable through cross-slot scheduling adaptation. Thus, for uplink scheduling, restrictions may be applied to the TDRA table used for scheduling in the CSS associated with CORESET0, even if a common TDRA table is not configured. Also, restrictions may be applied to the TDRA table used for scheduling in any CSS not associated with the USS and CORESET0 (i.e. the default UL TDRA table) if a UE-specific TDRA table is also not configured.

[0144] Alternatively, in an embodiment for scheduling uplink transmissions, the transceiver device determines whether to apply a restriction in a time domain resource allocation (TDRA) table according to a minimum scheduling gap, the TDRA table including a plurality of entries, each entry specifying a time domain resource allocation including a scheduling gap indicator indicating a gap between receipt of a scheduling grant and a scheduled resource, and said determination includes comparing the minimum scheduling gap with the scheduling gap included in the TDRA table.

[0145] In other words, in contrast to the downlink case, the decision whether to apply a restriction to the TDRA table does not necessarily include the decision whether a common TDRA table is configured or not, since the restrictions in the TDRA table used for scheduling may or may not apply in both cases. Instead, the decision whether to apply a restriction is made by comparing the minimum scheduling gap indicated by the DCI with the scheduling gap contained in the entry of the used TDRA table.

[0146] Specifically, the above variations for downlink cases 1.1 and 2.1 shown in Table 1 apply to the corresponding cases for uplink scheduling.

[0147] It should be noted that the common TDRA table for uplink scheduling may be different from the common TDRA table for downlink scheduling, so when applying the above procedure to uplink scheduling, the respective common TDRA table for uplink scheduling is utilized.

[0148] The above variations for downlink cases 1.1 and 2.1 shown in Table 1 may also be applied to downlink cases 1.2 and 2.2, respectively.

[0149] That is, the determination of whether a restriction applies to the common DL TDRA table may be equally applied to determine whether a restriction applies to the default UL table. Specifically, the comparison of the minimum scheduling gap with the scheduling gap included in the TDRA refers to the comparison of the minimum scheduling gap in the uplink with the scheduling gap included in the default TDRA table in the uplink.

[0150] In other words, the decision descriptions for downlink cases 1.1 and 2.1 apply to uplink cases 1.1 and 2.1, where the downlink TDRA tables are replaced by the respective UL TDRA tables, and the decision descriptions for downlink cases 1.1 and 2.1 apply to uplink cases 1.2 and 2.2, where the common DL TDRA table is replaced by the default UL TDRA table.

[0151] In more detail: According to this embodiment, the UE decides whether to apply a restriction in the default UL TDRA table according to the minimum scheduling gap depending on a comparison between the indicated minimum scheduling gap and the scheduling gap included in the default UL TDRA table. The default UL TDRA table includes a number of entries, each entry specifying a time domain resource allocation including a scheduling gap indicator indicating a gap between reception of a scheduling grant and a scheduled resource.

[0152] If the minimum scheduling gap is within the range of scheduling gaps included in the default UL TDRA table, the UE decides to apply a restriction to the default UL TDRA table according to the minimum scheduling gap by invalidating entries in the TDRA table that have a scheduling gap smaller than the indicated minimum scheduling gap.

[0153] In other words, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than or equal to the minimum scheduling gap in the default UL TDRA table and is less than or equal to the maximum scheduling gap in the default UL TDRA table, the UE determines to apply a restriction to the default UL TDRA table according to the minimum scheduling gap.

[0154] If the minimum scheduling gap indicated by the previous DCI is larger than the maximum scheduling gap included in the default UL TDRA table, the transceiver is controlled not to monitor PDCCH monitoring occasions in the search space using the default UL TDRA table. Thus, if the minimum scheduling gap indicated by the DCI is not larger than the maximum scheduling gap included in the default UL TDRA, the transceiver may be controlled to monitor PDCCH monitoring occasions in the search space using the default UL TDRA table. For example, the transceiver may be controlled to start monitoring said monitoring occasions again if the minimum scheduling gap indicated by the DCI is smaller than or equal to the maximum scheduling gap value included in the TDRA table.

