Method and apparatus for HARQ-ACK feedback multiplexing over PUSCH for carrier aggregation

Abstract

[0009] According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, a user equipment (UE) includes: a transceiver configured to receive one or more downlink control information (DCI) formats that schedule a plurality of PUSCHs on a plurality of serving cells of the UE; and a processor coupled to the transceiver and configured to determine that one or more PUSCHs of the plurality of PUSCHs overlap with a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) that carries HARQ-ACK feedback for a downlink transmission; and determine a reference PUSCH among the plurality of PUSCHs for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback, wherein the transceiver is further configured to transmit the plurality of PUSCHs, and the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communication technologies, and more particularly, to Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request-Acknowledgement Response (HARQ-ACK) feedback multiplexing on a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) for Carrier Aggregation (CA). [Background technology]

[0002] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various telecommunication services such as telephony, video, data, messaging, broadcasts, and so on. Wireless communication systems may employ multiple-access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of wireless communication systems may include fourth-generation (4G) systems, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) systems, or LTE-A Pro systems, and fifth-generation (5G) systems, sometimes referred to as New Radio (NR) systems.

[0003] In a wireless communication system, a base station (BS) may transmit a data signal to a user equipment (UE) via a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), or the UE may transmit a data signal to the BS via a PUSCH. To increase the data rate, a CA technique may be used in the wireless communication system. For example, the CA technique may refer to aggregating spectrum resources (e.g., carriers) from the same frequency band or different frequency bands for a UE. When the CA technique is used, multiple PDSCHs may be transmitted on multiple carriers, or multiple PUSCHs may be transmitted on multiple carriers.

[0004] A UE may transmit HARQ-ACK feedback for multiple PDSCHs, and therefore, when multiple PUSCHs are scheduled in a wireless communication system, there is a need to process HARQ-ACK feedback transmissions. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide a UE, which may include: a transceiver configured to receive one or more downlink control information (DCI) formats that schedule multiple PUSCHs on multiple serving cells of the UE; and a processor coupled to the transceiver and configured to determine that one or more PUSCHs of the multiple PUSCHs overlap with a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) that carries HARQ-ACK feedback for a downlink transmission; and determine a reference PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback, wherein the transceiver is further configured to transmit the multiple PUSCHs, and the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH.

[0006] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the reference PUSCH meets the processing delay requirements of the UE when multiplexing HARQ-ACK feedback.

[0007] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the DCI format of the one or more DCI formats includes a beta offset indicator applicable with respect to the reference PUSCH to adjust the resource of the HARQ-ACK feedback on the reference PUSCH.

[0008] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the one or more DCI formats comprise at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format, each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format scheduling a respective first set of serving cells of a plurality of serving cells, each first set of serving cells being a subset of a corresponding second set of serving cells configured for multi-cell scheduling using the multi-cell scheduling DCI format.

[0009] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the corresponding second set of serving cells is configured with parameters for determining control channel elements (CCEs) of physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates for monitoring multi-cell scheduling DCI formats.

[0010] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the DCI size of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted for a serving cell of a corresponding second set of serving cells.

[0011] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the blind detection (BD) or control channel element (CCE) budget of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted for a serving cell of a corresponding second set of serving cells.

[0012] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the search space of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is configured on a serving cell of a corresponding second set of serving cells.

[0013] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the serving cells of the corresponding second set of serving cells are configured by radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

[0014] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, to determine the reference PUSCH, the processor may perform the following: determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH in a primary cell (PCell) or a primary secondary cell (PSCell) of the plurality of serving cells; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that ends latest among the plurality of PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that starts earliest among the plurality of PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that starts latest among the plurality of PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with a minimum serving cell index among the plurality of serving cells; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with a maximum serving cell index among the plurality of serving cells; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH on a serving cell having a predetermined order among a combination of serving cells indicated by a DCI format among one or more DCI formats; determining a reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the most time-frequency resources among the PUSCHs; determining a reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the smallest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs having the same end time; determining a reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the largest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs having the same end time; determining a reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the smallest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs having the same start time; or determining a reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the largest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs having the same start time.

[0015] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, to determine the reference PUSCH, the processor may perform the following: determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs if only one PUSCH overlaps with the PUCCH; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that ends latest among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that starts earliest among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that starts latest among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with a minimum serving cell index among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with a maximum serving cell index among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the most time-frequency resources among the SCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the smallest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the one or more PUSCHs with the same end time; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the largest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the one or more PUSCHs with the same end time; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the smallest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the one or more PUSCHs with the same start time; or determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the largest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the one or more PUSCHs with the same start time.

[0016] Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide a BS. The BS may include: a transceiver configured to transmit, to a UE, one or more DCI formats that schedule multiple PUSCHs on multiple serving cells of the UE; and a processor coupled to the transceiver and configured to determine that one or more PUSCHs of the multiple PUSCHs overlap with a PUCCH carrying HARQ-ACK feedback for a downlink transmission and to determine a reference PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback, wherein the transceiver is further configured to receive the multiple PUSCHs, and the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH.

[0017] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the reference PUSCH meets the processing delay requirements of the UE when multiplexing HARQ-ACK feedback.

[0018] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the DCI format of the one or more DCI formats includes a beta offset indicator applicable with respect to the reference PUSCH to adjust the resource of the HARQ-ACK feedback on the reference PUSCH.

[0019] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the one or more DCI formats comprise at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format, each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format scheduling a respective first set of serving cells of a plurality of serving cells, each first set of serving cells being a subset of a corresponding second set of serving cells configured for multi-cell scheduling using the multi-cell scheduling DCI format.

[0020] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the corresponding second set of serving cells is configured with parameters for determining control channel elements (CCEs) of physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates for monitoring multi-cell scheduling DCI formats.

[0021] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the DCI size of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted for a serving cell of a corresponding second set of serving cells.

[0022] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the BD or CCE budget of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted for a serving cell of a corresponding second set of serving cells.

[0023] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the search space of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is configured on a serving cell of a corresponding second set of serving cells.

[0024] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the transceiver is further configured to transmit radio resource control (RRC) signaling to the UE to indicate serving cells of the corresponding second set of serving cells to the UE.

[0025] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, to determine the reference PUSCH, the processor may perform the following: determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH in a PCell or a PSCell of a plurality of serving cells; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that ends latest among the plurality of PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that starts earliest among the plurality of PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that starts latest among the plurality of PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with a minimum serving cell index among the plurality of serving cells; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with a maximum serving cell index among the plurality of serving cells; determining a combination of serving cells indicated by a DCI format among one or more DCI formats in a predetermined order; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH on the serving cell having the most time-frequency resources among the plurality of PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the smallest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs having the same end time; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the largest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs having the same end time; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the smallest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs having the same start time; or determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the largest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs having the same start time.

[0026] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, to determine the reference PUSCH, the processor may perform the following: determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs if only one PUSCH overlaps with the PUCCH; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that ends latest among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that starts earliest among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that starts latest among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with a minimum serving cell index among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with a maximum serving cell index among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the most time-frequency resources among the SCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the smallest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the one or more PUSCHs with the same end time; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the largest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the one or more PUSCHs with the same end time; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the smallest serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the one or more PUSCHs with the same start time; or determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with a default serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the one or more PUSCHs with the same start time.

