Aggregation link establishment and release for wireless communication - Patents.com

Abstract

This document generally relates to wireless communications involving aggregation links between user devices. A first user device transmits a request to a radio access node to establish an aggregation link with a second user device. The request includes at least one transport protocol and at least one of a first identification of the first user device or a second identification of the second user device. In response to receiving the request, the radio access node determines the second user device and requests the first and second user devices to establish an aggregation link, such as by transmitting a configuration of the aggregation link. The first and second user devices establish the aggregation link and communicate data over the aggregation link.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] Technical Field This document is generally directed to aggregation links for wireless communications between user devices. [Background technology]

[0002] background New Radio (NR) supports various types of user devices, including mobile devices, wearable devices, customer premises equipment, vehicular devices, and Internet of Things (IoT) devices. These different types of user devices have different capabilities, and some types may not be able to support the highest possible performance capabilities, such as transmission power, bandwidth, data rate, or uplink coverage. Thus, it may be desirable for the user devices to communicate at higher data rates than their otherwise dictated performance capabilities. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0003] overview This document relates to methods, systems, apparatus, and devices for wireless communication. In some implementations, a method for wireless communication includes receiving, by a radio access node, a request to establish an aggregation link from a first user device, the request including at least one transport protocol and at least one of a first identification of the first user device or a second identification of a second user device, determining, by the radio access node, the second user device in response to receiving the request, and requesting, by the radio access node, the first user device and the second user device to establish an aggregation link with each other.

[0004] In another implementation, a method for wireless communication includes sending, by a first user device, a request to establish an aggregation link to a radio access node, the request including at least one transport protocol and at least one of a first identification of the first user device or a second identification of the second user device; receiving, by the first user device in response to sending the request to establish the aggregation link, a configuration of the aggregation link; establishing, by the first user device, the aggregation link with the second user device in accordance with the configuration; and upon establishing the aggregation link, exchanging data with the second user device via the aggregation link, by the first user device.

[0005] In some other implementations, a device, such as a network device, is disclosed. The device may include one or more processors and one or more memories, where the one or more processors are configured to read computer code from the one or more memories to perform any one of the methods described above.

[0006] In yet some other implementations, a computer program product is disclosed, which may include a non-transitory computer-readable program medium having stored thereon computer code that, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform any one of the methods described above.

[0007] These and other aspects and their implementations are described in more detail in the figures, description, and claims. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of an example wireless communication system.

[0009] [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 illustrates an example flow chart of a method for wireless communication, including establishing an aggregation link.

[0010] [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 illustrates a flowchart of another example method for wireless communication including establishing an aggregation link.

[0011] [Figure 4] FIG. 4 illustrates a flowchart of another example method for wireless communication including establishing an aggregation link.

[0012] [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 shows a diagram illustrating at least some messages that a user device and a radio access node may communicate to establish an aggregation link.

[0013] [Figure 6] FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart of an example method for wireless communication including communicating capability reports and identification information between a user device and a wireless access node. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] Detailed Description This specification describes various embodiments of systems, apparatus, devices, and methods for wireless communication involving aggregation links between user devices.

[0015] FIG. 1 illustrates a diagram of an exemplary wireless communication system 100 including multiple communication nodes (or simply nodes) configured to wirelessly communicate with each other. In general, the communication nodes include at least one user device 102 and at least one radio access node 104. The exemplary wireless communication system 100 of FIG. 1 is illustrated as including two user devices 102, including a first user device 102(1) and a second user device 102(2), and one radio access node 104. However, various other examples of wireless communication systems 100 including any of various combinations of user devices 102 and radio access nodes 104 include two or more user devices 102 without any radio access node 104, only one user device 102 and only one radio access node 104, only one user device 102 and two or more radio access nodes 104, two or more user devices 102 and one or more radio access nodes 104, or two or more radio access nodes 104 without any user devices 102.

[0016] In general, a user device as described herein, such as user device 102, may include a single electronic device or apparatus or multiple electronic devices or apparatuses (e.g., a network thereof) capable of wirelessly communicating over a network. A user device may comprise or otherwise be referred to as a user terminal, user terminal device, or user equipment (UE). Additionally, a user device may be or include, without limitation, a mobile device (non-limiting examples include a mobile phone, a smartphone, a smart watch, a tablet, a laptop computer, a car or other vehicle (non-limiting examples include human-powered, motor-powered, or engine-powered, such as an automobile, an airplane, a train, a boat, or a bicycle)), or a fixed or stationary device (non-limiting examples include a desktop computer or other computing device that is not typically moved for long periods of time, such as a home appliance, other relatively heavy devices including the Internet of Things (IoT), or computing devices used in commercial or industrial environments). In various embodiments, the user device 102 may include a transceiver circuit 106 coupled to an antenna 108 for wireless communication with the wireless access node 104. The transceiver circuitry 106 may also be coupled to a processor 110, which may be coupled to a memory 112 or other storage device. The memory 112 may store instructions or code that, when read and executed by the processor 110, cause the processor 110 to perform various of the methods described herein.

[0017] Further, in general, a radio access node as described herein, such as the radio access node 104, may include a single electronic device or apparatus, or multiple electronic devices or apparatus (e.g., a network thereof) and may comprise one or more base stations or other wireless network access points that may communicate wirelessly with one or more user devices and / or one or more other radio access nodes 104 over the network. For example, the radio access node 104 may comprise a 4G LTE base station, a 5G NR base station, a 5G central unit base station, a 5G distributed unit base station, a next generation Node B (gNB), an enhanced Node B (eNB), or other similar or next generation (e.g., 6G) base station, in various embodiments. The radio access node 104 may include a transceiver circuit 114 coupled to an antenna 116, which may include an antenna tower 118 in various manners, for conducting wireless communications with a user device 102 or another radio access node 104. The transceiver circuit 114 may also be coupled to one or more processors 120, which may be coupled to a memory 122 or other storage device. The memory 122 may store instructions or code that, when read and executed by the processor 120, cause the processor 120 to perform one or more of the methods described herein.

