Terminal device and method

Abstract

Embodiments of this disclosure relate to apparatus, methods, and computer-readable media for random access procedures. According to embodiments of this disclosure, a terminal device receives from a network device a PRB bundling configuration indicating precoding granularity for downlink channels in SBFD time units. An SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions. The terminal device then determines a PRB bundling having precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity based on the PRB bundling configuration and within one or more downlink frequency subbands of an SBFD time unit. In this way, channel precoding can be optimized for the SBFD mechanism.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of communications, and more particularly, to an apparatus, a method, and a computer-readable medium for precoding of a plurality of antennas.

Background Art

[0002] With the development of communication technologies, a time unit (e.g., a symbol, a slot, a frame, a subframe, etc.) can be divided into a plurality of frequency subbands in the frequency domain. The plurality of frequency subbands may be respectively used for different link directions, e.g., uplink (UL) or downlink (DL). This time unit may also be referred to as a subband non-overlapping full duplex (SBFD) time unit. As a result, a device for communication (e.g., a network device or a terminal device) may simultaneously transmit and receive channels in different link directions in these time units in order to improve communication efficiency.

[0003] Furthermore, multi-antenna technology is sometimes used to increase the data rate and reliability of wireless communication systems. Equipping both the transmitter and receiver with multiple antennas significantly improves performance, resulting in multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication channels. Such systems and / or related technologies are generally referred to as MIMO. In one example, channel-dependent precoding supports an 8-layer spatial multiplexing mode for 8 transmit (Tx) antennas. In this case, the precoding matrix (or precoder, or precoder matrix) should be determined by predefined rules at the base station (BS) and user equipment (UE) to encode or decode data transmissions across multiple antennas. Therefore, precoding channel coordination in MIMO is a crucial point when deploying the SBFD mechanism. [Overview of the project]

[0004] Generally, exemplary embodiments of this disclosure relate to apparatus, methods, and computer-readable media for precoding multiple antennas.

[0005] In a first embodiment, a terminal device is provided. The terminal device comprises a processor. The processor is configured to cause the terminal device to receive from a network device a Physical Resource Block (PRB) bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity for downlink channels in subband non-overlapping full duplex (SBFD) time units. The SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions. The terminal device is further configured to determine a PRB bundling having a precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity based on the PRB bundling configuration and within one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit.

[0006] In a second embodiment, a network device is provided. The network device comprises a processor. The processor is configured to cause the network device to determine precoding granularity for downlink channels in SBFD time units based on one or more downlink frequency subbands of SBFD time units. SBFD time units consist of frequency subbands for different link directions. The network device is further configured to transmit a PRB bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity to a terminal device.

[0007] In a third embodiment, a method is provided that is implemented in a terminal device. In this method, the terminal device receives from a network device a PRB bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity for downlink channels in SBFD time units. The SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions. The terminal device then determines a PRB bundling having a precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity based on the PRB bundling configuration and within one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit.

[0008] A fourth embodiment provides a method implemented by a network device, in which the network device determines the precoding granularity for a downlink channel in an SBFD time unit based on one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit, which consists of frequency subbands for different link directions. The network device then transmits a physical resource block (PRB) bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity to a terminal device.

[0009] In the fifth embodiment, a computer-readable medium containing instructions is provided, and when the instructions are executed on at least one processor, the at least one processor is caused to execute the method of the third embodiment or the fourth embodiment.

[0010] It should be understood that the summary portion of the invention is not intended to identify any significant or essential features of the exemplary embodiments of the disclosure, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the disclosure. Other features of the disclosure will be readily apparent through the following description. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] Here, several exemplary embodiments will be described with reference to the attached drawings.

[0012] [Figure 1a] This document illustrates exemplary environments in which some embodiments of this disclosure may be implemented.

[0013] [Figure 1b] This example illustrates a mismatch between PRB bundling for channel precoding and SBFD frequency subband division on a time-based basis.

[0014] [Figure 2] This disclosure illustrates a signaling process for precoding multiple antennas according to several embodiments of this disclosure.

[0015] [Figure 3a] Examples of PRB bundling adapted to the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units according to some embodiments of this disclosure are shown. [Figure 3b] Examples of PRB bundling adapted to the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units according to some embodiments of this disclosure are shown. [Figure 3c] Examples of PRB bundling adapted to the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units according to some embodiments of this disclosure are shown.

[0016] [Figure 4a] Examples of broadband granularity channel precoding according to several embodiments of this disclosure are shown. [Figure 4b]Examples of wideband granularity channel precoding according to some embodiments of the present disclosure are shown.

[0017] [Figure 5a] Exemplary criteria for determining the "wideband" granularity of channel precoding according to some embodiments of the present disclosure are shown.

[0018] [Figure 5b] Examples of precoding granularity adapted to SBFD time units according to some embodiments of the present disclosure are shown.

[0019] [Figure 6] Flowcharts of exemplary methods implemented at a terminal device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure are shown.

[0020] [Figure 7] Flowcharts of exemplary methods implemented at a network device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure are shown.

[0021] [Figure 8] A simplified block diagram of a device suitable for implementing exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0022] Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals represent the same or similar elements.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0023] Here, the principles of the present disclosure will be described with reference to some embodiments. These embodiments are described for illustrative purposes only and are intended to help those skilled in the art understand and implement the present disclosure without suggesting any limitation regarding the scope of the present disclosure. The disclosure described herein can be implemented in various ways other than those described below.

