Mapping between control beam and data channel beam

Abstract

To provide a communication system and, more specifically, mapping between a control channel beam and a data channel beam.SOLUTION: There is a need for a beam tracking technique that reduces the time needed to perform a beamforming procedure and that reduces beam overhead. An apparatus may determine a mapping between a first beam associated with a first type of channel and a second beam associated with a second type of channel. In an aspect, the first type of channel may be different from the second type of channel. The apparatus may receive the first beam associated with the first type of channel and the second beam associated with the second type of channel. In an aspect, the first beam and the second beam may be received from a second device.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4A

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Cross - Reference to Related Applications This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62 / 379,208, filed on August 24, 2016, entitled "MAPPING BETWEEN CONTROL AND DATA BEAMS", and U.S. Patent Application No. 15 / 426,878, filed on February 7, 2017, entitled "MAPPING BETWEEN A CONTROL BEAM AND A DATA CHANNEL BEAM", which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

[0002] The present disclosure generally relates to communication systems, and more particularly, to the mapping between control channel beams and data channel beams.

Background Art

[0003] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various telecommunication services such as telephony, video, data, messaging, and broadcast. A typical wireless communication system may employ a multiple access technology that can support communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources. Examples of such multiple access technologies include Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) systems, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) systems, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) systems, Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) systems, Single - Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC - FDMA) systems, and Time Division Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD - SCDMA) systems.

[0004] These multi-connectivity technologies are adopted in various telecommunication standards to provide a common protocol that enables various wireless devices to communicate at the urban, national, regional, and even global levels. An exemplary telecommunication standard is Long Term Evolution (LTE). LTE is a set of extensions to the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) mobile standard published by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP (registered trademark)). LTE uses OFDMA on the downlink, SC-FDMA on the uplink, and multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna technology to support mobile broadband access through improved spectral efficiency, reduced costs, and improved services. However, as the demand for mobile broadband access continues to increase, further improvements in LTE technology are needed. These improvements may also be applicable to other multi-connectivity technologies and the telecommunication standards that adopt these technologies.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] One way to meet the increasing demand for mobile broadband may be to utilize the millimeter wave (mmW) spectrum in addition to LTE. However, communication using the mmW radio frequency band has extremely high path loss and short distances. Beamforming can be used to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short distances. Currently, there is a need for beamforming techniques and methods to provide seamless and continuous coverage to UEs operating in the mmW radio frequency band.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The following presents a simplified overview of such aspects in order to enable a basic understanding of one or more aspects. This overview is not an exhaustive overview of all possible aspects, nor is it intended to identify the main or important elements of all aspects or to define the scope of any or all aspects. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects in a simplified form as an introduction to the more detailed description presented later.

[0007] One way to meet the increasing demand for mobile broadband could be to utilize the mmW spectrum in addition to LTE. Communications using the mmW radio frequency band have extremely high path loss and short distances. Beamforming can be used to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short distances. However, due to the possibility of having multiple antennas at the mmW base station and multiple sub-arrays at the user equipment (UE), the number of potential beams that may need to be scanned during the beamforming procedure can be quite large, especially when the control channel and associated data channels are transmitted using different beams. The scanning process for a large number of potential beams can take an undesirably long time and can result in significant beam overhead. There is a need for beam tracking techniques that reduce the time required to perform the beamforming procedure and reduce beam overhead.

[0008] The present disclosure provides a solution to this problem by providing a relationship between a beam used for a control channel and a beam used for a related data channel. In a first aspect, the beam used for the control channel and the beam used for the related data channel can be correlated via an explicit mapping or an implicit mapping of different beams. In a second aspect, the relationship between the beam used for the control channel and the beam used for the related data channel can be independent without an explicit mapping or an implicit mapping. In the second aspect, those beams can be selected without any correlation therebetween based on signaling indicating which beam is used for the control channel and which beam is used for the data channel. In this way, the present disclosure can speed up the beamforming procedure and reduce the beam overhead by reducing the number of potential beams that may need to be scanned.

[0009] In some aspects of the present disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus can determine a mapping between a first beam associated with a first type of channel and a second beam associated with a second type of channel. In some aspects, the first type of channel can be different from the second type of channel. The apparatus can receive a first beam associated with a first type of channel and a second beam associated with a second type of channel. In some aspects, the first beam and the second beam can be received from a second device.

[0010] To achieve the above related objectives, one or more aspects have the features that are fully described below and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following description and the accompanying drawings detail some exemplary features of one or more aspects. However, these features merely illustrate some of the various ways in which the principles of the various aspects can be utilized, and this description is intended to cover all such aspects and their equivalents.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

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Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] The following description of the best mode for carrying out the invention with respect to the accompanying drawings is intended as an explanation of various configurations and is not intended to represent the only configuration in which the concepts described herein can be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a complete understanding of the various concepts. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring such concepts.

[0013] Here, some aspects of a telecommunication system are presented with reference to various devices and methods. These devices and methods are described in the following description of the best mode for carrying out the invention and are shown in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively referred to as "elements"). These elements may be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether such elements are implemented as hardware or as software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the overall system.

[0014] As an example, an element, or any portion of an element, or any combination of elements, may be implemented as a "processing system" that includes one or more processors. Examples of processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, graphics processing units (GPUs), central processing units (CPUs), application processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processors, system on a chip (SoC), baseband processors, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gate logic, discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware configured to perform the various functions described throughout this disclosure. One or more processors within the processing system may execute software. Software should be broadly construed to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software components, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, execution threads, procedures, functions, etc., regardless of the name given to it, such as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, etc.

[0015] Accordingly, in one or more exemplary embodiments, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or encoded as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. A computer-readable medium includes a computer storage medium. A storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example and not limitation, such computer-readable media can comprise random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storage devices, combinations of the aforementioned types of computer-readable media, or any other medium that can be used to store computer-executable code in the form of instructions or data structures accessible by a computer.

[0016] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication system and an access network 100. (Also referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) The wireless communication system includes a base station 102, a UE 104, and an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) 160. The base station 102 may include macro cells (high-power cellular base stations) and / or small cells (low-power cellular base stations). A macro cell includes an eNB. Small cells include femto cells, pico cells, and micro cells.

[0017] (Collectively referred to as the evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN),) the base station 102 interfaces with the EPC 160 through a backhaul link 132 (e.g., the S1 interface). In addition to other functions, the base station 102 can perform one or more of the functions of user data transfer, encryption and decryption of radio channels, integrity protection, header compression, mobility control functions (e.g., handover, dual connectivity), inter-cell interference coordination, connection setup and release, load distribution, allocation for non-access stratum (NAS) messages, NAS node selection, synchronization, radio access network (RAN) sharing, multimedia broadcast multicast service (MBMS), subscriber and device tracing, radio access network information management (RIM), paging, positioning, and distribution of warning messages. The base stations 102 can communicate directly or indirectly (e.g., via the EPC 160) with each other over a backhaul link 134 (e.g., the X2 interface). The backhaul link 134 can be wired or wireless.

[0018] Base station 102 can communicate wirelessly with UE 104. Each of the base stations 102 can provide communication coverage to its respective geographical coverage area 110. There may be overlapping geographical coverage areas 110. For example, small cell 102' may have a coverage area 110' that overlaps with the coverage area 110 of one or more macro base stations 102. A network that includes both small cells and macro cells may sometimes be known as a heterogeneous network. A heterogeneous network may also include a Home Evolved Node B (eNB) (HeNB) that provides services to a restricted group known as a Closed Subscriber Group (CSG). The communication link 120 between base station 102 and UE 104 may include an uplink (UL) transmission from UE 104 to base station 102 (also called the reverse link), and / or a downlink (DL) transmission from base station 102 to UE 104 (also called the forward link). The communication link 120 can use MIMO antenna technology, including spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and / or transmit diversity. The communication link may pass through one or more carriers. Base station 102 / UE 104 can use a spectrum with a bandwidth of up to Y MHz (e.g., 5, 10, 15, 20 MHz) per carrier, allocated in carrier aggregation up to a total of Yx MHz (x component carriers) for transmission in each direction. The carriers may or may not be adjacent to each other. The carrier allocation may be asymmetric with respect to DL and UL (e.g., for DL, a larger or smaller number of carriers may be allocated compared to UL). The component carriers may include a primary component carrier and one or more secondary component carriers. The primary component carrier may sometimes be called the primary cell (PCell), and the secondary component carrier may sometimes be called the secondary cell (SCell).

[0019] The wireless communication system may further include a Wi-Fi access point (AP) 150 communicating with a Wi-Fi station (STA) 152 via a communication link 154 in an unlicensed 5 GHz frequency spectrum. When communicating in the unlicensed frequency spectrum, the STA 152 / AP 150 can perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) before communicating to determine whether the channel is available.

[0020] The small cell 102' can operate in a licensed and / or unlicensed frequency spectrum. When operating in the unlicensed frequency spectrum, the small cell 102' can utilize LTE and use the same unlicensed 5 GHz frequency spectrum used by the Wi-Fi AP 150. The small cell 102' utilizing LTE in the unlicensed frequency spectrum can expand the coverage to the access network and / or increase the capacity of the access network. LTE in the unlicensed spectrum may be referred to as LTE-unlicensed (LTE-U), licensed assisted access (LAA), or MuLTEfire.

[0021] Millimeter-wave (mmW) base station 180 may operate at mmW frequencies and / or near mmW frequencies when communicating with UE 182. Extremely high frequency (EHF) is a part of RF in the electromagnetic spectrum. EHF has a range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz and a wavelength between 1 millimeter and 10 millimeters. Radio waves in this band may be called millimeter waves. Near mmW has a wavelength of 100 millimeters and may extend up to a frequency of 3 GHz. The super high frequency (SHF) band, also called centimeter waves, extends between 3 GHz and 30 GHz. Communications using the mmW / near mmW radio frequency band have extremely high path loss and short distances. The mmW base station 180 may utilize beamforming 184 for the UE 182 to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short distances.