[0018] In various embodiments, two communication nodes in the wireless system 100, such as a user device 102 and a radio access node 104, two user devices 102 without a radio access node 104, or two radio access nodes 104 without a user device 102, may be configured to wirelessly communicate with each other in or over a mobile network and / or radio access network in accordance with one or more standards and / or specifications. In general, the standards and / or specifications may define rules or procedures by which the communication nodes may wirelessly communicate, and in various embodiments may include those for communicating in millimeter (mm) wave bands and / or with multi-antenna schemes and beamforming capabilities. Additionally or alternatively, the standards and / or specifications may define radio access technologies and / or cellular technologies, such as, by way of non-limiting examples, Fourth Generation (4G) Long Term Evolution (LTE), Fifth Generation (5G) New Radio (NR), or New Radio Unlicensed (NR-U).

[0019] Furthermore, in the wireless system 100, the communication nodes are configured to wirelessly communicate signals with each other. In general, communication in the wireless system 100 between two communication nodes can be or include transmission or reception, generally both occurring simultaneously depending on the perspective of the particular node in the communication. For example, for a given communication between a first node and a second node, where the first node is transmitting a signal to the second node and the second node is receiving a signal from the first node, the first node may be referred to as a source node or device or a transmitting node or device, the second node may be referred to as a destination node or device or a receiving node or device, and the communication may be considered as a transmission to the first node and a reception to the second node. Of course, since the communication nodes in the wireless system 100 can both transmit and receive signals, a single communication node may be both a transmitting / source node and a receiving / destination node at the same time, or may switch between a source / transmitting node and a destination / receiving node.

[0020] Also, a particular signal can be characterized or defined as either an uplink (UL) signal, a downlink (DL) signal, or a sidelink (SL) signal. An uplink signal is a signal transmitted from a user device 102 to a radio access node 104. A downlink signal is a signal transmitted from a radio access node 104 to a user device 102. A sidelink signal is a signal transmitted from one user device 102 to another user device 102 or from one radio access node 104 to another radio access node 104. Also, for sidelink transmission, the first / source user device 102 transmits the sidelink signal directly to the second / destination user device 102 without forwarding any sidelink signal to the radio access node 104.

[0021] Additionally, as used herein, a direct connection or link through or over which two user devices 102 communicate (transmit and receive) sidelink signals is referred to as an aggregation link. Once two user devices 102 establish an aggregation link with each other, the two user devices 102 can directly communicate or exchange data or other information between them by communicating one or more sidelink signals through or over the aggregation link.

[0022] The following wireless communication apparatus, systems, and methods, described with reference to the following flow charts and figures, may enable a user device to establish and / or release an aggregation link. Such apparatus, systems, and / or methods may enable a user device, including what may be considered a low capability user device, to communicate at higher data transmission rates by establishing an aggregation link with another user device.

[0023] 2 illustrates an example method 200 for wireless communication including operations that the radio access node 104 may perform to establish an aggregation link between two user devices 102(1), 102(2). At block 202, the radio access node 104 may receive a request to establish an aggregation link from a first user device 102(1). In various embodiments, the request may include at least one transport protocol and at least one of a first identification (ID) of the first user device 102(1) or a second identification (ID) of the second user device 102(2). The at least one transport protocol may indicate at least one expected transport protocol that the first user device 102(1) supports or expects to use or can use to perform sidelink communication with another user device. Exemplary transport protocols include, but are not limited to, WiFi (e.g., 802.11n, 802.11ac, 802.11ax), Bluetooth, Zigbee, LTE sidelink, or NR sidelink.

[0024] Further, in at least some embodiments, each transport protocol included in the request may be associated with the first ID and / or the first user device 102(1), thereby indicating that each of the transport protocols identified in the request is an expected or supported transport protocol of the first user device 102(1). Additionally or alternatively, each transport protocol included in or indicated in the request may be associated with a respective one of the at least one priority. The at least one priority and / or the association between the at least one transport protocol and the at least one priority may be included in or indicated in the request. Accordingly, multiple transport protocols included in the request may have higher or lower priority relative to each other, corresponding to the priorities associated therewith.

[0025] Additionally or alternatively, the request may include at least one additional characteristic for the aggregated link. Exemplary non-limiting characteristics for the aggregated link include an operating bandwidth, a number of multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) layers, or a UE category. For at least some of these embodiments, each characteristic included in or indicated in the request may be associated with a respective one of the at least one priority. The at least one priority and / or an association between the at least one characteristic and the at least one priority may be included in or indicated in the request. Accordingly, multiple characteristics included in the request may have higher or lower priority relative to each other, corresponding to the priorities associated therewith.

[0026] Additionally or alternatively, each combination of transport protocols and characteristics included in the request may have an associated priority. Accordingly, for embodiments in which the request includes multiple transport protocols and / or multiple characteristics, the request may have multiple unique combinations of transport protocols and characteristics, with any two combinations differing from one another by having different transport protocols and / or different characteristics. Furthermore, for at least some of these embodiments, each combination included in the request may be associated with a respective one of the at least one priority. The at least one priority and / or the association between the at least one combination and the at least one priority may be included in or indicated in the request. Accordingly, multiple combinations included in or indicated in the request may have higher or lower priority relative to one another, corresponding to their associated priorities.

