Terminal, network device, and method performed thereby

Abstract

SOLUTION: In a communication system, a terminal receives first configuration information of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) from a network device. The first configuration information indicates at least PUCCH repetition. The terminal also receives second configuration information of the PUCCH from the network device. The second configuration information indicates at least PUCCH repetition. The terminal further sends the uplink control information to the network device based on the number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the first configuration information and the second configuration information.EFFECT: Embodiments of the present disclosure can provide flexibility of repeated transmission and reduce radio resource signaling (RRC) configuration overhead.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to the field of telecommunications, and more particularly to a method, apparatus, and computer storage medium for adaptive reference signal configuration. [Background technology]

[0002] In order to improve the coverage or reliability performance for data transmission, repetition for a single uplink transmission is proposed. The number of repetitions for a single uplink data transmission may be semi-statically set. Alternatively, the number of repetitions may be dynamically indicated. Also, the location for transmitting uplink information is an important aspect. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] Generally, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method, apparatus, and computer storage medium for physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) repetition. [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, the method including: receiving, in a terminal device, first configuration information of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) from a network device, the first configuration information indicating at least PUCCH repetitions; receiving, from the network device, second configuration information of the PUCCH, the second configuration information indicating at least the PUCCH repetitions; and transmitting, to the network device, uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

[0005] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, the method including: transmitting, in a network device, first configuration information of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) to a terminal device, the first configuration information indicating at least PUCCH repetitions; transmitting, to the terminal device, second configuration information of the PUCCH, the second configuration information indicating at least the PUCCH repetitions; and receiving, from the terminal device, uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

[0006] In a third aspect, a terminal device is provided, the terminal device including: a processor; and a memory coupled to the processor. The memory stores instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the terminal device to: receive, from a network device, first configuration information of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) indicating at least PUCCH repetitions; receive, from the network device, second configuration information of the PUCCH indicating at least the PUCCH repetitions; and transmit, to the network device, uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

[0007] In a fourth aspect, a network device is provided, the network device including: a processor; and a memory coupled to the processor, the memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the network device to: transmit, to a terminal device, first configuration information of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) indicating at least PUCCH repetitions; transmit, to the terminal device, second configuration information of the PUCCH indicating at least the PUCCH repetitions; and receive, from the terminal device, uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

[0008] In a fifth aspect, a communication method is provided, the method including: receiving, at a terminal device, from a network device, a radio resource control (RRC) configuration associated with a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH); and, according to a determination that both a PUCCH resource information element and a PUCCH format information element are absent in the RRC configuration, transmitting uplink control information without repetition to the network device.

[0009] In a sixth aspect, a communication method is provided, the method including: receiving, in a terminal device, from a network device, a radio resource control (RRC) configuration associated with a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH); and, according to a determination that a PUCCH resource information element is not present in the RRC configuration but a PUCCH format information element is present, transmitting uplink control information to the network device based on a number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the PUCCH format information element.

[0010] In a seventh aspect, a communication method is provided, the method including: receiving, in a terminal device, from a network device, a radio resource control (RRC) configuration associated with a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH); and, according to determining that a PUCCH resource information element exists in the RRC configuration, transmitting uplink control information to the network device based on the number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the PUCCH resource information element, regardless of whether a PUCCH format information element exists in the RRC configuration.

[0011] In an eighth aspect, there is provided a computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform a method according to the first aspect, or the fifth aspect, or the sixth aspect, or the seventh aspect of the present disclosure.

[0012] In a sixth aspect, there is provided a computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform a method according to the second aspect of the present disclosure.

[0013] Other features of the present disclosure will be readily apparent from the following description. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0014] The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the following detailed description of some embodiments of the present disclosure in the drawings.

[0015] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication environment in which embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented.

[0016] [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a process for PUCCH repetition according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0017] [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating iteration according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0018] [Figure 4] 1 is a flowchart of an exemplary communication method implemented in a terminal device, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0019] [Figure 5] 1 is a flowchart of an exemplary communication method implemented in a network device, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0020] [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0021] In the drawings, the same or similar reference numbers represent the same or similar elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] The principles of the present disclosure will be explained with reference to some embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are provided for illustrative purposes only to assist those skilled in the art in understanding and practicing the present disclosure, and do not imply any limitation on the scope of the present disclosure. The disclosure described herein can be implemented in various ways different from those described below.

[0023] In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure pertains.