[0022] The EPC 160 may include a Mobility Management Entity (MME) 162, other MMEs 164, a Serving Gateway 166, a Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS) Gateway 168, a Broadcast Multicast Service Center (BM-SC) 170, and a Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway 172. The MME 162 may communicate with a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) 174. The MME 162 is a control node that processes signaling between the UE 104 and the EPC 160. Generally, the MME 162 provides bearer and connection management. All user Internet Protocol (IP) packets are forwarded via the Serving Gateway 166, and the Serving Gateway 166 itself is connected to the PDN Gateway 172. The PDN Gateway 172 provides UE IP address allocation as well as other functions. The PDN Gateway 172 and the BM-SC 170 are connected to an IP service 176. The IP service 176 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), a Packet Switched Streaming Service (PSS), and / or other IP services. The BM-SC 170 can provide functions for the provisioning and delivery of MBMS user services. The BM-SC 170 may act as an entry point for content provider MBMS transmissions, may be used to authorize and initiate MBMS bearer services within a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), and may be used to schedule MBMS transmissions. The MBMS Gateway 168 may be used to deliver MBMS traffic to base stations 102 belonging to a Multicast Broadcast Single Frequency Network (MBSFN) area that broadcasts a particular service, and may be responsible for session management (start / stop) and collecting charging information related to eMBMS.

[0023] The base station may also be referred to by other appropriate terms such as Node B, evolved Node B (eNB), access point, transceiver base station, radio base station, radio transceiver, transceiver function, basic service set (BSS), extended service set (ESS), or some other suitable term. Base station 102 provides an access point for UE 104 to EPC 160. Examples of UE 104 include cellular phones, smartphones, session initiation protocol (SIP) phones, laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), satellite radios, global positioning systems, multimedia devices, video devices, digital audio players (e.g., MP3 players), cameras, game consoles, tablets, smart devices, wearable devices, or any other similar functional device. UE 104 may also be referred to by other appropriate terms such as station, mobile station, subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile subscriber station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handset, user agent, mobile client, client, or some other suitable term.

[0024] Referring back to FIG. 1, in some aspects, UE 104 and mmW base station 180 may be configured to determine a mapping between a beam used for a control channel and a different beam used for an associated data channel (198).

[0025] FIG. 2A is a diagram 200 showing an example of a DL frame structure in LTE. FIG. 2B is a diagram 230 showing an example of channels within the DL frame structure in LTE. FIG. 2C is a diagram 250 showing an example of a UL frame structure in LTE. FIG. 2D is a diagram 280 showing an example of channels within the UL frame structure in LTE. Other wireless communication technologies may have different frame structures and / or different channels. In LTE, a frame (10 ms) may be divided into 10 equal-sized subframes. Each subframe may include two consecutive time slots. A resource grid may be used to represent the two time slots, and each time slot includes one or more simultaneous resource blocks (RBs, also referred to as physical RBs (PRBs)). The resource grid is divided into a plurality of resource elements (REs). In LTE, for the normal cyclic prefix case, an RB includes 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 7 consecutive symbols (OFDM symbols in the case of DL and SC-FDMA symbols in the case of UL) in the time domain for a total of 84 REs. For the extended cyclic prefix case, an RB includes 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 6 consecutive symbols in the time domain for a total of 72 REs. The number of bits carried by each RE depends on the modulation scheme.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 2A, some of the REs carry a DL reference (pilot) signal (DL-RS) for channel estimation at the UE. The DL-RS may include a cell-specific reference signal (CRS) (which may also be called a common RS), a UE-specific reference signal (UE-RS), and a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS). FIG. 2A shows the CRS for antenna ports 0, 1, 2, and 3 (shown as R0, R1, R2, and R3 respectively), the UE-RS for antenna port 5 (shown as R5), and the CSI-RS for antenna port 15 (shown as R). FIG. 2B shows examples of various channels within the DL subframe of a frame. The physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH) is within symbol 0 of slot 0 and carries a control format indicator (CFI) indicating whether the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) occupies 1 symbol, 2 symbols, or 3 symbols (FIG. 2B shows a PDCCH occupying 3 symbols). The PDCCH carries downlink control information (DCI) within one or more control channel elements (CCEs), each CCE includes 9 resource element groups (REGs), and each REG includes 4 consecutive resource elements in an OFDM symbol. The UE may be composed of a UE-specific enhanced PDCCH (ePDCCH) that also carries DCI. The ePDCCH may have 2, 4, or 8 resource block (RB) pairs (FIG. 2B shows 2 RB pairs, and each subset includes 1 RB pair). The physical hybrid automatic repeat request (ARQ) (HARQ) indicator channel (PHICH) is also within symbol 0 of slot 0 and carries a HARQ indicator (HI) indicating HARQ acknowledgement (ACK) / negative acknowledgement (NACK) feedback based on the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). The primary synchronization channel (PSCH) is within symbol 6 of slot 0 in subframes 0 and 5 of a frame and carries a primary synchronization signal (PSS) used by the UE to determine subframe timing and physical layer identification information.The secondary synchronization channel (SSCH) is in symbol 5 of slot 0 in subframes 0 and 5 of a frame and carries the secondary synchronization signal (SSS) used by the UE to determine the physical layer cell identification information group number. Based on the physical layer identification information and the physical layer cell identification information group number, the UE can determine the physical cell identifier (PCI). Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the position of the DL-RS described above. The physical broadcast channel (PBCH) is in symbols 0, 1, 2, 3 of slot 1 in subframe 0 of a frame and carries the master information block (MIB). The MIB provides the number of resource blocks (RBs) within the DL system bandwidth, the PHICH configuration, and the system frame number (SFN). The physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) carries user data, broadcast system information not transmitted via the PBCH such as the system information block (SIB), and paging messages.

[0027] As shown in Figure 2C, some of the REs carry demodulation reference signals (DM-RS) for channel estimation at the eNB. The UE may additionally transmit sounding reference signals (SRS) in the last symbol of the subframe. The SRS may have a comb structure and the UE may transmit the SRS on one of the combs. The SRS may be used by the eNB for channel quality estimation to enable frequency-dependent scheduling on the UL. Figure 2D shows an example of various channels within the UL subframe of a frame. The physical random access channel (PRACH) may be in one or more subframes within the frame based on the PRACH configuration. The PRACH may include six consecutive RB pairs within a subframe. The PRACH enables the UE to perform initial system access and achieve UL synchronization. The physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) may be located at the edge of the UL system bandwidth. The PUCCH carries uplink control information (UCI) such as scheduling requests, channel quality indicators (CQI), precoding matrix indicators (PMI), rank indicators (RI), and HARQ ACK / NACK feedback. The PUSCH carries data and may also be used to carry buffer status reports (BSR), power headroom reports (PHR), and / or UCI.

[0028] Figure 3 is a block diagram of eNB 310 communicating with UE 350 in an access network. In the DL, IP packets from EPC 160 may be provided to controller / processor 375. Controller / processor 375 implements layer 3 and layer 2 functions. Layer 3 includes the radio resource control (RRC) layer, and layer 2 includes the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, the radio link control (RLC) layer, and the media access control (MAC) layer. Controller / processor 375 is related to RRC layer functions for broadcasting system information (e.g., MIB, SIB), RRC connection control (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRC connection modification, and RRC connection release), mobility between radio access technologies (RAT), and measurement configuration for UE measurement reports, PDCP layer functions related to header compression / decompression, security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), and handover support functions, RLC layer functions related to transfer of upper layer packet data units (PDUs), error correction via ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC service data units (SDUs), resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs, and MAC layer functions related to mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto transport blocks (TBs), demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, reporting of scheduling information, error correction via HARQ, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0029] The transmitting (TX) processor 316 and the receiving (RX) processor 370 implement layer 1 functions associated with various signal processing functions. Layer 1, which includes the physical (PHY) layer, may include error detection on the transport channel, forward error correction (FEC) coding / decoding of the transport channel, interleaving, rate matching, mapping onto the physical channel, modulation / demodulation of the physical channel, and MIMO antenna processing. The TX processor 316 handles mapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes (e.g., binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-phase shift keying (M-PSK), M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The coded and modulated symbols may then be split into parallel streams. Each stream is then mapped to OFDM subcarriers, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g., a pilot) in the time and / or frequency domain, and then may be combined together using an inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) to generate a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM stream may be spatially precoded to generate multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from the channel estimator 374 may be used to determine the coding and modulation scheme and for spatial processing. The channel estimates may be derived from reference signals transmitted by the UE 350 and / or channel state feedback. Each spatial stream may then be provided to a different antenna 320 via a separate transmitter 318TX. Each transmitter 318TX can modulate an RF carrier with its respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0030] In the UE 350, each receiver 354RX receives signals through its respective antenna 352 of the receiver. Each receiver 354RX recovers the information modulated on the RF carrier and provides the information to the receive (RX) processor 356. The TX processor 368 and the RX processor 356 implement layer 1 functions related to various signal processing functions. The RX processor 356 can perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial streams destined for the UE 350. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 350, the multiple spatial streams may be combined by the RX processor 356 into a single OFDM symbol stream. The RX processor 356 then uses a fast Fourier transform (FFT) to transform the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain. The frequency domain signal comprises a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols and reference signals on each subcarrier are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation points transmitted by the eNB 310. These soft decisions may be based on the channel estimates calculated by the channel estimator 358. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals originally transmitted by the eNB 310 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to the controller / processor 359 that implements layer 3 and layer 2 functions.