[0027] In response to receiving the request, at block 204, the radio access node 104 may determine a second user device 102(2) with which the first user device 102(1) should or will establish an aggregation link. For embodiments in which the request identifies a second ID of the second user device 102(2), the radio access node 104 may determine the second user device 102(2) from the second ID included in or indicated within the request. Additionally, for at least some embodiments in which the request identifies a second ID, the request may further include a cell index of the second user device 102(2). In various embodiments, the cell index may include a physical cell identity or a global cell identity.

[0028] In other embodiments, the request may not include or indicate the second ID. For example, the request may only include or indicate the first ID of the first user device 102(1) that sent the request. The first user device 102(1) may send a request that includes the first ID but not the second ID in a situation where the first user device 102(1) wants to establish an aggregation link with another user device but does not know (identify) the particular user device with which to establish the aggregation link. In these embodiments, the radio access node 104 may search for and / or select a suitable user device, for example, from among one or more candidate available and / or known user devices. The second user device 102(2) that the radio access node 104 determines in block 204 may be the suitable user device that the radio access node 104 selects. Also, in various embodiments, the radio access node 104 may select the suitable user device based on at least one transport protocol, at least one characteristic, or at least one combination thereof. For example, a suitable user device may support and / or be capable of communicating according to the transport protocols and / or characteristics included or indicated in the request. Conversely, a user device that does not support and / or is unable to communicate according to the transport protocols and / or characteristics included or indicated in the request may be identified by the radio access node 104 as not being a suitable user device. In at least some of these embodiments, if the radio access node 104 identifies multiple suitable user devices, the radio access node 104 may select a suitable user device based on a priority, such as a priority associated with at least one transport protocol, at least one characteristic, and / or at least one combination included or indicated in the request. The radio access node 104 may do so according to the highest priority.That is, the radio access node 104 may select a suitable user device having a higher priority transport protocol, characteristic, or combination over one or more other suitable user devices having a lower priority transport protocol, characteristic, or combination. Of the multiple suitable user devices, the radio access node 104 may first select a suitable user device having the highest priority. If no suitable user device is available or otherwise unable to form an aggregation link with the first user device 102(1), the radio access node 104 may select a suitable user device having the next highest priority. If the radio access node 104 is ultimately unable to find a suitable user device, the radio access node 104 may inform the first user device 102(1) that it is unable to establish an aggregation link and / or that there is no suitable user device with which to form an aggregation link.

[0029] As a non-limiting example, assume that the request indicates that the first user device 102(1) supports transport protocols NR sidelink and LTE sidelink, with the NR sidelink having a higher priority than the LTE sidelink. In response to the request, the radio access node 104 may first search for a suitable user device that supports the NR sidelink. If the radio access node 104 does not identify any, the radio access node 104 may search for a suitable user device that supports the LTE sidelink. Additionally or alternatively, if the radio access node 104 identifies a first suitable user device that supports the NR sidelink and a second suitable user device that supports the LTE sidelink (but not the NR sidelink). In response, the radio access node 104 may select the first suitable user device in preference to the second suitable user device. If the first suitable user device is unable to establish an aggregation link with the first user device 102(1) or is unavailable, the radio access node 104 may select the second suitable user device.

[0030] In block 206, the radio access node 104 may request or command the first user device 102(1) and the second user device 102(2) (i.e., the appropriate user device determined by the radio access node 104 in block 204) to establish an aggregation link. In some embodiments, including those in which the request does not identify the second user device, the radio access node 104 may send a first message to the second user device 102(2) including a configuration for the aggregation link. The configuration may include a configuration for a transport protocol. Additionally or alternatively, the configuration may include a radio bearer configuration for the aggregation link and / or a protocol stack configuration including at least one of a physical layer configuration, a medium access control (MAC) configuration, a radio link control (RLC) configuration, a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) configuration, or a radio resource control (RRC) configuration. Additionally, the first message may include a first ID of the first user device 102(1). The second user device 102(2) may treat the first message as an invitation to accept or reject the request to form an aggregation link with the first user device 102(1). Thus, upon receiving the first message, the second user device 102(2) may accept or reject the invitation. If the second user device 102(2) accepts, the radio access node 104 may send a first configuration to the first user device 102(1). The first configuration includes a transport protocol for the aggregation link and a second ID of the second user device 102(2). The radio access node 104 may also send a second message to the second user device 102(2) commanding, prompting, or permitting the second user device 102(2) to establish an aggregation link with the first user device 102(1) according to the transport protocol indicated in the first message.

[0031] In response to the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2) establishing the aggregation link, the radio access node 104 may receive an aggregation link establishment completion notification from one of the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2). In at least some of these embodiments, the radio access node 104 may respond by sending an aggregation link confirmation to the other of the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2), thereby prompting the other user device not to send an aggregation link establishment completion notification to the radio access node 104. In this manner, neither user device 102(1), 102(2) sends an aggregation link establishment completion notification to the radio access node 104.

[0032] 3 illustrates an example method 300 for wireless communication including operations that a first user device 102(1) may perform to establish an aggregation link with another second user device 102(2). At block 302, the first user device 102(1) may transmit a request to establish an aggregation link to the radio access node 104. The request may include at least one transport protocol and at least one of a first ID of the first user device 102(1) or a second ID of the second user device 102(2), such as a request to establish an aggregation link as described above with respect to the example method 200 of FIG.