[0024] In the following description and claims, unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meanings as those generally understood by those skilled in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

[0025] As used herein, the term “terminal device” refers to any device equipped with wireless or wired communication capabilities. Examples of terminal devices include user equipment (UE), personal computers, desktops, mobile phones, cellular phones, smartphones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), portable computers, tablets, wearable devices, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, Ultra-Reliable and Low Latency Communication (URLLC) devices, Internet of Everything (IoE) devices, Machine Type Communication (MTC) devices, Vehicle-mounted V2X communication devices (where X represents pedestrians, vehicles, or infrastructure / networks), Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) devices, Small Data Transmission (SDT), mobility, Multicast and Broadcast Service (MBS), positioning, dynamic / flexible duplex in commercial networks, Reduced Capability (RedCap), satellites, and Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS). Spacecraft or aircraft within a non-terrestrial network (NTN), including a high-altitude platform (HAP), including a system; extended reality (XR) devices, including various types of reality such as augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR), and virtual reality (VR); unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), commonly known as drones, which are aircraft without human pilot intervention; high-speed trains (HSTs)Examples of "terminal devices" include, but are not limited to, devices on board a Speed ​​Train, digital cameras, sensors, game consoles, image capture devices such as music storage and playback devices, or internet devices that enable wireless or wired internet access and browsing. "Terminal devices" may also have "multicast / broadcast" capabilities and support public safety and mission-critical, V2X applications, transparent IPv4 / IPv6 multicast distribution, IPTV, smart TV, radio services, wireless software distribution, group communications, and IoT applications. They may also incorporate one or more Subscriber Identity Modules (SIMs), known as multi-SIMs. The term "terminal device" may be used interchangeably with UE, mobile station, subscriber station, mobile terminal, user terminal, wireless device, or limited-function terminal device.

[0026] As used herein, the term “network device” refers to a device that can provide or host a cell or coverage on which terminal devices can communicate. Examples of network devices include, but are not limited to, Node B (NodeB or NB), evolved Node B (eNodeB or eNB), next-generation Node B (gNB), transmission reception point (TRP), remote radio unit (RRU), radio head (RH), remote radio head (RRH), IAB node, low-power nodes such as femtonodes, piconodes, reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS), and network control repeaters.

[0027] Terminal or network devices may incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) or machine learning capabilities. Generally, this includes models trained on large amounts of collected data for specific functions and usable to predict certain information. Terminal or network devices may operate across multiple frequency ranges, including FR1 (410MHz–7125MHz), FR2 (24.25GHz–71GHz), 71GHz–114GHz, and frequency bands above 100GHz, as well as terahertz (THz). Furthermore, they can operate in licensed / unlicensed / shared spectrum. In multi-radio dual connectivity (MR-DC) application scenarios, terminal devices may have multiple connections to network devices. Terminal or network devices can also operate in full-duplex, flexible-duplex, and cross-split-duplex modes.

[0028] Network devices may have energy-saving network functions, self-organizing network (SON) / minimization of drive test (MDT) functions. Terminals may have power-saving functions.

[0029] Embodiments of the present disclosure may be performed using test equipment such as signal generators, signal analyzers, spectrum analyzers, network analyzers, test terminal devices, test network devices, and channel emulators.

[0030] Embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in accordance with any generation of communication protocol currently known or to be developed in the future. Examples of communication protocols include, but are not limited to, first-generation (1G), second-generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, third-generation (3G), fourth-generation (4G), 4.5G, fifth-generation (5G) communication protocols, 5.5G, 5G-Advanced Network, or sixth-generation (6G) networks.

[0031] In one embodiment, the terminal device may be connected to a first network device and a second network device. One of the first and second network devices may be a master node, and the other may be a secondary node. The first and second network devices 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 different RATs may be transmitted to the terminal device from at least one of the first and second network devices. 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 directly from the second network device to the terminal device or via the first network device. In one embodiment, information regarding the settings of the terminal device set by the second network device may be transmitted from the second network device via the first network device. Information regarding the reconfiguration of a terminal device set by the second network device may be transmitted directly from the second network device to the terminal device, or transmitted via the first network device.

[0032] As used herein, the singular forms “a / an” and “the” are intended to include the plural unless the context explicitly indicates otherwise. The term “including” and its variations are interpreted as an open term meaning “including, but not limited to.” The term “based on” is interpreted as “at least partially based on.” The terms “one embodiment” and “a certain embodiment” are interpreted as “at least one embodiment.” The term “another embodiment” is interpreted as “at least one other embodiment.” The terms “first” and “second” may refer to different or the same subject. The following may include other explicit and implicit definitions.

[0033] In some examples, values, procedures, or devices are referred to as “best,” “worst,” “highest,” “minimum,” “maximum,” etc. Such descriptions are intended to show that a choice can be made from among many functional options being used, and it will be understood that such a choice does not need to be better, smaller, higher, or more desirable than the other options.

[0034] As used herein, the term “circuit” may refer to a hardware circuit and / or a combination of a hardware circuit and software. For example, a circuit may be a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuits and software / firmware. As a further example, a circuit may be any part of a software-equipped hardware processor, such as a digital signal processor, software, and memory, which work together to enable a device such as a terminal or network device to perform various functions. In yet another example, a circuit may be a hardware circuit and / or processor, such as a microprocessor or a part of a microprocessor, which requires software / firmware for operation but may not have software when not required for operation. As used herein, the term “circuit” also encompasses implementations of hardware circuits or processors alone, or implementations of parts of hardware circuits or processors, and implementations of software and / or firmware associated therewith. In this disclosure, subbands and frequency subbands may be used interchangeably without any limitation. The group size of an RGB may also be called the RGB size without any limitation. In this disclosure, a control channel may be used interchangeably with a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) without any limitation.

[0035] A time unit configured by SBFD communication or configuration may also be called an SBFD time unit, and a time unit not configured by SBFD communication may also be called a non-SBFD time unit.

[0036] In this disclosure, the unit of time may be any time duration, such as symbols, slots, subframes, and frames. Without any limitation, these time scales may be used interchangeably for illustrative purposes only.

[0037] The term "physical resource block (PRB) or resource block" may also refer to a basic unit of resources in the frequency domain.

[0038] As used herein, the term "SBFD-enabled UE" may refer to a terminal device that supports SBFD operation with network devices by acquiring an SBFD configuration on a time-based basis, such as subband segmentation or location on a time-based basis.