[0031] The controller / processor 359 may be associated with a memory 360 that stores program code and data. The memory 360 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 359 performs demultiplexing in reverse between the transport channel and the logical channel, packet reassembly, decoding, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the EPC 160. The controller / processor 359 is also responsible for error detection using the ACK and / or NACK protocol to support HARQ operations.

[0032] Similar to the functions described for DL transmission by eNB310, the controller / processor 359 provides RRC layer functions associated with system information (e.g., MIB, SIB) collection, RRC connection, and measurement reporting, PDCP layer functions associated with header compression / decompression and security (encryption, decryption, integrity protection, integrity verification), RLC layer functions associated with transfer of upper layer PDUs, error correction via ARQ, concatenation, segmentation, and reassembly of RLC SDUs, resegmentation of RLC data PDUs, and reordering of RLC data PDUs, and MAC layer functions associated with mapping between logical channels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs onto TBs, demultiplexing of MAC SDUs from TBs, scheduling information reporting, error correction via HARQ, priority handling, and logical channel prioritization.

[0033] Channel estimates derived by the channel estimator 358 from reference signals or feedback transmitted by eNB310 may be used by the TX processor 368 to select an appropriate coding and modulation scheme and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the TX processor 368 may be provided to different antennas 352 via separate transmitters 354TX. Each transmitter 354TX can modulate an RF carrier with its respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0034] UL transmission is processed at the eNB310 in a similar manner as described for the receiver function at the UE350. Each receiver 318RX receives signals through its respective antenna 320 of the receiver. Each receiver 318RX recovers the information modulated on the RF carrier and provides the information to the RX processor 370.

[0035] The controller / processor 375 may be associated with a memory 376 that stores program code and data. The memory 376 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, the controller / processor 375 performs demultiplexing between the transport channel and the logical channel, packet reassembly, decoding, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover IP packets from the UE 350. The IP packets from the controller / processor 375 may be provided to the EPC 160. The controller / processor 375 is also responsible for error detection that supports HARQ operations using the ACK and / or NACK protocols.

[0036] One way to meet the increasing demand for mobile broadband may be to utilize the mmW spectrum in addition to LTE. The mmW communication system may operate in the extremely high frequency band (e.g., from 10.0 GHz to 300.0 GHz) where the carrier wavelength is on the order of a few millimeters. The mmW system may operate with the help of several antennas and beamforming to overcome channels with low gain. For example, the large attenuation in the high carrier frequency band may limit the range of the transmitted signal to tens of meters (e.g., from 1 to 50 meters). Also, the presence of obstacles (e.g., walls, furniture, people, etc.) may block the propagation of high-frequency millimeter waves. Therefore, the propagation characteristics of the high carrier frequency require directional beamforming between the mmW base station and the UE that concentrates the transmission energy in a specific spatial direction corresponding to the main spatial scatterers, reflectors, and / or diffraction paths to eliminate losses. Beamforming may be implemented via an array of antennas (e.g., a phased array) that cooperate to beamform the high-frequency signal in a specific direction to the receiving device, and thus, the distance of the signal can be extended.

[0037] During beamforming, the UE can estimate the channel characteristics associated with one or more potential access beams and transmit information associated with the estimated channel characteristics to the mmW base station. For example, the channel characteristics of at least one beam reference signal (BRS) and / or at least one beam refinement reference signal (BRRS) associated with each of the potential access beams can be estimated by the UE. Using the information associated with the estimated channel characteristics of each of the potential access beams, the mmW base station can select the access beam with the most desirable channel characteristics and adjust the phase shift of each of the antenna ports used to transmit the channel so that the channel is spatially concentrated in the direction of the first device. A spatially concentrated channel can have a better SNR (e.g., the level of the desired signal compared to the level of the background noise) than a non-spatially concentrated channel. By transmitting a channel with a better SNR (e.g., compared to a channel with a worse SNR), the data rate that can be received at the first device can be increased.

[0038] FIG. 4A is a diagram illustrating an example of a mmW communication system 400 that can perform beamforming. The mmW communication system 400 includes a UE 431 and a mmW base station 432. In one aspect, the UE 431 and the mmW base station 432 can perform initial synchronization and discovery to establish an access link that can be used for mmW communication. For example, the UE 431 and the mmW base station 432 can establish an access link along path 417. During initial synchronization, the mmW base station 432 can transmit a signal (e.g., a beam reference signal (BRS)) in a first set of beams (e.g., beams 401, 403, 405, 407) during the first symbol of the synchronization subframe and transmit the same signal in a second set of beams (e.g., beams 409, 411, 413, 415) during the second symbol of the synchronization subframe received at the UE 431.

[0039] In a first aspect, the first set of beams may include beams 401, 403, 405, 407 and the second set of beams 409, 411, 413, 415. In one aspect, the first set of beams may be non - adjacent beams selected from a first group of beams as discussed below with respect to FIG. 4B. In another aspect, the second set of beams may be non - adjacent beams selected from a second group of beams as discussed below with respect to FIG. 4C. By selecting non - adjacent beams, the mmW base station 432 can sweep “coarse” beam directions in order to estimate L directions (also called beamforming directions or angles) corresponding to L beam paths without having to sweep all potential beams during synchronization.

[0040] FIG. 4B shows a first group 425 of fine beams separated by an angle smaller than θ. The group of beams 425 shown in FIG. 4B includes eight different beams spatially concentrated in different directions. For example, the group of beams 425 includes beam 1401 spatially concentrated in a first direction, beam 2402 spatially concentrated in a second direction, beam 3403 spatially concentrated in a third direction, beam 4404 spatially concentrated in a fourth direction, beam 5405 spatially concentrated in a fifth direction, beam 6406 spatially concentrated in a sixth direction, beam 7407 spatially concentrated in a seventh direction, and beam 8408 spatially concentrated in an eighth direction. The number of beams shown in FIG. 4B is intended to be exemplary, and those skilled in the art will understand that a greater or lesser number of beams may be included in the first group of beams without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0041] FIG. 4C shows a second group 435 of fine beams separated by an angle smaller than θ. The group of beams 435 shown in FIG. 4C includes eight different beams spatially concentrated in different directions. For example, the group of beams 435 includes beam 9409 spatially concentrated in a ninth direction, beam 10 410 spatially concentrated in a tenth direction, beam 11411 and a beam spatially concentrated in the 12th direction 12 412 and a beam spatially concentrated in the 13th direction 13 413 and a beam spatially concentrated in the 14th direction 14 414 and a beam spatially concentrated in the 15th direction 15 415 and a beam spatially concentrated in the 16th direction 16 416. The number of beams shown in FIG. 4C is intended to be exemplary, and those skilled in the art will understand that a greater or lesser number of beams may be included in the second group of beams without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0042] Referring back to FIG. 4A, UE 431 may determine the strongest beam among the first set of beams (e.g., beam n ) and the strongest beam among the second set of beams (e.g., beam v ). For example, beam n may be beam 5405, and beam v may be beam 13 413. In the specific example shown in FIG. 4A, n = 5 and v = 13. However, the values of n and v are not limited to those shown in FIG. 4A.

[0043] After performing initial synchronization and discovery using the first set of beams and the second set of beams, UE 431 and mmW base station 432 may each have an estimate of L directions (also referred to as beamforming directions or angles) corresponding to L beam paths from mmW base station 432 to UE 431 (e.g., 401, 403, 405, 407, 409, 411, 413, 415). In one aspect, L may be an integer greater than 1 (for reasons of diversity). In one aspect, mmW base station 432 and / or UE 431 may have an estimate of the relative strengths of these L beam paths such that initial beamforming is performed on the beam paths having the most desirable channel characteristics (e.g., the strongest beam among the first set and the strongest beam among the second set).

[0044] In one aspect, the UE 431 may transmit information associated with the strongest beam (e.g., beam 5405) in the first set of beams and the strongest beam (e.g., beam 13 413) in the second set of beams to the mmW base station 432. For example, the information may include at least one or more characteristics and / or estimates associated with beam 5405 and beam 13 413.

[0045] In some aspects, the beamforming capabilities can be analog beamforming capabilities. For example, the mmW base station 432 may have analog beamforming capabilities that enable the mmW base station 432 to transmit a single beam (e.g., beam 5405 along path 417) through one available RF chain at a time. The term RF chain, when referring to the transmit side of the modem, refers to a combination of a power amplifier, a digital-to-analog converter, and a mixer, or when referring to the receiver side of the modem, refers to a combination of a low-noise amplifier, a demixer, and an analog-to-digital converter. In some aspects, the beamforming capabilities can be digital beamforming capabilities. For example, the mmW base station 432 may have digital beamforming capabilities corresponding to the same number of RF chains as the number of antennas, which may enable the mmW base station 432 to transmit multiple beams (e.g., one or more of beams 401, 403, 405, 407, 409, 411, 413, or 415) simultaneously by sacrificing peak gain and radiating electromagnetic energy in multiple directions. In some aspects, the beamforming capabilities can be hybrid beamforming capabilities where the number of RF chains is more than one and less than the number of antennas. For example, the mmW base station 432 may have hybrid beamforming capabilities that enable the mmW base station 432 to transmit beams from each of the mmW base station 432's RF chains. In some aspects, the beamforming capabilities can be the availability of multiple antenna subarrays. For example, the UE 431 may have multiple antenna subarrays that enable the UE 431 to transmit beams from each of the antenna subarrays in different directions (e.g., the respective directions of beams 419, 421, 423, 425) to overcome RF impairments such as when the hand of the user of the UE 431 inadvertently blocks the path of a beam.

