Transmission of multiple transmission blocks scheduled by one downlink control information

Abstract

Various embodiments relate to an apparatus, a method, an apparatus, and a computer-readable medium for transmitting multiple transmission blocks scheduled by one downlink control information. For example, an apparatus may be configured to determine multiple transmission blocks scheduled for respective hybrid automatic repeat request processes according to one downlink control information, and to transmit the multiple transmission blocks via the respective hybrid automatic repeat request processes in an order determined according to the type of the hybrid automatic repeat request process.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] Various embodiments described herein relate generally to communications technologies, and more particularly to devices, methods, apparatus, and computer-readable media for transmitting multiple transmission blocks (TBs) scheduled by one downlink control information (DCI). [Background technology]

[0002] The abbreviations used in this specification and drawings are defined as follows: 3GPP (registered trademark) 3rd Generation Partnership Project CE Control Elements DCI Downlink Control Information eMTC Enhanced Machine Type Communication HARQ Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request IoT Internet of Things MAC Media Access Control NB-IoT Narrowband Internet of Things NTN non-terrestrial network RRC Radio Resource Control TB Transmission Block UE User Equipment

[0003] 3GPP® has developed support for the Internet of Things (IoT) over non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). In NTNs, satellite constellations are deployed to relay communications between terrestrial user equipment (UE) and base stations (BSs). The distance between the UE and the satellite, and the distance between the satellite and the base station serving the UE, can be very large, resulting in large propagation delays and long round-trip times (RTTs) between the BS and the UE. Because the limited number of Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) processes cannot cover the long BS-UE RTTs, HARQ stalls can occur frequently. Summary of the Invention

[0004] A summary of example embodiments is presented below to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of various embodiments. Note that this summary is not intended to identify key features or to delineate the scope of the embodiments; rather, it is intended solely to present some concepts in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that follows.

[0005] In a first aspect, an exemplary embodiment of a first device is provided. The first device may include at least one processor and at least one memory. The at least one memory stores instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first device to at least: determine a plurality of transport blocks scheduled for respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes according to the one downlink control information; and transmit the plurality of transport blocks to a second device via the respective HARQ processes in an order determined according to a type of the HARQ process.

[0006] In a second aspect, an exemplary embodiment of a second device is provided. The second device includes at least one processor and at least one memory. The at least one memory stores instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the second device to at least receive a plurality of transport blocks from the first device via respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes and decode the plurality of transport blocks. The plurality of transport blocks are scheduled in a single downlink control information and are received in an order determined according to a type of HARQ process.

[0007] In a third aspect, an embodiment of a method is provided, the method including: determining, in a first device, a plurality of transport blocks scheduled for respective Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) processes according to a single downlink control information; and transmitting the plurality of transport blocks to a second device via the respective HARQ processes in an order determined according to a type of the HARQ process.

[0008] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of a method is provided, the method including: receiving, at a second device, a plurality of transport blocks from a first device via respective HARQ processes; and decoding the plurality of transport blocks, the plurality of transport blocks scheduled in one downlink control information and received in an order determined according to a type of HARQ process.

[0009] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of an apparatus is provided, comprising: means for determining a plurality of transport blocks scheduled for respective Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) processes according to a piece of downlink control information; and means for transmitting the plurality of transport blocks via the respective HARQ processes in an order determined according to a type of the HARQ process.

[0010] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of an apparatus is provided, comprising: means for receiving a plurality of transport blocks via respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes; and means for decoding the plurality of transport blocks, wherein the plurality of transport blocks are scheduled in one downlink control information and are received in an order determined according to a type of the HARQ process.

[0011] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of a computer-readable medium is provided, the computer-readable medium including instructions that, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to at least: determine a plurality of transport blocks scheduled for respective Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) processes according to the one downlink control information; and transmit the plurality of transport blocks via the respective HARQ processes in an order determined according to a type of the HARQ process.

[0012] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of a computer-readable medium is provided, the computer-readable medium including instructions that, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to at least receive a plurality of transport blocks via respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes and decode the plurality of transport blocks, the plurality of transport blocks being scheduled in a single downlink control information and received in an order determined according to a type of HARQ process.

[0013] Other features and advantages of embodiments of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following description of specific embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of embodiments of the present disclosure. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0014] Some embodiments will now be described, by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a communication network in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented. [Figure 2A] FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram illustrating downlink (DL) hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) transmission timing in an Internet of Things (IoT) over a non-terrestrial network (NTN). [Figure 2B] FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram showing uplink (UL) HARQ transmission timing in IoT NTN. [Figure 3]FIG. 3 is a message flow diagram illustrating an example process according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4A] FIG. 4A is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of transmitting multiple transmission blocks (TBs) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4B] FIG. 4B is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of transmitting multiple TBs according to another embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 5A] FIG. 5A is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of transmitting multiple TBs without interleaving, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 5B] FIG. 5B is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of transmitting multiple TBs with interleaving, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a message flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of downlink transmission of multiple TBs according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a message flow diagram illustrating an exemplary process according to another embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating an apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating an apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 11] 11 is a block diagram illustrating devices in a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements. Repeated descriptions of the same elements will be omitted. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0015] Some embodiments will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The following description includes specific details to provide a thorough understanding of various concepts. However, those skilled in the art will understand that these concepts can be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known circuits, techniques, and components are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring the described concepts and features.

[0016] As used herein, the term "network equipment" may refer to Radio Access Network (RAN) equipment. RAN equipment includes, for example, base stations that can provide cells or coverage. Terminal devices can access the network or receive services through these. A base station may be implemented as an evolved Node B (eNB), next-generation eNB (ng-eNB), next-generation Node B (gNB), or a 5G+ base station. A base station may be embodied as a macro base station, a relay node, or a low-power node such as a pico base station or a femto base station. A base station may include multiple distributed network units, such as a central unit (CU), one or more distributed units (DUs), and one or more remote radio heads (RRHs) or remote radio units (RRUs). The number and functionality of these distributed units depend on the selected split RAN architecture. Base stations may be located on the ground or in the air. For example, they may be installed on satellites, high-altitude platform stations, unmanned aerial systems, balloons, aircraft, etc.

[0017] As used herein, the term "terminal" or "user equipment" (UE) may refer to any entity or device capable of wirelessly communicating with a network device or device. Examples of terminals include mobile phones, mobile terminals (MT), mobile stations (MS), subscriber stations (SS), portable subscriber stations (PSS), access terminals (AT), computers, wearable devices, in-vehicle communication devices, machine-to-machine communication (MTC) devices, device-to-device communication devices, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication devices, sensors, etc. The term "terminal" can be used interchangeably with UE, user terminal, mobile terminal, mobile station, or wireless device.

[0018] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a communication network 100 in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented. The communication network 100 may form part of a larger network (e.g., a cellular communication network). Referring to FIG. 1, the communication network 100 is implemented as a non-terrestrial network (NTN) including one or more user equipment (UE) 110 (one shown in FIG. 1 ) and one or more satellites 102 (one shown in FIG. 1 ). The satellites 102 may include, for example, low earth orbit (LEO) satellites, geostationary earth orbit (GEO) satellites, or satellites at altitudes between GEO and LEO, or may be replaced by, for example, aircraft, balloons, high-altitude platform stations, unmanned aerial systems, etc.