[0039] As used herein, the term “precoding granularity” may also refer to the frequency bandwidth size for constructing a PRB bundling, which is associated with channel encoding or decoding. In one example, this frequency bandwidth size (or precoding granularity) may be represented by several PRBs, e.g., two PRBs, four PRBs, or any other number of PRBs. In this case, the constructed PRB bundling may also be called a “Precoder Resource Group (PRG)” without any limitation. Once the precoding granularity is determined, one or more PRB bundlings may be divided based on the precoding granularity within the allocated frequency bandwidth, such as a Bandwidth Part (BWP) specific to a terminal device. Generally, the same precoding (or channel precoding) is applied within a PRB bundling having a precoding granularity, or within a precoding granularity. Furthermore, the precoding matrix associated with the mapping between data channel transmissions and multiple antennas corresponds to (or is specific to) a PRB bundling. In a MIMO system, once PRB bundling has been divided or determined, the BS or UE may encode or decode the channels based on the precoding matrix corresponding to the PRB bundling. In this disclosure, the precoding matrix may also be referred to as the “precoder” or “precoder matrix” without any limitation. That is, the terms “precoding matrix,” “precoder,” or “precoder matrix” may be used interchangeably in this disclosure.

[0040] In another example, this frequency bandwidth size (or precoding granularity) may be described as "broadband," for example, if the allocated PRB exceeds half of the UE-specific bandwidth portion (BWP). When the precoding granularity is broadband granularity, the RB allocated for the channel should be continuous in the frequency domain, and the same precoding matrix applies.

[0041] In this disclosure, the terms “frequency subband” and “subband” may be used interchangeably without any limitation.

[0042] As described above, precoding channel adjustment in MIMO is a crucial point when deploying the SBFD mechanism. Generally, PRB bundling is based on precoding granularity and BWP. That is, one or more PRB bundlings are divided into units of precoding granularity within the BWP. Furthermore, in some cases, the resources of a single PRB bundling should be continuous in the frequency domain.

[0043] However, in SBFD communication, the BWP (Bass Wave Frequency) in SBFD time units may be divided into different frequency subbands, such as a downlink frequency subband, an uplink frequency subband, and a guard band. In this case, existing PRB bundling based on precoding granularity and BWP may be mismatched with the frequency subband division in SBFD time units. For example, PRB bundling for downlink channel precoding may overlap with the guard band or uplink frequency subband in SBFD time units. As a result, the precoding matrix may not be determined correctly, potentially leading to encoding or decoding errors in the downlink channel. To clarify the discussion, the above mismatch will be further illustrated with reference to Figure 1b.

[0044] To address at least the technical challenges described above, exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure propose a mechanism for precoding multiple antennas. In this mechanism, a terminal device receives from a network device a PRB bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity for downlink channels in SBFD time units. The SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions. The terminal device then determines a resource block bundling having a precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity based on the PRB bundling configuration and within one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit.

[0045] In this way, by adapting the precoding granularity to the downlink frequency subband on an SBFD time scale, the PRB bundling for the downlink channel (e.g., a Physical Downlink Shared Channel, PDSCH) can be appropriately determined. Thus, the downlink channel precoding procedure can be optimized with respect to the SBFD mechanism.

[0046] Figure 1 shows an exemplary environment 100 in which exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented.

[0047] Environment 100 may be part of a communication network and includes terminal devices 110 and network devices 120. In some embodiments, the communication network may include NTN, NB-IoT, and / or eMTC. In some other embodiments, the communication network may include any other possible communication network. It should be understood that the number of network devices and terminal devices is given for illustrative purposes only and does not imply any limitation. The communication network may include any appropriate number of network devices and / or terminal devices adapted to carry out embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be understood that one or more terminal devices may be located in Environment 100, although not shown. Without any limitation, network device 120 supports SBFD communication. For example, network device 120 may simultaneously transmit a downlink (DL) channel to terminal device 110 and receive a UL channel from another terminal device (not shown in Figure 1A) in an SBFD time unit. In this disclosure, a non-SBFD time unit may be a UL-only time unit or a DL-only time unit.

[0048] Figure 1b shows an example of a mismatch between PRB bundling for channel precoding and SBFD frequency subband division in time units.

[0049] As described above, a mismatch can occur between the existing PRB bundling and the frequency subband division in SBFD time units. As shown in Figure 1b, frequency subbands 130 and 140 are configured for the downlink direction, and may also be called the downlink frequency subbands. Frequency subbands 150 and 160 are configured as guard bands. Frequency subband 170 is configured for the uplink direction, and may also be called the uplink frequency subband. Regardless of whether the precoding granularity is two PRBs, four PRBs, or broadband, it can be seen that the PRB bundling (or PRG) divided across the entire BWP based on the precoding granularity, for example, may be mismatched at the subband boundaries in SBFD time units. Thus, the PRB bundling may overlap with both the downlink frequency subbands and the guard bands (or uplink frequency subbands), as shown by the PRB bundling (or PRG) 180. That is, a portion of PRG 180 may be occupied by the UL subband or guard band.

[0050] In the example shown in Figure 1b, if the precoding granularity is four PRBs, PRG180 has four PRBs, two of which are in the downlink frequency subband and two of which are in the guard band. PRG180 may also be referred to as a partial PRG in this disclosure, meaning that a portion of the PRG may be in the downlink frequency subband and another portion of the PRG may be in another frequency subband. In this case, it is necessary to consider how to determine the precoding matrix used for these PRBs in PRB bundling.

[0051] Furthermore, in the case of broadband precoding, the UE currently does not expect scheduling to occur in discontinuous resource blocks and assumes that the same precoding matrix is ​​applied to all resource blocks in the PRB bundling. If discontinuous allocation is supported between DL subbands in SBFD time units, broadband precoding granularity cannot be applied.

[0052] Figure 2 shows a signaling process 200 for precoding multiple antennas according to several embodiments of the present disclosure. For illustrative purposes, the process 200 will be described with reference to Figure 1.