[0027] Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method performed by a UE, which may include receiving one or more DCI formats scheduling multiple PUSCHs on multiple serving cells of the UE, determining that one or more PUSCHs of the multiple PUSCHs overlap with a PUCCH carrying HARQ-ACK feedback for a downlink transmission, determining a reference PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback, and transmitting the multiple PUSCHs, wherein the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH.

[0028] Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method performed by a BS, which may include transmitting, to a UE, one or more DCI formats scheduling multiple PUSCHs on multiple serving cells of the UE, determining that one or more PUSCHs of the multiple PUSCHs overlap with a PUCCH carrying HARQ-ACK feedback for a downlink transmission, determining a reference PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback, and receiving the multiple PUSCHs, where the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH.

[0029] Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide an apparatus. According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, the apparatus may include at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions stored thereon, at least one receiving circuitry, at least one transmitting circuitry, and at least one processor coupled to the at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium, the at least one receiving circuitry, and the at least one transmitting circuitry, wherein the at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium and the computer-executable instructions, together with the at least one processor, may be configured to cause the apparatus to perform a method according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0030] To explain the manner in which the advantages and features of the present disclosure may be obtained, the description of the disclosure will be expressed by reference to specific embodiments thereof that are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. These drawings depict only exemplary embodiments of the disclosure and therefore should not be considered limiting of its scope. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0031] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a DCI format for scheduling multiple PUSCHs, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a DCI format for scheduling multiple PUSCHs, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of multiple DCI formats for scheduling multiple PUSCHs, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 5] 1 is a flowchart illustrating an example method for HARQ-ACK feedback multiplexing on a PUSCH, in accordance with certain embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] 1 is a simplified block diagram of an example apparatus for HARQ-ACK feedback multiplexing on a PUSCH, in accordance with certain embodiments of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0032] The detailed description of the accompanying drawings is intended as an illustration of preferred embodiments of the present disclosure and does not represent the only form in which the present disclosure may be practiced. It is to be understood that the same or equivalent functions may be accomplished by various embodiments that are intended to be encompassed within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

[0033] Reference will now be made in detail to several embodiments of the present disclosure, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. For ease of understanding, the embodiments are provided under specific network architectures and new service scenarios, such as 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP®) 5G (NR), 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) Release 8, etc. It is contemplated that all embodiments in the present disclosure are applicable to similar technical problems along with the development of network architectures and new service scenarios, and further, the terms described in the present disclosure may change, which should not affect the principles of the present disclosure.

[0034] FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 100 in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0035] 1, the wireless communication system 100 may include several UEs 101 (e.g., UE 101a and UE 101b) and base stations (e.g., BS 102). Although a particular number of UEs 101 and BSs 102 are shown in FIG. 1, it is contemplated that any number of UEs and BSs may be included in the wireless communication system 100.

[0036] The UE 101 may include a computing device such as a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a tablet computer, a smart television (e.g., a television connected to the Internet), a set-top box, a game console, a security system (including a security camera), an in-vehicle computer, a network device (e.g., a router, a switch, and a modem). According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE 101 may include a portable wireless communication device, a smartphone, a cellular telephone, a flip phone, a device with a subscriber identity module, a personal computer, a selective call receiver, or any other device capable of sending and receiving communication signals over a wireless network. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE 101 includes a wearable device such as a smart watch, a fitness band, an optical head-mounted display, etc. Moreover, the UE 101 may be referred to as a subscriber unit, a mobile, a mobile station, a user, a terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a fixed terminal, a subscriber station, a user terminal, or a device, or may be referred to using other terms used in the art. The UE 101 may communicate with the BS 102 via uplink (UL) communication signals.

[0037] The BSs 102 may be distributed throughout a geographic region. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the BSs 102 may also be referred to as access points, access terminals, bases, base units, macrocells, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs), gNBs, Home Node Bs, relay nodes, or devices, or may be referred to using other terms used in the art. The BSs 102 are generally part of a radio access network that may include one or more controllers communicatively coupled to one or more corresponding BSs 102. The BSs 102 may communicate with the UEs 101 via downlink (DL) communication signals.

[0038] The wireless communication system 100 may be compatible with any type of network capable of sending and receiving wireless communication signals. For example, the wireless communication system 100 may be compatible with a wireless communication network, a cellular telephone network, a time division multiple access (TDMA)-based network, a code division multiple access (CDMA)-based network, an orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA)-based network, an LTE network, a 3GPP-based network, a 3GPP 5G network, a satellite communication network, a high altitude platform network, and / or other communication networks.

[0039] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the wireless communication system 100 is compatible with the 3GPP protocol 5G NR. For example, the BS 102 may transmit data using an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) modulation scheme on the DL, and the UE 101 may transmit data on the UL using a Discrete Fourier Transform Spread Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (DFT-S-OFDM) or Cyclic Prefix OFDM (CP-OFDM) scheme. However, more generally, the wireless communication system 100 may implement some other open or proprietary communication protocol, such as WiMAX, among other protocols.

[0040] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the BS 102 and the UE 101 may communicate using other communication protocols, such as the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless communication protocols. Additionally, in some embodiments of the present disclosure, the BS 102 and the UE 101 may communicate over a licensed spectrum, while in some other embodiments, the BS 102 and the UE 101 may communicate over an unlicensed spectrum. This disclosure is not intended to be limited to any particular wireless communication system architecture or protocol implementation.

[0041] NR supports a wide range of spectrum in various frequency ranges. The market for 5G Advanced is expected to see increased spectrum availability, in some cases due to the re-farming of bands originally used for previous cellular generation networks. For example, in some low-frequency bands, such as FR1 (e.g., 450 MHz to 6000 MHz), the available spectrum bands tend to be more fragmented and scattered, with narrower bandwidths. In addition, in bands such as FR2 (24250 MHz to 52600 MHz) and some bands such as FR1 (Frequency Range 1), the available spectrum may be wider, resulting in the need for intra-band multi-carrier operation.

[0042] It is important to ensure that these fragmented or scattered spectrum bands or spectrum with wider bandwidths are utilized in a more spectrum- and power-efficient and flexible manner to meet different spectrum needs, thereby resulting in higher throughput and adequate coverage within the network.

[0043] For example, one motivation is to increase spectrum / power efficiency and flexibility in scheduling data across multiple cells, including intra-band and inter-band cells. In some examples, the scheduling mechanism may only allow scheduling a single PUSCH or PDSCH on a single cell per scheduling DCI. As more dispersed spectrum bands or spectrum with wider bandwidths become available, it is advisable to allow simultaneous scheduling of multiple cells.

[0044] NR is designed to support up to 16 component carriers (CCs) for CA or up to 32 CCs for dual connectivity (DC). In some embodiments of the present disclosure, for CA, one DCI can schedule at most one carrier through cross-carrier scheduling or self-scheduling. This requires a lot of signaling overhead for the PDCCH to schedule the PDSCH when the number of carriers configured for the UE is large. To reduce signaling overhead, it is beneficial to use a single DCI to schedule multiple PDSCHs or PUSCHs on multiple carriers configured for the UE.

[0045] In some cases, a PUCCH carrying HARQ-ACK feedback for a downlink transmission (e.g., one or more PDSCHs) may overlap with one or more PUSCHs of multiple PUSCHs co-scheduled by a single DCI. In such cases, how to multiplex HARQ-ACK feedback onto multiple PUSCHs co-scheduled by a single DCI needs to be resolved. If this technical problem is not resolved, HARQ-ACK codebooks may be inconsistent between the UE and the BS; for example, the HARQ-ACK codebook generated by the UE may not match what the BS expects.