[0019] The satellite 102 may be implemented as a regenerative satellite or a transparent satellite. A regenerative satellite may include at least a portion of the base station 120a to perform some of the functions of the base station 120a. For example, if the satellite 102 is equipped with a 5G New Radio (NR) base station 120a (gNB), it may implement an NR-Uu air interface on the service link between the satellite 102 and the UE 110 and an N2 / N3 interface on the feeder link between the satellite 102 and the terrestrial gateway 130. The gateway 130 provides interconnection to terrestrial infrastructure, including, for example, the base station 120b and a core network (not shown). A transparent satellite functions as an analog radio frequency repeater that relays communications between the UE 110 and the terrestrial base station 120b (via the gateway 130). For example, if the base station 120b is implemented as a 5G NR base station, known as a gNB, the transparent satellite simply relays the NR-Uu air interface on the feeder link and the service link. Additionally, satellites 102 can communicate with each other via inter-satellite links (ISLs). Using satellites 102, NTN 100 can extend network services to areas where no terrestrial infrastructure exists.

[0020] As mentioned above, in the NTN 100, the UE 110 can communicate with a base station 120a deployed on a satellite 102 or a terrestrially deployed base station 120b. For purposes of explanation, the base stations 120a and 120b may be referred to collectively as base stations 120 or individually as base stations 120.

[0021] 3GPP has agreed to support the Internet of Things (IoT) in non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). This includes, for example, narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) and enhanced machine-type communications (eMTC). Similar to NR NTNs, IoT NTNs also use a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) mechanism to ensure communication reliability. Figure 2A schematically illustrates the timing of downlink (DL) HARQ transmissions in non-terrestrial networks (NTNs). As shown in Figure 2A, a base station (BS) can transmit a transmission block (TB) to a UE via a HARQ process on a DL data channel at time T1. The UE receives and decodes the TB and transmits HARQ feedback (ACK or NACK) to the base station indicating the success or failure of the reception and decoding. Assume that the base station receives the HARQ feedback at time T2. According to the HARQ feedback, the base station can reuse the HARQ process to schedule a new transmission or a retransmission. That is, the base station cannot reuse a HARQ process until it knows whether the previous transmission scheduled for that HARQ process was successful or failed. The time from T1 to T2 can be called the round-trip time (RTT) between the base station and the UE (hereinafter referred to as "BS-UE RTT"). Because the distance between the base station and the UE is long, the BS-UE RTT is long in NTN. If the number of HARQ processes used for DL ​​transmission between the base station and the UE cannot cover this long BS-UE RTT, HARQ stalls may occur frequently.

[0022] Figure 2B illustrates the timing of uplink (UL) HARQ transmissions in an NTN. As shown in Figure 2B, at time T3, the base station transmits downlink control information (DCI) to the UE to schedule a TB on an HARQ process. Based on the DCI, the UE transmits the TB to the base station via an HARQ process on the UL data channel. Assume that the base station receives the TB at time T4. Depending on whether the base station successfully receives and decodes the TB at time T4, the base station can reuse the HARQ process to schedule a new transmission or retransmission. That is, the base station cannot reuse the HARQ process until it knows whether the previous transmission scheduled for the HARQ process succeeded or failed. The time from T3 to T4 is also known as the BS-UE RTT. The BS-UE RTT is long in an NTN due to the long distance between the base station and the UE. If the number of HARQ processes used for UL transmission between the base station and the UE cannot cover the long BS-UE RTT, HARQ stalls may occur frequently.

[0023] To mitigate the impact of HARQ stalls on the UE's data rate, several mechanisms have been introduced. For example, a DL HARQ process can be configured with feedback enabled or disabled. If a DL HARQ process is configured with feedback enabled, the base station will not reuse that DL HARQ process in the next transmission until it knows whether the previous transmission of the DL HARQ process was successful. If a DL HARQ process is configured with feedback disabled, the UE will not send feedback (ACK or NACK) for the HARQ process, and the base station can reuse the HARQ process in the next transmission (new transmission or retransmission) without waiting for HARQ feedback from the UE. As a result, disabling HARQ feedback allows the HARQ process to be reused in a timely manner, thereby avoiding HARQ stalls.

[0024] As another example, an UL HARQ process may be configured for Mode A or Mode B. In Mode A, the next transmission of an UL HARQ process depends on the decoding result of the previous transmission of that UL HARQ process. If decoding of the previous transmission fails, the base station schedules a retransmission on the UL HARQ process. Otherwise, the base station schedules a new transmission on the UL HARQ process. Conversely, in Mode B, the base station can reuse the UL HARQ process to schedule the next transmission before the decoding result of the previous transmission is available. For example, in Mode B, the base station can blindly schedule retransmissions on the UL HARQ process or not schedule retransmissions at all. As a result, an UL HARQ process configured for Mode B can be reused without BS-UE RTT constraints, and HARQ stalls can be avoided due to timely reuse of HARQ processes.

[0025] In IoT NTN, multiple TBs may be scheduled by one DCI. In addition to resource allocation, the DCI may also indicate multiple HARQ processes associated with multiple TBs. In DL, multiple HARQ processes can be independently configured for feedback enable / disable. If HARQ processes 1, 2, 3, and 4 are configured for feedback enable, disable, enable, and disable, respectively, the base station transmits TBs on the downlink data channel in the order of HARQ processes 1, 2, 3, and 4. If HARQ process feedback is enabled, the UE transmits HARQ feedback on the uplink control channel. On the other hand, if HARQ process feedback is disabled, the UE stops HARQ feedback transmission or transmits default values ​​on the uplink control channel. In this case, the UE transmits feedback for HARQ process 1, sends an empty or default value for HARQ process 2, sends feedback for HARQ process 3, and sends an empty or default value for HARQ process 4, in this order. As mentioned above, the base station cannot reuse HARQ processes 1 and 3 configured for feedback enable until it receives HARQ feedback. In the UL, multiple HARQ processes can be configured independently for Mode A or B. Considering HARQ processes 1, 2, 3, and 4 configured for Mode A, Mode B, Mode A, and Mode B, the UE transmits TBs on the uplink data channel in the order of HARQ processes 1, 2, 3, and 4. The base station cannot reuse HARQ processes 1 and 3 configured for Mode A for scheduling the next transmission until it obtains the decoded results of the TBs received on HARQ processes 1 and 3.

[0026] Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a solution for transmitting multiple TBs scheduled by one DCI, which can reduce delays caused by HARQ stalls when some of the HARQ processes for transmitting the multiple TBs scheduled by one DCI are configured as feedback-enabled or Mode A, while the remaining HARQ processes are configured as feedback-disabled or Mode B. These embodiments can be applied to communication systems in which multiple TBs can be scheduled by one DCI, such as eMTC NTN, IoT NTN including NB-IoT NTN, Long Term Evolution (LTE) NTN, NR NTN, and NR-Light NTN.

[0027] 3 is a message flow diagram illustrating an example process 200 for transmitting multiple TBs scheduled by one DCI, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 3, process 200 is performed by a first device 201 functioning as a transmitting device for transmitting the multiple TBs and a second device 203 functioning as a receiving device for receiving the multiple TBs. When process 200 is applied to DL HARQ transmission, the first device 201 is implemented as a network device such as the aforementioned base station 120, and the second device 203 is implemented as a terminal device such as the aforementioned UE 110. When process 200 is applied to UL HARQ transmission, the first device 201 is implemented as a terminal device such as the aforementioned UE 110, and the second device 203 is implemented as a network device such as the aforementioned base station 120.