[0053] In the signaling process 200, the network device 120 determines a precoding granularity for the downlink channel in SBFD time units (210) based on one or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units. The precoding granularity may include one of two PRBs, four PRBs, eight PRBs, sixteen PRBs, thirty-two PRBs, subband granularity, or broadband granularity. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may determine a precoding granularity that is adapted to the downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units. For example, the network device 120 may select a precoding granularity such that the number of resource blocks in the downlink frequency subband is an integer multiple of the precoding granularity. In this way, the possibility of the above mismatch occurring may be reduced. Without any limitation, the network device 120 may determine the precoding granularity in any other way that takes into account the downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units.

[0054] Next, the network device 120 transmits (220) a PRB bundling configuration 225 to the terminal device 110, which indicates the precoding granularity of the downlink channel in SBFD time units. Thus, the terminal device 110 receives (230) this PRB bundling configuration 225 from the network device 120. Using the PRB bundling configuration 225, the terminal device 110 determines (240) PRB bundlings with precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity within one or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units.

[0055] In this disclosure, other adapted precoding granularities may differ from the indicated precoding granularity. As a result, other adapted precoding granularities may be determined based on both the indicated precoding granularity and the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, so as to avoid the occurrence of PRB bundling overlapping with frequency subbands other than the downlink frequency subband.

[0056] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may first determine the PRB bundling (which may also be called the initial PRB bundling) based on the BWP and the indicated precoding granularity. In one example, if the precoding granularity is indicated as two PRBs or four PRBs, the size of the initial PRB bundlings other than the first or last PRB bundling in the BWP is this precoding granularity. Furthermore, the first or last PRB bundling may be adjusted to align with the boundary of the BWP. However, as described above, the initial PRB bundlings of the multiple determined initial PRB bundlings may overlap with frequency subbands other than the downlink frequency subband. In this case, the terminal device 110 may adjust this initial PRB bundling to have other adapted precoding granularities in order to avoid the above overlap.

[0057] In one example, the terminal device 110 may determine whether the initial PRB bundling, divided based on the precoding granularity, overlaps with both the downlink frequency subband and other frequency subbands in SBFD time units. If it determines that the initial PRB bundling overlaps with both the downlink frequency subband and other frequency subbands, the terminal device 110 may determine a first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling as another adapted precoding granularity, such that the first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling does not overlap with other frequency subbands. Next, the terminal device 110 may replace the initial PRB bundling with a PRB bundling having another adapted precoding granularity. By determining a PRB bundling having another adapted precoding granularity in this way, the above overlap can be avoided. For the purpose of clarifying the discussion only, the above embodiments will be further described with reference to Figure 3a.

[0058] Figure 3a shows examples of PRB bundling adapted to the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0059] As shown in Figure 3a, for initial PRGs 310 and 320 (shown in Figure 3a) that have two PRBs and four PRBs overlapping with other subbands besides the downlink frequency subband, or only four PRBs, a portion of the PRG (which may also be called a partial PRG) can be used for channel precoding. In the example in Figure 3a, the PRG division has not been changed and is still based on BWP. However, only partial resources within the PRG (i.e., partial PRGs) are considered valid PRBs for PDSCH to perform precoding, and partial resources do not overlap with the UL subband or guard band. In this case, PRBs that do not overlap with the UL subband or guard band in the same initial PRG may be applied to the same precoding matrix. In one example, the minimum size of a partial PRG may be {1 PRB, 2 PRBs, 3 PRBs}.

[0060] In the example in Figure 3a, since the configured / specified precoding granularity is 4 (PRB), only PRBs within the PRG that do not overlap with the UL subband or guard band are considered valid PRBs for PDSCH precoding. For example, for PRG3 and PRG6, only PRBs in the DL subband are considered valid PRBs for precoding.

[0061] Without any limitation, the above embodiments can also be expressed as follows: JPEG2026519703000002.jpg11168

[0062] Referring again to Figure 2, if it is determined that the initial PRB bundling does not overlap with both the downlink frequency subband and other frequency subbands (for example, if the network device 120 selects an appropriate precoding granularity that fits the downlink subband in SBFD time units), the terminal device 110 may directly use the precoding matrix corresponding to the PRB bundling with the indicated precoding granularity without adjusting the initial PRB bundling.

[0063] Alternatively, the terminal device 110 may also determine PRB bundlings with other adapted precoding granularities at the boundaries of the downlink frequency subband. That is, compared with the BWP and the indicated precoding granularity, the terminal device 110 may determine one or more PRB bundlings within the downlink frequency subband based on the downlink frequency subband and the indicated precoding granularity. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine other adapted precoding granularities for PRB bundlings at the boundaries of the downlink frequency subband based on the downlink frequency subband and the precoding granularity in SBFD time units such that the PRB bundlings at the boundaries do not overlap with the guard band or uplink frequency subband in SBFD time units. For the purpose of clarifying the discussion only, the above embodiments will be further described with reference to Figure 3b.

[0064] Figure 3b shows another example of PRB bundling adapted to the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0065] As described above, for SBFD-enabled UEs composed of precoding granularities (e.g., PRG size) of two and four PRBs, or only four PRBs, the PRB bundling division (or PRG division) may be modified relative to the SBFD time unit. A particular PRG at the boundary of a downlink frequency subband may have other adapted precoding granularities, similar to how fractional PRGs at BWP boundaries are treated. Within each DL subband, the PRG is divided individually, and the method of division is the same as that of PRG division within a BWP. For example, the PRG is divided between the boundaries of one downlink frequency subband. In this case, the number of allocated RBs within the PRG at the edge of each DL subband may be smaller than the indicated precoding granularity.