[0024] As used herein, the term "terminal device" refers to any device capable of wireless or wired communication. Examples of terminal devices include, but are not limited to, user equipment (UE), personal computers, desktop computers, mobile phones, cellular phones, smartphones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), portable computers, tablets, wearable devices, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, Internet of Everything (IoE) devices, machine-type communication (MTC) devices, and in-vehicle devices for V2X communications (where "X" represents pedestrian, vehicle, or infrastructure / network, or image capture devices such as digital cameras, gaming devices, music storage and playback devices, or Internet appliances that enable wireless or wired Internet access and browsing). The term "terminal device" can be used interchangeably with UE, mobile station, subscriber station, mobile terminal, user terminal, or wireless device. The term "network device" refers to a device capable of providing or hosting a cell or coverage area through which terminal devices can communicate. Examples of network devices include, but are not limited to, low power nodes such as a Node B (NodeB or NB), an Evolved Node B (eNodeB or eNB), a next generation Node B (gNB), a Transmission Reception Point (TRP), a Remote Radio Unit (RRU), a radio head (RH), a remote radio head (RRH), a femto node, and a pico node.

[0025] In one embodiment, a terminal device can connect to a first network device and a second network device. One of the first network device and the second network device may be a master node and the other a secondary node. The first network device and the second network device may use different radio access technologies (RATs). In one embodiment, the first network device may be a first RAT device, and the second network device may be a second RAT device. In one embodiment, the first RAT device is an eNB, and the second RAT device is a gNB. Information related to the different RATs may be transmitted to the terminal device from at least one of the first network device and the second network device. In one embodiment, the first information may be transmitted from the first network device to the terminal device, and the second information may be transmitted from the second network device directly or via the first network device to the terminal device. In one embodiment, information related to the terminal device configuration configured by the second network device may be transmitted from the second network device via the first network device. Information regarding the reconfiguration of the terminal device configured by the second network device may be transmitted to the terminal device directly from the second network device or via the first network device.

[0026] As used herein, the singular forms "a / an" and "the" include the plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The term "comprises" and variations thereof should be understood as open-ended terms meaning "including, but not limited to." The term "based on" should be understood as "based at least in part on." The terms "one embodiment" and "embodiment" should be understood as "at least one embodiment." The term "another embodiment" should be understood as "at least one other embodiment." The terms "first," "second," etc. may refer to different or the same object. The following may include other explicit and implicit definitions.

[0027] In some instances, values, procedures, or devices are referred to as "best," "lowest," "highest," "minimum," "maximum," etc. It will be understood that such descriptions are intended to illustrate that choices may be made from among many functional alternatives used, and that such choices are not necessarily better, smaller, higher, or otherwise more preferred than other choices.

[0028] According to the prior art, the resources allocated to the PUCCH may be based on a PUCCH resource indicator field in the last downlink control information (DCI) format of multiple DCI formats. The multiple DCI formats include at least one of the following values: a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH)-to-hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ_feedback timing indicator field value indicating the same slot for PUCCH transmission detected by the UE and for which the UE transmits corresponding HARQ-ACK information in the PUCCH; and dl-DataToUL-ACK, dl-DataToUL-ACK-r16, or dl-DataToUL-ACKForDCIFormat1_2. For PUCCH resource determination, the detected DCI formats are first indexed in ascending order across serving cell indices for the same PDCCH monitoring occasion, and then indexed in ascending order across PDCCH monitoring occasion indices.

[0029] For PUCCH format 1, 3 or 4, the UE may be configured with a number of slots K for PUCCH transmission repetitions with the respective number of slots denoted as "nrofSlots". If the UE is provided with a PUCCH configuration that includes the parameter subslotLengthForPUCCH, the UE does not expect the PUCCH configuration to include the parameter nrofSlots.

[0030] If a UE transmits a PUCCH on a first number K>1 slots and the UE transmits a PUSCH on a second number K>1 slots with repetition type A, the PUCCH transmission overlaps with the PUSCH transmission in one or more slots. In the overlapping slots, the condition for multiplexing UCI in the PUSCH is met, and the UE transmits a PUCCH but not a PUSCH in the overlapping slots.

[0031] The UE does not multiplex different UCI types in a PUCCH transmission with repetition over K>1 slots. If the UE transmits a first PUCCH over one or more slots and transmits at least a second PUCCH over one or more slots, the transmission of the first PUCCH and the second PUCCH overlaps within the multiple slots. For each slot of the multiple slots, the UCI type priority of the HARQ-ACK is higher than the priority of a scheduling request (SR). The priority of the SR is higher than the priority of a CSI with a higher priority than a CSI with a lower priority.

[0032] According to some prior art, the UE does not expect the first PUCCH and any second PUCCH to start in the same slot and contain a UCI type with the same priority. If the first PUCCH and any second PUCCH contain a UCI type with the same priority, the UE transmits the PUCCH that starts in the earlier slot and does not transmit the PUCCH that starts in the later slot. If neither the first PUCCH nor any second PUCCH contain a UCI type with the same priority, the UE transmits the PUCCH that contains the UCI type with the higher priority and does not transmit the PUCCH that contains the UCI type with the lower priority.