[0033] In response to sending the request, at block 304, the first user device 102(1) may receive a configuration of the aggregation link from the radio access node 104. The configuration may include a configuration of a transport protocol for the aggregation link. Also, for embodiments in which the request did not include a second ID, the first user device 102(1) may receive a second ID of the second user device 102(2) with which the first user device 102(1) is to establish an aggregation link.

[0034] In block 306, the first user device 102(1) may establish an aggregation link with the second user device 102(2). For example, the first user device 102(1) may communicate any of a variety of information with the second user device 102(2), such as in accordance with any of a variety of standards or specifications, to establish the aggregation link in accordance with a transport protocol indicated by the radio access node 104. For at least some embodiments, upon receiving the configuration and / or second ID from the radio access node 104, the first user device 102(1) may start a timer. In various embodiments, an expiration time for the timer may be included with the configuration information received from the radio access node 104 in block 304. If the timer expires before the first user device 102(1) establishes an aggregation link with the second user device 102(2), the first user device 102(1) may determine that it was unable to establish an aggregation link with the second user device 102(2) and notify the radio access node 104 of the failure. Furthermore, if the first user device 102(1) establishes an aggregation link with the second user device 102(2) before the timer expires, the first user device 102(1) may send an aggregation link establishment completion notification to the radio access node. However, if the first user device 102(1) receives an aggregation link confirmation from the radio access node 104 before sending the aggregation link establishment completion notification, the first user device 102(1) may decide not to send the aggregation link establishment completion notification. In response to establishing the aggregation link with the second user device 102(2) at block 308, the first user device 102(1) may communicate or exchange data or other information with the second user device 102(2) over the aggregation link.

[0035] 4 illustrates another exemplary method 400 for wireless communication including operations that the first user device 102(1), the second user device 102(2), and the radio access node 104 may perform to establish an aggregation link between the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2). In various embodiments, the method 400 may be performed alone or in combination with or as part of the method 200 and / or the method 300. The method 400 will also be described with reference to a diagram 500 in FIG. 5 illustrating at least some messages or other signals that the first user device 102(1), the second user device 102(2), and the radio access node 104 communicate with each other in connection with the aggregation link between the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2).

[0036] At block 402, and also as indicated by arrow 502 in FIG. 5, the first user device 102(1) may transmit a request to establish an aggregation link to the radio access node 104. The request may include at least one transport protocol and a first ID of the first user device 102(1), as described above with respect to blocks 202 and 302 in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, respectively. Also in this method 400, the first user device 102(1) may wish to establish an aggregation link with another user device, but may not know the particular user device with which to establish the aggregation link. Thus, the request may include the first ID but not the second ID of the second user device 102(2). Additionally, in some embodiments, the request may include at least one characteristic of the aggregation link. Also, in some embodiments, the request may include or indicate at least one preference corresponding to at least one transport protocol, at least one characteristic, or at least one combination of the two, as described above.

[0037] In block 404, the radio access node 104 may, in response to receiving the request, search for suitable user devices with which the first user device 102(1) may form an aggregation link. As previously described, the radio access node 104 may do so by looking for user devices that support at least one transport protocol, at least one characteristic, or at least one combination of the two. If the radio access node 104 identifies multiple suitable user devices, the radio access node 104 may select a suitable user device with the highest priority from among the multiple suitable user devices, as previously described. The radio access node 104 may identify a suitable user device that it selects as the second user device 102(2) for forming an aggregation link with the first user device 102(1). If, in block 406, the radio access node 104 does not identify a suitable user device, in block 408, the radio access node 104 may decide to reject the request and inform the first user device 102(1) of the rejection.

[0038] Alternatively, if the radio access node 102 identifies the second user device 102(2) in block 406, then the radio access node 104 may transmit a first message including a configuration of an aggregation link to the second user device 102(2) in block 410, and also as indicated by arrow 504 in FIG. 5. The radio access node 104 may also transmit a first ID of the first user device 102(1) to the second user device 102(2). In block 412, the second user device 102(2) may receive the configuration and decide whether to accept the configuration, i.e., decide whether to agree to establish an aggregation link with the first user device 102(1). If the second user device 102(2) decides not to establish an aggregation link, the second user device 102(2) may inform the radio access node 104 of the decision to decline to establish the aggregation link. For at least some embodiments, the method 400 may return to block 404, where the radio access node 104 may search for another suitable user device.

[0039] Alternatively, if in block 412 the second user device 102(2) decides to establish an aggregation link, in block 416 the second user device transmits an acceptance to the radio access node 104. In response to receiving the acceptance, the radio access node 104 may notify the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2) to establish an aggregation link. The radio access node 104 may notify the first user device 102(2) by transmitting the configuration of the aggregation link and a second identification of the second user device 102(2), as indicated by arrow 506 in FIG. 5. The radio access node 104 may transmit an additional notification or instruction to the second user device 102(2) instructing the second user device 102(2) to form an aggregation link with the first user device 102(1).

[0040] In response to being notified to establish an aggregation link, at block 418, the first user device 102(1) and the second user device 102(2) may each start a respective timer. In some embodiments, the radio access node 104 may provide timer expiration values ​​to the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2). If at least one of the timers of the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2) expires before the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2) establish an aggregation link, at block 420, the user device 102 whose timer expired may notify the radio access node 104, at block 422, that the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2) failed to establish an aggregation link within the desired period set by the timer. In at least some embodiments, the method 400 returns to block 404, where the radio access node 104 searches for another suitable user device.