[0046] In another aspect, the beamforming ability may be such that one device in the mmW communication system 400 has a higher antenna switching speed than another device in the mmW communication system 400. For example, the mmW base station 432 may have a higher antenna switching speed than the UE 431. In such an example, the higher antenna switching speed of the mmW base station 432 can be utilized by configuring the mmW base station 432 to scan different directions and / or sectors while the UE 431 transmits a beam in a fixed direction. In another example, the UE 431 may have a higher antenna switching speed than the mmW base station 432. In such an example, the higher antenna switching speed of the UE 431 can be utilized by configuring the UE 431 to scan different directions and / or sectors while the mmW base station 432 transmits a beam in a fixed direction.

[0047] After the initial synchronization and discovery phase, beam tracking may be performed by the UE 431 and / or the mmW base station 432 by transmitting signals (e.g., BRRS) using a fine beam angle ρ (e.g., an angle within a narrow range), where an initial estimate of the channel characteristics associated with beams separated only by a coarse beam angle θ (e.g., an angle within a wide range) has already been obtained by the UE 431 and / or the mmW base station 432. Beam tracking algorithms typically use the coarse beam angle (e.g., θ) learned during the initial synchronization and discovery period as an initial value (also called a seed value), and subsequently, these angles are finely adjusted within a narrow range over a period during which the dynamic range of the angles becomes smaller than θ. For example, ρ may be smaller than θ.

[0048] For example, the UE 431 may receive a third set of beams associated with the BRRS and a fourth set of beams associated with the BRRS from a second device. In one aspect, the third set of beams may include the beam 5405 (e.g., the strongest beam among the first set of beams) and at least one beam adjacent to the beam 5405, and the fourth set of beams is the beam13 413 and the beam 13 may include at least one beam adjacent to 413. In one aspect, the third set of beams can be adjacent beams selected from the first group of beams (e.g., as seen in FIG. 4B) as discussed below with respect to FIG. 4D. In a further aspect, the fourth set of beams can be adjacent beams selected from the second group of beams (e.g., as seen in FIG. 4C) as discussed below with respect to FIG. 4E.

[0049] FIG. 4D shows a set 445 of fine beams that can be separated by an angle ρ, where ρ is smaller than θ. The group 445 of beams shown in FIG. 4D includes beam 5405 and beams 4404 and 6406 which are adjacent beams. The number of beams shown in FIG. 4D is intended to be exemplary, and those skilled in the art will understand that more or fewer beams can be included in the group of beams without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0050] FIG. 4E shows a set 455 of fine beams that are separated by an angle ρ, where ρ is smaller than θ. The group 455 of beams shown in FIG. 4E includes beam 13 413 and beams 12 412 and beam 14 414. The number of beams shown in FIG. 4E is intended to be exemplary, and those skilled in the art will understand that more or fewer beams can be included in the group of beams without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

[0051] Referring back to FIG. 4A, UE 431 can determine the strongest beam (e.g., beam n+a ) among the third set of beams (e.g., beams 404, 405, 406) and the strongest beam (e.g., beam v+b ) among the fourth set of beams (e.g., beams 412, 413, 414). For example, the strongest beam among the third set of beams is beam 6406 (e.g., beam n+a, in Figure 4A, n = 5 and a = 1) may be the case, and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams is beam 12 412 (for example, beam v+b , in Figure 4A, v = 13 and b = -1) may be the case. In the specific example shown in Figure 4A, n = 5, v = 13, a = 1, and b = -1. However, the values of n, v, a, and b are not limited to those shown in Figure 4A. For example, the strongest beam among the third set of beams (for example, beam n+a ) may not be directly adjacent to the strongest beam among the first set of beams (for example, beam n ), in which case a can be an integer value greater than 1 or an integer value less than -1. Similarly, the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams (for example, beam v+b ) may not be directly adjacent to the strongest beam among the second set of beams (for example, beam v ), in which case b can be an integer value greater than 1 or an integer value less than -1.

[0052] In one aspect, UE431 may send information associated with the strongest beams among the third set of beams and the fourth set of beams to mmW base station 432. In one aspect, the information may be indicated by 2 bits in a message sent to mmW base station 432.

[0053] Since there may be multiple antenna ports at the mmW base station and multiple antenna sub-arrays at the UE, the number of potential beams (for example, beams with different beam angles) that may need to be scanned during beam tracking can be very large (for example, a much larger number than that shown in the example described with respect to Figure 4A), especially when the control channel and the associated data channels are transmitted using different beams. Tracking a large number of potential channels can take an undesirably long time and generate significant beam overhead. There is a need for beam tracking techniques that reduce the time required to perform beamforming procedures and reduce beam overhead.

[0054] The present disclosure provides a solution to the problem by providing a relationship between a control channel beam and an associated data channel beam to reduce the time required to complete beam tracking. In a first aspect, the control channel beam and the associated data channel beam can be correlated via an explicit or implicit mapping of different beams. In a second aspect, the relationship between the control channel beam and the associated data channel beam can be independent without an explicit or implicit mapping. In a second aspect, the control channel beam and the associated data channel beam can be selected without correlation. By providing a relationship between the control channel beam and the associated data channel beam, the present disclosure reduces the time required to complete beam tracking by reducing the number of potential beams that may need to be scanned, and can reduce the beam overhead of the system, because the UE 431 and / or the mmW base station 432 may only need to determine an access beam for one of the control channel or the data channel.

[0055] FIG. 4F is a diagram of an mmW communication system 465 that can enable a reduction in the time required to complete beam tracking and a reduction in beam overhead by providing a relationship between a first beam used to communicate a control channel and a second beam used to communicate an associated data channel. For example, the beam tracking procedure described with respect to FIG. 4F can be performed using explicit or implicit knowledge of the relationship between the control channel beam and the data channel beam to reduce the time required to complete beamforming. In one aspect, this relationship can be a correlation between the control channel beam and the data channel beam. In another configuration, the relationship between the control channel beam and the data channel beam can be an independent relationship (e.g., there is no obvious correlation between the control channel beam and the data channel beam). In a second configuration, this relationship can be specifically indicated via signaling.

[0056] Referring to FIG. 4F, the wireless communication system 465 can include a first device 434 and a second device 436 that perform beam tracking 485 (such as described above with respect to FIG. 4A) to determine a first beam used for, for example, a first type of channel (e.g., a control channel or a data channel). A second beam used for a second type of channel (e.g., a control channel or a data channel) can be determined based on its relationship to the first beam. In one aspect, the first beam and the second beam can be different. In another aspect, the first beam and the second beam can be the same beam. In a further aspect, the first channel type and the second channel type can be different.

[0057] In one configuration, the first device 434 can be the UE 431 seen in FIG. 4A, and the second device 436 can be the mmW base station 432 seen in FIG. 4A. In another configuration, the first device 434 can be the mmW base station 432 seen in FIG. 4A, and the second device 436 can be the UE 431 seen in FIG. 4A.

[0058] First Exemplary Embodiment In the first exemplary embodiment, the first device 434 may determine the mapping between the first beam and the second beam by determining (440) that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a first amount. In one configuration, the first device 434 may know the difference in width deductively. In another configuration, the first device 434 may receive an indication 450 that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a fixed amount.

[0059] Based on the beam tracking procedure described above with respect to FIG. 4A, the first device 434 and / or the second device 436 may determine, for example, that beam 13 413 has the most desirable channel characteristics and is used as the beam for transmitting one of the control channel or the data channel. The first device 434 is the beam 13Since it may be determined that the widths of the beams 413 and 427 (such as those seen in FIG. 4A) differ by a fixed amount, beam 427 may be selected to transmit the other of the control channel or the data channel.

[0060] Second Exemplary Embodiment In a second exemplary embodiment, the first device 434 may determine the mapping by determining (440) that the first beam and the second beam are the same beam. In one configuration, the first device 434 may deductively know that the same beam is used for the first beam and the second beam. Optionally, the first device 434 may receive an indication 450 that the same beam is used to transmit the control channel and the data channel.

[0061] For example, one of the beams 401, 403, 405, 407, 409, 411, 413, 415 used to transmit BRS in FIG. 4A may be used for the control channel and the data channel, or one of the beams 404, 405, 406, 412, 413, 414 used to transmit BRRS in FIG. 4A may be used for the control channel and the data channel.

[0062] Third Exemplary Embodiment In a third exemplary embodiment, the first device 434 may determine the mapping by determining (440) that the first subarray associated with the first beam is quasi co-located with the second subarray associated with the second beam.

[0063] Based on the beam tracking procedure described above with respect to FIG. 4A, the first device 434 and / or the second device 436 may, for example, the beam 13413 has the most desirable channel characteristics and may be determined to be used for either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464. The first device 434 is a beam 13 The subarray (e.g., an antenna subarray if the first device 434 is a UE, an antenna port if the first device 434 is a mmW base station) used to receive 413 is pseudo - collocated with the subarray used to receive the beam 27 427. So, beam 27 427 may be selected for the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464.

[0064] When two subarrays are pseudo - collocated, the large - scale properties of the channel on which the symbol on one antenna port is carried can be inferred from the channel on which the symbol on the other antenna port is carried. For example, the large - scale properties may include one or more of delay spread, Doppler spread, Doppler shift, average gain, and average delay.

[0065] Fourth exemplary embodiment In the fourth exemplary embodiment, the first device 434 may determine the mapping by correlating (440) one of the BRS beams used as either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464 with one of the BRRS beams used as the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel.

[0066] For example, beam n (e.g., beam 5 in FIG. 4A) may be correlated with beam n+a (e.g., beam 6 in FIG. 4A), and beam v (e.g., beam 13 in FIG. 4A) may be correlated with beam v+b (e.g., beam 12 in FIG. 4A), where beam n and beam n+aBoth are used to transmit BRS, and the beam v and the beam v+b are both used to transmit BRRS.