[0033] According to some prior art, a UE can simultaneously support static PUCCH repetition and dynamic PUCCH repetition configuration. However, it is unclear how a UE behaves when both the PUCCH-repetition-factor in the PUCCH resource information element (IE) and the nrofSlots in the PUCCH format IE are configured. Furthermore, the current priority rule for PUCCH repetition does not seem to work well when a later DCI overwrites a previous DCI with a different PUCCH repetition factor. For example, if a previous DCI in slot m indicates PUCCH feedback on slot n with a repetition factor of 2, a later DCI in slot m+1 indicates PUCCH on the same slot n but with a repetition factor changed to 1, and another DCI in slot m+2 indicates PUCCH feedback on slot n+1, the network expects the PUCCH in slot n to include the HARQ codebook in slot n and the PUCCH in slot n+1 to include the HARQ codebook in slot n+1 because the PUCCH repetition factor in slot n is 1. However, if the UE fails to detect DCI in slot m+1, then because the UE believes the PUCCH repetition factor is 2, the UE will transmit the HARQ codebook in slot n in both PUCCH slots n and n+1 and discard the HARQ codebook in slot n+1 in PUCCH slot n+1, according to the current priority rule of first come, first served for the same UCI priority. Some inconsistency will occur between the network and the UE.

[0034] Therefore, to solve at least some of the above and other potential problems, a solution regarding PUCCH repetition is proposed. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a terminal device receives first configuration information of a PUCCH from a network device. The first configuration information indicates at least a PUCCH repetition. The terminal device transmits uplink control information based on a number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the first configuration information. In this way, flexibility of repetitive transmission can be provided and radio resource signaling (RRC) configuration overhead can be reduced.

[0035] 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system in which embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented. Communication system 100, which is part of a communication network, includes terminal devices 110-1, 110-2, ..., 110-N, which may be collectively referred to as "terminal devices 110." The number N may be any suitable integer.

[0036] The communication system 100 further includes a network terminal 120. In some embodiments, the network terminal may be a gNB. In the communication system 100, the network terminal 120 and the terminal 110 may communicate data and control information with each other. The number of terminals and network devices shown in FIG. 1 is for illustrative purposes only and does not imply any limitation.

[0037] Communications in communication system 100 may be achieved according to any suitable communications protocol, including, but not limited to, cellular communications protocols such as first generation (1G), second generation (2G), third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), and fifth generation (5G), wireless local area network communications protocols such as Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11, and / or any other protocol now known or developed in the future. Further, the communications may utilize any suitable wireless communication technology, including, but not limited to, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Duplex (FDD), Time Division Duplex (TDD), Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), and / or any other technology now known or developed in the future.

[0038] Embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to any suitable scenario. For example, embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented on a reduced-capability NR device. Alternatively, embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented within one of NR multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), NR sidelink enhancements, NR systems at frequencies higher than 52.6 GHz, enhanced NR operation up to 71 GHz, narrowband-Internet of Things (NB-IOT) / enhanced Machine Type Communication (eMTC) over non-terrestrial networks (NTN), NTN, UE power saving enhancements, NR coverage enhancements, NB-IOT and LTE-MTC, integrated access and backhaul (IAB), NR multicast and broadcast services, or multi-radio dual connectivity enhancements.

[0039] Embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail below. Reference is first made to FIG. 2, which illustrates a signaling diagram illustrating a process 200 between network devices in accordance with some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes only, process 200 will be described with reference to FIG. 1. Process 200 may involve terminal device 110-1 and network device 120 of FIG. 1.

[0040] The network device 120 may transmit a radio resource control (RRC) configuration associated with a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) to the terminal device 110-1. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may transmit a PUCCH format information element in the RRC configuration to the terminal device 110-1 (2005). The PUCCH format may indicate a first PUCCH repetition slot number. For example, the PUCCH format information IE may include a parameter subslotLengthForPUCCH. As an example, if subslotLengthForPUCCH indicates a number k, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit the PUCCH over k consecutive subslots. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, if k is 4, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit the PUCCH over subslots 3010-1, 3010-2, 3010-3, and 3010-4. In some embodiments, if subslot 3010-2 is configured as a downlink (DL) subslot, terminal device 110-1 may transmit PUCCH on subslots 3010-1, 3010-3, and 3010-4. In other words, terminal device 110-1 may transmit on four consecutive subslots instead of the four available subslots. In this way, if terminal device 110-1 misses some signaling, the delay of PUCCH repetitions can be reduced and consistent understanding of the end position between network device 120 and terminal device 110-1 can be achieved.

[0041] The network device 120 may transmit a PUCCH resource IE to the terminal device 110-1 within the RRC configuration (2010). The PUCCH resource IE may indicate a PUCCH repetition. For example, a repFactor field may be introduced into the PUCCH resource IE to indicate the number of PUCCH repetitions of the PUCCH resource. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may configure multiple PUCCH resources, each of which may correspond to a certain number of PUCCH repetitions. The PUCCH resource IE and the PUCCH format IE may be transmitted together or separately.