[0046] FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic diagram of a DCI format for scheduling multiple PUSCHs in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0047] Referring to FIG. 2, a DCI format (also referred to as a DCI) may schedule (e.g., co-schedule) four PUSCHs on four different serving cells (or four different component carriers (CCs)). In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the serving cells may be represented by CCs. For example, in FIG. 2, the DCI may schedule PUSCH1 on CC1, PUSCH2 on CC2, PUSCH3 on CC3, and PUSCH4 on CC4. In some embodiments, the DCI may be transmitted on one cell of CC1-CC4. In some other embodiments, the DCI may be transmitted on a cell other than CC1-CC4.

[0048] In the example of Figure 2, the HARQ-ACK feedback for the PDSCH is transmitted in a PUCCH that overlaps with the four co-scheduled PUSCHs in the time domain. In such an example, the HARQ-ACK feedback may be multiplexed onto one of the four co-scheduled PUSCHs. It then needs to be resolved which of the four co-scheduled PUSCHs can be used to multiplex the HARQ-ACK feedback.

[0049] Given the above, embodiments of the present disclosure propose solutions for HARQ-ACK feedback multiplexing on PUSCH for CA, which can solve at least the above technical problems. For example, embodiments of the present disclosure provide several solutions for determining a reference PUSCH for multiplexing HARQ-ACK feedback when multiple PUSCHs are scheduled by one or more DCI formats. More details about embodiments of the present disclosure are provided in the following text in combination with the accompanying drawings.

[0050] Embodiment 1 In embodiment 1, a BS (e.g., BS 102 as shown in FIG. 1) may configure a set of serving cells for multi-cell scheduling via a multi-cell scheduling DCI format (for simplicity, referred to as DCI format 0_X for uplink scheduling or DCI format 1_X for downlink scheduling) for a UE (e.g., UE 101 as shown in FIG. 1).

[0051] For example, the set of serving cells may include up to four cells, eight cells, or other numbers of cells. The set of serving cells may be associated with a table configured by RRC signaling or a pre-defined table. Each row of the table may define a co-scheduled cell combination (e.g., a set of co-scheduled cells within the set of serving cells). In some embodiments, up to four cells in the set of serving cells may be defined within each co-scheduled cell combination, i.e., up to four cells in the set of serving cells may be scheduled by the multi-cell scheduling DCI format.

[0052] In embodiment 1, the BS may transmit a multi-cell scheduling DCI format to the UE that schedules multiple PUSCHs on multiple serving cells. Each PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs may be scheduled on a corresponding serving cell among the multiple serving cells. The multiple serving cells may be a subset of the set of serving cells as described above. For example, the multi-cell scheduling DCI format may include an indicator that indicates a row in a table associated with the set of cells, and the row may define a set of co-scheduled cells. The multiple serving cells may include one or more cells in the set of co-scheduled cells, which may be a subset of the set of serving cells configured for multi-cell scheduling using DCI format 0_X or DCI format 1_X, as described in detail below.

[0053] In some embodiments, the multi-cell scheduling DCI format may include a UL Downlink Allocation Index (DAI), which may indicate the number of {serving cell, PDCCH monitoring occasion} pairs for which a PDCCH exists, indicating a PDSCH transmission associated with the PDCCH, or DCI format 1_1, which indicates semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) PDSCH release, or secondary cell (SCell) idle state.

[0054] In some embodiments, the multi-cell scheduling DCI format may include a beta offset indicator.

[0055] In some cases, the UE or BS may determine that one or more PUSCHs of the multiple PUSCHs overlap with a PUCCH carrying HARQ-ACK feedback for a downlink transmission (e.g., one or more PDSCHs). In such a case, the UE and BS may determine a reference PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback. The UE may not transmit a PUCCH, and therefore the BS may not receive the PUCCH. A beta offset indicator included in the multi-cell scheduling DCI format may be applicable to the reference PUSCH to adjust the resource of the HARQ-ACK feedback on the reference PUSCH.

[0056] In some embodiments, the reference PUSCH for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback may meet certain conditions.

[0057] For example, the reference PUSCH may be the PUSCH that is actually transmitted (e.g., shown as condition (1)). Whether the PUSCH is actually transmitted may be determined as follows: That is, for one or more co-scheduled cells indicated by the multi-cell scheduling DCI format, if, for a cell from the co-scheduled one or more cells, at least one symbol from the set of symbols for which PUSCH transmission is scheduled to the UE in the cell is a downlink symbol (e.g., as indicated by a cell-common UL / DL configuration such as tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon as specified in a 3GPP standard document, or a UE-specific UL / DL configuration such as tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationDedicated as specified in a 3GPP standard document), the UE does not transmit a PUSCH in the cell.

[0058] For example, taking into account the processing delay of the UE when multiplexing HARQ-ACK feedback onto the PUSCH, the reference PUSCH for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback may satisfy the processing delay requirement of the UE (e.g., shown as condition (2)).

[0059] The multiple PUSCHs on which the reference PUSCH is determined may satisfy at least one of condition (1) or condition (2), and the multiple serving cells are serving cells in a set of co-scheduled cells indicated by the multi-cell scheduling DCI format on which the multiple PUSCHs are transmitted.

[0060] The following embodiments may provide some solutions for determining a reference PUSCH from multiple PUSCHs.

[0061] Solution #1 In Solution #1, when multiple serving cells include a PCell or a PSCell, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH in the PCell or PSCell of the multiple serving cells. In such an embodiment, the HARQ-ACK feedback may be transmitted in the PCell or PSCell with high reliability.

[0062] Solution #2 In solution #2, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the latest ending PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs. In such an embodiment, the UE may have enough time to multiplex the HARQ-ACK feedback onto the reference PUSCH.

[0063] FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic diagram of a DCI format for scheduling multiple PUSCHs in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0064] Referring to Figure 3, a multi-cell scheduling DCI may schedule four PUSCHs on four different serving cells. For example, the multi-cell scheduling DCI may schedule PUSCH1 on CC1, PUSCH2 on CC2, PUSCH3 on CC3, and PUSCH4 on CC4. It is assumed that the ascending order of serving cell indices for CC1 to CC4 is CC1 → CC2 → CC3 → CC4. In the example of Figure 3, the DCI is transmitted on CC1. In some other examples, the DCI may be transmitted on a CC different from CC1 to CC4. As shown in Figure 3, HARQ-ACK feedback for the PDSCH is transmitted in a PUCCH that overlaps with PUSCH2 and PUSCH4 in the time domain.

[0065] In solution #2, the BS or UE may determine PUSCH2 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH2 ends latest among the four PUSCHs.

[0066] Solution #3 In Solution #3, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH that starts earliest among the multiple PUSCHs. In such an embodiment, the UE may transmit HARQ-ACK feedback at the earliest time. Referring to Figure 3, in Solution #3, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH4 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH4 starts earliest among the four PUSCHs.

[0067] Solution #4 In Solution #4, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH that starts latest among the multiple PUSCHs. In such an embodiment, the UE may have enough time to multiplex HARQ-ACK feedback onto the reference PUSCH. Referring to Figure 3, in Solution #4, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH2 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH2 starts latest among the four PUSCHs.