[0066] As shown in Figure 3b, the first PRG(PRG 0)340 and the last PRG(PRG 3)330 in the DL subband may contain fewer PRBs than the indicated precoding granularity, for example, four PRBs. Without any limitation, the above embodiments can also be expressed as follows: JPEG2026519703000003.jpg64168

[0067] Referring again to Figure 2, the terminal device 110 may also determine the PRB bundling for the downlink channel in SBFD time units by omitting PRBs in frequency subbands other than the downlink frequency subband. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine multiple PRB bundlings in one or more downlink frequency subbands by omitting PRBs in the guard band and uplink frequency subband in SBFD time units, based on the indicated precoding granularity. In this case, one of the multiple PRB bundlings may include two subsets of PRBs, the two subsets of PRBs located in two downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, respectively. The above embodiments will be further described with reference to Figure 3c only for the purpose of clarifying the discussion.

[0068] Figure 3c shows further examples of PRB bundling adapted to the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0069] As shown in Figure 3c, for PRGs having two and four PRBs, or only four PRBs, a particular PRG350 may include PRBs that are discontinuous in the frequency domain. In this case, PRG350 may use the same precoding matrix as the one corresponding to PRG1, PRG2, or PRG5. Furthermore, joint channel estimation spanning these two DL frequency subbands may be required.

[0070] Thus, a new PRG numbering method is introduced for SBFD symbols, and the PRG numbering is associated with two discontinuous DL frequency subbands by omitting the UL subband and guard band resources within the SBFD slot. That is, the UL subband and guard band may be considered to be subtracted when assigning PRG numbers for PDSCH precoding. Therefore, the PRB / PRG indices in the two DL subbands are arranged contiguously and uniformly within the SBFD slot. As shown in Figure 3c, PRG 350 (i.e., PRG 3) contains four discontinuous PRBs (PRB10, PRB11, PRB24, PRB25).

[0071] Referring again to Figure 2, if the precoding granularity is broadband granularity, the terminal device 110 may similarly determine the PRB bundling by taking into account the characteristics of the SBFD time unit.

[0072] In some embodiments, the downlink channel (e.g., PDSCH) may be configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, and the precoding granularity is broadband granularity. In this case, discontinuous PRBs may be possible for one or more PRB bundlings in the case of broadband granularity. Furthermore, the same precoding matrix may be applied to PRB bundlings having discontinuous PRBs. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine, in SBFD time units, a first PRB bundling size in a first downlink frequency subband and a second PRB bundling size in a second downlink frequency subband. For example, the first and second PRB bundling sizes may be determined based on resource scheduling for the downlink channels in two or more downlink frequency channels. Without any limitation, the first PRB bundling and the second PRB bundling may also be considered as a single PRB bundling having discontinuous PRBs, and the same precoding matrix may be applied to the first PRB bundling and the second PRB bundling. For the purpose of clarifying the discussion, the above embodiments will be further described with reference to Figure 4a.

[0073] Figure 4a shows examples of broadband granularity channel precoding according to several embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0074] In the example in Figure 4a, when the precoding granularity is set to "broadband" and the terminal device 110 is scheduled on downlink channels on two DL subbands in SBFD time units, the UL subband and guard band may be considered rate-matching resources or blank resources for PDSCH precoding. Thus, discontinuous PRBs in the two DL subbands may use the same precoding matrix. In this case, the terminal device does not need to perform Channel Quality Indication (CQI) calculations for RBs in the UL subband and guard band, and new terminal device operations may be introduced, such as using the same precoder in discontinuous frequency domain resource allocation (FDRA) spanning between DL subbands.

[0075] As shown in Figure 4a, the terminal device 110 may be scheduled with discontinuous resources for downlink channels (such as those indicated by reference numerals 410 and 420) on two DL subbands of the SBFD symbol. In this case, the scheduled PDSCH may use the same precoder (precoder 1, as shown in Figure 4a) to perform channel precoding or decoding for the allocated PRB when a “broadband” precoding granularity is configured or indicated. Without any limitation, the above embodiments can also be expressed as follows: JPEG2026519703000004.jpg36168

[0076] Furthermore, in some embodiments, the same precoding matrix is ​​applied under broadband granularity only if the difference between the channel conditions in the first DL subband and the channel conditions in the second DL subband is smaller than the channel difference threshold. For example, the above embodiments are used when the difference between the channel conditions in the two DL subbands is within a small range. In this way, the performance of channel precoding can be ensured.

[0077] Referring again to Figure 2, instead, even if the precoding granularity is broadband granularity, discontinuous RBs and different precoders (i.e., precoding matrices) for PRB bundling may be allowed. In some embodiments, one downlink channel (e.g., PDSCH) may be scheduled on two or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, and the precoding granularity is broadband granularity. In this case, the terminal device 110 may determine a first PRB bundling in a first downlink frequency subband and a second PRB bundling in a second downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units. The terminal device 110 may then apply the first precoding matrix to the first PRB bundling and the second precoding matrix to the second PRB bundling, respectively. Thus, the precoding assumption is made for each frequency subband in SBFD time units. For the purpose of clarifying the discussion only, this embodiment will be further described with reference to Figure 4b.

[0078] Figure 4b shows another example of broadband granularity channel precoding according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0079] In the example of Figure 4b, if terminal device 110 is scheduled with one PDSCH on two DL subbands and a “broadband” precoding granularity is indicated, different PRBs scheduled for the PDSCH in different DL subbands may be assigned different precoder matrices. Furthermore, the same precoding matrix may be used for scheduled PRBs in the same DL subband; that is, precoding assumptions are made per subband. In addition, for PDSCH, the allocated resources within each DL subband are associated with the same Transmit Configuration Instruction (TCI) state or the same Pseudo Collocation (QCL) assumption. Without any limitation, the above embodiments can also be expressed as follows: JPEG2026519703000005.jpg26168

[0080] Referring again to Figure 2, the network device 120 may also determine the PRB bundling (250) as described with reference to operation 240. In addition to or instead of this, the network device 120 may send an instruction to the terminal device 110 regarding whether to use the same precoding matrix. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may send a first instruction 253 (251) to the terminal device 110 indicating that the same precoding matrix is ​​applied to the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units. Alternatively, the network device 120 may send a second instruction 253 (251) to the terminal device 110 indicating that a different precoder matrix is ​​applied to the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units. The first or second instruction may be determined based on the channel state of the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units. For example, the network device 120 may determine, for example, based on Channel State Information (CSI) reported by the terminal device 110, whether the difference between the first channel state of the first downlink frequency subband and the second channel state of the second downlink frequency subband exceeds a threshold. Without any limitation, the network device 120 may determine whether the difference exceeds a threshold by any other means, for example, by estimating the channel quality itself. If the difference does not exceed a threshold, the network device 120 may transmit the first instruction. Otherwise, if the difference exceeds a threshold, the network device 120 may transmit the second instruction. The terminal device 110 may then receive (255) the first or second instruction 253 accordingly.