[0042] Examples of RRC IEs are shown in Table 1 below. It should be noted that Table 1 is only an example and is not limiting. TIFF2026016740000002.tif146150

[0043] Network device 120 may transmit downlink control information (DCI) to terminal device 110-1 (2015). The DCI may include an identification of resources allocated for uplink transmission.

[0044] The terminal device 110-1 may determine the number of PUCCH repetitions (2020). In one embodiment, if a PUCCH format IE exists in the RRC configuration and a PUCCH resource IE does not exist in the RRC configuration, the terminal device 110-1 may determine the number of PUCCH repetitions based on the PUCCH format IE. In some embodiments, if a PUCCH resource IE element exists in the RRC configuration, the terminal device 110-1 may determine the number of PUCCH repetitions based on the PUCCH resource IE, regardless of whether a PUCCH format IE exists. For example, the terminal device 110-1 may determine the number of PUCCH repetitions based on the PUCCH resource IE and identification information of the resource indicated in the DCI. In this case, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit uplink control information based on the determined number of PUCCH repetitions (2025).

[0045] In some embodiments, the r_pucch calculation for PUCCH resource sets other than the first PUCCH resource set may be reused to obtain r_pucch'. The value r_pucch may be obtained by r_pucch'%8, where n is obtained based on FLOOR(r_pucch' / 8). Terminal device 110-1 may transmit PUCCH repetitions using the nth repetition factor configured by higher layers. By way of example only, for the first set of PUCCH resources, the size R PUCCH is greater than 8, when the UE provides HARQ-ACK information in a PUCCH transmission in response to detecting the last DCI format in a PDCCH reception among the value of the PDSCH-to-HARQ_feedback timing indicator field (if present) or the DCI format with the value dl-DataToUL-ACK, dl-DataToUL-ACK-r16, or dl-DataToUL-ACKForDCIFormat1_2, which indicate the same slot for PUCCH transmission, the UE shall PUCCH Determine the PUCCH resource with PUCCH ≦R PUCCH -1, and TIFF2026016740000003.tif26143where N CCE,p represents the number of control channel elements (CCEs) in a control resource set (CORESET) p for PDCCH reception for a DCI format, and n CCE,p represents the index of the first CCE for PDCCH reception, and Δ PRI represents the value of the PUCCH resource indicator field in the DCI format. If the DCI format does not include a PUCCH resource indicator field, Δ PRI =0.

[0046] Alternatively, the terminal device 110-1 may determine the number of PUCCH repetitions based on the PUCCH format IE. As described above, the PUCCH format IE may indicate the number of slots. In this case, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions indicated in the PUCCH format IE.

[0047] In some embodiments, the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH resource IE may have a different priority than the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH format IE. For example, if the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH resource IE has a higher priority, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH resource IE. Alternatively, if the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH format IE has a higher priority, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH format IE. The priorities of the PUCCH resource IE and the PUCCH format IE may be preset by the network device 120.

[0048] In another embodiment, the terminal device may transmit uplink control information without PUCCH repetition. If the PUCCH repetition number is not configured in the PUCCH resource IE or in the PUCCH format IE, the terminal device may transmit uplink control information without PUCCH repetition. Alternatively, if the PUCCH resource IE and the PUCCH format IE are not present in the RRC configuration, the terminal device may transmit uplink control information without PUCCH repetition.

[0049] In other words, if the network device 120 sets a PUCCH repetition slot number factor in the PUCCH resource IE or indicates a PUCCH repetition slot number factor in the DCI, the terminal device 110-1 transmits PUCCH repetitions based on that factor; otherwise, if the network device 120 sets nrofSlots in the PUCCH format IE, the terminal device 110-1 repeats and transmits the PUCCH based on nrofSlots; otherwise, the terminal device 110-1 transmits the PUCCH without repetition.

[0050] In some embodiments, if the PUCCH resource IE indicates a PUCCH repetition slot number factor and the DCI indicates resource identification information, the terminal device 110-1 may ignore the PUCCH repetition count set in the PUCCH format IE. In some embodiments, if the PUCCH resource IE does not indicate the PUCCH repetition count, the terminal device 110-1 may determine the PUCCH repetition count as a predetermined number, for example, 1. Note that the predetermined number may be any appropriate value.

[0051] In some embodiments, if terminal device 110-1 can receive a first DCI indicating a first starting PUCCH slot and a second DCI indicating a first starting PUCCH slot, terminal device 110-1 may determine that the PUCCH repetition count is the same for the first DCI and the second DCI. For example, for a dynamic HARQ-ACK PUCCH resource with a dynamic PUCCH repetition factor indication in the DCI, terminal device 110-1 may expect the same PUCCH repetition factor for multiple DCIs indicating the same first PUCCH slot.

[0052] This allows for simultaneous configuration, thus providing flexibility for repeat transmissions, reducing RRC configuration overhead, and allowing for several common repetition factors to be configured with one existing static PUCCH repetition factor instead of multiple factors within each PUCCH resource configuration.