[0067] Optionally, the first device 434 may receive from the second device 436 an indication 450 that the beam n is correlated with the beam n+a and / or the beam v is correlated with the beam v+b . In one aspect, the indication 450 may be received via control channel (e.g., PDCCH) signaling or RRC signaling. Additionally, the first device 434 may receive from the second device 436 information 450 indicating that the beam n (e.g., or the beam v ) is used for either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464.

[0068] In a first configuration, the first device 434 may determine (440) that the beam n+a (e.g., beam 6406 in FIG. 4A) can be used for either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464 when the beam n (e.g., beam 5405 in FIG. 4A) is used for the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464. Alternatively, in the first configuration, the first device 434 may determine that the beam v+b (e.g., beam 12 412 in FIG. 4A) can be used for either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464 when the beam v (e.g., beam 13 413 in FIG. 4A) is used as the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464.

[0069] In a second configuration, the first device 434 may use the beam n(For example, beam 5405 in FIG. 4A) may be used for either control channel 462 or data channel 464, beam n+a (For example, beam 6406 in FIG. 4A) may be determined (440) to be used as the other of control channel 462 or data channel 464. Alternatively, in a second configuration, the first device 434 may determine that beam v (For example, beam 13 413 in FIG. 4A) may be used for either control channel 462 or data channel 464, beam v+b (For example, beam 12 412 in FIG. 4A) may be determined (440) to be used as the other of control channel 462 or data channel 464.

[0070] In addition and / or alternatively, the first device 434 may receive from the second device 436 information 450 indicating that beam n is used for either control channel 462 or a data channel, and / or that beam v is used for control channel 462 or data channel 464.

[0071] Fifth Exemplary Embodiment In a fifth exemplary embodiment, the first device 434 may determine the mapping by correlating (440) one of the BRS beams used as a control channel with another one of the BRS beams used as a data channel. In addition and / or alternatively, the first device 434 may determine the mapping by correlating (440) one of the BRRS beams used as a control channel with another one of the BRRS beams used as a data channel.

[0072] For example, beam n (For example, beam 5405 in FIG. 4A) may be correlated with beam v (For example, beam 13 413 in FIG. 4A), and beamn+a (e.g., beam 6406 in FIG. 4A) is a beam v+b (e.g., the beam in FIG. 4A 12 412) may be correlated. For example, the beam n and the beam v may both be used to transmit BRS, and the beam n+a and the beam v+b are both used to transmit BRRS.

[0073] In one configuration, the first device 434 determines that the beam v is used as either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464 when the beam n is used as the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464. Alternatively, the first device 434 determines that the beam v+b is used for either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464 when the beam n+a is used as the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464.

[0074] Sixth Exemplary Embodiment In the sixth exemplary embodiment, the first device 434 may determine the mapping by determining that the beam x is used as the first beam and the beam z is used as the second beam. For example, the first device 434 may receive information 450 from the second device 436 indicating that the beam x is used as the first beam and the beam z is used as the second beam. Since the beam x and the beam z may not be correlated in any obvious way, the mapping in the sixth exemplary embodiment may be an independent relationship determined by the second device 436.

[0075] After determining (440) the relationship between the first beam and the second beam based on one exemplary embodiment discussed above, the first device 434 may receive a control channel 462 and a data channel 464.

[0076] As discussed above with respect to the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth exemplary embodiments, by providing the relationship between the control channel beam and the associated data channel beam, the present disclosure can reduce the number of potential beams that may need to be scanned, thereby reducing the time required to complete beam tracking and reducing the beam overhead of the system, because the UE and / or mmW may only need to determine an access beam for one of the control channel or the data channel.

[0077] Figures 5A - 5C are flowcharts 500 of a method of wireless communication. This method may be performed by a first device (e.g., UE 431, mmW base station 432, first device 434, apparatus 602 / 602'). In Figures 5A - 5C, the operations shown in dashed lines represent optional operations of various aspects of the present disclosure.

[0078] Referring to Figure 5A, at 502, the first device may receive a first set of beams associated with the BRS and a second set of beams associated with the BRS. In some aspects, the first set of beams may be different from the second set of beams. For example, referring to Figure 4A, during initial synchronization, UE 431 may receive a signal (e.g., BRS) in a first set of beams (e.g., beams 401, 403, 405, 407) during the first symbol of a synchronization subframe and transmit the same signal in a second set of beams (e.g., beams 409, 411, 413, 415) during the second symbol of the synchronization subframe.

[0079] At 504, the first device can determine the strongest beam among the first set of beams and the strongest beam among the second set of beams. In one aspect, the strongest beam among the first set of beams may be beam n and the strongest beam among the second set of beams may be beam v . For example, referring to FIG. 4A, UE 431 can determine the strongest beam among the first set of beams (e.g., beam n ) and the strongest beam among the second set of beams (e.g., beam v ). For example, beam n may be beam 5405, and beam v may be beam 13 413. In the specific example shown in FIG. 4A, n = 5 and v = 13. However, the values of n and v are not limited to those shown in FIG. 4A.

[0080] At 506, the first device can send information associated with the strongest beam among the first set of beams and the strongest beam among the second set of beams to the second device. For example, referring to FIG. 4A, UE 431 can send information associated with the strongest beam among the first set of beams (e.g., beam 5405) and the strongest beam among the second set of beams (e.g., beam 13 413) to mmW base station 432. For example, the information may include one or more channel characteristics and / or estimates associated with at least beam 5405 and beam 13 413.

[0081] At 508, the first device can receive from the second device a third set of beams associated with the BRRS and a fourth set of beams associated with the BRRS. In one aspect, the third set of beams may include at least one beam adjacent to beam n and beam n , and the fourth set of beams is beamv and a beam v may include at least one beam adjacent to the beam. For example, referring to FIG. 4A, UE 431 may receive a third set of beams associated with the BRRS and a fourth set of beams associated with the BRRS from a second device. In one aspect, the third set of beams may include beam 5405 (e.g., beam n ) and at least one beam adjacent to beam 5405, and the fourth set of beams may be beam 13 413 (e.g., beam v ) and at least one beam adjacent to beam 13 413. In one aspect, the third set of beams (e.g., as discussed above with respect to FIG. 4D) may be adjacent beams selected from the first group of beams in FIG. 4B. In a further aspect, the fourth set of beams (e.g., as discussed above with respect to FIG. 4E) may be adjacent beams selected from the second group of beams in FIG. 4C.

[0082] At 510, the first device may determine the strongest beam among the third set of beams and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams. In one aspect, the strongest beam among the third set of beams may be beam n+a , and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams may be beam v+b . For example, referring to FIG. 4A, UE 431 may determine the strongest beam (e.g., beam n+a ) among the third set of beams (e.g., beams 404, 405, 406) and the strongest beam (e.g., beam v+b ) among the fourth set of beams (e.g., beams 412, 413, 414). For example, the strongest beam among the third set of beams may be beam 6406 (e.g., beam n+a , where n = 5 and a = 1 in FIG. 4A), and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams may be beam 12 412 (e.g., beam v+b, in FIG. 4A, v may be 13 and b may be -1. In the specific example shown in FIG. 4A, n = 5, v = 13, a = 1, and b = -1. However, the values of n, v, a, and b are not limited to those shown in FIG. 4A. For example, the strongest beam in the third set of beams (e.g., beam n+a ) may not be directly adjacent to the strongest beam in the first set of beams (e.g., beam n ), in which case a may be an integer value greater than 1 or less than -1. Similarly, the strongest beam in the fourth set of beams (e.g., beam v+b ) may not be directly adjacent to the strongest beam in the second set of beams (e.g., beam v ), in which case b may be an integer value greater than 1 or less than -1.

[0083] At 512, the first device can send information associated with the strongest beam in the third set of beams and the strongest beam in the fourth set of beams to the second device. For example, referring to FIG. 4A, UE431 can send information associated with the strongest beam in the third set of beams and the strongest beam in the fourth set of beams to mmW base station 432. In one aspect, the information can be indicated by 2 bits in a message sent to mmW base station 432.

[0084] At 514, the first device can receive from the second device information indicating that either beam n or beam v is used as the first beam associated with the first type of channel. For example, referring to FIG. 4F, the first device 434 can receive from the second device 436 information 450 indicating that beam n (e.g., or beam v ) is used for control channel 462 or data channel 464.

[0085] At 516, the first device can receive an indication from the second device that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a fixed amount. For example, referring to FIG. 4F, the first device 434 may receive an indication 450 that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a fixed amount.

[0086] Referring to FIG. 5B, at 518, the first device can determine a mapping between a first beam associated with a first type of channel and a second beam associated with a second type of channel. In one aspect, the first type of channel may be different from the second type of channel. For example, the first type of channel may be a control channel, the second type of channel may be a data channel, or vice versa. Referring to FIG. 4F, the first device 434 and / or the second device 436 may perform beam tracking 485 (such as described above with respect to FIG. 4A) to determine a first beam used for a first type of channel (e.g., a control channel or a data channel) and / or a second beam used for a second type of channel (e.g., a control channel or a data channel). The second beam used for the second type of channel may be determined based on its relationship to the first beam. In one aspect, the first beam and the second beam may be different. In another aspect, the first beam and the second beam may be the same beam. In a further aspect, the first channel type and the second channel type may be different. For example, the first channel type may be a control channel, the second channel type may be an associated data channel, or vice versa.