[0068] Solution #5 In Solution #5, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with a predetermined serving cell index among multiple serving cells. In some embodiments, Solution #5 may be used in combination with other solutions for determining the reference PUSCH, such as one of Solutions #2 to #4. For example, Solution #5 may also be adopted when there are two or more PUSCHs with the same start time or end time.

[0069] In some embodiments of Solution #5, the default serving cell index may be the smallest serving cell index among multiple serving cells. In such an embodiment, referring to Figure 3, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH1 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH1 is transmitted on CC1, which has the smallest serving cell index.

[0070] In some embodiments of Solution #5, the default serving cell index may be the maximum serving cell index among multiple serving cells. In such an embodiment, referring to Figure 3, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH4 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH4 is transmitted on CC4 with the maximum serving cell index.

[0071] Solution #6 In Solution #6, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH on a serving cell having a predetermined order among the combination of serving cells indicated by the multi-cell scheduling DCI format. For example, assume that the multi-cell scheduling DCI format indicates a row of a table as described above, and the row specifies four co-scheduled serving cells as CC4, CC2, CC3, and CC1 as shown in FIG. 3, and the PUSCHs on CC4, CC2, and CC3 satisfy conditions (1) and (2) as described above. Therefore, the multiple serving cells (e.g., the combination of serving cells) indicated by the multi-cell scheduling DCI format are CC4, CC2, and CC3 indicated by the multi-cell scheduling DCI format.

[0072] In some embodiments of Solution #6, the default order may refer to the first serving cell in a combination of serving cells. In such an embodiment, referring to Figure 3, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH4 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH4 is transmitted on CC4, which is the first serving cell in the combination of CC4, CC2, and CC3.

[0073] In some embodiments of Solution #6, the default order may refer to the last serving cell in the combination of serving cells. In such an embodiment, referring to Figure 3, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH3 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH3 is transmitted on CC3, which is the last serving cell in the combination of CC4, CC2, and CC3.

[0074] Solution #7 In Solution #7, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the most time-frequency resources among the multiple PUSCHs. In such an embodiment, the impact on the PUSCH due to multiplexing HARQ-ACK feedback may be minimal. Referring to Figure 3, in Solution #7, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH4 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH4 has the most time-frequency resources among the four PUSCHs.

[0075] Solution #8 In Solution #8, the BS or UE may determine a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a predetermined serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs, and the at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs may have the same end time.

[0076] In some embodiments of Solution #8, the default serving cell index may be the smallest serving cell index of the at least one serving cell on which the at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0077] In some embodiments of Solution #8, the default serving cell index may be the maximum serving cell index of the at least one serving cell on which the at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0078] Solution #9 In Solution #9, the BS or UE may determine a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a predetermined serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs, and the at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs may have the same start time.

[0079] In some embodiments of Solution #9, the default serving cell index may be the smallest serving cell index of the at least one serving cell on which the at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0080] In some embodiments of Solution #9, the default serving cell index may be the maximum serving cell index of the at least one serving cell on which the at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0081] Solution #10 In solution #10, only one PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs may overlap with the PUCCH, and the BS and UE may then determine the reference PUSCH as the one PUSCH.

[0082] Solution #11 In solution #11, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH on a serving cell with a predetermined serving cell index among serving cells that carry one or more PUSCHs that overlap with the PUCCH.

[0083] In some embodiments of Solution #11, the default serving cell index may be the smallest serving cell index. In such embodiments, referring to Figure 3, since PUSCH2 and PUSCH4 overlap with the PUCCH, the UE and BS may determine PUSCH2 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH2 is transmitted on CC2, which has the smallest serving cell index among CC2 and CC4.

[0084] In some embodiments of Solution #11, the default serving cell index may be the maximum serving cell index. In such embodiments, referring to Figure 3, since PUSCH2 and PUSCH4 overlap with the PUCCH, the UE and BS may determine PUSCH4 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH4 is transmitted on CC4, which has the maximum serving cell index among CC2 and CC4.

[0085] Solution #12 In solution #12, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH that ends latest among one or more PUSCHs that overlap with the PUCCH. In solution #12, referring to Figure 3, since PUSCH2 and PUSCH4 overlap with the PUCCH, the UE and BS may determine PUSCH2 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH2 ends latest among PUSCH2 and PUSCH4.

[0086] Solution #13 In solution #13, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH that starts earliest among one or more PUSCHs that overlap with the PUCCH. In solution #13, referring to Figure 3, since PUSCH2 and PUSCH4 overlap with the PUCCH, the UE and BS may determine PUSCH4 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH4 starts earliest among PUSCH2 and PUSCH4.

[0087] Solution #14 In solution #14, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH that starts latest among one or more PUSCHs that overlap with the PUCCH. In solution #14, referring to Figure 3, since PUSCH2 and PUSCH4 overlap with the PUCCH, the UE and BS may determine PUSCH2 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH2 starts latest among PUSCH2 and PUSCH4.

[0088] Solution #15 In solution #15, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the most time-frequency resources among one or more PUSCHs that overlap with the PUCCH. In solution #15, referring to Figure 3, since PUSCH2 and PUSCH4 overlap with the PUCCH, the UE and BS may determine PUSCH4 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH4 has more time-frequency resources than PUSCH2.

[0089] Solution #16 In Solution #16, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH on a serving cell having a predetermined serving cell index among serving cells that carry at least one PUSCH of one or more PUSCHs that overlap with the PUCCH, and at least one PUSCH of the multiple PUSCHs may have the same end time.

[0090] In some embodiments of Solution #16, the default serving cell index may be the smallest serving cell index among the serving cells on which at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0091] In some embodiments of Solution #16, the default serving cell index may be the maximum serving cell index among the serving cells on which at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0092] Solution #17 In Solution #17, the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH on a serving cell with a predetermined serving cell index among serving cells that carry at least one PUSCH of one or more PUSCHs that overlap with the PUCCH, and at least one PUSCH of the multiple PUSCHs may have the same start time.

[0093] In some embodiments of Solution #17, the default serving cell index may be the smallest serving cell index among the serving cells on which at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0094] In some embodiments of Solution #17, the default serving cell index may be the maximum serving cell index among the serving cells on which at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0095] The BS and the UE may use at least one of the above solutions to determine a reference PUSCH from multiple PUSCHs. At that time, the UE may transmit multiple PUSCHs, and the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH. Therefore, the BS may receive multiple PUSCHs, and the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH.

[0096] Embodiment 2 In embodiment 2, a BS (e.g., BS 102 as shown in FIG. 1) may configure one or more sets of serving cells for multi-cell scheduling via one or more multi-cell scheduling DCI formats (for simplicity, referred to as DCI format 0_X for UL scheduling or DCI format 1_X for DL ​​scheduling) for a UE (e.g., UE 101 as shown in FIG. 1), and the multi-cell scheduling DCI formats may schedule one or more serving cells within the set of serving cells of the one or more sets of serving cells. The intersection of the one or more sets of serving cells is null, i.e., a serving cell can only be included in one set of serving cells, or a serving cell included in one set of serving cells cannot be included in another set of serving cells.