[0028] Referring to FIG. 3, at 210, the first device 201 determines multiple TBs scheduled by one DCI. The DCI is transmitted from the base station to the UE and may include resource allocations for UL or DL ​​TB transmissions. In addition to the resource allocations, the DCI may also indicate HARQ processes over which the multiple TBs will be transmitted. For DL ​​HARQ transmissions, the HARQ processes are configured as feedback-enabled or feedback-disabled. For UL HARQ transmissions, the HARQ processes are configured as Mode A or Mode B. For convenience of description, an HARQ process configured as feedback-enabled or Mode A is referred to as a first-type HARQ process, and an HARQ process configured as feedback-disabled or Mode B is referred to as a second-type HARQ process. The base station can configure the type of HARQ process semi-statically or dynamically. For example, the network configures the type of HARQ process within the DCI or via separate RRC signaling or MAC CE. As described above, for UL HARQ transmissions, the first device 201 is implemented as a UE and prepares TBs for transmission on the UL data channel using the resources allocated in the DCI. In the case of DL HARQ transmission, the first device 201 is implemented as a base station and is capable of preparing a TB to be transmitted on a DL data channel using resources indicated to the UE in the DCI.

[0029] In 220, the first device 201 transmits multiple TBs via the respective HARQ processes in an order determined according to the type of the HARQ process. Consider an example in which four TBs 1 to 4 are scheduled to four HARQ processes 1 to 4 by DCI. HARQ processes 1 and 3 are configured as a first type (feedback enabled for DL ​​HARQ, mode A for UL HARQ), and HARQ processes 2 and 4 are configured as a second type (feedback disabled for DL ​​HARQ, mode B for UL HARQ). In conventional processing, TBs 1 to 4 are transmitted in the order of HARQ process identities 1 to 4, i.e., TB1, TB2, TB3, TB4. On the other hand, in this embodiment, TBs 1 to 4 can be transmitted in the order of HARQ process type, regardless of the HARQ process identity. For example, a TB scheduled for a first type of HARQ process is transmitted before a TB scheduled for a second type of HARQ process. In the example shown in FIG. 4A , TBs 1 and 3 scheduled on HARQ processes 1 and 3 of the first type are transmitted before TBs 2 and 4 scheduled on HARQ processes 2 and 4 of the second type. Therefore, the second device 203 may be the first to receive TBs transmitted on HARQ processes configured for feedback-enabled or Mode A. It is beneficial for the second device 203 to proceed with its next operation early, thereby reducing delays due to HARQ stalls associated with HARQ processes configured for feedback-enabled or Mode A. For example, the second device 203 may transmit HARQ feedback to the first device 201 early, or the second device 203 may reuse a Mode A HARQ process for scheduling its next transmission early, thereby improving transmission efficiency and scheduling efficiency.

[0030] As another example, a TB scheduled on a first-type HARQ process may be transmitted after a TB scheduled on a second-type HARQ process. In the example shown in FIG. 4B, TBs 1 and 3 scheduled on first-type HARQ processes 1 and 3 are transmitted after TBs 2 and 4 scheduled on second-type HARQ processes 2 and 4. Thus, the second device 203 may first receive a TB transmitted on an HARQ process for which feedback is disabled or which is operating in Mode B. If an important data transmission is scheduled on a second-type HARQ process, it is beneficial to transmit on the second-type HARQ process first, since this allows the second device 203 to receive the important data earlier. If high-speed data transmission is required, transmission on the second-type HARQ process allows data to be transmitted earlier without having to wait for feedback. This creates the possibility of early reuse of these HARQ processes, thereby enabling high-speed data transmission.

[0031] In one embodiment, the first device 201 and the second device 203 have a common understanding of the transmission order of the first and second types of HARQ processes and follow this common understanding in transmitting and receiving TBs in step 220. In another embodiment, the base station configures the transmission order of the first and second types of HARQ processes for the UE. For example, the base station semi-statically configures the transmission order of the HARQ types via RRC signaling, or dynamically configures the transmission order of the HARQ types in the DCI or via the MAC CE.

[0032] It should be understood that TBs scheduled to HARQ processes of the same type are transmitted in the order of their HARQ process identities. For example, as shown in Figures 4A and 4B, TBs 1 and 3 scheduled to HARQ processes 1 and 3 of the first type are transmitted in the order of TB1 and TB3, and TBs 2 and 4 scheduled to HARQ processes 2 and 4 of the second type are transmitted in the order of TB2 and TB4.

[0033] In one embodiment, multiple TBs are transmitted with or without interleaving, depending on the interleaving configuration. Interleaving is performed between TBs associated with the same type of HARQ process. Consider the example shown in FIG. 4A and further assume that each TB has two repetitions. Without interleaving, the four TBs 1-4 are transmitted in the order TB1, TB1, TB3, TB3, TB2, TB2, TB4, TB4, as shown in FIG. 5A. With interleaving configured, the four TBs 1-4 are transmitted in the order TB1, TB3, TB1, TB3, TB2, TB4, TB2, TB4, as shown in FIG. 5B.

[0034] The base station can configure interleaving for TBs scheduled by one DCI or for a group / set of TBs associated with the same type of HARQ process. For example, the base station can configure interleaving for TBs associated with a first type of HARQ process and not for TBs associated with a second type of HARQ process, or vice versa. In this way, interleaving can be flexibly configured for different types of HARQ processes. The base station can configure interleaving within the DCI or via a separate signaling message, such as RRC signaling or MAC CE.

[0035] 3, in step 230, the second device 203 decrypts the TB received in step 220. The second device 203 performs further processing, which will be described later, according to the result of decoding the received TB.

[0036] 6 is a message flow diagram illustrating an example of a process 300 for DL ​​HARQ transmission according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The process 300 may be performed, for example, in the base station 120 and the UE 110. Some details of the process 300 are disclosed above with respect to the process 200, and will not be repeated here.

[0037] Referring to FIG. 6, at 310, the base station 120 transmits DCI to the UE 110 for scheduling DL transmission of multiple TBs. The DCI is transmitted via a DL control channel, such as a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), an enhanced physical downlink control channel (EPDCCH), an MTC physical downlink control channel (MPDCCH), or a narrowband physical downlink control channel (NPDCCH). It indicates frequency and time resources allocated for the UE 110 to transmit multiple TBs on a DL data channel. The DL data channel may be, for example, a physical downlink data shared channel (PDSCH) or a narrowband physical downlink data shared channel (NPDSCH). The DCI may also indicate a HARQ process for transmitting the multiple TBs. As an example, the DCI may further configure the indicated HARQ process as feedback enabled or feedback disabled. As another example, the HARQ process may be configured as feedback enabled or feedback disabled via a separate signaling message, such as RRC signaling or MAC CE. For convenience of explanation, an HARQ process configured with feedback enabled may also be referred to as a first type HARQ process, and an HARQ process configured with feedback disabled may also be referred to as a second type HARQ process.