[0081] For example, a new bit field can be added to the Downlink Control Information (DCI) format 1_x, which is used to indicate to the UE whether the same precoding assumption is used for the PRB in two DL subbands, or whether different precoding assumptions are used. Furthermore, the network device 120 may instruct, based on CSI feedback from the terminal device 110, to use the same precoding matrix only within one DL subband, or to use the same precoding matrix across two DL subbands.

[0082] If the difference between the channel conditions for CSI feedback for two DL subbands is within range or within a threshold, the network device 120 may instruct the terminal device 110 to use the same precoding matrix (or the same precoding assumption) for the PDSCH scheduled in the two DL subbands. Otherwise, if the difference between the channel conditions for CSI feedback for two DL subbands is outside the range or beyond a threshold, the network device 120 may instruct the terminal device 110 to use different precoding matrices (or different precoding assumptions) for the PDSCH scheduled in the two DL subbands, and the RB in the same subband may be applied with the same precoding matrix. Without any limitation, the above embodiments can also be expressed as follows: JPEG2026519703000006.jpg61168

[0083] Furthermore, the criteria for determining so-called "broadband" granularity may also be adjusted based on the DL frequency subband in SBFD time units. In some embodiments, broadband granularity is set based on the number of PRBs scheduled for the downlink channel and the bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units. Specifically, if the first bandwidth of the PRBs allocated to the downlink frequency subband is more than half the second bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband, the precoding granularity may be set to broadband granularity. For the purpose of clarifying the discussion only, the adjusted criteria will be further described with reference to Figure 5a.

[0084] Figure 5a shows exemplary criteria for determining the “broadband” granularity of channel precoding in some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0085] In some embodiments, when the precoding granularity is set to "broadband" and instructed to the terminal device 110, the terminal device 110 (e.g., an SBFD-compatible UE) is composed of PRBs that are continuous in only one DL subband.

[0086] Furthermore, thresholds or conditions can be defined for the network device 120 or terminal device 110 to determine whether broadband granularity can be applied based on the PRB allocated for PDSCH. For example, broadband precoding granularity can only be specified / determined if the allocated PDSCH bandwidth exceeds this threshold; otherwise, only precoding granularity 2 or 4 can be specified / determined for PDSCH precoding.

[0087] The threshold or condition for the network device 120 or terminal device 110 to determine broadband or narrowband granularity may include the number of scheduled RB bandwidths in one DL subband for the PDSCH being greater than half the size of the DL subband. As shown in Figure 5a, if the bandwidth of the scheduled PRB for this PDSCH 510 is greater than or equal to the threshold, for example, more than half the bandwidth of the DL frequency subband, then the precoding granularity associated with the scheduled PDSCH 510 may be broadband granularity. As a result, since the bandwidth of the scheduled PRB for PDSCH 520 is less than the threshold, the precoding granularity associated with the scheduled PDSCH 520 may be narrowband granularity, for example, four PRBs. Without any limitation, the above embodiments can also be expressed as follows: JPEG2026519703000007.jpg36168

[0088] In addition to or instead of the above, the precoding granularity may have multiple candidate values ​​or bandwidths. In some embodiments, the precoding granularity may include 2 PRBs, 4 PRBs, 8 PRBs, 16 PRBs, 32 PRBs, subband granularity, or broadband granularity. The subband granularity may be the bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband on which the PDSCH is scheduled. For the purpose of clarifying the discussion only, the precoding granularity will be further described with reference to Figure 5b.

[0089] Figure 5b shows examples of precoding granularity adapted to SBFD time units according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0090] As described above, the precoding granularity may be other values ​​besides 2 PRBs, 4 PRBs, and broadband granularity. For example, the precoding granularity may be equal to the bandwidth size of the DL frequency subband, 4 PRBs, 8 PRBs, 16 PRBs, or 32 PRBs. In this case, the PRB bundling division may be based on the BWP or DL ​​subband.

[0091] In the case of subband-based precoding, for a PDSCH spanning two DL subbands, the size of each PRG for precoding the PDSCH in the scheduled subband may be equal to the size of each DL subband. That is, all PRBs used in the PDSCH in the same DL subband or at a new granularity may use the same precoding matrix.

[0092] As shown in Figure 5b, PRG size 1 for precoding PDSCH in DL subband 1 may be equal to the size of DL subband 1, and PRG size 2 for precoding PDSCH in DL subband 2 may be equal to the size of DL subband 2. Without any limitation, the above embodiments can also be expressed as follows: JPEG2026519703000008.jpg16168

[0093] Referring again to Figure 2, by decision operations 240, 250 and / or instruction 253, the network device 120 and the terminal device 110 may determine the same PRB bundling for precoding or decoding the downlink channel. As described above, the precoding matrix corresponds to or is specific to the PRB bundling. Next, the network device 120 may determine (260) a precoding matrix to be applied based on the PRB bundling. Next, the network device 120 may precode (265) the downlink channel (e.g., PDSCH) using the precoding matrix and transmit (270) the precoded downlink channel 273 to the terminal device 110.

[0094] As a result, the terminal device 110 may receive (275) a precoded downlink channel 273 accordingly. Similarly, the terminal device 110 may determine (280) an applicable precode matrix. Next, the terminal device 110 may decode the precoded downlink channel 273 using the precode matrix.