[0097] For example, each set of serving cells of one or more sets of serving cells may include up to four cells, eight cells, or some other number of cells. Each set of serving cells may be associated with a corresponding table configured by RRC signaling or a pre-defined table. Each row of the corresponding table may define a co-scheduled cell combination (e.g., a set of co-scheduled cells in the corresponding set of serving cells). In some embodiments, up to four cells in the corresponding set of serving cells may be defined in each co-scheduled cell combination, i.e., up to four cells in the set of serving cells may be scheduled by the multi-cell scheduling DCI format.

[0098] In some embodiments, each set of serving cells may be associated with a search space configuration for monitoring the corresponding multi-cell scheduling DCI format. A search space of a multi-cell scheduling DCI format that schedules a cell combination in the corresponding set of serving cells may be configured on a (single) serving cell of the corresponding set of serving cells. In some embodiments, the serving cell on which the search space is configured may be configured by RRC signaling or may be pre-defined. For example, the serving cell on which the search space is configured may be the serving cell with the smallest serving cell index in the corresponding set of serving cells or the serving cell with the largest serving cell index in the corresponding set of serving cells.

[0099] In some embodiments, each set of serving cells may correspond to a DCI size for a corresponding multi-cell scheduling DCI format. A DCI size of a multi-cell scheduling DCI format that schedules a cell combination within the corresponding set of serving cells may be counted for a (single) serving cell of the corresponding set of serving cells (e.g., for DCI size alignment). In some embodiments, the serving cell for which a DCI size is counted may be configured by RRC signaling or may be pre-defined. In some examples, the serving cell for which a DCI size of a multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted may be the serving cell on which the search space of the multi-cell scheduling DCI format is configured. In some other examples, the serving cell for which a DCI size is counted may be the serving cell with the smallest serving cell index in the corresponding set of serving cells or the serving cell with the largest serving cell index in the corresponding set of serving cells.

[0100] In some embodiments, for each set of serving cells, a BD or CCE budget of a multi-cell scheduling DCI format that schedules a cell combination in the corresponding set of serving cells may be counted for a (single) serving cell of the corresponding set of serving cells. In some embodiments, the serving cell for which a BD or CCE budget is counted may be configured by RRC signaling or may be pre-defined. In some examples, the serving cell for which a BD or CCE budget of a multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted may be the serving cell on which the search space of the multi-cell scheduling DCI format is configured. In some other examples, the serving cell for which a BD or CCE budget of a multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted may be the serving cell with the smallest serving cell index in the corresponding set of serving cells or the serving cell with the largest serving cell index in the corresponding set of serving cells.

[0101] In one embodiment, the serving cell against which the DCI size of the multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted may be the same as or different from the serving cell against which the BD or CCE budget of the multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted. In one embodiment, the serving cell against which the DCI size of the multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted and the serving cell against which the BD or CCE budget of the multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted may be configured separately or may be configured using the same signaling.

[0102] In some embodiments, each set of serving cells may be configured with a set of (e.g., n) serving cells for determining CCEs of PDCCH candidates for monitoring the corresponding multi-cell scheduling DCI format. CIIn one embodiment, different sets of serving cells may be configured with different values ​​of the parameter. The different values ​​of the parameter for each set of serving cells allow the UE to distinguish between scheduled sets of serving cells when monitoring CCEs of PDCCH candidates.

[0103] For example, to determine the CCEs of PDCCH candidates for monitoring a multi-cell scheduling DCI format, the following equation may be used: For a search space set s associated with a control resource set (core set) p, CI Slots for the active downlink (DL) bandwidth portion (BWP) of the serving cell corresponding to

number

number

number

number

number

number

number

number

number

number

[0104] In embodiment 2, the BS may transmit one or more DCI formats to schedule multiple PUSCHs on multiple serving cells, and each PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs may be scheduled on a corresponding serving cell of the multiple serving cells.

[0105] In some embodiments, the one or more DCI formats may include at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format (e.g., DCI format 0_X for UL scheduling or DCI format 1_X for DL ​​scheduling), each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format scheduling a respective first set of serving cells of a plurality of serving cells, each of the respective first set of serving cells being a subset of a corresponding second set of serving cells configured for multi-cell scheduling using the multi-cell scheduling DCI format. The corresponding second set of serving cells may be a set of serving cells within the one or more sets of serving cells configured by the BS as described above.

[0106] For example, each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format may include an indicator that indicates a row of a table associated with a corresponding second set of serving cells, and the row may define a set of co-scheduled cells within the corresponding second set of serving cells. Each first set of serving cells may be a set of co-scheduled cells or a subset of the set of co-scheduled cells.

[0107] In one embodiment, the corresponding second set of serving cells may be configured with parameters (e.g., n as described above) for determining the CCEs of PDCCH candidates for monitoring the multi-cell scheduling DCI format. CI ) is used.

[0108] In one embodiment, the DCI size of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted for a corresponding second set of serving cells (e.g., a single serving cell) of the serving cells. For example, the corresponding second set of serving cells of the serving cells may be configured by RRC signaling.

[0109] In one embodiment, the BD or CCE budget of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted for a corresponding second set of serving cells (e.g., a single serving cell) of the serving cell. For example, the corresponding second set of serving cells of the serving cell may be configured by RRC signaling.

[0110] In one embodiment, the search space of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is configured on a serving cell of a corresponding second set of serving cells (e.g., a single serving cell). For example, the serving cell of the corresponding second set of serving cells may be configured by RRC signaling.

[0111] Additionally, the one or more DCI formats may also include at least one single-cell scheduling DCI format (e.g., DCI format 0_0, DCI format 0_1, DCI format 0_2, etc., as specified in 3GPP standard documents), and each single-cell scheduling DCI format of the at least one single-cell scheduling DCI format may schedule a PUSCH on the serving cell. In such a case, the multiple PUSCHs may include a PUSCH scheduled by the at least one single-cell scheduling DCI format.

[0112] In some cases, the UE or BS may determine that one or more PUSCHs of the multiple PUSCHs overlap with a PUCCH carrying HARQ-ACK feedback for a downlink transmission (e.g., one or more PDSCHs). In such a case, the UE may determine a reference PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback and may not transmit a PUCCH.

[0113] In some embodiments, the DCI format of the one or more DCI formats that schedule the reference PUSCH may include an UL DAI, which may indicate the number of {serving cell, PDCCH monitoring occasion} pairs for which a PDCCH exists, indicating a PDSCH transmission associated with the PDCCH, or DCI format 1_1 indicating SPS PDSCH release, or SCell dormant state.

[0114] In some embodiments, a DCI format of one or more DCI formats may include a beta offset indicator, which may be applicable to a reference PUSCH to adjust the resource of the HARQ-ACK feedback on the reference PUSCH.

[0115] In some embodiments, the reference PUSCH for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback may meet certain conditions.

[0116] For example, the reference PUSCH may be the PUSCH that is actually transmitted (e.g., condition (1)). Whether the PUSCH is actually transmitted may be determined as follows: For multiple cells scheduled by the DCI format, if, for a cell from the multiple cells, at least one symbol from the set of symbols for which PUSCH transmission is scheduled to the UE in the cell is a downlink symbol (e.g., as indicated by a cell-common UL / DL configuration such as tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon as specified in a 3GPP standard document, or a UE-specific UL / DL configuration such as tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationDedicated as specified in a 3GPP standard document), the UE does not transmit a PUSCH in the cell.

[0117] For example, taking into account the processing delay of the UE when multiplexing HARQ-ACK feedback onto the PUSCH, the reference PUSCH for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback may meet the processing delay requirement of the UE (e.g., condition (2)).