[0155] Specifically, corresponding to case 1.1 above, PDCCH monitoring occasions in the CSS associated with CORESET0 are skipped. Also, corresponding to case 2.1 above, PDCCH monitoring occasions in the CSS associated with CORESET0 and PDCCH monitoring occasions in any CSS not associated with USS and CORESET0 are skipped. This approach allows the gNB to skip monitoring of paging and system information when it determines that such monitoring is not required for the UE. In other words, by indicating a minimum scheduling gap larger than the maximum scheduling gap in the default UL TDRA table, the gNB may cause the UE not to monitor paging and system information.

[0156] Alternatively, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the default UL TDRA table, the UE applies no restrictions to the default UL TDRA table, which approach prevents loss of scheduling information since no restrictions are applied to the default TDRA table and all entries are considered invalid by the UE.

[0157] Additionally or alternatively, the UE may not expect a minimum scheduling gap larger than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the default UL TDRA table to be indicated, i.e. if a minimum scheduling gap larger than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the default UL TDRA is indicated by the DCI, said minimum scheduling gap shall be ignored when deciding whether to apply restrictions to the configured default UL TDRA table. This approach prevents scheduling losses due to incorrectly applied restrictions of the default UL TDRA table by a minimum scheduling gap value, which would not cause a meaningful distinction of TDRA table entries as valid or invalid.

[0158] In one variation, if the scheduling gaps according to the entries of the default UL TDRA table are equal to each other, the UE decides not to apply restrictions to the default UL TDRA table according to the minimum scheduling gap indicated by the previous DCI. In particular, if all scheduling gaps of the default UL TDRA table are equal, no meaningful distinction between valid and invalid entries using the minimum scheduling gap is possible, since either all entries are considered valid or all entries are not considered valid. This approach of the variation makes it possible to prevent such a situation.

[0159] In a further variation, the UE may determine whether it is configured to monitor a group common physical control channel (i.e., group common physical downlink control channel (gc-PDCCH)) in a CSS associated with CORESET0, and depending on the result of this determination, determine whether to apply a restriction to the default UL TDRA table according to the minimum scheduling gap. Specifically, if the UE is not configured to monitor the gc-PDCCH in a CSS associated with CORESET0, the restriction on the default UL TDRA table is applied. That is, if the UE is not configured to monitor the gc-PDCCH, the restriction is applied, which enables the power saving measures described above. Note that the UE may be pre-configured to monitor the gc-PDCCH, for example, by broadcast.

[0160] In the above embodiments and variations, the UE transceiver transmits data after receiving a corresponding scheduling grant, specifically, the data is transmitted via PUSCH on resources indicated in the scheduling grant, the resources being at a time distance greater than the indicated minimum scheduling gap until receipt of the scheduling grant.

[0161] Hardware and Software Implementations of the Disclosure

[0162] The present disclosure can be realized by software, hardware, or software in cooperation with hardware. Each functional block used in the description of each embodiment above can be realized, in part or in whole, by an LSI such as an integrated circuit, and each process described in each embodiment can be controlled, in part or in whole, by the same LSI or a combination of LSIs. The LSI may be formed as an individual chip, or one chip may be formed to include some or all of the functional blocks. The LSI may include a data input and a data output connected thereto. Here, the LSI may be called an IC, a system LSI, a super LSI, or an ultra LSI depending on the degree of integration. However, the technology for realizing the integrated circuit is not limited to the LSI, and may be realized using a dedicated circuit, a general-purpose processor, or a dedicated processor. In addition, a field programmable gate array (FPGA) that can be programmed after the LSI is manufactured, or a reconfigurable processor that can reconfigure the connection and settings of the circuit cells arranged inside the LSI may be used. The present disclosure can be realized as digital processing or analog processing. If future integrated circuit technologies replace LSI as a result of advances in semiconductor technology or other derived technologies, the future integrated circuit technologies can be used to integrate the functional blocks. Biotechnology is also applicable.

[0163] The present disclosure may be implemented by any type of apparatus, device, or system having communication capabilities, referred to as a communications apparatus.