[0095] Thus, this disclosure adapts the downlink channel precoding procedure to the SBFD mechanism to avoid the possibility of mismatch between PRB bundling and frequency subband division. In this way, the performance of the MIMO system can be improved with respect to time-domain resource multiplexing.

[0096] Figure 6 shows a flowchart of a communication method 600 implemented in a terminal device according to several embodiments of the present disclosure. Method 600 can be implemented in a terminal device 110 as shown in Figure 1. For ease of explanation, Method 600 will be described with reference to Figure 1. Method 600 includes additional actions not shown and / or some of the illustrated actions may be omitted, and it should be understood that the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0097] In 610, the terminal device 110 receives from the network device a PRB bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity for the downlink channel in SBFD time units. The SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions. In 620, the terminal device 110 determines a PRB bundling having a precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity within one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit, based on the PRB bundling configuration.

[0098] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 determines whether the initial PRB bundling divided based on the precoding granularity overlaps with both the downlink frequency subband and other frequency subbands in SBFD time units, and determines a first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling as another adapted precoding granularity, wherein the PRB bundling having another adapted precoding granularity may be determined by the first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling not overlapping with other frequency subbands, and by replacing the initial PRB bundling with a PRB bundling having another adapted precoding granularity.

[0099] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine PRB bundling with other adapted precoding granularities, based on the downlink frequency subband and precoding granularity in SBFD time units, by determining other adapted precoding granularities for PRB bundling at the boundary of the downlink frequency subband such that the PRB bundling at the boundary does not overlap with the guard band or uplink frequency subband in SBFD time units.

[0100] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the PRB bundling by determining a plurality of PRB bundlings in one or more downlink frequency subbands by omitting the PRBs of the guard band and uplink frequency subband in SBFD time units, based on precoding granularity, where one of the plurality of PRB bundlings includes two subsets of PRBs, the two subsets of PRBs located in two downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, respectively.

[0101] In some embodiments, the precoding granularity is broadband granularity, and the downlink channel is configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units. The terminal device 110 may determine the PRB bundling by determining a first PRB bundling in a first downlink frequency subband and a second PRB bundling in a second downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, and by applying the same precoding matrix to the first PRB bundling and the second PRB bundling.

[0102] In some embodiments, the precoding granularity is broadband granularity, and the downlink channel is configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units. The terminal device 110 may determine the PRB bundling by determining a first PRB bundling in a first downlink frequency subband and a second PRB bundling in a second downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, and by applying a first precoding matrix to the first PRB bundling and a second precoding matrix to the second PRB bundling, respectively.

[0103] In some embodiments, broadband granularity is set based on the number of PRBs scheduled for the downlink channel and the bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units. Precoding granularity is set to broadband granularity if the first bandwidth of the PRBs allocated to the downlink frequency subband is more than half the second bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband.

[0104] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may further receive a first instruction from the network device indicating that the same precoding matrix is ​​applied to the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, or a second instruction from the network device indicating that a different precoding matrix is ​​applied to the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, where the first or second instruction is determined based on the channel state of the downlink frequency subband.

[0105] In some embodiments, the precoding granularity includes at least one of 2 PRBs, 4 PRBs, 8 PRBs, 16 PRBs, 32 PRBs, subband granularity, or broadband granularity.

[0106] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may further determine a precoding matrix to be applied based on PRB bundling having a precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity, and decode the downlink shared channel from the network device based on the precoding matrix.

[0107] Figure 7 shows a flowchart of a communication method 700 implemented in a network device according to several embodiments of the present disclosure. Method 700 can be implemented in a network device 120 as shown in Figure 1. For ease of explanation, Method 700 will be described with reference to Figure 1. Method 700 includes additional actions not shown and / or some of the illustrated actions may be omitted, and it should be understood that the scope of the present disclosure is not limited in this respect.

[0108] In 810, the network device 120 determines the precoding granularity for the downlink channel in the SBFD time unit based on one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit. The SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions. In 820, the network device transmits a physical resource block (PRB) bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity to the terminal device.

[0109] In some embodiments, the network device 120 may further determine PRB bundling having a precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity within one or more downlink frequency subbands per SBFD time unit.

[0110] In some embodiments, the network device 120 determines whether the initial PRB bundling divided based on the precoding granularity overlaps with both the downlink frequency subband and other frequency subbands in SBFD time units, and determines a first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling as another adapted precoding granularity, wherein the PRB bundling having another adapted precoding granularity may be determined by the first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling not overlapping with other frequency subbands, and by replacing the initial PRB bundling with a PRB bundling having another adapted precoding granularity.

[0111] In some embodiments, the network device 120 may determine PRB bundling with other adapted precoding granularities, based on the downlink frequency subband and precoding granularity in SBFD time units, by determining other adapted precoding granularities for PRB bundling at the boundary of the downlink frequency subband such that the PRB bundling at the boundary does not overlap with the guard band or uplink frequency subband in SBFD time units.

[0112] In some embodiments, the network device 120 may determine the PRB bundling by determining a plurality of PRB bundlings in one or more downlink frequency subbands by omitting the PRBs of the guard band and uplink frequency subband in SBFD time units, based on precoding granularity, where one of the plurality of PRB bundlings includes two subsets of PRBs, the two subsets of PRBs located in two downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, respectively.

[0113] In some embodiments, the precoding granularity is broadband granularity, and the downlink channel is configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units. The network device 120 may determine the PRB bundling by determining a first PRB bundling in a first downlink frequency subband and a second PRB bundling in a second downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, and by applying the same precoding matrix to the first PRB bundling and the second PRB bundling.

[0114] In some embodiments, the precoding granularity is broadband granularity, and the downlink channel is configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units. The network device 120 may determine the PRB bundling by determining a first PRB bundling in a first downlink frequency subband and a second PRB bundling in a second downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, and by applying a first precoding matrix to the first PRB bundling and a second precoding matrix to the second PRB bundling, respectively.