[0118] The multiple PUSCHs on which the reference PUSCH is determined may satisfy at least one of condition (1) or condition (2), and the multiple serving cells are serving cells scheduled by one or more DCI formats on which the multiple PUSCHs are transmitted.

[0119] FIG. 4 illustrates a schematic diagram of multiple DCI formats for scheduling multiple PUSCHs, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0120] Referring to FIG. 4, a BS may transmit three DCI formats (e.g., shown as DCI1, DCI2, and DCI3) to a UE that schedule six PUSCHs on six serving cells. For example, DCI1 is a single-cell scheduling DCI that schedules PUSCH1 on CC1, DCI2 is a multi-cell scheduling DCI that schedules PUSCH2 on CC2 and PUSCH3 on CC3, and DCI3 is a multi-cell scheduling DCI that schedules PUSCH4 on CC4, PUSCH5 on CC5, and PUSCH6 on CC6. It is assumed that the ascending order of serving cell indices of CC1 to CC6 is CC1 → CC2 → CC3 → CC4 → CC5 → CC6. In the example of FIG. 4, DCI1, DCI2, and DCI3 are transmitted on CC1, CC2, and CC4, respectively. In some other examples, DCI1, DCI2, or DCI3 may be transmitted on a different CC, eg, a different CC than CC1 through CC6.

[0121] In some examples, six PUSCHs satisfy conditions (1) and (2).

[0122] As shown in FIG. 4, HARQ-ACK feedback for PDSCH is transmitted in PUCCH, which overlaps with PUSCH1 to PUSCH6 in the time domain.

[0123] The following embodiments may provide some solutions for determining a reference PUSCH from multiple PUSCHs.

[0124] Solution #1' In Solution #1', when multiple serving cells include PCells or PSCells, the BS and UE determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH in the PCells or PSCells of the multiple serving cells. In such an embodiment, the HARQ-ACK feedback may be transmitted in the PCell or PSCell with high reliability.

[0125] Solution #2' In Solution #2', the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH that ends latest among the multiple PUSCHs. In such an embodiment, the UE may have enough time to multiplex HARQ-ACK feedback onto the reference PUSCH. Referring to Figure 4, in Solution #2', the BS or UE may determine PUSCH6 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH6 ends latest among the six PUSCHs.

[0126] Solution #3' In Solution #3', the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH that starts earliest among the multiple PUSCHs. In such an embodiment, the UE may transmit HARQ-ACK feedback at the earliest time. Referring to Figure 4, in Solution #3', the BS and UE may determine PUSCH4 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH4 starts earliest among the six PUSCHs.

[0127] Solution #4' In Solution #4', the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH that starts latest among the multiple PUSCHs. In such an embodiment, the UE may have enough time to multiplex HARQ-ACK feedback onto the reference PUSCH. Referring to Figure 4, in Solution #4', the BS and UE may determine PUSCH1 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH1 starts latest among the six PUSCHs.

[0128] Solution #5' In Solution #5', the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with a predetermined serving cell index among multiple serving cells. In some embodiments, Solution #5 may be used in combination with other solutions for determining the reference PUSCH, such as one of Solutions #2' to #4'. For example, Solution #5' may also be adopted when there are two or more PUSCHs with the same start or end time.

[0129] In some embodiments of Solution #5', the default serving cell index may be the smallest serving cell index among multiple serving cells. In such an embodiment, referring to Figure 4, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH1 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH1 is transmitted on CC1, which has the smallest serving cell index.

[0130] In some embodiments of Solution #5', the default serving cell index may be the maximum serving cell index among multiple serving cells. In such an embodiment, referring to Figure 4, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH6 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH6 is transmitted on CC6, which has the maximum serving cell index.

[0131] Solution #6' In Solution #6', the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the most time-frequency resources among the multiple PUSCHs. In such an embodiment, the impact on the PUSCH due to multiplexing HARQ-ACK feedback may be minimal. Referring to Figure 4, in Solution #6', the BS and UE may determine PUSCH6 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH6 has the most time-frequency resources among the six PUSCHs.

[0132] Solution #7' In Solution #7', the BS or UE may determine a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a predetermined serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs, and the at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs may have the same end time.

[0133] In some embodiments of Solution #7', the default serving cell index may be the smallest serving cell index of the at least one serving cell on which the at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0134] In some embodiments of Solution #7', the default serving cell index may be the maximum serving cell index of the at least one serving cell on which the at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0135] Solution #8' In Solution #8', the BS or UE may determine a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a predetermined serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs, and the at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs may have the same start time.

[0136] In some embodiments of Solution #8', the default serving cell index may be the smallest serving cell index of the at least one serving cell on which the at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0137] In some embodiments of Solution #8', the default serving cell index may be the maximum serving cell index of the at least one serving cell on which the at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0138] Solution #9' In Solution #9', only one PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs may overlap with the PUCCH, and the BS and UE may then determine the reference PUSCH as the one PUSCH.

[0139] Solution #10' In Solution #10', the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the latest ending PUSCH among one or more PUSCHs of the multiple PUSCHs. As described above, one or more PUSCHs overlap with the PUCCH. In such an embodiment, the UE may have enough time to multiplex the HARQ-ACK feedback onto the reference PUSCH.

[0140] In Solution #10', referring to FIG. 4, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH6 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH6 ends latest among the six PUSCHs.

[0141] Solution #11' In Solution #11', the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH that starts earliest among one or more PUSCHs of the multiple PUSCHs. As described above, one or more PUSCHs overlap with the PUCCH. In such an embodiment, the UE may transmit HARQ-ACK feedback at the earliest time. Referring to FIG. 4, in Solution #11', the BS and UE may determine PUSCH4 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH4 starts earliest among the six PUSCHs.

[0142] Solution #12' In Solution #12', the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH that starts latest among one or more PUSCHs of the multiple PUSCHs. As described above, one or more PUSCHs overlap with the PUCCH. In such an embodiment, the UE may have enough time to multiplex HARQ-ACK feedback onto the reference PUSCH. Referring to Figure 4, in Solution #12', the BS and UE may determine PUSCH1 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH1 starts latest among the six PUSCHs.

[0143] Solution #13' In Solution #13', the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH on a serving cell with a predetermined serving cell index among serving cells carrying one or more PUSCHs that overlap with the PUCCH. In some embodiments, Solution #13' may be used in combination with other solutions for determining the reference PUSCH, such as one of Solutions #10'-12'. For example, Solution #13' may also be adopted when there are two or more PUSCHs with the same start or end time.

[0144] In some embodiments of Solution #13', the default serving cell index may be the minimum serving cell index. In such an embodiment, referring to Figure 4, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH1 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH1 is transmitted on CC1, which has the minimum serving cell index.

[0145] In some embodiments of Solution #13', the default serving cell index may be the maximum serving cell index. In such an embodiment, referring to Figure 4, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH6 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH6 is transmitted on CC6, which has the maximum serving cell index.

[0146] Solution #14' In Solution #14', the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH with the most time-frequency resources among one or more PUSCHs of the multiple PUSCHs. As described above, one or more PUSCHs overlap with the PUCCH. In such an embodiment, the impact on the PUSCHs due to multiplexing HARQ-ACK feedback may be minimal. Referring to FIG. 4, in Solution #14', the BS and UE may determine PUSCH6 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH6 has the most time-frequency resources among the six PUSCHs.