[0164] Some non-limiting examples of such communications devices include telephones (e.g., cell phones, smartphones), tablets, personal computers (PCs) (e.g., laptops, desktops, notebooks), cameras (e.g., digital still / video cameras), digital players (digital audio / video players), wearable devices (e.g., wearable cameras, smart watches, tracking devices), game consoles, digital book readers, telehealth / telemedicine devices, vehicles (e.g., automobiles, airplanes, ships) that provide communications capabilities, and various combinations thereof.

[0165] Communications devices are not limited to being portable or mobile, but may include any type of apparatus, device, or system that is non-portable or fixed, such as, for example, smart home devices (e.g., appliances, lighting, smart meters, control panels), vending machines, or any other "things" in an "Internet of Things" network.

[0166] Communications may include, for example, the exchange of data via cellular systems, wireless LAN systems, satellite systems, and the like, as well as various combinations thereof.

[0167] A communications device may have devices such as controllers and sensors connected to the communications device to perform the communications functions described in this disclosure. For example, a communications device may have a controller or a sensor that generates control or data signals used by the communications device to perform the communications functions of the communications device.

[0168] Communications equipment may also include infrastructure facilities, such as base stations, access points, or any other equipment, device, or system that communicates with or controls the equipment in the non-limiting examples above.

[0169] Furthermore, the various embodiments may be implemented by means of software modules, which are executed by a processor or directly in hardware. Also a combination of software modules and hardware implementation is possible. The software modules can be stored on any kind of computer-readable storage medium, for example RAM, EPROM, EEPROM, flash memory, registers, hard disks, CD-ROM, DVD, etc. It should be noted further that individual features of the different embodiments may be the subject of another embodiment, individually or in any combination.

[0170] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and / or modifications may be made to the present disclosure as set forth in the specific embodiments, and the present embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive.

[0171] Further Aspects

[0172] As mentioned above, devices and methods are provided that facilitate UE power conservation, including procedures involving cross-slot scheduling. In particular, devices and methods are provided that use information about certain conditions to determine whether to apply restrictions to a time domain resource allocation (TDRA) table. The conditions may include information about whether a common TDRA table is configured, the result of a comparison between an indicated minimum scheduling gap and a scheduling gap in the TDRA table, and / or whether resources are scheduled for uplink or downlink transmission of data. Aspects of the present disclosure are summarized below.

[0173] According to a first aspect, there is provided a transceiver device comprising: a transceiver configured, during operation, to receive data after receiving a scheduling grant; and circuitry configured, during operation, to determine whether to apply a restriction to a Time Domain Resource Allocation (TDRA) table according to a minimum scheduling gap, said determining including whether a common TDRA table is configured.

[0174] For example, the TDRA table to which the restriction is applied according to the result of the determination may be a common TDRA table itself, if configured, or may be a TDRA table different from the common TDRA table and different from a TDRA table specific to the transceiver device.

[0175] For example, the TDRA table may be a TDRA table used for downlink scheduling in a common search space associated with CORESET0. Also, for example, the TDRA table may be a TDRA table used for downlink scheduling in a common search space associated with CORESET0, and for downlink scheduling in a user-specific search space and any common search space not associated with CORESET0.

[0176] For example, the TDRA table may be a common TDRA table or a default TDRA table.

[0177] For example, the TDRA table may be a TDRA table that is not configured specific to the transceiver device.

[0178] For example, the TDRA table is a TDRA table used for scheduling resources for data reception.

[0179] For example, during operation, the transceiver receives the data according to resources indicated by the scheduling grant.

[0180] For example, the scheduling grant may indicate scheduled resources for data reception, the resources being scheduled after a scheduling gap greater than or equal to the minimum scheduling gap after receiving the scheduling grant.

[0181] The determination of whether to apply a restriction to a TDRA table according to a minimum scheduling gap enables, under certain conditions, the transceiver device not to buffer symbols after receiving the scheduling grant, thereby enabling, for example, power savings.

[0182] In one embodiment, the circuitry determines, during operation, not to apply the restriction to the TDRA table if it is determined that the common TDRA table is not configured.

[0183] In other words, for example, the circuitry may decide to apply the restriction to a common TDRA table if a common TDRA table is configured and used for downlink scheduling, and may decide not to apply the restriction if a common TDRA table is not configured and a separate TDRA table is used for downlink scheduling.