[0087] The first exemplary embodiment At 520, the first device can determine the mapping by determining that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a fixed amount. For example, referring to FIG. 4F, the first device 434 may determine the mapping between the first beam and the second beam by determining that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a first amount (440). In one configuration, the first device 434 may know the difference in width deductively. In another configuration, the first device 434 may receive an indication 450 that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a fixed amount. Based on the beam tracking procedure described above with respect to FIG. 4A, the first device 434 and / or the second device 436 may, for example, the beam 13 413 has the most desirable channel characteristics and may be determined to be used as the beam for transmitting one of the control channel or the data channel. The first device 434 may, for the beam 13 413 and the beam 27 427 (such as as seen in FIG. 4A) differ by a fixed amount, so the beam 27 427 may be selected for transmitting the other of the control channel or the data channel.

[0088] At 522, the first device can determine the mapping by determining that when the beam n is used as the second beam associated with the second type of channel, the beam z is used as the first beam associated with the first type of channel. In one aspect, the widths of the beam z and the beam n may differ by a fixed amount. For example, referring to FIGS. 4A and 4F, based on the beam tracking procedure, the first device 434 and / or the second device 436 may, for example, the beam 13413 has the most desirable channel characteristics and may be determined to be used as a beam for transmitting one of a control channel or a data channel. The first device 434 is a beam 13 413 and beam 27 427 (such as seen in Figure 4A) may be determined to differ by a fixed amount in width, so beam 27 427 may be selected to transmit the other of the control channel or the data channel. In this particular example, n = 13 and z = 27. However, the values of n and z are not limited to 13 and 27 respectively.

[0089] A second exemplary embodiment In 524, the first device may determine that the same beam is used as the first beam and the second beam. For example, referring to Figures 4A and 4F, the first device 434 may determine the mapping (440) by determining that the first beam and the second beam are the same beam. In one configuration, the first device 434 may deductively know that the same beam is used for the first beam and the second beam. Optionally, the first device 434 may receive an indication 450 that the same beam is used to transmit the control channel and the data channel. For example, one of the beams 401, 403, 405, 407, 409, 411, 413, 415 used to transmit BRS in Figure 4A may be used for the control channel and the data channel, or one of the beams 404, 405, 406, 412, 413, 414 used to transmit BRRS in Figure 4A may be used for the control channel and the data channel.

[0090] A third exemplary embodiment At 526, the first device can determine the mapping by determining that a first subarray associated with a first beam is pseudo - collocated with a second subarray associated with a second beam. For example, referring to FIGS. 4A and 4F, the first device 434 and / or the second device 436 may determine, for example, that beam 13 413 has the most desirable channel characteristics and is used to transmit either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464. The first device 434 may select beam 13 427 for the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464 because it determines that the subarray (e.g., an antenna subarray if the first device 434 is a UE, an antenna port if the first device 434 is a mmW base station) used to receive beam 27 413 is pseudo - collocated with the subarray used to receive beam 27 427.

[0091] At 528, the first device can determine that when a beam n is used as a second beam associated with a second type of channel based on the first subarray being pseudo - collocated with the second subarray, beam z is used as a first beam associated with a first type of channel. For example, referring to FIG. 4F, the first device 434 may select beam 13 427 for the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464 because it determines that the subarray (e.g., an antenna subarray if the first device 434 is a UE, an antenna port if the first device 434 is a mmW base station) used to receive beam 27 413 is pseudo - collocated with the subarray used to receive beam 27One may select 427. In this particular example, n = 13 and z = 27. However, the values of n and z are not limited to 13 and 27, respectively.

[0092] Fourth Exemplary Embodiment At 530, the first device can receive from the second device an indication that beam n is correlated with beam n+a and that beam v is correlated with beam v+b For example, referring to FIG. 4F, the first device 434 may receive from the second device 436 an indication 450 that beam n is correlated with beam n+a and / or that beam v is correlated with beam v+b In one aspect, the indication 450 may be received via control channel (e.g., PDCCH) signaling or RRC signaling.

[0093] At 532, the first device can determine the mapping by determining a first correlation between beam n and beam n+a and a second correlation between beam v and beam v+b For example, referring to FIG. 4F, the first device 434 may determine the mapping by correlating (440) one of the BRS beams used as either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464 with one of the BRRS beams used as the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel. For example, beam n (e.g., beam 5 in FIG. 4A) may be correlated with beam n+a (e.g., beam 6 in FIG. 4A), and beam v (e.g., beam 13 in FIG. 4A) may be correlated with beam v+b (e.g., beam 12 in FIG. 4A), where beam n and beamn+a Both are used to transmit BRS, and the beam v and the beam v+b Both are used to transmit BRRS.

[0094] At 534, based on this correlation, when the beam n is used as the first beam associated with the first type of channel, the first device can determine that the beam n+a is used as the second beam associated with the second type of channel. For example, referring to FIG. 4F, in the first configuration, the first device 434 determines that the beam n+a (e.g., beam 6406 in FIG. 4A) can be used for either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464, when the beam n (e.g., beam 5405 in FIG. 4A) is used for the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464 (440).

[0095] At 536, based on this correlation, when the beam n+a is used as the second beam associated with the second type of channel, the first device can determine that the beam n is used as the first beam associated with the first type of channel. For example, referring to FIG. 4F, in the first configuration, the first device 434 determines that the beam n+a (e.g., beam 6406 in FIG. 4A) can be used for either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464, when the beam n (e.g., beam 5405 in FIG. 4A) is used for the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464 (440). Alternatively, in the first configuration, the first device 434 determines that the beam v+b (e.g., beam 12 412 in FIG. 4A) can be used for either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464, when the beam v (e.g., beam 13may be determined when n is used as the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464. In a second configuration, the first device 434 determines that a beam n (e.g., beam 5405 of FIG. 4A) may be used for either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464, and a beam n+a (e.g., beam 6406 of FIG. 4A) may be determined to be used as the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464 when n is so used (440). Alternatively, in a second configuration, the first device 434 determines that a beam v (e.g., beam 13 413 of FIG. 4A) may be used for either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464, and a beam v+b (e.g., beam 12 412 of FIG. 4A) may be determined to be used as the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464 when v is so used (440).

[0096] Fifth exemplary embodiment As seen in FIG. 5C, at 538, the first device determines the mapping by determining a third correlation between a beam n and a beam v and a fourth correlation between a beam n+a and a beam v+b . For example, referring to FIG. 4F, the first device 434 may determine the mapping by correlating (440) one of the BRS beams used as the control channel with another one of the BRS beams used as the data channel. Additionally and / or alternatively, the first device 434 may determine the mapping by correlating (440) one of the BRRS beams used as the control channel with another one of the BRRS beams used as the data channel. For example, a beam n (e.g., beam 5405 of FIG. 4A) may be correlated with a beam v (e.g., beam 13 413 of FIG. 4A), and a beam n+a(For example, beam 6406 in FIG. 4A) is the beam v+b (For example, the beam in FIG. 4A 12 412) may be correlated. For example, beam n and beam v may both be used to transmit BRS, and beam n+a and beam v+b are both used to transmit BRRS.

[0097] At 540, based on this correlation, the first device can determine that when beam n is used as the first beam associated with the first type of channel, beam v is used as the second beam associated with the second type of channel. For example, referring to FIG. 4F, the first device 434 may determine that when beam v is used as either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464, beam n is used as the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464. Alternatively, the first device 434 may determine that when beam v+b is used for either the control channel 462 or the data channel 464, beam n+a is used as the other of the control channel 462 or the data channel 464.

[0098] Sixth exemplary embodiment At 542, the first device can determine the mapping by determining that beam x is used as the first beam and beam z is used as the second beam. For example, referring to FIG. 4F, the first device 434 may determine the mapping by determining that beam x is used as the first beam and beam z is used as the second beam. Beam x and beam zSince it may not be correlated in any obvious way, the mapping in the sixth exemplary embodiment may be an independent relationship determined by the second device 436.

[0099] In 544, the first device can receive a first beam associated with a first type of channel and a second beam associated with a second type of channel. In one aspect, the first beam and the second beam can be received from the second device. For example, referring to FIG. 4F, after determining (440) the relationship between the first beam and the second beam based on one exemplary embodiment discussed above, the first device 434 may receive a control channel 462 and a data channel 464.