[0038] In one embodiment, the DCI can further configure the transmission of multiple TBs with or without interleaving, and this interleaving can be configured for all TBs scheduled by the DCI or for a group / set of TBs associated with a particular type of HARQ process, e.g., TBs associated with feedback-enabled HARQ processes and / or TBs associated with feedback-disabled HARQ processes, etc. Base station 120 can configure interleaving within the DCI or via other signaling messages, such as RRC signaling or MAC CE.

[0039] At 320, base station 120 transmits multiple TBs to UE 110 via HARQ processes in an order that depends on the type of HARQ process. For example, as described above in FIGS. 4A and 4B, TBs scheduled for feedback-enabled HARQ processes may be transmitted before TBs scheduled for feedback-disabled HARQ processes, or vice versa. In one embodiment, base station 120 and UE 110 may have a common understanding of the transmission order depending on the type of HARQ process. In another embodiment, base station 120 may dynamically configure the transmission order depending on the type of HARQ process for UE 110 via DCI or MAC CE, or may semi-statically configure the transmission order depending on the type of HARQ process for UE 110 via RRC signaling.

[0040] In an embodiment, TBs are transmitted with or without interleaving. As described in Figures 5A and 5B, interleaving is performed between TBs associated with the same type of HARQ process. Interleaving is configured for all TBs scheduled by the DCI or for a group / set of TBs associated with a specific type of HARQ process. The base station 120 configures interleaving for TBs in the DCI or via separate RRS signaling or MAC CE.

[0041] At 330 , the UE 110 decodes the TB received in step 320 .

[0042] At 340, UE 110 transmits HARQ feedback indicating whether TBs transmitted via feedback-enabled HARQ processes have been successfully decoded to base station 120. The HARQ feedback is transmitted in an order determined according to the HARQ process identity. For example, referring to FIG. 7, if TBs 1 and TB3 scheduled for feedback-enabled HARQ processes 1 and 3 are transmitted before TBs 2 and TB4 scheduled for feedback-disabled HARQ processes 2 and 4, UE 110 transmits feedback for HARQ process 1 and feedback for HARQ process 3 in that order. It should be understood that UE 110 does not need to transmit feedback for HARQ processes 2 and 4 for which feedback is disabled. Because TBs 1 and TB3 are scheduled for HARQ processes 1 and 3 and TBs 2 and TB4 are scheduled for HARQ processes 2 and 4, UE 110 can transmit feedback for HARQ processes 1 and 3 earlier than in the conventional method in which TBs are transmitted according to HARQ process IDs, thereby reducing delay.

[0043] In one embodiment, a TB transmitted via a feedback-enabled HARQ process may include a signaling message, such as RRC signaling or a MAC CE. At 350a, base station 120 validates a signaling message transmitted on a DL TB on a feedback-enabled HARQ process upon receiving and successfully decoding HARQ feedback for the TB that includes the signaling message. For example, referring to FIG. 7, the signaling message included in TB1 becomes valid at base station 120 upon successfully receiving and decoding HARQ feedback 1 (i.e., HARQ ACK) indicating that TB1 has been successfully decoded by UE 110. The signaling message included in TB3 becomes valid at base station 120 upon successfully receiving and decoding HARQ feedback 3 (i.e., HARQ ACK) indicating that TB3 has been successfully decoded by UE 110. If TB1 and TB3 transmit one signaling message (i.e., each TB transmits a portion of the signaling message), the signaling message becomes valid at base station 120 when base station 120 successfully receives and decodes both HARQ Feedback 1 and HARQ Feedback 3, which indicate that both TB1 and TB3 were successfully decoded at UE 110.

[0044] At 350b, UE 110 validates a signaling message received at a TB on an HARQ process for which feedback is valid according to the transmission time of the HARQ feedback for the TB containing the signaling message. For example, referring to FIG. 7, the signaling message included in TB1 becomes valid in UE 110 after the transmission time of HARQ feedback 1 plus an offset, and the signaling message included in TB3 becomes valid in UE 110 after the transmission time of HARQ feedback 3 plus an offset. If a signaling message is transmitted by TB1 and TB3 (i.e., each TB transmits a part of the signaling message), the signaling message may become valid in UE 110 after adding an offset to the transmission time of the HARQ feedback for the last TB (TB3 in this example). The offset is set by base station 120 and may take into account propagation delay between UE 110 and base station 120 and processing delay at base station 120. For example, the offset may be set to a value substantially equal to half the BS-UE RTT or one BS-UE RTT, such that the signaling message is valid at both base station 120 and UE 110 simultaneously.

[0045] 6, in step 360, base station 120 may reuse the feedback-enabled HARQ process for scheduling the next downlink (DL) transmission in response to the HARQ feedback for the feedback-enabled HARQ process received in step 340. For example, if the HARQ feedback for the feedback-enabled HARQ process is an ACK, base station 120 may reuse the feedback-enabled HARQ process for scheduling a new transmission. If the HARQ feedback for the feedback-enabled HARQ process is a NACK, base station 120 may reuse the feedback-enabled HARQ process for scheduling a retransmission of a TB previously transmitted in that process. Because base station 120 does not receive feedback from UE 110 for the feedback-disabled HARQ process, it may blindly schedule new transmissions or retransmissions.

[0046] After UE 110 transmits HARQ feedback for a TB received in a feedback-enabled HARQ process, UE 110 may stop transmitting HARQ feedback for other TBs received in feedback-disabled HARQ processes. For example, referring to FIG. 7, after UE 110 transmits HARQ feedback 1 for TB 1 received in HARQ process 1 and HARQ feedback 3 for TB 3 received in HARQ process 3, UE 110 stops transmitting HARQ feedback for TB 2 received in HARQ process 2 and TB 4 received in HARQ process 4. Then, at 370, UE 110 may monitor new DCI for scheduling subsequent transmissions that reuse the feedback-enabled HARQ processes (HARQ processes 1 and 3 in the example shown in FIG. 7) according to the transmission time of the HARQ feedback. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 7, UE 110 begins monitoring DCI for scheduling subsequent transmissions in feedback-enabled HARQ processes 1 and 3 after the time that is equal to the transmission time of HARQ feedback 3 plus an offset. This offset is set to a value equal to or greater than the BS-UE RTT, for example.

[0047] UE 110 may also monitor DCI for scheduling of subsequent transmissions in feedback-disabled HARQ processes. If UE 110 operates in half-duplex mode, after transmitting HARQ feedback for the feedback-enabled HARQ process, it may switch from UL transmit mode to DL receive mode and then monitor DCI for scheduling of subsequent transmissions on the feedback-disabled HARQ process or for scheduling of other transmissions, such as other HARQ processes not scheduled by a DCI scheduling a SIB or multiple TBs. UE 110 may start monitoring DCI for scheduling of subsequent transmissions in feedback-disabled HARQ processes or other HARQ processes not scheduled by a DCI scheduling a system information block (SIB) or multiple TBs according to the transmission time of the HARQ feedback. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 7, UE 110 may add an offset to the transmission time of HARQ feedback 3 before starting to monitor DCI for the scheduling of subsequent transmissions in feedback-disabled HARQ processes 2 and 4, or for subsequent transmissions of SIBs or HARQ processes other than HARQ processes 1-4. This offset is set to a value that takes into account UL-DL switching delay. Because feedback-enabled HARQ processes are received before feedback-disabled HARQ processes, HARQ feedback for feedback-enabled HARQ processes is transmitted earlier than legacy processes. Therefore, UE 110 can switch to DL reception mode earlier than legacy processes and monitor DCI for feedback-disabled HARQ processes. When UE 110 operates in full-duplex mode, UE 110 can monitor DCI at any time for transmissions of feedback-disabled HARQ processes, as well as SIBs and other HARQ processes that are not scheduled by DCI scheduling multiple TBs.