[0053] In other embodiments, the first PUCCH and any second PUCCH may include a UCI type with the same priority. In this case, in some embodiments, if a PUCCH starting in an earlier slot is a dynamic PUCCH repetition including a HARQ-ACK due to DCI and another PUCCH starting in a later slot is a PUCCH including a HARQ-ACK due to DCI, the terminal device 110-1 may not transmit the PUCCH starting in the earlier slot, but may transmit the PUCCH starting in the later slot. Alternatively, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit the PUCCH starting in the earlier slot, but may not transmit the PUCCH starting in the later slot. In this way, the terminal device can transmit the correct HARQ-ACK codebook on the PUCCH slot even if the last DIC is missed. Therefore, if the terminal device misses the last DCI that changes / decreases the PUCCH repetition factor, the terminal device can also transmit the correct HARQ-ACK codebook on the PUCCH slot due to the extended priority rule.

[0054] 4 is a flowchart of an exemplary method 400 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes only, the method 400 may be implemented in the terminal device 110-1 as shown in FIG.

[0055] In block 410, the terminal device 110-1 receives first configuration information for the PUCCH from the network device 120. For example, the first configuration information may be a PUCCH format information element. The PUCCH format may indicate a first number of PUCCH repetition slots. For example, the PUCCH format information IE may include a parameter subslotLengthForPUCCH. As an example, if subslotLengthForPUCCH indicates a number k, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit the PUCCH over k consecutive subslots. It should be noted that the first configuration information for the PUCCH may be any suitable configuration information associated with the PUCCH.

[0056] In block 420, the terminal device 110-1 receives second configuration information of the PUCCH from the network device 120. For example, the first configuration information may be a PUCCH resource information element. The PUCCH resource IE may indicate a PUCCH repetition. For example, a repFactor field may be introduced in the PUCCH resource IE to indicate the number of PUCCH repetitions of the PUCCH resource. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may configure multiple PUCCH resources, each of which may correspond to a certain number of PUCCH repetitions. It should be noted that the second configuration information of the PUCCH may be any suitable configuration information associated with the PUCCH.

[0057] In some embodiments, terminal device 110-1 may receive DCI from network device 120. The DCI may include an identification of resources allocated for uplink transmission.

[0058] In block 430, terminal device 110-1 transmits uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the first configuration information. In some embodiments, terminal device 110-1 determines the number of PUCCH repetitions. In some embodiments, terminal device 110-1 may determine the number of PUCCH repetitions based on the PUCCH resource IE and identification information of the resources indicated in the DCI.

[0059] Alternatively, the terminal device 110-1 may determine the number of PUCCH repetitions based on the PUCCH format IE. As described above, the PUCCH format IE may indicate the number of slots. In this case, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions indicated in the PUCCH format IE.

[0060] In some embodiments, the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH resource IE may have a different priority than the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH format IE. For example, if the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH resource IE has a higher priority, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH resource IE. Alternatively, if the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH format IE has a higher priority, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH format IE. The priorities of the PUCCH resource IE and the PUCCH format IE may be preset by the network device 120.

[0061] In another embodiment, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit uplink control information without PUCCH repetition. For example, if the PUCCH repetition count is not configured in the PUCCH resource IE or in the PUCCH format IE, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit uplink control information without PUCCH repetition.

[0062] In some embodiments, if the PUCCH resource IE indicates a PUCCH repetition slot number factor and the DCI indicates resource identification information, the terminal device 110-1 may ignore the PUCCH repetition count set in the PUCCH format IE. In some embodiments, if the PUCCH resource IE does not indicate the PUCCH repetition count, the terminal device 110-1 may determine the PUCCH repetition count as a predetermined number, for example, 1. Note that the predetermined number may be any appropriate value.

[0063] In some embodiments, if terminal device 110-1 can receive a first DCI indicating a first starting PUCCH slot and a second DCI indicating a first starting PUCCH slot, terminal device 110-1 may determine that the PUCCH repetition count is the same for the first DCI and the second DCI. For example, for a dynamic HARQ-ACK PUCCH resource with a dynamic PUCCH repetition factor indication in the DCI, terminal device 110-1 may expect the same PUCCH repetition factor for multiple DCIs indicating the same first PUCCH slot.

[0064] In other embodiments, the first PUCCH and any second PUCCH may include a UCI type with the same priority. In this case, in some embodiments, if a PUCCH starting in an earlier slot is a dynamic PUCCH repetition including a HARQ-ACK with DCI and another PUCCH starting in a later slot is a PUCCH including a HARQ-ACK with DCI, terminal device 110-1 may not transmit the PUCCH starting in the earlier slot, but may transmit the PUCCH starting in the later slot. Alternatively, terminal device 110-1 may transmit the PUCCH starting in the earlier slot, but may not transmit the PUCCH starting in the later slot.

[0065] 5 is a flowchart of an exemplary method 500 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes only, the method 500 may be implemented in a network device 120-1 such as that shown in FIG.