[0184] For example, if the other TDRA table is not the common TDRA table and is not a TDRA table configured specifically for the transceiver device, the circuitry may determine that the restriction does not apply.

[0185] Under the defined condition, i.e. when a common TDRA table is not configured, the restriction does not apply, thus preventing possible scheduling losses.

[0186] In one embodiment, the circuitry controls the transceiver, during operation, to not monitor physical control channel occasions in a search space associated with the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than zero.

[0187] For example, during operation, the circuitry controls the transceiver to not monitor occasions on the physical control channel if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than zero and a common TDRA table is not configured.

[0188] Also, for example, the circuitry controls the transceiver, during operation, to not monitor occasions on the physical control channel when the minimum scheduling gap is greater than zero, a common TDRA table is not configured, and a default TDRA table is used for scheduling.

[0189] For example, the physical control channel may be a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

[0190] In one embodiment, the TDRA table includes a plurality of entries, each entry specifying a time domain resource allocation including a scheduling gap indicator indicating a gap between receipt of the scheduling grant and a scheduled resource, and the determining further includes, if it is determined that the common TDRA table is configured, comparing the minimum scheduling gap with a scheduling gap included in the TDRA table.

[0191] In other words, the decision whether to apply a restriction to the TDRA table may include determining whether a common TDRA table is configured and comparing the minimum scheduling gap value with the scheduling gap value contained in the TDRA table.

[0192] For example, if it is determined that a common TDRA table is not configured, the circuitry may perform a comparison between the minimum scheduling gap and the scheduling gap contained in the common TDRA table and use the result of the comparison to determine whether to apply a restriction to the common TDRA table.

[0193] In one embodiment, during operation, the circuitry determines that the limit applies to the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is within a range of scheduling gaps contained in the TDRA table.

[0194] For example, during operation, the circuit determines that the minimum scheduling gap is within the range of the scheduling gap in the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than or equal to a minimum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table and is greater than or equal to a maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table.

[0195] In one embodiment, during operation, the circuitry controls the transceiver to not monitor physical control channel occasions in a search space associated with the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table.

[0196] For example, the physical control channel may be a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

[0197] In one embodiment, the circuitry determines, during operation, that the restriction does not apply to the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table.

[0198] In one embodiment, during operation, the circuitry further determines a second TDRA table different from the TDRA table for resource allocation if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than a maximum scheduling gap included in the TDRA table, and uses the second TDRA table for scheduling.

[0199] In other words, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table, during operation, the circuit determines and utilizes a second TDRA table different from the TDRA table for scheduling resources, and the restriction does not apply to the second TDRA table.

[0200] For example, the second TDRA table is a default TDRA table.

[0201] In one embodiment, during operation, the circuitry determines that the restriction does not apply to the TDRA table if the scheduling gaps contained in the TDRA table are equal to one another.

[0202] In other words, if the TDRA table contains only scheduling gap values ​​that are all equal to each other, then the restriction does not apply to that TDRA table.

[0203] In one embodiment, the determining includes determining whether the transceiver device is configured to monitor a group common physical control channel, and the circuitry determines, during operation, to apply the restriction to the TDRA table if the transceiver device is not configured to monitor the group common physical control channel.

[0204] In one embodiment, the transceiver, during operation, receives a minimum scheduling gap indicator indicating the minimum scheduling gap.

[0205] For example, the transceiver receives the minimum scheduling gap indicator by way of downlink control information (DCI) signaling.

[0206] For example, one or more minimum scheduling gap values ​​are configured by Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

[0207] In one embodiment, the minimum scheduling gap indicates the minimum gap, in timeslots, between receipt of the scheduling grant and scheduled resources.

[0208] In other words, the minimum scheduling gap represents the minimum time period between the reception of a scheduling grant and the scheduled resources for data reception indicated by said scheduling grant, said time period being indicated in timeslots and its duration may for example be pre-set or configured.

[0209] According to a second aspect, there is provided a transceiver device comprising: a transceiver that, during operation, transmits data after receiving a scheduling grant; and circuitry that, during operation, determines whether to apply a restriction to a time domain resource allocation (TDRA) table according to a minimum scheduling gap, the TDRA table including a plurality of entries, each entry specifying a time domain resource allocation including a scheduling gap indicator indicating a gap between receipt of the scheduling grant and a scheduled resource, and the determination includes comparing the minimum scheduling gap with the scheduling gap included in the TDRA table.