[0147] Solution #15' In Solution #15', the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH on a serving cell with a predetermined serving cell index among serving cells that carry at least one PUSCH of one or more PUSCHs that overlap with the PUCCH, and at least one PUSCH of the multiple PUSCHs may have the same end time.

[0148] In some embodiments of Solution #15', the default serving cell index may be the smallest serving cell index among the serving cells on which at least one PUSCH is transmitted. In such an embodiment, referring to FIG. 4, since PUSCH1 and PUSCH2 may have the same end time, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH1 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH1 is transmitted on CC1, which has the smallest serving cell index among CC1 and CC2.

[0149] In some embodiments of Solution #15', the default serving cell index may be the highest serving cell index among the serving cells on which at least one PUSCH is transmitted. In such an embodiment, referring to FIG. 4, since PUSCH1 and PUSCH2 may have the same end time, the BS and UE may determine PUSCH2 as the reference PUSCH because PUSCH2 is transmitted on CC2, which has the highest serving cell index among CC1 and CC2.

[0150] Solution #16' In Solution #16', the BS or UE may determine the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH on a serving cell with a predetermined serving cell index among serving cells that carry at least one PUSCH of one or more PUSCHs that overlap with the PUCCH, and at least one PUSCH of the multiple PUSCHs may have the same start time.

[0151] In some embodiments of Solution #16', the default serving cell index may be the smallest serving cell index among the serving cells on which at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0152] In some embodiments of Solution #16', the default serving cell index may be the maximum serving cell index among the serving cells on which at least one PUSCH is transmitted.

[0153] The BS and the UE may use at least one of the above solutions to determine a reference PUSCH from multiple PUSCHs. At that time, the UE may transmit multiple PUSCHs, and the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH. Accordingly, the BS may receive multiple PUSCHs, and the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH.

[0154] 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example method for HARQ-ACK feedback multiplexing on a PUSCH in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. The method illustrated in FIG. 5 may be performed by a UE (e.g., UE 101 as shown in FIG. 1) and a BS (e.g., BS 102 as shown in FIG. 1). Although the method is illustrated at a system level, those skilled in the art can understand that the methods implemented in the UE and BS can be implemented separately and incorporated into other devices having similar functionality.

[0155] 5, in step 501, a BS may transmit one or more DCI formats to a UE for scheduling multiple PUSCHs on multiple serving cells of the UE. Accordingly, in step 502, the UE may receive one or more DCI formats from the BS for scheduling multiple PUSCHs on multiple serving cells of the UE. The one or more DCI formats may include the multi-cell scheduling DCI format in embodiment 1 or the DCI format in embodiment 2.

[0156] For example, the one or more DCI formats may include at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format, each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format scheduling a respective first set of serving cells of a plurality of serving cells, each of the respective first set of serving cells being a subset of a corresponding second set of serving cells configured for multi-cell scheduling using the multi-cell scheduling DCI format.

[0157] In one embodiment, the corresponding second set of serving cells may be configured with parameters (e.g., n as described above) for determining the CCEs of PDCCH candidates for monitoring the multi-cell scheduling DCI format. CI ) is used.

[0158] In one embodiment, the DCI size of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted for a corresponding second set of serving cells of the serving cell, for example, the corresponding second set of serving cells of the serving cell may be configured by RRC signaling.

[0159] In one embodiment, the BD or CCE budget of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted for a corresponding second set of serving cells of the serving cell, for example, the corresponding second set of serving cells of the serving cell may be configured by RRC signaling.

[0160] In one embodiment, the search space of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is configured on a serving cell of a corresponding second set of serving cells, for example, the serving cell of the corresponding second set of serving cells may be configured by RRC signaling.

[0161] In steps 503 and 504, the BS and the UE may respectively determine that one or more PUSCHs of the multiple PUSCHs overlap with a PUCCH carrying HARQ-ACK feedback for a downlink transmission (e.g., one or more PDSCHs).

[0162] In steps 505 and 506, the BS and the UE may respectively determine a reference PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback. The BS and the UE may use the same solution to determine the reference PUSCH among the multiple PUSCHs.

[0163] In some embodiments, the reference PUSCH may meet the processing delay requirements of the UE when multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback.

[0164] In some embodiments, a DCI format of one or more DCI formats (e.g., a DCI format that schedules a reference PUSCH) may include a beta offset indicator applicable to the reference PUSCH to adjust the resource of the HARQ-ACK feedback on the reference PUSCH.

[0165] In some embodiments, the UE or BS may perform at least one of the following operations to determine the reference PUSCH: Determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH in a PCell or a PSCell of multiple serving cells; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that ends latest among a plurality of PUSCHs; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that starts earliest among a plurality of PUSCHs; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that starts latest among a plurality of PUSCHs; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a minimum serving cell index among a plurality of serving cells; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a maximum serving cell index among a plurality of serving cells; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH on a serving cell having a predetermined order among a combination of serving cells indicated by a DCI format among one or more DCI formats; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with the most time-frequency resources among the plurality of PUSCHs; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a minimum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of a plurality of PUSCHs having the same end time; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a maximum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of a plurality of PUSCHs having the same end time; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a minimum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of a plurality of PUSCHs having the same start time; or Determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a maximum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of a plurality of PUSCHs having the same start time.

[0166] In some embodiments, the UE or BS may perform at least one of the following operations to determine the reference PUSCH: When only one PUSCH of a plurality of PUSCHs overlaps with a PUCCH, determining a reference PUSCH as the one PUSCH; determining a reference PUSCH as the latest ending PUSCH among one or more PUSCHs; determining a reference PUSCH as the earliest starting PUSCH among one or more PUSCHs; determining a reference PUSCH as the latest starting PUSCH among one or more PUSCHs; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a minimum serving cell index among one or more PUSCHs; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a maximum serving cell index among one or more PUSCHs; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with the most time-frequency resources among one or more PUSCHs; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a predetermined minimum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of one or more PUSCHs having the same end time; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a maximum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of one or more PUSCHs having the same end time; determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a minimum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of one or more PUSCHs having the same start time; or Determining a reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a predetermined maximum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of one or more PUSCHs having the same start time.

[0167] In step 508, the UE may transmit multiple PUSCHs to the BS, and the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH. Accordingly, in step 507, the BS may receive multiple PUSCHs from the UE, and the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH.

[0168] 6 illustrates a simplified block diagram of an example apparatus for HARQ-ACK feedback multiplexing on a PUSCH in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 6, the apparatus 600 may include at least one processor 606 and at least one transceiver 602 coupled to the processor 606. The apparatus 600 may be a UE or a BS.

[0169] In this figure, elements such as at least one transceiver 602 and processor 606 are referred to in the singular, although the plural is contemplated unless limitation to the singular is explicitly stated. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the transceiver 602 may be divided into two devices, such as receive circuitry and transmit circuitry. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the apparatus 600 may further include an input device, memory, and / or other components.

[0170] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the apparatus 600 may be a UE. The transceiver 602 and the processor 606 may interact with each other to perform the operations related to a UE described in Figures 1-5. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the apparatus 600 may be a BS. The transceiver 602 and the processor 606 may interact with each other to perform the operations related to a BS described in Figures 1-5.

[0171] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the apparatus 600 may further include at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium.