[0066] In block 510, the network device 120 transmits first configuration information of the PUCCH to the terminal device 110-1. For example, the first configuration information may be a PUCCH format information element. The PUCCH format may indicate a first number of PUCCH repetition slots. For example, the PUCCH format information IE may include a parameter subslotLengthForPUCCH. As an example, if subslotLengthForPUCCH indicates a number k, the terminal device 110-1 may transmit the PUCCH over k consecutive subslots. It should be noted that the first configuration information of the PUCCH may be any suitable configuration information associated with the PUCCH.

[0067] In block 520, the network device 120 transmits second configuration information of the PUCCH to the terminal device 110-1. For example, the first configuration information may be a PUCCH resource information element. The PUCCH resource IE may indicate a PUCCH repetition. For example, a repFactor field may be introduced in the PUCCH resource IE to indicate the number of PUCCH repetitions of the PUCCH resource. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may configure multiple PUCCH resources, each of which may correspond to a certain number of PUCCH repetitions. It should be noted that the second configuration information of the PUCCH may be any suitable configuration information associated with the PUCCH.

[0068] In some embodiments, network device 120 may transmit a DCI to terminal device 110-1. The DCI may include an identification of resources allocated for the uplink transmission.

[0069] In block 530, network device 120 receives uplink control information from terminal device 110-1 based on the number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the first configuration information. In some embodiments, terminal device 110-1 determines the number of PUCCH repetitions. In some embodiments, terminal device 110-1 may determine the number of PUCCH repetitions based on the PUCCH resource IE and identification information of the resources indicated in the DCI.

[0070] Alternatively, the terminal device 110-1 may determine the number of PUCCH repetitions based on the PUCCH format IE. As described above, the PUCCH format IE may indicate the number of slots. In this case, the network device 120 may receive uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions indicated in the PUCCH format IE.

[0071] In some embodiments, the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH resource IE may have a different priority than the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH format IE. For example, if the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH resource IE has a higher priority, the network device 120 may receive uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH resource IE. Alternatively, if the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH format IE has a higher priority, the network device 120 may receive uplink control information based on the number of PUCCH repetitions in the PUCCH format IE. The priorities of the PUCCH resource IE and the PUCCH format IE may be pre-configured by the network device 120.

[0072] In another embodiment, the terminal device 110-2 may transmit uplink control information without PUCCH repetition. For example, if the PUCCH repetition number is not configured in the PUCCH resource IE or in the PUCCH format IE, the network device 120 may receive uplink control information without PUCCH repetition.

[0073] In other embodiments, the first PUCCH and any second PUCCH may include a UCI type with the same priority. In this case, in some embodiments, if a PUCCH starting in an earlier slot is a dynamic PUCCH repetition including HARQ-ACK with DCI and another PUCCH starting in a later slot is a PUCCH including HARQ-ACK with DCI, the network device 120 may not receive the PUCCH starting in the earlier slot, but may receive the PUCCH starting in the later slot. Alternatively, the network device 120 may receive the PUCCH starting in the earlier slot, but may not receive the PUCCH starting in the later slot.

[0074] In some embodiments, a terminal device comprises a circuit configured to receive, from a network device, first configuration information for a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) indicating at least PUCCH repetitions, receive, from the network device, second configuration information for the PUCCH indicating at least the PUCCH repetitions, and transmit uplink control information to the network device based on the number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

[0075] In some embodiments, the terminal device comprises a circuit, the circuit being configured to receive first configuration information for the PUCCH by receiving a PUCCH format information element from the network device indicating the first PUCCH repetition slot number.

[0076] In some embodiments, the terminal device comprises a circuit configured to receive second configuration information for the PUCCH by receiving from the network device a PUCCH resource information element indicating a number of PUCCH repetition numbers corresponding to a number of resources allocated to the PUCCH.

[0077] In some embodiments, the terminal device comprises a circuit configured to receive downlink control information from the network device indicating identification information of a resource, and to determine the resource from the plurality of resources allocated to the PUCCH based on the identification information, and the terminal device comprises a circuit configured to determine a second PUCCH repetition count corresponding to the resource based on the PUCCH link information element, and to transmit the uplink control information by transmitting the uplink control information with the second PUCCH repetition count.

[0078] In some embodiments, the terminal device comprises circuitry, the circuitry being configured to ignore the first number of PUCCH repetitions upon determining that the second number of PUCCH repetitions has been determined.

[0079] In some embodiments, the terminal device comprises a circuit configured to receive a PUCCH resource information element from the network device, and the terminal device comprises a circuit configured to, in accordance with a determination that the number of PUCCH repetitions is not present in the PUCCH resource information element, determine that the number of PUCCH repetitions is a predetermined number, and transmit the uplink control information by transmitting the uplink control information with the predetermined number.

[0080] In some embodiments, the terminal device comprises circuitry configured to transmit the uplink control information to the network device by transmitting the uplink control information over a number of consecutive sub-slots equal to the number of PUCCH repetitions.