[0210] For example, the TDRA table to which the restriction is applied according to the result of the determination may be a common TDRA table itself, if configured, or may be a TDRA table different from the common TDRA table and different from a transceiver device specific TDRA table.

[0211] For example, the TDRA table may be a TDRA table used for uplink scheduling in a common search space associated with CORESET0. Also, for example, the TDRA table may be a TDRA table used for uplink scheduling in a common search space associated with CORESET0, and for uplink scheduling in a user-specific search space and any common search space not associated with CORESET0.

[0212] For example, the TDRA table may be a common TDRA table or a default TDRA table.

[0213] For example, the TDRA table may be a TDRA table that is not configured specific to the transceiver device.

[0214] For example, the TDRA table is a TDRA table used for scheduling resources for data transmission.

[0215] For example, the transceiver, during operation, transmits data over resources indicated by the scheduling grant.

[0216] For example, the scheduling grant may indicate scheduled resources for data transmission, the resources being scheduled after a scheduling gap greater than or equal to the minimum scheduling gap after receiving the scheduling grant.

[0217] The determination of whether to apply a restriction to a TDRA table according to a minimum scheduling gap enables, under certain conditions, the transceiver device not to buffer symbols after receiving the scheduling grant, thereby enabling, for example, power savings.

[0218] In one embodiment, during operation, the circuitry determines that the limit applies to the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is within a range of scheduling gaps contained in the TDRA table.

[0219] For example, during operation, the circuit determines that the minimum scheduling gap is within the range of the scheduling gap in the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than or equal to a minimum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table and is greater than or equal to a maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table.

[0220] In one embodiment, during operation, the circuitry controls the transceiver to not monitor physical control channel occasions in a search space associated with the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table.

[0221] For example, the physical control channel may be a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

[0222] In one embodiment, the circuitry determines, during operation, that the restriction does not apply to the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table.

[0223] In one embodiment, during operation, the circuitry further determines a second TDRA table different from the TDRA table for resource allocation if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than a maximum scheduling gap included in the TDRA table, and uses the second TDRA table for scheduling.

[0224] In other words, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table, during operation, the circuit determines and utilizes a second TDRA table different from the TDRA table for scheduling resources, and the restriction does not apply to the second TDRA table.

[0225] For example, the second TDRA table is a default TDRA table.

[0226] In one embodiment, during operation, the circuitry determines that the restriction does not apply to the TDRA table if the scheduling gaps contained in the TDRA table are equal to one another.

[0227] In other words, if the TDRA table contains only scheduling gap values ​​that are all equal to each other, then the restriction does not apply to that TDRA table.

[0228] In one embodiment, the determining includes determining whether the transceiver device is configured to monitor a group common physical control channel, and the circuitry determines, during operation, to apply the restriction to the TDRA table if the transceiver device is not configured to monitor the group common physical control channel.

[0229] In one embodiment, the transceiver, during operation, receives a minimum scheduling gap indicator indicating the minimum scheduling gap.

[0230] For example, the transceiver receives the minimum scheduling gap indicator by way of downlink control information (DCI) signaling.

[0231] For example, one or more minimum scheduling gap values ​​are configured by Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

[0232] In one embodiment, the minimum scheduling gap indicates the minimum gap, in timeslots, between receipt of the scheduling grant and scheduled resources.

[0233] In other words, the minimum scheduling gap represents the minimum time period between the reception of a scheduling grant and the scheduled resources for a data transmission indicated by said scheduling grant, said time period being indicated in timeslots and its duration may for example be set or configured in advance.

[0234] According to a third aspect, there is provided a method for receiving data, comprising: determining whether to apply a restriction to a Time Domain Resource Allocation (TDRA) table according to a minimum scheduling gap, said determining comprising determining whether a common TDRA table is configured; and receiving data after receiving a scheduling grant.

[0235] For example, the TDRA table to which the restriction is applied according to the result of the determination may be a common TDRA table itself, if configured, or may be a TDRA table different from the common TDRA table and different from a TDRA table specific to the transceiver device.