[0041] Alternatively, if the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2) establish the aggregation link before the timer expires, as indicated by arrow 508 in FIG. 5, at block 420, the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2) may exchange data or other information with each other over the aggregation link, at block 424. Also, in some embodiments, one of the first or second user devices 102(1), 102(2) may notify the radio access node 104 that the aggregation link has been established, such as by transmitting an aggregation link establishment completion notification to the radio access node 104. In response to receiving the completion notification, the radio access node 104 may transmit an aggregation link confirmation to the other of the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2). In FIG. 5, arrow 510 indicates the first user device 102(1) sending an aggregation link establishment completion notification to the radio access node, and arrow 512 indicates the radio access node 104 sending an aggregation link establishment confirmation to the second user device 102(2). Alternatively, arrow 510′ indicates the second user device 102(2) sending an aggregation link establishment completion notification to the radio access node 104, and arrow 512′ indicates the radio access node 104 sending an aggregation link establishment confirmation to the first user device 102(1). The other user device 102 may decide not to send an aggregation link establishment completion notification to the radio access node 104 in response to receiving the aggregation link confirmation. In this way, neither user device 102(1), 102(2) needs to send an aggregation link establishment completion notification to the radio access node 104.

[0042] As previously described, in the example method 400, the first user device 102(1) may request to establish an aggregation link with another user device without knowing the particular user device with which to establish the aggregation link. In other embodiments, the first user device 102(2) may know or identify the second user device 102(2) with which it wishes to establish an aggregation link. In at least some of these other embodiments, the first user device 102(1) may already have established a connection with the second user device 102(2) prior to sending the request to establish an aggregation link with the second user device 102(2). In such a situation, the first user device 102(2) may know the second ID of the second user device 102(2) prior to sending the request to the radio access node 104 and may include the second ID of the second user device 102(2) in the request. In at least some of these embodiments, the request may further include a cell index of the second user device 102(2). In various cases of these embodiments, the cell index may include a physical cell identity or a global cell identity. The radio access node 104 may respond to the request by transmitting an aggregation link configuration to each of the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2), as indicated by arrows 504, 506 in FIG. 5. The first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2) may then proceed to set timers and establish aggregation links as previously described.

[0043] Further, in some embodiments, the first user device 102(1) may be configured to communicate with the radio access node 104 via the second user device 102(2). In at least some embodiments, the first user device 102(1) may determine that it wishes to establish an aggregation link with the second user device 102(2). Rather than sending a request directly to the radio access node 104, the first user device 102(1) may send a request to the second user device 102(2) including its first ID. In response, the second user device 102(2) may forward the request to the radio access node 104. The radio access node 104 may respond by sending both a first configuration of an aggregation link for the first user device 102(1) and a second configuration of an aggregation link for the second user device 102(2) to the second user device 102(2). The second user device 102(2) may then forward the first configuration to the first user device 102(1). The first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2) may then establish an aggregation link, as described above. For some of these embodiments, the first user device 102(1) may also send a radio resource control (RRC) setup request to the second user device 102(1). The RRC setup request may include a request to establish the aggregation link. Upon receiving the RRC setup request, the second user device 102(2) may forward the RRC setup request to the radio access node 104. The radio access node 104 may respond to the request by sending a configuration of the aggregation link for the first and second user devices 102(1), 102(2) to the second radio access node 102(2), as described above.

[0044] In various other embodiments, the first user device 102(1) may send an RRC setup request directly to the radio access node 104, i.e., without transmitting to the second user device 102(2). As previously mentioned, the RRC setup request may include a request to establish an aggregation link.

[0045] Further, in some embodiments, after establishing the aggregation link, the first user device 102(1) and / or the second user device 102(2) may determine that they no longer have the aggregation link, i.e., they want the aggregation link to be terminated or released. For example, the first user device 102(1) and / or the second user device 102(2) may determine that they no longer need the aggregation link for data communication or that the aggregation link is broken. In response, the first user device 102(1) or the second user device 102(2) may send an aggregation link release request to the radio access node 104. In response, the radio access node 104 may send a first message to the first user device 102(1) including an aggregation link unlinking configuration for the first user device 102(1) to unlink the aggregation link and may send a second message to the second user device 102(2) including an aggregation link unlinking configuration for the second user device 102(2) to unlink the aggregation link. Additionally or alternatively, the radio access node 104 may initiate the aggregation link unlinking, such as by sending the first message to the first user device 102(1) and the second message to the second user device 102(2), without receiving a request from the first user device 102(1) or the second user device 102(2). Furthermore, in some embodiments, one of the user devices 102(1), 102(2) may experience a radio link failure or be unable to connect with the radio access node 104. In response, the user device may send an indication to the other user device, which may send a de-aggregation request to the radio access node 104 .

[0046] FIG. 6 illustrates another exemplary method 600 for wireless communication. In block 602, the first user device 102(1) may transmit a first capability report to the radio access node 104 and / or the second user device 102(2) may transmit a second capability report to the radio access node 104. In general, the capability report transmitted by the user device 102 to the network (radio access node 104) informs the radio access node 104 which transport protocols the first user device 102 supports for the aggregation link. Thus, the capability report may include or indicate one or more transport protocols that the user device 102 supports. In block 604, in response to receiving the first capability report, the radio access node 104 may assign a first ID or index to the first user device 102(1) and may transmit the first ID to the first user device 102(1). Additionally or alternatively, in response to receiving the second capability report, the radio access node 104 may assign a second ID or index to the second user device 102(2) and may transmit the second ID to the second user device 102(2). In this manner, the first user device 102(1) and / or the second user device 102(2) have an ID when they wish to request the establishment of an aggregation link. Additionally or alternatively, by assigning an ID to the user device upon receiving the capability report, the radio access node 104 may know the ID of a potentially suitable user device for establishing an aggregation link with the user device that transmits the request to establish the aggregation link. Thus, in various embodiments, method 600 may be performed as part of any of methods 200, 300, 400 of FIGS. 2, 3, 4, respectively, such as before a request is transmitted by the first user device 102(1) and / or received by the radio access node 104 at blocks 202, 302, 402, respectively.