[0048] 8 is a message flow diagram illustrating an example of a process 400 for UL HARQ transmission according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Process 400 may be performed, for example, in base station 120 and UE 110. Some details of process 400 have already been disclosed with respect to processes 200 and 300 above, and will not be repeated here.

[0049] Referring to FIG. 8, at 410, the base station 120 transmits DCI to the UE 110 for scheduling UL transmission of multiple TBs. The DCI is transmitted via a DL control channel such as a PDCCH, an EPDCCH, an MPDCCH, or an NPDCCH. It indicates frequency and time resources allocated for the UE 110 to transmit multiple TBs on an UL data channel. The UL data channel is, for example, a Physical Uplink Data Shared Channel (PUSCH) or a Narrowband Physical Uplink Data Shared Channel (NPUSCH). The DCI may also indicate an HARQ process for transmitting the multiple TBs. As an example, the DCI may further configure the indicated HARQ process to Mode A or Mode B. As another example, the HARQ process may be configured to Mode A or Mode B via a separate signaling message such as RRC signaling or MAC CE. For convenience of explanation, an HARQ process configured to Mode A may also be referred to as a first-type HARQ process, and an HARQ process configured to Mode B may also be referred to as a second-type HARQ process.

[0050] In one embodiment, the DCI can further configure the transmission of multiple TBs with or without interleaving, and this interleaving can be configured for all TBs scheduled by the DCI or for a group / set of TBs associated with a particular type of HARQ process, e.g., TBs associated with HARQ processes in Mode A and TBs associated with HARQ processes in Mode B. Base station 120 can configure interleaving within the DCI or via other signaling messages such as RRC signaling or MAC CE.

[0051] At 420, the UE 110 transmits multiple TBs via HARQ processes to the base station 120 based on the received DCI in an order that depends on the type of HARQ process. For example, as described in FIGS. 4A and 4B, a TB scheduled for a Mode A HARQ process may be transmitted before a TB scheduled for a Mode B HARQ process, or vice versa. In one embodiment, the base station 120 and the UE 110 may have a common understanding of the transmission order depending on the type of HARQ process. In another embodiment, the base station 120 may dynamically configure the transmission order depending on the type of HARQ process for the UE 110 via DCI or MAC CE, or may semi-statically configure the transmission order depending on the type of HARQ process for the UE 110 via RRC signaling.

[0052] In some embodiments, TBs are transmitted with or without interleaving. As described in Figures 5A and 5B, interleaving is performed between TBs associated with the same type of HARQ process. Interleaving is configured for all TBs scheduled by the DCI or for a group / set of TBs associated with a specific type of HARQ process. The base station 120 configures TB interleaving within the DCI or via other RRS signaling or MAC CE.

[0053] In step 430 , the base station 120 decodes the TB received in step 420 .

[0054] In one embodiment, a TB transmitted via a HARQ process in Mode A may include at least one of a signaling message, e.g., RRC signaling or MAC CE. At 440a, the base station 120 validates a signaling message when it successfully decodes a TB including the signaling message. For example, referring to FIG. 4A, the signaling message included in TB1 becomes valid at the base station 120 when the base station 120 successfully receives and decodes TB1, and the signaling message included in TB3 becomes valid at the base station 120 when the base station 120 successfully receives and decodes TB3. If a signaling message is carried by TB1 and TB3 (i.e., each TB transmits a portion of the signaling message), the signaling message may become valid at the base station 120 when the base station 120 successfully receives and decodes both TB1 and TB3.

[0055] At 440b, the UE 110 may enable a signaling message transmitted to a TB on a Mode A HARQ process according to the transmission time of the TB that includes the signaling message. For example, referring to FIG. 4A , the signaling message included in TB1 becomes valid in the UE 110 after the transmission time of TB1 plus an offset, and the signaling message included in TB3 becomes valid in the UE 110 after the transmission time of TB3 plus an offset. If a signaling message is transmitted by TB1 and TB3 (i.e., each TB transmits a portion of the signaling message), the signaling message may become valid in the UE 110 after the transmission time of the last TB (TB3 in this example) plus an offset. The offset is set by the base station 120 and may take into account the propagation delay between the UE 110 and the base station 120 and the processing delay at the base station 120. For example, the offset may be set to a value substantially equal to half the BS-UE RTT or one BS-UE RTT. This offset ensures that the signaling message is valid at base station 120 and UE 110 simultaneously.

[0056] Continuing to refer to FIG. 8, in step 450, base station 120 may reuse the HARQ process in Mode A to schedule the next uplink transmission. For example, if base station 120 successfully decodes the TB received on the Mode A HARQ process in step 430, base station 120 may reuse the Mode A HARQ process to schedule the new transmission. If base station 120 fails to decode the TB received on the Mode A HARQ process in step 430, base station 120 may reuse the Mode A HARQ process to schedule a retransmission of the TB previously scheduled on the Mode A HARQ process. Base station 120 may blindly schedule new transmissions or retransmissions on Mode B HARQ processes without relying on the decoding results of previous transmissions on Mode B HARQ processes.

[0057] After UE 110 transmits the TB scheduled for the Mode A HARQ process, in step 460, UE 110 may monitor for new DCI for scheduling of subsequent uplink transmissions that reuse the Mode A HARQ process according to the transmission time of the TB previously scheduled for the Mode A HARQ process. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 4A , UE 110 may start monitoring DCI for scheduling of subsequent transmissions for Mode A HARQ processes 1 and 3 after the transmission time of the last TB (TB3 in this example) plus an offset. The offset may be set to a value that is, for example, equal to or greater than the BS-UE RTT.

[0058] UE 110 can also monitor DCI for scheduling of subsequent UL transmissions on HARQ processes in Mode B. When UE 110 operates in half-duplex mode, UE 110 may switch from UL transmission mode to DL reception mode after transmitting TBs (TBs 1 to 4 in the example shown in FIG. 4A) scheduled by the previous DCI, and then monitor DCI for scheduling of subsequent transmissions on HARQ processes in Mode B. For example, in the example of FIG. 4A, UE 110 adds an offset to the transmission time of TB 4 before starting to monitor DCI for scheduling of subsequent transmissions on HARQ processes 2 and 4 in Mode B. This offset is set to a value that takes into account UL-DL switching delay. When UE 110 operates in full-duplex mode, base station 120 can blindly schedule UL transmissions without relying on the decoding result of TBs previously scheduled on HARQ processes in Mode B, so UE 110 can monitor DCI for HARQ processes in Mode B at any time.

[0059] 9 is a block diagram illustrating an apparatus 500 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The apparatus 500 may be implemented to configure or to configure at least a portion of the first apparatus 201 to perform at least some of the operations associated with the first apparatus 201 described above. As previously described, the first apparatus 201 may be implemented as a base station 120 transmitting DL TBs scheduled by one DCI or as a UE 110 transmitting UL TBs scheduled by one DCI. Because operations associated with the first apparatus 201, the base station 120, and the UE 110 have already been described with reference to FIGS. 1 through 8, the blocks of the apparatus 500 will only be briefly described here and reference should be made to the above descriptions for details.