[0236] For example, the TDRA table may be a TDRA table used for downlink scheduling in a common search space associated with CORESET0. Also, for example, the TDRA table may be a TDRA table used for downlink scheduling in a common search space associated with CORESET0, and for downlink scheduling in a user-specific search space and any common search space not associated with CORESET0.

[0237] For example, the TDRA table may be a common TDRA table or a default TDRA table.

[0238] For example, the TDRA table may be a TDRA table that is not configured specific to the transceiver device.

[0239] For example, the TDRA table is a TDRA table used for scheduling resources for data reception.

[0240] For example, the data is received according to resources indicated by the scheduling grant.

[0241] For example, the scheduling grant may indicate scheduled resources for data reception, the resources being scheduled after a scheduling gap greater than or equal to the minimum scheduling gap after receiving the scheduling grant.

[0242] The determination of whether to apply a restriction to a TDRA table according to a minimum scheduling gap enables, under certain conditions, the transceiver device not to buffer symbols after receiving the scheduling grant, thereby enabling, for example, power savings.

[0243] In one embodiment, if it is determined that the common TDRA table is not configured, it is determined that the restriction does not apply to the TDRA table.

[0244] In other words, for example, it may be decided to apply the restriction to a common TDRA table if the common TDRA table is configured and used for downlink scheduling, and may not apply the restriction if the common TDRA table is not configured and another TDRA table is used for downlink scheduling.

[0245] For example, if the other TDRA table is neither the common TDRA table nor a TDRA table configured specifically for a transceiver device, it may be determined that the restriction does not apply.

[0246] Under the defined condition, i.e. when a common TDRA table is not configured, the restriction does not apply, thus preventing possible scheduling losses.

[0247] In one embodiment, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than zero, then physical control channel occurrences in a search space associated with the TDRA table are not monitored.

[0248] For example, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than zero and a common TDRA table is not configured, then the physical control channel occasions are not monitored.

[0249] Also, for example, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than zero, a common TDRA table is not configured, and a default TDRA table is used for scheduling, then the physical control channel occasions are not monitored.

[0250] For example, the physical control channel may be a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

[0251] In one embodiment, the TDRA table includes a plurality of entries, each entry specifying a time domain resource allocation including a scheduling gap indicator indicating a gap between receipt of the scheduling grant and a scheduled resource, and the determining further includes, if it is determined that the common TDRA table is configured, comparing the minimum scheduling gap with a scheduling gap included in the TDRA table.

[0252] In other words, the decision whether to apply a restriction to the TDRA table may include determining whether a common TDRA table is configured and comparing the minimum scheduling gap value with the scheduling gap value contained in the TDRA table.

[0253] For example, if it is determined that a common TDRA table is not configured, a comparison is made between the minimum scheduling gap and the scheduling gap contained in the common TDRA table, and the result of the comparison is used to determine whether to apply a restriction to the common TDRA table.

[0254] In one embodiment, if the minimum scheduling gap is within a range of scheduling gaps contained in the TDRA table, it is determined that the restriction applies to the TDRA table.

[0255] For example, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than or equal to the minimum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table and greater than or equal to the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table, it is determined that the minimum scheduling gap is within the range of the scheduling gap in the TDRA table.

[0256] In one embodiment, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table, then physical control channel occasions in a search space associated with the TDRA table are not monitored.

[0257] For example, the physical control channel may be a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

[0258] In one embodiment, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table, it is determined that the restriction does not apply to the TDRA table.

[0259] In one embodiment, the method further comprises determining a second TDRA table different from the TDRA table for resource allocation if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than a maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table.

[0260] In other words, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table, a second TDRA table different from the TDRA table is determined and used for scheduling resources, and the restriction does not apply to the second TDRA table.

[0261] For example, the second TDRA table is a default TDRA table.

[0262] In one embodiment, if the scheduling gaps included in the TDRA table are equal to each other, it is determined that the restriction does not apply to the TDRA table.

[0263] In other words, if the TDRA table contains only scheduling gap values ​​that are all equal to each other, then the restriction does not apply to that TDRA table.

[0264] In one embodiment, the determination includes determining whether monitoring a group common physical control channel is configured, and if monitoring the group common physical control channel is not configured, determining to apply the restriction to the TDRA table.