[0081] In some embodiments, the terminal device comprises circuitry configured to receive from the network device first downlink control information indicating a first starting PUCCH slot, receive from the network device second downlink control information indicating the first starting PUCCH slot, and determine that the number of PCCH repetitions for the first downlink control information and the second downlink control information are the same.

[0082] In some embodiments, the terminal device comprises circuitry configured to, according to a determination that a first starting slot is a dynamic PUCCH repeat including a hybrid automatic repeat request acknowledgment, a second starting slot is a PUCCH repeat including a hybrid automatic repeat request acknowledgment, and the first starting slot is earlier than the second starting slot, transmit the uplink control information to the network device in the second starting slot or by transmitting the uplink control information to the network device in the first starting slot.

[0083] In some embodiments, a terminal device comprises circuitry configured to receive, from a network device, a radio resource control (RRC) configuration associated with a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), and, pursuant to a determination that both a PUCCH resource information element and a PUCCH format information element are absent in the RRC configuration, transmit uplink control information to the network device without repetition.

[0084] In some embodiments, a terminal device comprises circuitry configured to receive, in the terminal device, from a network device, a radio resource control (RRC) configuration associated with a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), and, according to a determination that a PUCCH resource information element is not present in the RRC configuration but a PUCCH format information element is present, transmit uplink control information to the network device based on a number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the PUCCH format information element.

[0085] In some embodiments, a terminal device comprises circuitry configured to receive, from a network device, a radio resource control (RRC) configuration associated with a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), and, in accordance with a determination that a PUCCH resource information element is present in the RRC configuration, transmit uplink control information to the network device based on a number of PUCCH repetitions determined based on the PUCCH resource information element, regardless of whether a PUCCH format information element is present in the RRC configuration.

[0086] In some embodiments, a network device comprises circuitry configured to: transmit first configuration information of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) to a terminal device, the PUCCH indicating at least a number of PUCCH repetitions; transmit second configuration information of the PUCCH to the terminal device, the PUCCH indicating at least the number of PUCCH repetitions; and receive uplink control information from the terminal device based on a number of the PUCCH repetitions determined at least in part based on the configuration information.

[0087] In some embodiments, the network device comprises circuitry configured to transmit the first configuration information by transmitting a PUCCH format information element to the terminal device indicating the first PUCCH repetition slot number.

[0088] In some embodiments, the network device comprises a circuit configured to transmit the second configuration information by transmitting to the terminal device a PUCCH resource information element indicating a number of PUCCH repetition numbers corresponding to a number of resources allocated to the PUCCH.

[0089] In some embodiments, the network device comprises a circuit configured to transmit downlink control information indicating resource identification information to the terminal device, and the network device comprises a circuit configured to receive the uplink control information by receiving the uplink control information at a second PUCCH repetition number corresponding to the resource determined based on the PUCCH resource information element.

[0090] In some embodiments, the network device comprises a circuit configured to transmit a PUCCH resource information element to the terminal device, and the network device comprises a circuit configured to receive a predetermined number of the uplink control information according to a determination that the number of PUCCH repetitions is not present in the PUCCH resource information element.

[0091] In some embodiments, the network device comprises circuitry configured to receive the uplink control information from the terminal device by receiving the uplink control information over a number of consecutive sub-slots equal to the number of PUCCH repetitions.

[0092] In some embodiments, the network device comprises circuitry configured to, according to a determination that a first starting slot is a dynamic PUCCH repeat including a hybrid automatic repeat request acknowledgment, a second starting slot is a PUCCH repeat including a hybrid automatic repeat request acknowledgment, and the first starting slot is earlier than the second starting slot, receive the uplink control information from the terminal device in the second starting slot or transmit the uplink control information by receiving the uplink control information from the terminal device in the first starting slot.

[0093] Figure 6 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 600 suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure. The apparatus 600 may be considered as another exemplary implementation of the network apparatus 120 or the terminal apparatus 110 shown in Figure 1. Thus, the apparatus 600 may be implemented in, or as at least a part of, the terminal apparatus 110 or the network apparatus 120.

[0094] As shown, the apparatus 600 includes a processor 610, a memory 620 coupled to the processor 610, a suitable transmitter (TX) and receiver (RX) 640 coupled to the processor 610, and a communication interface coupled to the TX / RX 640. The memory 610 stores at least a portion of a program 630. The TX / RX 640 is used for bidirectional communication. The TX / RX 640 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication, although the access nodes referred to herein may actually have multiple antennas. The communication interface may represent any interface required for communication with other network elements, such as an X2 interface for bidirectional communication between eNBs, an S1 interface for communication between a Mobility Management Entity (MME) / Serving Gateway (S-GW) and an eNB, a Un interface for communication between an eNB and a relay node (RN), or a Uu interface for communication between an eNB and a terminal device.