[0060] As shown in FIG. 9, the apparatus 500 may include a first means 510 for determining, according to one downlink control information, a plurality of transport blocks scheduled to respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes, and a second means 520 for transmitting, to a second apparatus, the plurality of transport blocks via the respective HARQ processes in an order determined according to a type of the HARQ process.

[0061] In one embodiment, the HARQ processes include one or more HARQ processes of a first type configured with feedback enabled and one or more HARQ processes of a second type configured with feedback disabled.

[0062] In an exemplary embodiment, the HARQ processes include one or more HARQ processes of a first type configured for Mode A and one or more HARQ processes of a second type configured for Mode B.

[0063] In an example embodiment, among the plurality of transport blocks, one or more transport blocks associated with one or more HARQ processes of a first type may be transmitted before one or more transport blocks associated with one or more HARQ processes of a second type.

[0064] In an example embodiment, among the plurality of transport blocks, one or more transport blocks associated with one or more HARQ processes of a first type may be transmitted after one or more transport blocks associated with one or more HARQ processes of a second type.

[0065] In one embodiment, the first device is a network device and the second device is a terminal device. The apparatus 500 may further include third means 530 for receiving HARQ feedback indicating whether one or more transport blocks transmitted via one or more HARQ processes of the first type have been successfully decoded at the second device in an order determined according to the identities of the one or more HARQ processes of the first type.

[0066] In one embodiment, the first device is a terminal device, and the second device is a network device. One or more TBs transmitted on one or more HARQ processes configured in Mode A (i.e., the first type) may include at least one signaling message of RRC signaling or MAC CE. The apparatus 500 may further include fourth means 540 for validating the signaling message according to a transmission time of the one or more TBs transmitted on the one or more HARQ processes configured in Mode A. For example, the fourth means 540 may validate the signaling message after adding an offset to the transmission time of the TB including the signaling message, where the offset is set taking into account a propagation delay between the terminal device and the network device and a processing delay in the network device.

[0067] In one embodiment, the apparatus 500 may further comprise a fifth means 550 for monitoring a new DCI for scheduling a subsequent UL transmission that reuses the Mode A HARQ process according to a transmission time of a TB previously scheduled in the Mode A HARQ process. For example, the fifth means 550 may start monitoring a DCI for scheduling a subsequent transmission on the Mode A HARQ process after adding an offset to the transmission time of the last TB previously scheduled in the Mode A HARQ process (TB3 in the example shown in FIG. 4A ). The offset may be configured to be equal to or greater than the BS-UE RTT. In one embodiment, the fifth means 550 is also configured to monitor a DCI for scheduling a subsequent UL transmission on the Mode B HARQ process. For example, when the terminal device operates in half-duplex mode, the fifth means 550 starts monitoring a DCI for scheduling a subsequent transmission on the Mode B HARQ process from a time obtained by adding an offset to the transmission time of the last TB scheduled by the previous DCI (TB4 in the example shown in FIG. 4A ). Here, the offset is set to a value that takes into account the UL-DL switching delay.

[0068] In an embodiment, if multiple transport blocks include transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process, the transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process may be transmitted in an order determined according to the identity of the one type of HARQ process.

[0069] In an example embodiment, transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process may be transmitted with or without interleaving according to an interleaving configuration, and interleaving may be performed between transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process.

[0070] In an exemplary embodiment, the transmission order of multiple transport blocks, determined according to the type of HARQ process, may be configured via a piece of downlink control information, radio resource control signaling, or medium access control control element.

[0071] 10 is a block diagram illustrating an apparatus 600 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The apparatus 600 may be implemented to include at least a portion of the second apparatus 203 described above and to perform at least a portion of the operations associated with the second apparatus 203. As previously described, the second apparatus 203 may be implemented as a base station 120 receiving an uplink TB scheduled by one DCI or as a UE 110 receiving a downlink TB scheduled by one DCI. Because operations associated with the second apparatus 203, the base station 120, and the UE 110 have already been described with reference to FIGS. 1 through 8, the blocks of the apparatus 600 will be briefly described here and references to the above descriptions are made for details.

[0072] 10 , an apparatus 600 may comprise a first means 610 for receiving a plurality of transport blocks from a first device via respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes and a second means 620 for decoding the plurality of transport blocks, wherein the plurality of transport blocks are scheduled by one downlink control information and are received in an order determined according to a type of HARQ process.

[0073] In one embodiment, the HARQ processes may include one or more HARQ processes of a first type configured with feedback enabled and one or more HARQ processes of a second type configured with feedback disabled.

[0074] In one embodiment, the HARQ processes include one or more HARQ processes of a first type configured for Mode A and one or more HARQ processes of a second type configured for Mode B.

[0075] In an example embodiment, one or more transport blocks of the plurality of transport blocks associated with one or more HARQ processes of a first type may be received before one or more transport blocks associated with one or more HARQ processes of a second type.

[0076] In an example embodiment, one or more transport blocks of the plurality of transport blocks associated with one or more HARQ processes of a first type may be received after one or more transport blocks associated with one or more HARQ processes of a second type.

[0077] In one embodiment, the first device is a network device and the second device is a terminal device. The apparatus 600 may further comprise third means 630 for transmitting HARQ feedback indicating whether one or more transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type have been successfully decoded in an order determined according to the identities of the one or more HARQ processes of the first type.

[0078] In one embodiment, the apparatus 600 may further comprise a fourth means 640 for monitoring a downlink control channel for a subsequent transmission according to a transmission time of the HARQ feedback associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type.

[0079] In one embodiment, the apparatus 600 may further comprise a fifth means 650 for monitoring a downlink control channel for a subsequent transmission via one or more HARQ processes of a second type according to a transmission time of an HARQ feedback associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type when the second device operates in a half-duplex mode.

[0080] In an embodiment, when the one or more transmission blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type include at least one signaling message of a radio resource control signaling or a medium access control control control element, the apparatus 600 may further comprise sixth means 660 for enabling the signaling message in the second device according to a transmission time of an HARQ feedback associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type, for example, the sixth means 660 may enable the signaling message in the second device after adding an offset to the transmission time of the HARQ feedback associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type, where the offset is set to a value taking into account a propagation delay between the first device and the second device and a processing delay in the first device.

[0081] In one embodiment, the first device is a terminal device and the second device is a network device.

[0082] In one embodiment, if the multiple transport blocks include transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process, the transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process may be received in an order determined according to the identity of the one type of HARQ process.

[0083] In one embodiment, transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process are received with or without interleaving according to an interleaving configuration, with interleaving occurring between transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process.

[0084] In one embodiment, the interleaving configuration is configured for multiple transport blocks scheduled in one downlink control information or for one type of HARQ process.

[0085] In one embodiment, the reception order of the multiple transport blocks, which is determined according to the type of HARQ process, is configured via a single downlink control information, radio resource control signaling, or medium access control control element.

[0086] 11 is a block diagram illustrating components of a communication system 700 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 11, the communication system 700 includes a terminal device 710, which may be implemented as the UE 110 described above, and a network device 720, which may be implemented as the base station 120 described above.