[0265] In one embodiment, the method further comprises receiving a minimum scheduling gap indicator indicating the minimum scheduling gap.

[0266] For example, the minimum scheduling gap indicator is received by downlink control information (DCI) signaling.

[0267] For example, one or more minimum scheduling gap values ​​are configured by Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

[0268] In one embodiment, the minimum scheduling gap indicates the minimum gap, in timeslots, between receipt of the scheduling grant and scheduled resources.

[0269] In other words, the minimum scheduling gap represents the minimum time period between the reception of a scheduling grant and the scheduled resources for data reception indicated by said scheduling grant, said time period being indicated in timeslots and its duration may for example be pre-set or configured.

[0270] According to a fourth aspect, there is provided a method for transmitting data, comprising: determining whether to apply a restriction in a time domain resource allocation (TDRA) table according to a minimum scheduling gap, the TDRA table including a plurality of entries, each entry specifying a time domain resource allocation including a scheduling gap indicator indicating a gap between reception of a scheduling grant and a scheduled resource, the determining comprising comparing the minimum scheduling gap with the scheduling gap included in the TDRA table; and transmitting data after receiving the scheduling grant.

[0271] For example, the TDRA table to which the restriction is applied according to the result of the determination may be a common TDRA table itself, if configured, or may be a TDRA table different from the common TDRA table and different from a transceiver device specific TDRA table.

[0272] For example, the TDRA table may be a TDRA table used for uplink scheduling in a common search space associated with CORESET0. Also, for example, the TDRA table may be a TDRA table used for uplink scheduling in a common search space associated with CORESET0, and for uplink scheduling in a user-specific search space and any common search space not associated with CORESET0.

[0273] For example, the TDRA table may be a common TDRA table or a default TDRA table.

[0274] For example, the TDRA table may be a TDRA table that is not configured specific to the transceiver device.

[0275] For example, the TDRA table is a TDRA table used for scheduling resources for data transmission.

[0276] For example, the data is transmitted over resources indicated by the scheduling grant.

[0277] For example, the scheduling grant may indicate scheduled resources for data transmission, the resources being scheduled after a scheduling gap greater than or equal to the minimum scheduling gap after receiving the scheduling grant.

[0278] The determination of whether to apply a restriction to a TDRA table according to a minimum scheduling gap enables, under certain conditions, the transceiver device not to buffer symbols after receiving the scheduling grant, thereby enabling, for example, power savings.

[0279] In one embodiment, if the minimum scheduling gap is within a range of scheduling gaps contained in the TDRA table, it is determined that the restriction applies to the TDRA table.

[0280] For example, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than or equal to the minimum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table and greater than or equal to the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table, it is determined that the minimum scheduling gap is within the range of the scheduling gap in the TDRA table.

[0281] In one embodiment, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table, then physical control channel occasions in a search space associated with the TDRA table are not monitored.

[0282] For example, the physical control channel may be a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).

[0283] In one embodiment, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table, it is determined that the restriction does not apply to the TDRA table.

[0284] In one embodiment, the method further comprises determining a second TDRA table different from the TDRA table for resource allocation if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than a maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table.

[0285] In other words, if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than the maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table, a second TDRA table different from the TDRA table is determined and used for scheduling resources, and the restriction does not apply to the second TDRA table.

[0286] For example, the second TDRA table is a default TDRA table.

[0287] In one embodiment, if the scheduling gaps included in the TDRA table are equal to each other, it is determined that the restriction does not apply to the TDRA table.

[0288] In other words, if the TDRA table contains only scheduling gap values ​​that are all equal to each other, then the restriction does not apply to that TDRA table.

[0289] In one embodiment, the determination includes determining whether monitoring a group common physical control channel is configured, and if monitoring the group common physical control channel is not configured, determining to apply the restriction to the TDRA table.

[0290] In one embodiment, the method further comprises receiving a minimum scheduling gap indicator indicating the minimum scheduling gap.

[0291] For example, the minimum scheduling gap indicator is received by downlink control information (DCI) signaling.

[0292] For example, one or more minimum scheduling gap values ​​are configured by Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.