[0047] The above description and the accompanying drawings provide specific exemplary embodiments and implementations. However, the described subject matter may be embodied in various different forms, and therefore, it is intended that the subject matter encompassed or claimed be construed as not being limited to any exemplary embodiment described herein. A reasonably broad scope of the subject matter claimed or encompassed is intended. Among other things, for example, the subject matter may be embodied as a method, device, component, system, or non-transitory computer-readable medium for storing computer code. Thus, the embodiments may take the form of, for example, hardware, software, firmware, storage medium, or any combination thereof. For example, the method embodiments described above may be implemented by a component, device, or system including a memory and a processor by executing computer code stored in the memory.

[0048] Throughout this specification and the claims, terms may have subtle meanings that are suggested or implied in the context beyond the meaning explicitly stated. Similarly, the phrase "in one embodiment / implementation" as used herein does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, and the phrase "in another embodiment / implementation" as used herein does not necessarily refer to a different embodiment. For example, the claimed subject matter is intended to include combinations of the example embodiments in whole or in part.

[0049] Generally, terms may be understood at least in part from their use in context. For example, terms such as "and," "or," or "and / or" as used herein may include various meanings that may depend at least in part on the context in which such terms are used. Typically, "or" when used to relate a list such as A, B, or C is intended to mean A, B, and C, which are used herein in an inclusive sense, as well as A, B, or C, which are used herein in an exclusive sense. Furthermore, the term "one or more" as used herein may be used to describe any feature, structure, or characteristic in a singular sense, or may be used to describe a combination of features, structures, or characteristics in a plural sense, depending at least in part on the context. Similarly, terms such as "a," "an," or "the" may be understood to convey a singular usage or to convey a plural usage, depending at least in part on the context. Furthermore, the term "based on" may be understood not to be intended to convey a necessarily exclusive set of factors, but instead may allow for the existence of additional factors not necessarily explicitly described, depending at least in part on the context.

[0050] References to features, advantages, or similar language throughout this specification do not imply that all of the features and advantages that may be realized by the solution should or are included in any single implementation thereof. Rather, language referring to features and advantages is understood to mean that the particular feature, advantage, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the solution. Thus, descriptions of features and advantages throughout this specification, and similar language, may, but do not necessarily, refer to the same embodiment.

[0051] Furthermore, the described features, advantages, and characteristics of the solution may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. Those skilled in the art will recognize in light of the description herein that the solution may be practiced without one or more of the specific features or advantages of a particular embodiment. In other instances, additional features and advantages may be recognized in certain embodiments that may not be present in all embodiments of the solution.

[0052] The subject matter of the present disclosure may also relate to or include, among other aspects, the following aspects:

[0053] A first aspect includes a method for wireless communication including receiving, by a radio access node, a request to establish an aggregation link from a first user device, the request including at least one transport protocol and at least one of a first identification of the first user device or a second identification of the second user device; determining, by the radio access node, the second user device in response to receiving the request; and requesting, by the radio access node, the first user device and the second user device to establish an aggregation link with each other.

[0054] A second aspect includes the first aspect and further includes receiving, by the radio access node, at least one of a first capability report from the first user device or a second capability report from the second user device, where the first capability report indicates that the first user device supports at least one transport protocol for the aggregation link and the second capability report indicates that the second user device supports at least one transport protocol for the aggregation link.

[0055] A third aspect includes the second aspect and further includes assigning, by the radio access node, a first identity to the first user device in response to receiving a first capability report from the first user device, or assigning, by the radio access node, a second identity to the second user device in response to receiving a second capability report from the second user device.

[0056] A fourth aspect includes any of the first to third aspects, and further includes: the request further includes at least one priority, each of the at least one priority corresponding to a respective one of the at least one transport protocol.

[0057] A fifth aspect includes any of the first to fourth aspects, further including that the request further includes at least one additional characteristic for the aggregation link.

[0058] A sixth aspect includes the fifth aspect, and further includes: the request further includes at least one priority, each of the at least one priority corresponding to a respective one of the at least one additional characteristic for the aggregation link.

[0059] A seventh aspect includes the fifth aspect, and further includes: the request further includes at least one priority, each of the at least one priority corresponding to a respective one of the at least one combination of the at least one transport protocol and the at least one characteristic.

[0060] An eighth aspect includes any of the first to seventh aspects, and further includes that determining the second user device includes selecting, by the radio access node, an appropriate user device corresponding to the request, and the second user device is the appropriate user device selected by the radio access node.

[0061] A ninth aspect includes the eighth aspect, and further includes that selecting the appropriate user device includes selecting, by the radio access node, selecting the appropriate user device according to at least one priority included in the request.

[0062] A tenth aspect includes any of the eighth or ninth aspects, wherein the suitable devices include a first suitable user device, and further includes selecting, by the radio access node, a second suitable user device in response to receiving a rejection from the first suitable user device.

[0063] An eleventh aspect includes any of the first to tenth aspects, and further includes transmitting, by the radio access node, a first message to the second user device, the first message including the configuration of the aggregation link and an identifier of the first user device.

[0064] A twelfth aspect includes any of the first to eleventh aspects, and further includes that requesting the first user device and the second user device to establish the aggregation link includes transmitting, by the radio access node, a configuration of the aggregation link and an identifier of the second user device to the first user device.