[0087] Referring to FIG. 11 , terminal device 710 includes one or more processors 711, one or more memories 712, and one or more transceivers 713, which are interconnected via one or more buses 714. The one or more buses 714 may be an address bus, a data bus, or a control bus and may include any interconnection mechanism, such as a series of wires on a motherboard, integrated circuits, fiber, optical components, or other optical communication devices. Each of the one or more transceivers 713 includes a receiver and a transmitter, which are connected to one or more antennas 716. Terminal device 710 wirelessly communicates with radio access network device 720 via the one or more antennas 716. The one or more memories 712 may include instructions 715 that, when executed by the one or more processors 711, cause terminal device 710 to perform operations or procedures related to UE 110, as described above.

[0088] The network device 720 includes one or more processors 721, one or more memories 722, one or more transceivers 723, and one or more network interfaces 727, which are interconnected via one or more buses 724. The one or more buses 724 may be an address bus, a data bus, or a control bus and may include any interconnection mechanism, such as a series of wires on a motherboard, an integrated circuit, optical fiber, or other optical communication equipment. The one or more transceivers 723 each include a receiver and a transmitter connected to one or more antennas 726. The network device 720 operates as a base station servicing the terminal device 710 and communicates wirelessly with the terminal device 710 via the one or more antennas 726. The one or more network interfaces 727 provide wired or wireless communication links, allowing the network device 720 to communicate with other network devices, entities, elements, or functions. For example, the network device 720 may communicate with a core network device (not shown) via a backhaul connection. The one or more memories 722 may contain instructions 725 that, when executed by the one or more processors 721 , cause the network device 720 to perform operations or procedures related to the base station 120 .

[0089] The above processors 711, 721 may be of any suitable type suitable for the local technology network and may include a general purpose processor, a special purpose processor, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), one or more processors in a processor-based multi-core processor architecture, as well as special purpose processors developed based on field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) or application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), etc. The one or more processors 711, 721 may be configured to control and work in conjunction with other elements of the UE / radio access network device / core network device and to implement the above procedures.

[0090] The one or more memories 712, 722 may include at least one storage medium of various forms, such as transient and / or non-transitory storage. Transitory storage includes, for example, but is not limited to, random access memory (RAM) and cache. Non-transitory storage includes, for example, but is not limited to, read-only memory (ROM), hard disk, flash memory, etc. As used herein, the term "non-transitory" does not limit the permanence of data storage (e.g., RAM vs. ROM), but rather the medium itself (i.e., tangible, not a signal). Furthermore, the one or more memories 712, 722 may include, but are not limited to, electrical, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor systems, apparatus, devices, or any combination of the above.

[0091] It should be understood that the blocks in the diagrams may be implemented in various ways, including software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, one or more blocks may be implemented by software and / or firmware, for example, using machine-executable instructions stored on a storage medium. In addition to, or instead of, machine-executable instructions, some or all of the blocks in the diagrams may be implemented, at least in part, by one or more hardware logic components. For example, without limitation, exemplary types of hardware logic components that may be used include field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), application specific standard products (ASSPs), systems on chips (SOCs), complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs), etc.

[0092] Some embodiments further provide program instructions or sets of instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause a device or apparatus to perform the procedures described above. The program instructions for carrying out the processes of the embodiments are written in any combination of one or more programming languages. The program instructions are provided to one or more processors or controllers of a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, and executed by the processors or controllers to implement the functions / operations specified in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams. The program instructions may be executed entirely on a machine, partially on a machine, as a stand-alone software package, partially on a machine and partially on a remote machine, or entirely on a remote machine or server.

[0093] Some embodiments further provide a computer program product or computer-readable medium having program instructions stored thereon. A computer-readable medium is any tangible medium that can contain or store a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. A machine-readable medium is a machine-readable signal medium or a machine-readable storage medium. Machine-readable media include, but are not limited to, electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor systems, apparatus, or devices, or any suitable combination thereof. More specific examples of machine-readable storage media include an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer floppy 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 compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination thereof.

[0094] As used herein, when a list of two or more elements is connected by "and" or "or" in the expressions "at least one of the following: " and "at least any of the following: " and similar expressions, it means at least any element, at least two or more elements, or at least all elements.

[0095] Furthermore, even if acts are shown in a particular order, this should not be interpreted as requiring that the acts be performed in the particular order or sequential order shown, or that all of the acts shown be performed, to achieve desirable results. In certain situations, multitasking or parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, while the above description includes details of several specific embodiments, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the disclosure, but rather as descriptions of functionality specific to particular embodiments. Certain features that are described in the context of separate embodiments can also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features that are described in the context of a single embodiment can also be implemented in multiple embodiments separately or in any suitable subcombination.

[0096] Although the subject matter has been described in language specifying structural features and / or method acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not limited to the specific features and acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

1. 1. A first device, comprising: at least one processor; When executed by the at least one processor, the first device is configured to: determining a plurality of transmission blocks scheduled for respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes according to the downlink control information; transmitting the plurality of transport blocks to a second device via each of the HARQ processes in an order determined according to the type of the HARQ process; at least one memory storing instructions for executing the A first device comprising:

2. 2. The first device of claim 1, wherein the HARQ processes include one or more HARQ processes of a first type configured with feedback enabled, and one or more HARQ processes of a second type configured with feedback disabled.

3. 2. The first device of claim 1, wherein the HARQ processes include one or more HARQ processes of a first type configured for Mode A and one or more HARQ processes of a second type configured for Mode B.

4. 4. The first device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein one or more transport blocks of the plurality of transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type are transmitted before or after one or more transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the second type.

5. The first device of claim 2 , wherein the first device is a network device and the second device is a terminal device.

6. The at least one memory further comprises, when executed by the at least one processor, causing the first device to: receiving HARQ feedback indicating whether one or more transport blocks transmitted via the one or more HARQ processes of the first type have been successfully decoded at the second device in an order determined according to the identities of the one or more HARQ processes of the first type; 6. The first device of claim 5, further comprising instructions for causing the first device to:

7. The first device of claim 3 , wherein the first device is a terminal device and the second device is a network device.

8. 8. The first device according to claim 1, wherein, when the plurality of transport blocks include transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process, the transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process are transmitted in an order determined according to the identity of the HARQ process of the one type.

9. 9. The first device according to claim 1, wherein the transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process are transmitted with or without interleaving according to an interleaving configuration, and the interleaving is performed between the transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process.

10. 10. The first device according to claim 1, wherein the transmission order of the plurality of transport blocks determined according to the type of the HARQ process is set via the one of downlink control information, radio resource control signaling, or medium access control control element.

11. a second device, at least one processor; When executed by the at least one processor, the second device is configured to: receiving, from a first device, a plurality of transport blocks via respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes, the plurality of transport blocks being scheduled in one downlink control information and received in an order determined according to a type of the HARQ process; decoding the plurality of transport blocks; at least one memory storing instructions for executing the A second device comprising:

12. 12. The second device of claim 11, wherein the HARQ processes include one or more HARQ processes of a first type configured with feedback enabled, and one or more HARQ processes of a second type configured with feedback disabled.

13. 12. The second device of claim 11, wherein the HARQ processes include one or more HARQ processes of a first type configured for Mode A and one or more HARQ processes of a second type configured for Mode B.