[0293] In one embodiment, the minimum scheduling gap indicates the minimum gap, in timeslots, between receipt of the scheduling grant and scheduled resources.

[0294] In other words, the minimum scheduling gap represents the minimum time period between the reception of a scheduling grant and the scheduled resources for a data transmission indicated by said scheduling grant, said time period being indicated in timeslots and its duration may for example be set or configured in advance.

[0295] According to a fifth aspect, there is provided a scheduling device comprising: a circuit for determining, during operation, a minimum scheduling gap indicating a minimum value of a gap between transmission of a scheduling grant and a scheduled resource; and a transceiver for transmitting, during operation, a scheduling grant to a transceiver device indicating scheduled resources for data transmission, the resources being scheduled after a scheduling gap equal to or greater than the minimum scheduling gap after transmission of the scheduling grant, and transmitting data to or receiving data from the transceiver device on the scheduled resources.

[0296] In one embodiment, the transceiver, during operation, transmits a minimum scheduling gap indicator to the transceiver device indicating the minimum scheduling gap.

[0297] For example, in operation, the circuitry does not schedule resources for transmission to or reception from the transceiver device for a period of time after transmission of the scheduling grant, the period having a duration based on the minimum scheduling gap.

[0298] For example, the minimum scheduling gap indicator is indicated to the transceiver device by downlink control information (DCI).

[0299] In one embodiment, during operation, the circuitry determines the minimum scheduling gap to be greater than a maximum scheduling gap contained in a configured time domain resource allocation (TDRA) table, the TDRA table including a plurality of entries, each entry specifying a time domain resource allocation including a scheduling gap indicator indicating a gap between receipt of the scheduling grant and a scheduled resource.

[0300] The determination may cause the scheduling device to cause the transceiver device to skip an occasion for monitoring a physical control channel.

[0301] In one embodiment, the minimum scheduling gap indicates the minimum gap, in timeslots, between receipt of the scheduling grant and scheduled resources.

Claims

1. An integrated circuit for controlling processing of a transceiver device, said processing comprising: receiving data after receiving the scheduling information; determining whether to apply a restriction to a time domain resource allocation (TDRA) table according to a minimum scheduling gap, said determining including whether a common TDRA table is configured; Including, the TDRA table includes a plurality of entries, each entry specifying a time domain resource allocation including a scheduling gap indicator indicating a gap between receipt of the scheduling information and a scheduled resource; The determining further includes, if it is determined that the common TDRA table is configured, comparing the minimum scheduling gap with a scheduling gap included in the TDRA table; The determining step includes determining not to apply the restriction to the TDRA table if it is determined that the common TDRA table is not configured; The determining step determines that the restriction is not to be applied to the TDRA table if the scheduling gaps included in the TDRA table are equal to each other. Integrated circuits.

2. the process includes controlling the transceiver device to not monitor occurrences of a physical control channel in a search space associated with the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than zero.

10. The integrated circuit of claim 1.

3. The process includes determining that the restriction applies to the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is within a range of scheduling gaps included in the TDRA table.

10. The integrated circuit of claim 1.

4. and controlling the transceiver device to not monitor physical control channel occasions in a search space associated with the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than a maximum scheduling gap included in the TDRA table.

10. The integrated circuit of claim 1.

5. The process includes determining that the restriction does not apply to the TDRA table if the minimum scheduling gap is greater than a maximum scheduling gap contained in the TDRA table.

10. The integrated circuit of claim 1.

6. The process further includes determining a second TDRA table different from the TDRA table for resource allocation when the minimum scheduling gap is greater than a maximum scheduling gap included in the TDRA table, and using the second TDRA table for scheduling.

6. The integrated circuit of claim 5.

7. the determining step includes determining whether the transceiver device is configured to monitor a group-common physical control channel; the process includes determining that the restriction applies to the TDRA table if the transceiver device is not configured to monitor the group-common physical control channel.

10. The integrated circuit of claim 1.

8. the process comprising receiving a minimum scheduling gap indicator indicating the minimum scheduling gap; 10. The integrated circuit of claim 1.

9. the minimum scheduling gap indicates a minimum gap between receipt of the scheduling information and a scheduled resource in timeslots.

10. The integrated circuit of claim 1.

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