[0095] It is assumed that the program 630 includes program instructions that, when executed by the associated processor 610, enable the device 600 to operate according to embodiments of the present disclosure, as described herein with reference to Figures 2-5. The embodiments may be implemented by computer software executable by the processor 610 of the device 600, by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware. The processor 610 may be configured to implement various embodiments of the present disclosure. Furthermore, the combination of the processor 610 and the memory 620 may form a processing means suitable for implementing various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0096] Memory 620 may be of any type suitable for a local technology network and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, including, by way of non-limiting example, non-transitory computer-readable storage media, semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, and removable memory. While only one memory 620 is shown in device 600, several physically distinct memory modules may be present within device 600. Processor 610 may be of any type suitable for a local technology network and may include, by way of non-limiting example, one or more of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Device 600 may have multiple processors, for example, application-specific integrated circuit chips time-slaved to a clock that synchronizes the main processor.

[0097] Overall, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or special purpose circuits, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software executable by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. While various aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated and described using block diagrams, flowcharts, or other pictorial representations, it should be understood that the blocks, devices, systems, techniques, or methods described herein can be implemented, by way of non-limiting example, in hardware, software, firmware, special purpose circuits or logic, general purpose hardware or controller or other computing device, or any combination thereof.

[0098] The present disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer-executable instructions, such as instructions included in program modules, that execute in a device on a target real or virtual processor to perform the processes or methods described above with reference to FIGS. 1 through 6. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. In various embodiments, the functionality of the program modules may be combined or split between program modules as desired. The machine-executable instructions of the program modules may be executed in local or distributed devices. In a distributed device, program modules may be located in both local and remote storage media.

[0099] Program code for carrying out the methods of the present disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. These program codes may be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing device, and when executed by the processor or controller, cause the program code to implement the functions / acts specified in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams. The program code may run entirely on the machine, partially on the machine, as a separate software package, partially on the machine and partially on a remote machine, or entirely on a remote machine or server.

[0100] The above-described program code may also be embodied on a machine-readable medium, which may be any tangible medium that can contain or store a program used by or associated with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. The machine-readable medium may be a machine-readable signal medium or a machine-readable storage medium. The machine-readable medium may include, but is not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the aforementioned media. More specific examples of machine-readable storage media may include an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer disk, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable optical disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the above.

[0101] Although operations have been described in a particular order, it should not be understood that performing these operations in the particular order shown, or in any sequential order, or performing all of the operations described, is required to achieve desirable results. In some cases, multitasking or parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, while several specific implementation details are included in the above discussion, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the disclosure, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to particular embodiments. Some features that are described in the context of individual embodiments may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features that are described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented in multiple embodiments separately or in any suitable subcombination.

[0102] Although the present disclosure has been described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological acts, it should be understood that the present disclosure, as defined in the appended claims, is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

1. 1. A method performed by a terminal device, comprising: receiving a radio resource control (RRC) configuration message; If the RRC configuration message includes a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource field indicating a second number of PUCCH repetition slots, and downlink control information (DCI) indicating a PUCCH resource is received, transmitting a PUCCH over the second number of PUCCH repetition slots; 1. A method for transmitting a PUCCH over the first number of PUCCH repetition slots when the RRC configuration message includes a PUCCH format field indicating a first number of PUCCH repetition slots and the second number of PUCCH repetition slots is not present in the PUCCH resource field.

2. 1. A method performed by a network device, comprising: Sending a radio resource control (RRC) configuration message; receiving a PUCCH for the second number of PUCCH repetition slots if the RRC configuration message includes a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource field indicating a second number of PUCCH repetition slots and downlink control information (DCI) indicating a PUCCH resource is transmitted; and 1. A method for receiving a PUCCH over a first number of PUCCH repetition slots when the RRC configuration message includes a PUCCH format field indicating a first number of PUCCH repetition slots and the second number of PUCCH repetition slots is not present in the PUCCH resource field.

3. A terminal device, means for receiving a radio resource control (RRC) configuration message; means for transmitting a PUCCH over the second number of PUCCH repetition slots when the RRC configuration message includes a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource field indicating a second number of PUCCH repetition slots and downlink control information (DCI) indicating a PUCCH resource is received; and means for transmitting a PUCCH over the first number of PUCCH repetition slots when the RRC configuration message includes a PUCCH format field indicating a first number of PUCCH repetition slots and the second number of PUCCH repetition slots is not present in the PUCCH resource field.

4. A network device, means for transmitting a radio resource control (RRC) configuration message; means for receiving a PUCCH over the second number of PUCCH repetition slots when the RRC configuration message includes a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource field indicating a second number of PUCCH repetition slots and downlink control information (DCI) indicating a PUCCH resource is transmitted; and means for receiving a PUCCH over the first number of PUCCH repetition slots if the RRC configuration message includes a PUCCH format field indicating a first number of PUCCH repetition slots and if the second number of PUCCH repetition slots is not in the PUCCH resource field.

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