[0100] FIG. 6 is a conceptual data flow diagram 600 showing the data flow between various means / components in an exemplary apparatus 602. The apparatus can be a first device (e.g., the first device 434, UE104, 350, 431, or mmW base station 180, 310, 432) communicating with a second device 650 (e.g., the second device 436, UE104, 350, 431, or mmW base station 180, 310, 432). The apparatus includes a receiving component 604 that can receive a first set of beams associated with BRS601 and a second set of beams associated with BRS601. In one aspect, the first set of beams can be different from the second set of beams. The receiving component 604 can send a signal 603 associated with BRS601 to a determining component 606. The determining component 606 can determine the strongest beam in the first set of beams and the strongest beam in the second set of beams. In one aspect, the strongest beam in the first set of beams may be beam n and the strongest beam in the second set of beams may be beam v The determining component 606 can provide information about the strongest beams (e.g., beam n and beam vThe signal 607 associated with [[ID=]] can be sent to the transmission component 608. The transmission component 608 can send a signal 609 associated with the information of the strongest beams for the first set and the second set of beams to the second device 650. The receiving component 604 can receive a third set of beams associated with the BRRS 601 and a fourth set of beams associated with the BRRS 601 from the second device 650. In one aspect, the third set of beams may include at least one beam adjacent to the beam n and the beam n , and the fourth set of beams may include at least one beam adjacent to the beam v and the beam v . The receiving component can send the signal 603 associated with the BRRS to the determination component 606. The determination component 606 can determine the strongest beam among the third set of beams and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams. In one aspect, the strongest beam among the third set of beams may be the beam n+a , and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams may be the beam v+b . The determination component 606 can send a signal associated with the information of the strongest beams for the third set and the fourth set of beams (e.g., the beam n+a and the beam v+b ) to the transmission component 608. The transmission component 608 can send a signal 609 associated with the information of the strongest beams for the third set and the fourth set of beams to the second device 650. The receiving component 604 is the beam n or the beam vIt is possible to receive information 601 indicating that any one of is used as a first beam associated with a first type of channel or a second beam associated with a second type of channel. The receiving component 604 can receive mapping information 601 indicating that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a fixed amount. The receiving component 604 can send a signal 603 associated with the difference in beam widths to the determining component 606. The determining component 606 can determine a mapping between a first beam associated with a first type of channel and a second beam associated with a second type of channel. In one aspect, the first type of channel can be different from the second type of channel. In one aspect, the determining component 606 can determine the mapping by determining that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a fixed amount. In a first exemplary embodiment, the determining component 606 can determine the mapping by determining that when the beam n is used as a second beam associated with a second type of channel, the beam z is used as a first beam associated with a first type of channel. In one aspect, the widths of the beam z and the beam n can differ by a fixed amount. In a second exemplary embodiment, the determining component 606 can determine that the same beam is used as the first beam and the second beam (e.g., based on deductive knowledge in the determining component 606 or from a message from a second device 650). In a third exemplary embodiment, the determining component 606 can determine the mapping by determining that a first subarray associated with the first beam is pseudo-collocated with a second subarray associated with the second beam. For example, based on the first subarray being pseudo-collocated with the second subarray, the determining component 606 can determine that when the beam n is used as a second beam associated with a second type of channel, the beam z ​​​​​​can be determined to be used as a first beam associated with a first type of channel. In a fourth exemplary embodiment, the receiving component 604 receives, from a second device 650, an indication 601 (e.g., a mapping) that beam n is correlated with beam n+a and that beam v is correlated with beam v+b . The receiving component 604 can send a signal 603 associated with the mapping to the determining component 606. The determining component 606 can determine the mapping by determining a first correlation between beam n and beam n+a and a second correlation between beam v and beam v+b . For example, based on this correlation, the determining component 606 can determine that when beam n+a is used as a second beam associated with a second type of channel, beam n can be determined to be used as a first beam associated with a first type of channel. In a fifth exemplary embodiment, the determining component 606 can determine the mapping by determining a third correlation between beam n and beam v and a fourth correlation between beam n+a and beam v+b . For example, based on this correlation, the determining component 606 can determine that when beam n is used as a first beam associated with a first type of channel, beam v can be determined to be used as a second beam associated with a second type of channel. In a sixth exemplary embodiment, the receiving component 604 can receive information 601 (e.g., an independent mapping) indicating that beam x is used as a first beam and that beam z is used as a second beam. The receiving component 604 can send a signal 603 associated with the independent mapping to the determining component 606. The determining component 606 can determine the beamx is used as the first beam, and the beam z can be determined to be used as the second beam. Information 605 associated with the determined beams for the control channel and data channel determined in the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth exemplary embodiments can be transmitted to the receiving component 604. The receiving component 604 can then receive the control channel in one beam and receive the associated data channel 601 in a different beam.

[0101] The apparatus may include additional components that execute each of the blocks of the algorithms in the above-described flowcharts of FIGS. 5A - 5C. Thus, each block in the above-described flowcharts of FIGS. 5A - 5C may be executed by one component, and the apparatus may include one or more of those components. The components may be one or more hardware components specifically configured to perform the described process / algorithm, implemented by a processor configured to execute the described process / algorithm, stored in a computer-readable medium for implementation by the processor, or some combination thereof.

[0102] FIG. 7 is a diagram 700 showing an example of a hardware implementation of an apparatus 602' that utilizes a processing system 714. The processing system 714 can be implemented using a bus architecture generally represented by a bus 724. The bus 724 can include any number of interconnecting buses and bridges depending on the specific application example of the processing system 714 and overall design constraints. The bus 724 interconnects various circuits including one or more processors and / or hardware components represented by a processor 704, components 604, 606, 608, and a computer-readable medium / memory 706. The bus 724 can also connect various other circuits such as a timing source, peripherals, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, but these circuits are well known in the art and thus will not be described further.

[0103] The processing system 714 can be coupled to the transceiver 710. The transceiver 710 is coupled to one or more antennas 720. The transceiver 710 provides means for communicating with various other devices through a transmission medium. The transceiver 710 receives signals from one or more antennas 720, extracts information from the received signals, and provides the extracted information to the processing system 714, particularly the receiving component 604. Further, the transceiver 710 receives information from the processing system 714, particularly the transmitting component 608, and generates signals to be applied to one or more antennas 720 based on the received information. The processing system 714 includes a processor 704 coupled to a computer-readable medium / memory 706. The processor 704 is responsible for general processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium / memory 706. When executed by the processor 704, the software causes the processing system 714 to perform the various functions described above with respect to any particular device. The computer-readable medium / memory 706 may also be used to store data that is manipulated by the processor 704 when executing the software. The processing system 714 further includes at least one of the components 604, 606, 608. Those components can operate within the processor 704, be software components that exist in / are stored on the computer-readable medium / memory 706, be one or more hardware components coupled to the processor 704, or some combination thereof. The processing system 714 may be a component of the UE 350 and may include the memory 360 and / or at least one of the TX processor 368, RX processor 356, and controller / processor 359.

[0104] In one configuration, the apparatus 602 / 602' for wireless communication may include means for determining a mapping between a first beam associated with a first type of channel and a second beam associated with a second type of channel. In some aspects, the first type of channel may be different from the second type of channel. In some aspects, the first type of channel is one of a control channel or a data channel, and the second type of channel is the other of a control channel or a data channel. In another configuration, the apparatus 602 / 602' for wireless communication may include means for receiving from a second device an indication that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a fixed amount. In the first configuration, the means for determining the mapping may be configured to determine that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a fixed amount. For example, the means for determining the mapping may be configured such that when beam n is used as the second beam associated with the second type of channel, beam z is determined to be used as the first beam associated with the first type of channel. In some aspects, the widths of beam z and beam n may differ by a fixed amount. In another configuration, the means for determining the mapping may be configured to determine that the same beam is used as the first beam and the second beam. In a further configuration, the means for determining the mapping may be configured to determine that a first subarray associated with the first beam is pseudo-collocated with a second subarray associated with the second beam. For example, the means for determining the mapping may be based on the first subarray being pseudo-collocated with the second subarray, such that when beam z is used as the second beam associated with the second type of channel, beam nconfigured to determine to be used as a first beam associated with a first type of channel. In a further configuration, the apparatus 602 / 602' for wireless communication may include means for receiving a first set of beams associated with the BRS and a second set of beams associated with the BRS. In one aspect, the first set of beams may be different from the second set of beams. In another configuration, the apparatus 602 / 602' for wireless communication may include means for determining the strongest beam among the first set of beams and the strongest beam among the second set of beams. In one aspect, the strongest beam among the first set of beams may be beam n and the strongest beam among the second set of beams may be beam v . In a further configuration, the apparatus 602 / 602' for wireless communication may include means for receiving from a second device a third set of beams associated with the BRRS and a fourth set of beams associated with the BRRS. In one aspect, the third set of beams may include at least one beam adjacent to beam n and beam n , and the fourth set of beams may include at least one beam adjacent to beam v and beam v . In one configuration, the apparatus 602 / 602' for wireless communication may include means for determining the strongest beam among the third set of beams and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams. In one aspect, the strongest beam among the third set of beams may be beam n+a and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams may be beam v+b . In another configuration, the apparatus 602 / 602' for wireless communication may include means for transmitting to a second device information associated with the strongest beam among the third set of beams and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams. In one aspect, the means for determining the mapping is the first correlation between beam n and beam n+a and the beam v and the beamv+b to determine a second correlation with, and / or, a beam n and a beam v to determine a third correlation with and a beam n+a and a beam v+b to determine a fourth correlation with. In one configuration, the apparatus 602 / 602' for wireless communication may include means for receiving from a second device information associated with at least one of the first correlation, the second correlation, the third correlation, or the fourth correlation. In certain aspects, the information may be received via control channel signaling or RRC signaling. In certain aspects, the means for determining the mapping is configured, based on this correlation, such that when beam n is used as a first beam associated with a first type of channel, beam n+a is determined to be used as a second beam associated with a second type of channel. In another aspect, the means for determining the mapping is configured, based on this correlation, such that when beam n is used as a first beam associated with a first type of channel, beam v is determined to be used as a second beam associated with a second type of channel. In a further aspect, the means for determining the mapping is configured, based on this correlation, such that when beam n+a is used as a second beam associated with a second type of channel, beam n is determined to be used as a first beam associated with a first type of channel. In yet another aspect, the means for determining the mapping is such that when beam x is used as a first beam, beam zIt may be configured to determine to be used as the second beam. In one configuration, the first device may be a UE and the second device may be a mmW base station. In another configuration, the first device may be a mmW base station and the second device may be a UE. The means described above may be one or more of the above-described components of the processing system 714 of the apparatus 602 and / or the apparatus 602' configured to perform the functions enumerated by the means described above. As described above, the processing system 714 may include a TX processor 368, an RX processor 356, and a controller / processor 359. Thus, in one configuration, the means described above may be the TX processor 368, the RX processor 356, and the controller / processor 359 configured to perform the functions enumerated by the means described above.

[0105] It should be understood that the particular order or hierarchy of blocks in the disclosed process / flowchart illustrates exemplary approaches. It should be understood that, based on design preferences, the particular order or hierarchy of blocks in the process / flowchart may be rearranged. Further, some blocks may be combined or omitted. The appended method claims present the elements of the various blocks in an exemplary order and are not limited to the particular order or hierarchy presented.