[0172] For example, in some embodiments of the present disclosure, a non-transitory computer-readable medium may have computer-executable instructions stored thereon for causing the processor 606 to perform a method relating to a UE, such as those described above. For example, the computer-executable instructions, when executed, cause the processor 606, interacting with the transceiver 602, to perform the operations relating to the UE described in FIGS. 1-5.

[0173] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, a non-transitory computer-readable medium may have stored thereon computer-executable instructions for causing the processor 606 to perform a method related to a BS, such as those described above. For example, the computer-executable instructions, when executed, cause the processor 606, interacting with the transceiver 602, to perform the operations related to the BS described in FIGS. 1-5.

[0174] Those skilled in the art will understand that the operations or steps of the methods described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in software modules executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. The software modules may reside in RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. Additionally, in some aspects, the operations or steps of the methods may reside on a non-transitory computer-readable medium as one or any combination or set of code and / or instructions, which may be incorporated into a computer program product.

[0175] While the present disclosure has been described using specific embodiments thereof, it is apparent that many alternatives, modifications, and variations may be apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, various components of the present embodiments may be exchanged, added, or substituted in other embodiments. Also, not all elements in each drawing are essential to the operation of the disclosed embodiments. For example, one skilled in the art of the disclosed embodiments will be enabled to make and use the teachings of the present disclosure by simply employing the elements of the independent claims. Accordingly, the embodiments of the present disclosure as described herein are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. Various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

[0176] As used herein, the terms "includes," "including," or any other variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements, but may include other elements not expressly recited or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. An element preceded by "a," "an," etc., does not, without further constraints, preclude the presence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises the element. Also, the term "another" is defined as at least a second or more. As used herein, terms such as "having" are defined as "including." Phrases such as "A and / or B" or "at least one of A and B" may include any and all combinations of the words listed with that phrase. For example, the phrase "A and / or B" or "at least one of A and B" may include A, B, or both A and B. The terms "first," "second," etc. are used merely to clearly illustrate embodiments of the present disclosure and are not used to limit the substance of the present disclosure. [Explanation of symbols]

[0177] 100 Wireless Communication System 101 User Equipment (UE) 102 Base station (BS) 600 equipment 602 Transceiver 606 processor

Claims

1. A user equipment (UE), a transceiver configured to receive one or more downlink control information (DCI) formats that schedule multiple physical uplink shared channels (PUSCHs) on multiple serving cells of the UE; coupled to the transceiver, determining that one or more PUSCHs of the plurality of PUSCHs overlap with a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) that carries hybrid automatic repeat request acknowledgement response (HARQ-ACK) feedback for a downlink transmission; determining a reference PUSCH among the plurality of PUSCHs for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback; a processor configured to: Equipped with the transceiver is further configured to transmit the plurality of PUSCHs, and the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH. User Equipment (UE).

2. The UE of claim 1 , wherein the reference PUSCH satisfies a processing delay requirement of the UE when multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback.

3. 2. The UE of claim 1, wherein a DCI format of the one or more DCI formats includes a beta offset indicator applicable to the reference PUSCH to adjust a resource of the HARQ-ACK feedback on the reference PUSCH.

4. 2. The UE of claim 1, wherein the one or more DCI formats comprise at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format, each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format scheduling a respective first set of serving cells of the plurality of serving cells, the respective first set of serving cells being a subset of a corresponding second set of serving cells configured for multi-cell scheduling using the multi-cell scheduling DCI format.

5. 5. The UE of claim 4, wherein the corresponding second set of serving cells is configured with parameters for determining control channel elements (CCEs) of physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates for monitoring the multi-cell scheduling DCI format.

6. 5. The UE of claim 4, wherein a DCI size of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted for a serving cell of the corresponding second set of serving cells.

7. 5. The UE of claim 4, wherein a blind detection (BD) or control channel element (CCE) budget of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is counted for a serving cell of the corresponding second set of serving cells.

8. 5. The UE of claim 4, wherein a search space of each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format is configured on a serving cell of the corresponding second set of serving cells.

9. 9. The UE of claim 6, 7, or 8, wherein the serving cells of the corresponding second set of serving cells are configured by radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

10. To determine the reference PUSCH, the processor: determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH in a primary cell (PCell) or a primary or secondary cell (PSCell) of the plurality of serving cells; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH that ends latest among the plurality of PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as the PUSCH that starts earliest among the plurality of PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH that starts latest among the plurality of PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a minimum serving cell index among the plurality of serving cells; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a maximum serving cell index among the plurality of serving cells; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH on a serving cell having a predetermined order among a combination of serving cells indicated by a DCI format of the one or more DCI formats; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH with the most time-frequency resources among the plurality of PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a minimum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs having the same end time; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a maximum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs having the same end time; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a minimum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs having the same start time; or determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a maximum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs having the same start time; The UE of claim 1 , configured to perform at least one of:

11. To determine the reference PUSCH, the processor: When only one PUSCH of the plurality of PUSCHs overlaps with the PUCCH, determining the reference PUSCH as the one PUSCH; determining the reference PUSCH as the latest ending PUSCH among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as the earliest starting PUSCH among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as the latest starting PUSCH among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a minimum serving cell index among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a maximum serving cell index among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having the most time-frequency resources among the one or more PUSCHs; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a minimum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the one or more PUSCHs having the same end time; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a maximum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the one or more PUSCHs having the same end time; determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a minimum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the one or more PUSCHs having the same start time; or determining the reference PUSCH as a PUSCH having a maximum serving cell index among at least one PUSCH of the one or more PUSCHs having the same start time; The UE of claim 1 , configured to perform at least one of:

12. a transceiver configured to transmit to a user equipment (UE) one or more downlink control information (DCI) formats that schedule multiple physical uplink shared channels (PUSCHs) on multiple serving cells of the UE; coupled to the transceiver, determining that one or more PUSCHs of the plurality of PUSCHs overlap with a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) that carries hybrid automatic repeat request acknowledgement response (HARQ-ACK) feedback for a downlink transmission; determining a reference PUSCH among the plurality of PUSCHs for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback; a processor configured to: Equipped with A base station (BS), wherein the transceiver is further configured to receive the plurality of PUSCHs, and the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed onto the reference PUSCH.

13. 13. The BS of claim 12, wherein the one or more DCI formats comprise at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format, each of the at least one multi-cell scheduling DCI format scheduling a respective first set of serving cells of the plurality of serving cells, the respective first set of serving cells being a subset of a corresponding second set of serving cells configured for multi-cell scheduling using the multi-cell scheduling DCI format.

14. 14. The BS of claim 13, wherein the corresponding second set of serving cells is configured with parameters for determining control channel elements (CCEs) of physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) candidates for monitoring the multi-cell scheduling DCI format.

15. 1. A method performed by a user equipment (UE), comprising: receiving one or more downlink control information (DCI) formats that schedule multiple physical uplink shared channels (PUSCHs) on multiple serving cells of the UE; determining that one or more PUSCHs of the plurality of PUSCHs overlap with a Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) that carries Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request Acknowledgement Response (HARQ-ACK) feedback for a downlink transmission; determining a reference PUSCH among the plurality of PUSCHs for multiplexing the HARQ-ACK feedback; transmitting the plurality of PUSCHs, wherein the HARQ-ACK feedback is multiplexed on the reference PUSCH; A method comprising:

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