14. 14. The second device according to claim 12 or 13, wherein one or more transport blocks of the plurality of transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type are received before or after one or more transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the second type.

15. The second device of claim 12 , wherein the first device is a network device and the second device is a terminal device.

16. The at least one memory, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the second device to transmitting HARQ feedback indicating whether one or more transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type have been successfully decoded, in an order determined according to the identities of the one or more HARQ processes of the first type; The second device of claim 15 further storing instructions to cause the second device to:

17. The at least one memory, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the second device to monitoring a downlink control channel for scheduling subsequent transmissions via the one or more HARQ processes of the first type according to the transmission time of the HARQ feedback associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type; The second device of claim 16 further storing instructions to cause the second device to:

18. The at least one memory, when executed by the at least one processor, causes the second device to and monitoring a downlink control channel for scheduling subsequent transmissions via the one or more HARQ processes of the second type according to the transmission times of the HARQ feedback associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type when the second device operates in a half-duplex mode. The second device of claim 16 further storing instructions to cause the second device to:

19. 19. The second device according to claim 16, wherein if the one or more transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type include at least one signaling message of a radio resource control signaling or a medium access control control element, the signaling message becomes effective in the second device according to the transmission time of the HARQ feedback associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type.

20. The second device of claim 13 , wherein the first device is a terminal device and the second device is a network device.

21. 21. The second device according to claim 11, wherein, if the plurality of transport blocks includes transport blocks associated with HARQ processes of one type, the transport blocks associated with HARQ processes of one type are received in an order determined according to the identity of the HARQ processes of one type.

22. 22. The second device according to claim 11, wherein the transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process are received with or without interleaving according to an interleaving configuration, and the interleaving is performed between the transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process.

23. The second device according to claim 22 , wherein the interleaving configuration is configured for the plurality of transport blocks scheduled in one downlink control information or the one type of HARQ process.

24. 24. The second device according to claim 11, wherein the reception order of the plurality of transport blocks determined according to the type of the HARQ process is set via the one of downlink control information, radio resource control signaling, or medium access control control element.

25. In a first device, determining a plurality of transmission blocks scheduled for respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes according to the downlink control information; transmitting the plurality of transport blocks to a second device via the respective HARQ processes in an order determined according to the type of the HARQ process; A method comprising:

26. 26. The method of claim 25, wherein the HARQ processes include one or more HARQ processes of a first type configured with feedback enabled and one or more HARQ processes of a second type configured with feedback disabled.

27. 26. The method of claim 25, wherein the HARQ processes include one or more HARQ processes of a first type configured for Mode A and one or more HARQ processes of a second type configured for Mode B.

28. 28. The method of claim 26 or 27, wherein one or more transport blocks of the plurality of transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type are transmitted before or after one or more transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the second type.

29. 27. The method of claim 26, wherein the first device is a network device and the second device is a terminal device.

30. receiving HARQ feedback indicating whether one or more transport blocks transmitted via the one or more HARQ processes of the first type have been successfully decoded at the second device in an order determined according to the identities of the one or more HARQ processes of the first type; 30. The method of claim 29, further comprising:

31. 28. The method of claim 27, wherein the first device is a terminal device and the second device is a network device.

32. 32. The method according to claim 25, wherein, if the plurality of transport blocks includes transport blocks associated with HARQ processes of one type, the transport blocks associated with HARQ processes of one type are transmitted in an order determined according to the identity of the HARQ processes of one type.

33. 33. The method according to claim 25, wherein the transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process are transmitted with or without interleaving according to an interleaving configuration, and the interleaving is performed between the transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process.

34. 34. The method according to claim 25, wherein the transmission order of the plurality of transport blocks determined according to the type of HARQ process is configured via the one of downlink control information, radio resource control signaling, or medium access control control element.

35. receiving, at a second device, from the first device, a plurality of transport blocks via respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes, the plurality of transport blocks being scheduled in one downlink control information and received in an order determined according to a type of the HARQ process; decoding the plurality of transport blocks; A method comprising:

36. 36. The method of claim 35, wherein the HARQ processes include one or more HARQ processes of a first type configured with feedback enabled and one or more HARQ processes of a second type configured with feedback disabled.

37. 36. The method of claim 35, wherein the HARQ processes include one or more HARQ processes of a first type configured for Mode A and one or more HARQ processes of a second type configured for Mode B.

38. 38. The method of claim 36 or 37, wherein one or more transport blocks of the plurality of transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type are received before or after one or more transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the second type.

39. 37. The method of claim 36, wherein the first device is a network device and the second device is a terminal device.

40. transmitting HARQ feedback indicating whether one or more transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type have been successfully decoded, in an order determined according to the identities of the one or more HARQ processes of the first type; 40. The method of claim 39, further comprising:

41. monitoring a downlink control channel for scheduling subsequent transmissions via the one or more HARQ processes of the first type according to the transmission times of the HARQ feedback associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type; 41. The method of claim 40, further comprising:

42. monitoring a downlink control channel for scheduling subsequent transmissions via the one or more HARQ processes of the second type according to the transmission times of the HARQ feedback associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type when the second device operates in a half-duplex mode; 41. The method of claim 40, further comprising:

43. 43. The method of claim 40, wherein if the one or more transport blocks associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type include at least one signaling message of a radio resource control signaling or a medium access control control element, the signaling message takes effect in the second device according to the transmission time of the HARQ feedback associated with the one or more HARQ processes of the first type.

44. 38. The method of claim 37, wherein the first device is a terminal device and the second device is a network device.

45. 45. The method of claim 35, wherein if the plurality of transport blocks includes transport blocks associated with HARQ processes of one type, the transport blocks associated with HARQ processes of one type are received in an order determined according to the identity of the HARQ processes of one type.

46. 46. ​​The method according to claim 35, wherein the transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process are received with or without interleaving according to an interleaving configuration, and the interleaving is performed between the transport blocks associated with one type of HARQ process.

47. The method of claim 46, wherein the interleaving configuration is configured for the plurality of transport blocks or the one type of HARQ process scheduled in one downlink control information.

48. 48. The method according to claim 35, wherein the reception order of the plurality of transport blocks determined according to the type of HARQ process is configured via the one of downlink control information, radio resource control signaling, or medium access control control element.

49. means for determining a plurality of transmission blocks scheduled for respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes according to the downlink control information; means for transmitting the plurality of transport blocks via the respective HARQ processes in an order determined according to the type of the HARQ process; An apparatus comprising:

50. means for receiving a plurality of transport blocks via respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes, the plurality of transport blocks being scheduled in one downlink control information and received in an order determined according to a type of the HARQ process; means for decoding the plurality of transmission blocks; An apparatus comprising:

51. A computer-readable medium that, when executed by a device, causes the device to perform at least: determining a plurality of transmission blocks scheduled for respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes according to the downlink control information; transmitting the plurality of transport blocks via the respective HARQ processes in an order determined according to the type of the HARQ process; 1. A computer-readable medium containing instructions for performing

52. A computer-readable medium that, when executed by a device, causes the device to perform at least: receiving a plurality of transport blocks via respective hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes, the plurality of transport blocks being scheduled in one downlink control information and received in an order determined according to a type of the HARQ process; decoding the plurality of transport blocks; A computer-readable medium containing instructions for performing

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