[0065] A thirteenth aspect includes any of the first to twelfth aspects, and further includes that requesting the first user device and the second user device to establish an aggregation link further includes transmitting, by the radio access node, a second message to the second user device instructing the second user device to establish an aggregation link with the first user device in accordance with the configuration of the aggregation link.

[0066] A fourteenth aspect includes any of the first to thirteenth aspects, and further includes receiving, by the radio access node, an aggregation link establishment completion notification from one of the first and second user devices, and transmitting, by the radio access node, an aggregation link confirmation to the other of the first user device and the second user device in response to receiving the aggregation link establishment completion notification.

[0067] A fifteenth aspect includes the first aspect, and further includes: the request to establish the aggregation link includes both a first identification of the first user device and a second identification of the second user device, and determining the second user device includes determining, by the radio access node, the second user device from the second identification in the request.

[0068] A sixteenth aspect includes the fifteenth aspect, further including that the request further includes a cell index of the second user device, the cell index including a physical cell identity or a global cell identity.

[0069] A seventeenth aspect includes any of the first to sixteenth aspects, and further includes receiving, by the radio access node, a radio resource control (RRC) setup request from the first user device or the second user device, the RRC setup request including a request to establish the aggregation link.

[0070] An eighteenth aspect includes any of the first to seventeenth aspects, and further includes receiving, by the radio access node, an aggregation link unlink request from the first user device or the second user device, and in response to receiving the aggregation link unlink request, transmitting, by the radio access node, a message to the first user device and the second user device including unlink configuration information instructing each of the first user device and the second user device to unlink the aggregation link.

[0071] A 19th aspect includes a method for wireless communication including: sending, by a first user device, a request to establish an aggregation link to a radio access node, the request including at least one transport protocol and at least one of a first identification of the first user device or a second identification of the second user device; receiving, by the first user device in response to sending the request to establish the aggregation link, a configuration of the aggregation link; establishing, by the first user device, the aggregation link with the second user device in accordance with the configuration; and upon establishing the aggregation link, exchanging data with the second user device via the aggregation link, by the first user device.

[0072] A twentieth aspect includes the nineteenth aspect, further including receiving, by the first user device, a second identification information of the second user device from the radio access node in response to sending the request to establish the aggregation link.

[0073] A 21st aspect includes any of the 19th or 20th aspects, and further includes transmitting, by the first user device, a capability report to the radio access node, where the capability report indicates that the first user device supports at least one transport protocol, and receiving, by the first user device from the radio access node in response to transmitting the capability report, a first identification information.

[0074] A twenty-second aspect includes any of the nineteenth to twenty-first aspects, and further includes: starting, by the first user device, a timer in response to receiving a configuration of the aggregation link from the radio access node; stopping, by the first user device, the timer in response to establishing the aggregation link and the timer not expiring; and detecting, by the first user device, a failure to establish the aggregation link with the second user device in response to not establishing the aggregation link when the timer expires.

[0075] A 23rd aspect includes any of the 19th to 22nd aspects, and further includes receiving, by the first user device, an aggregation link confirmation from the radio access node before the first user device sends an aggregation link establishment completion notification to the radio access node.

[0076] A 24th aspect includes any of the 19th or 21st to 23rd aspects, and further includes that the request to establish the aggregation link includes both a first identification of the first user device and a second identification of the second user device.

[0077] A twenty-fifth aspect includes the twenty-fourth aspect, further including that the request further includes a cell index of the second user device including a physical cell identity or a global cell identity.

[0078] A twenty-sixth aspect includes any of the nineteenth to twenty-fifth aspects, further including receiving, by the first user device, a request to establish the aggregation link from the second user device, and transmitting, by the first user device, the request to establish the aggregation link to the radio access node in response to receiving the request from the second user device.

[0079] A 27th aspect includes any of the 19th to 26th aspects, and further includes receiving, by the first user device, a radio resource control (RRC) setup request from the second user device, and sending, by the first user device, an RRC setup request to the radio access node in response to receiving the RRC setup request from the second user device, where the RRC setup request includes a request to establish an aggregation link.

[0080] A 28th aspect includes any of the 19th to 27th aspects, and further includes sending, by the first user device, an aggregation link release request to the radio access node; and receiving, by the first user device, a message from the radio access node including release configuration information, where the release configuration information includes information instructing the first user device to release the aggregation link.

[0081] A 29th aspect includes any of the 19th to 28th aspects, and further includes determining, by the first user device, that the second user device is unable to connect to the radio access node, and wherein sending, by the first user device, an aggregation delink request to the radio access node in response to determining that the second user device is unable to connect to the radio access node.

[0082] A thirtieth aspect includes a wireless communications apparatus comprising a processor and a memory, the processor configured to read code from the memory and perform any of the first to thirtieth aspects.

[0083] A thirty-first aspect includes a computer program product including a computer-readable program medium including code stored thereon, the code, when executed by a processor, causing the processor to perform any of the first to thirty-first aspects.

[0084] In addition to the features mentioned in each of the independent aspects listed above, some examples may exhibit, alone or in combination, any feature mentioned in the dependent aspect and / or disclosed in the above description and illustrated in the figures.