[0106] The foregoing description is provided to enable those skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects as well. Accordingly, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but are to be accorded the full scope consistent with the claim language, and references to elements in the singular are to be construed as referring to one or more unless explicitly stated otherwise. The word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect described herein as "exemplary" should not necessarily be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Unless otherwise specifically stated, the term "some" refers to one or more. Combinations such as "at least one of A, B, or C," "one or more of A, B, or C," "at least one of A, B, and C," "one or more of A, B, and C," "A, B, C, or any combination thereof" include any combination of A, B, and / or C and may include multiple A's, multiple B's, or multiple C's. Specifically, combinations such as "at least one of A, B, or C," "one or more of A, B, or C," "at least one of A, B, and C," "one or more of A, B, and C," "A, B, C, or any combination thereof" may be A only, B only, C only, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A and B and C, and any such combination may include one or more members of A, B, or C. All structural and functional equivalents to the various elements of the aspects described throughout this disclosure, known or later to be known to those skilled in the art, are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the claims. Further, what is disclosed herein is not dedicated to the public regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly recited in the claims.Words such as "module", "mechanism", "element", "device", etc. may not be substitutes for the word "means". Therefore, no claim element should be construed as a means-plus-function unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase "means for".

Description of Reference Numerals

[0107] 100 Access Network 102 Base Station 104 UE 110 Geographic Coverage Area 120 Communication Link 132 Backhaul Link 134 Backhaul Link 150 Wi-Fi Access Point 152 Wi-Fi Station 154 Communication Link 160 EPC 162 MME 164 Other MME 166 Serving Gateway 168 MBMS GW 170 BM-SC 172 PDN Gateway 174 HSS 176 IP Service 180 mmW Base Station 182 UE 184 Beamforming 310 eNB 316 TX Processor 318RX Receiver 318TX Transmitter 320 Antenna 350 UE 352 Antenna 354RX Receiver 354TX Transmitter 356 RX Processor 358 Channel Estimator 359 Controller / Processor 360 Memory 368 TX Processor 370 RX Processor 374 Channel Estimator 375 Controller / Processor 376 Memory 400 mmW Communication System 425 Beam Group 431 UE 432 mmW Base Station 434 First Device 435 Beam Group 436 Second Device 445 Beam Group 455 Beam Group 462 Control Channel 464 Data Channel 465 mmW Communication System 601 BRS 602 Device 602' Device 603 Signal 604 Receiving Component 605 Information 606 Decision Component 607 Information of the Strongest Beam 608 Transmitting Component 609 Information of the Strongest Beam 650 Second Device 704 Processor 706 Computer Readable Medium / Memory 710 Transceiver 714 Processing System 720 Antenna 724 Bus

Claims

1. A method of wireless communication for a first device, comprising: determining a mapping between a first beam associated with a first type of channel and a second beam associated with a second type of channel, wherein the first type of channel is different from the second type of channel; receiving the first beam associated with the first type of channel and the second beam associated with the second type of channel from a second device; A method comprising the above steps.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first type of channel is one of a control channel or a data channel, and the second type of channel is the other of the control channel or the data channel.

3. The step of determining the mapping comprises: determining that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a fixed amount.

4. The method according to claim 3, further comprising receiving an indication from the second device that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by the fixed amount.

5. The step of determining the mapping further comprises: Beam n When used as the second beam associated with the second type of channel, the beam z comprises the step of determining to be used as the first beam associated with the first type of channel, the beam z and the beam n wherein the widths of are different by the fixed amount, the method according to claim 3.

6. The step of determining the mapping comprises: determining that the same beam is used as the first beam and the second beam.

7. The step of determining the mapping comprises: determining that a first subarray associated with the first beam is pseudo-collocated with a second subarray associated with the second beam.

8. The step of determining the mapping further comprises: Based on the fact that the first sub-array is pseudo-collocated with the second sub-array, a beam z when used as the second beam associated with the second type of channel, a beam n determining to be used as the first beam associated with the first type of channel, the method according to claim 7, comprising the step of.

9. receiving a first set of beams associated with a beam reference signal (BRS) and a second set of beams associated with the BRS, wherein the first set of beams is different from the second set of beams; Determining the strongest beam among the first set of beams and the strongest beam among the second set of beams, wherein the strongest beam among the first set of beams is beam n and the strongest beam among the second set of beams is beam v ; and transmitting information associated with the strongest beam in the first set of beams and the strongest beam in the second set of beams to the second device. The method according to claim 1, further comprising.

10. Receiving, from the second device, a third set of beams associated with a beam refinement reference signal (BRRS) and a fourth set of beams associated with the BRRS, wherein the third set of beams includes at least one beam adjacent to the beam n and the beam n and the fourth set of beams includes at least one beam adjacent to the beam v and the beam v ; and Determining the strongest beam among said third set of beams and the strongest beam among said fourth set of beams, wherein the strongest beam among said third set of beams is beam n+a and the strongest beam among said fourth set of beams is beam v+b ; and Transmitting, to the second device, information associated with the strongest beam among the third set of beams and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams. The method according to claim 9, further comprising.

11. The step of determining the mapping comprises the beam n and the beam n+a to determine a first correlation between and the beam v and the beam v+b to determine a second correlation between, or the beam n and the beam v a third correlation between and the beam n+a and the beam v+b step of determining a fourth correlation between and the beam The method according to claim 10, comprising.

12. The step of determining the mapping further comprises Receiving, from the second device, information associated with at least one of the first correlation, the second correlation, the third correlation, or the fourth correlation, the method according to claim 11.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the information is received via control channel signaling or radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

14. The step of determining the mapping further comprises Based on the first correlation, the beam n when used as the first beam associated with the first type of channel, the beam n+a The method according to claim 11, comprising the step of determining to be used as the second beam associated with the second type of channel.

15. The step of determining the mapping further comprises Based on the third correlation, when the beam n is used as the first beam associated with the first type of channel, the beam v The method according to claim 11, comprising the step of determining to be used as the second beam associated with the second type of channel.

16. The step of determining the mapping further comprises Based on the first correlation, when the beam n+a is used as the second beam associated with the second type of channel, the beam n The method according to claim 11, comprising the step of determining to be used as the first beam associated with the first type of channel.

17. The step of determining the mapping comprises Beam x is used as the first beam, and a step of determining that beam z is used as the second beam, and beam x and beam z are not correlated, the method according to claim 1.

18. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first device is a user equipment and the second device is a millimeter wave base station.

19. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first device is a millimeter wave base station and the second device is a user equipment.

20. An apparatus for wireless communication, being a first device, wherein the first device comprises A memory; At least one processor coupled to the memory; And the processor is configured to Determine a mapping between a first beam associated with a first type of channel and a second beam associated with a second type of channel, the first type of channel being different from the second type of channel; Receive the first beam associated with the first type of channel and the second beam associated with the second type of channel, the first beam and the second beam being received from a second device; An apparatus configured to perform.

21. The apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the first type of channel is one of a control channel and a data channel, and the second type of channel is the other of the control channel and the data channel.

22. The at least one processor is configured to determine the mapping by determining that the widths of the first beam and the second beam differ by a fixed amount, the apparatus according to claim 20.

23. The at least one processor is configured to determine the mapping by determining that the same beam is used as the first beam and the second beam, the apparatus according to claim 20.

24. The at least one processor is configured to determine the mapping by determining that a first subarray associated with the first beam is pseudo-collocated with a second subarray associated with the second beam, the apparatus according to claim 20.

25. The at least one processor is further configured to receive a first set of beams associated with a beam reference signal (BRS) and a second set of beams associated with the BRS, wherein the first set of beams is different from the second set of beams, and Determining the strongest beam among the first set of beams and the strongest beam among the second set of beams, wherein the strongest beam among the first set of beams is beam n and the strongest beam among the second set of beams is beam v and making the determination. transmit information associated with the strongest beam among the first set of beams and the strongest beam among the second set of beams to the second device. The apparatus according to claim 20, configured to perform the above.

26. The at least one processor is further configured to Receiving, from the second device, a third set of beams associated with a beam refinement reference signal (BRRS) and a fourth set of beams associated with the BRRS, wherein the third set of beams includes at least one beam adjacent to the beam n and the beam n and the fourth set of beams includes at least one beam adjacent to the beam v and the beam v ; and Determining the strongest beam among the third set of beams and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams, wherein the strongest beam among the third set of beams is beam n+a and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams is beam v+b and making the determination. transmit information associated with the strongest beam among the third set of beams and the strongest beam among the fourth set of beams to the second device. The apparatus according to claim 25, configured to perform the above.

27. The at least one processor is configured to the beam n and the beam n+a to determine a first correlation between the beam v and the beam v+b and a second correlation therebetween, or the beam n and the beam v a third correlation between and the beam n+a and the beam v+b determining a fourth correlation between and the beam determine the mapping thereby, the apparatus according to claim 26.

28. The at least one processor is configured to Beam x is used as the first beam, and the beam z is configured to determine the mapping by determining that it is used as the second beam, and the beam x and the beam z are not correlated, the apparatus according to claim 20.

29. An apparatus for wireless communication, which is a first device, wherein the first device Means for determining a mapping between a first beam associated with a first type of channel and a second beam associated with a second type of channel, wherein the first type of channel is different from the second type of channel. Means for receiving the first beam associated with the first type of channel and the second beam associated with the second type of channel, wherein the first beam and the second beam are received from a second device. An apparatus comprising the above. **Claim 30** A computer-readable recording medium storing computer-executable code, Determining a mapping between a first beam associated with a first type of channel and a second beam associated with a second type of channel, wherein the first type of channel is different from the second type of channel; Receiving the first beam associated with the first type of channel and the second beam associated with the second type of channel, wherein the first beam and the second beam are received from a second device; A computer-readable recording medium comprising code for performing the above.

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