Claims

1. 1. A method for wireless communication, the method comprising: receiving, by a radio access node, a request to establish an aggregation link from a first user device, the request including at least one transport protocol and at least one of a first identification of the first user device or a second identification of a second user device; determining, by the radio access node, a second user device in response to receiving the request; and requesting, by the radio access node, the first user device and the second user device to establish the aggregation link with each other; A method comprising:

2. receiving, by the radio access node, at least one of a first capability report from the first user device or a second capability report from the second user device, the first capability report indicating that the first user device supports the at least one transport protocol for the aggregation link, and the second capability report indicating that the second user device supports the at least one transport protocol for the aggregation link. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

3. assigning, by the radio access node, the first identity to the first user device in response to receiving the first capability report from the first user device; or assigning, by the radio access node, the second identity to the second user device in response to receiving the second capability report from the second user device. The method of claim 2 , further comprising:

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the request further comprises at least one priority, each of the at least one priority corresponding to a respective one of the at least one transport protocol.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the request further includes at least one additional characteristic for the aggregation link.

6. 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the request further includes at least one priority, each of the at least one priority corresponding to a respective one of the at least one additional characteristic for the aggregation link.

7. 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the request further includes at least one priority, each of the at least one priority corresponding to a respective one of at least one combination of the at least one transport protocol and the at least one characteristic.

8. Determining the second user device comprises: selecting, by the radio access node, an appropriate user device corresponding to the request, the second user device being the appropriate user device selected by the radio access node. The method of claim 1 , comprising:

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein selecting the appropriate user device comprises selecting, by the radio access node, the appropriate user device according to at least one priority included in the request.

10. The suitable device includes a first suitable user device, and the method further comprises: selecting, by the radio access node, a second suitable user device in response to receiving a rejection from the first suitable user device. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

11. transmitting, by the radio access node, a first message to the second user device, the first message including a configuration of the aggregation link and an identifier of the first user device; The method of claim 1 further comprising:

12. Requesting the first user device and the second user device to establish the aggregation link includes: transmitting, by the radio access node, the configuration of the aggregation link and an identifier of the second user device to the first user device. The method of claim 1 , comprising:

13. Requesting the first user device and the second user device to establish the aggregation link includes: sending, by the radio access node, a second message to the second user device instructing the second user device to establish the aggregation link with the first user device according to the configuration of the aggregation link; The method of claim 1 further comprising:

14. receiving, by the radio access node, an aggregation link establishment completion notification from one of the first and second user devices; sending, by the radio access node, an aggregation link confirmation to the other of the first user device and the second user device in response to receiving the aggregation link establishment completion notification; The method of claim 1 further comprising:

15. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the request to establish the aggregation link includes both the first identification of the first user device and the second identification of the second user device, and determining the second user device includes determining, by the radio access node, the second user device from the second identification in the request.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the request further includes a cell index of the second user device, the cell index including a physical cell identity or a global cell identity.

17. and receiving, by the radio access node, a radio resource control (RRC) setup request from the first user device or the second user device, the RRC setup request including the request to establish the aggregation link. The method of claim 1.

18. receiving, by the radio access node, an aggregation link delink request from the first user device or the second user device; in response to receiving the aggregation link release request, transmitting, by the radio access node, a message to the first user device and the second user device, the message including release configuration information instructing each of the first user device and the second user device to release the aggregation link; The method of claim 1 further comprising:

19. 1. A method for wireless communication, the method comprising: sending, by a first user device, a request to establish an aggregation link to a radio access node, the request including at least one transport protocol and at least one of a first identification of the first user device or a second identification of a second user device; receiving, by the first user device, a configuration of the aggregation link in response to sending the request to establish the aggregation link; establishing, by the first user device, the aggregation link with the second user device in accordance with the configuration; upon establishing the aggregation link, exchanging data with the second user device via the aggregation link by the first user device. A method comprising:

20. 20. The method of claim 19, further comprising receiving, by the first user device, the second identification information of the second user device from the radio access node in response to transmitting the request to establish the aggregation link.

21. transmitting, by the first user device, a capabilities report to the radio access node, the capabilities report indicating that the first user device supports the at least one transport protocol; receiving, by the first user device, the first identification information from the radio access node in response to transmitting the capability report; 20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

22. starting a timer in response to receiving, by the first user device, the configuration of the aggregation link from the radio access node; stopping, by the first user device, the timer in response to establishing the aggregation link and the timer not having expired; detecting, by the first user device, a failure to establish the aggregation link with the second user device in response to not establishing the aggregation link when the timer expires; 20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

23. receiving, by the first user device, an aggregation link confirmation from the radio access node before the first user device transmits an aggregation link establishment completion notification to the radio access node; 20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

24. 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the request to establish the aggregation link includes both the first identification of the first user device and the second identification of the second user device.

25. 25. The method of claim 24, wherein the request further includes a cell index of the second user device, the cell index including a physical cell identity or a global cell identity.

26. receiving, by the first user device, a request to establish the aggregation link from the second user device; Further comprising: transmitting, by the first user device, the request to establish the aggregation link to the radio access node in response to receiving the request from the second user device.

20. The method of claim 19.

27. receiving, by the first user device, a radio resource control (RRC) setup request from a second user device; transmitting, by the first user device, an RRC setup request to the radio access node in response to receiving the RRC setup request from the second user device, the RRC setup request including the request to establish the aggregation link; 20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

28. sending, by the first user device, an aggregation link removal request to the radio access node; receiving, by the first user device, a message from the radio access node, the message including release configuration information, the release configuration information including information instructing the first user device to release the aggregation link; 20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

29. determining, by the first user device, that the second user device is unable to connect to the radio access node; Further comprising: sending, by the first user device, the aggregation link delink request to the radio access node in response to determining that the second user device is unable to connect to the radio access node.

20. The method of claim 19.

30. A wireless communication device comprising a processor and a memory, the processor configured to read a code from the memory and to perform a method according to any of claims 1 to 29.

31. 30. A computer program product comprising a computer readable program medium having stored thereon code which, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to perform a method according to any of claims 1 to 29.

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