[0115] In some embodiments, broadband granularity is set based on the number of PRBs scheduled for the downlink channel and the bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units. Precoding granularity is set to broadband granularity if the first bandwidth of the PRBs allocated to the downlink frequency subband is more than half the second bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband.

[0116] In some embodiments, the network device may further determine whether the difference between the first channel state of the first downlink frequency subband and the second channel state of the second downlink frequency subband is greater than or equal to a threshold in an SBFD time unit, and based on the determination that the difference does not exceed the threshold, transmit a first instruction to the terminal device indicating that the same precoding matrix is ​​applied to the downlink frequency subbands in an SBFD time unit, and based on the determination that the difference is greater than or equal to a threshold, transmit a second instruction to the terminal device indicating that different precoding matrices are applied to the downlink frequency subbands in an SBFD time unit.

[0117] In some embodiments, the precoding granularity includes at least one of 2 PRBs, 4 PRBs, 8 PRBs, 16 PRBs, 32 PRBs, subband granularity, or broadband granularity.

[0118] In some embodiments, the network device may further determine a precoding matrix to be applied based on PRB bundling having a precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity, encode the downlink shared channel based on the precoding matrix, and transmit the precoded downlink shared channel to the terminal device.

[0119] Figure 8 is a simplified block diagram of a device 800 suitable for carrying out some embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 800 can be considered as a further exemplary embodiment of a terminal device 110 or network device 120 as shown in Figure 1. Thus, the device 800 can be implemented in or as part of the above-mentioned network device or terminal device.

[0120] As shown in the figure, the device 800 includes a processor 810, a memory 820 coupled to the processor 810, a suitable transceiver 840 coupled to the processor 810, and a communication interface coupled to the transceiver 840. The memory 810 stores at least a portion of the program 830. The transceiver 840 may be for bidirectional or unidirectional communication as required. The transceiver 840 may include at least one transmitter 842 and receiver 844. The transmitter 842 and receiver 844 may be functional modules or physical entities. The transceiver 840 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication, but in practice, the access node referred to in this application may have multiple antennas. The communication interface may represent any interface necessary for communication with other network elements, such as the X2 / Xn interface for bidirectional communication between eNBs / gNBs, the S1 / NG interface for communication between Mobility Management Entity (MME) / Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) / SGW / UPE and eNBs / gNBs, the Un interface for communication between eNBs / gNBs and relay nodes (RNs), or the Uu interface for communication between eNBs / gNBs and terminal devices.

[0121] The program 830 is assumed to include program instructions, and when the program is executed by the associated processor 810, it enables the device 800 to operate according to embodiments of the present disclosure, as described herein with reference to Figures 1-7. Embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented by computer software executable by the processor 810 of the device 800, by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware. The processor 810 may be configured to implement various embodiments of the present disclosure. Furthermore, a combination of the processor 810 and memory 820 may form processing means 850 adapted to implement various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0122] Memory 820 may be of any type suitable for a local technology network and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, including but not limited to non-temporary computer-readable storage media, semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory and removable memory. Although only one memory 820 is shown in device 800, device 800 may contain multiple physically different memory modules. Processor 810 may be of any type suitable for a local technology network and may include, but not limited to, one or more of the following: general-purpose computers, dedicated computers, microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs), and processors based on multicore processor architectures. Device 800 may include multiple processors, such as application-specific integrated circuit chips that are time-dependent to a clock synchronized with the main processor.

[0123] In some embodiments, the terminal device includes a circuit configured to perform method 600.

[0124] In some embodiments, the network device includes a circuit configured to perform method 700.

[0125] The components included in the instruments and / or devices of this disclosure may be implemented in a variety of ways, including software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. In one embodiment, one or more units may be implemented using software and / or firmware, for example, machine-executable instructions stored on a storage medium. In addition to, or instead of, machine-executable instructions, some or all units in the instruments and / or devices may be implemented at least partially by one or more hardware logic components. Examples of usable hardware logic components, though not limited to, include field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), application-specific standard products (ASSPs), system-on-a-chip systems (SOCs), and complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs).

[0126] In general, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or dedicated circuitry, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some embodiments may be implemented in hardware, while others may be implemented in firmware or software executed by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. Although various embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated and described using block diagrams, flowcharts, or some other graphical representations, it will be understood that any block, device, system, technology, terminal device, or method described herein may be implemented, in non-limiting examples, in hardware, software, firmware, dedicated circuitry or logic, general-purpose hardware or controller, or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

[0127] This disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-temporary computer-readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer-executable instructions, such as instructions contained in a program module, which are executed on a device on a target real or virtual processor, and which perform the processes or methods described above with reference to any of Figures 2 to 7. Generally, a program module includes routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, etc., that perform a specific task or implement a specific abstract data type. The functions of program modules may be combined or separated as needed in various embodiments. The machine-executable instructions for a program module may be executed in a local or distributed device. In a distributed device, the program module may reside on both local and remote storage media.

[0128] Program code for performing the methods of this disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. This program code may be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, a dedicated computer, or other programmable data processing device, and when executed by the processor or controller, it will perform the functions / operations specified in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams. The program code may run entirely on the machine, partially on the machine, as a standalone software package, partially on the machine and partially on a remote machine, or entirely on a remote machine or server.

[0129] The above program code may be embodied in a machine-readable medium, which may be any tangible medium that contains or can store a program used by an instruction execution system, device, or apparatus, or a program used in conjunction with such a system or apparatus. 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, electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor systems, devices, or apparatus, or any suitable combination thereof. More specific examples of machine-readable storage media include electrical connections with one or more wires, portable computer diskettes, hard disks, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM, or flash memory), optical fibers, compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, or any suitable combination thereof.

[0130] Furthermore, although the operations are presented in a specific order, it should not be understood that such operations must be performed in the specific order shown, sequentially, or all shown operations must be performed in order to obtain the desired results. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, the above description includes details of several specific embodiments, but these should not be construed as limiting the scope of this disclosure, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to a particular embodiment. Certain features described in the context of individual embodiments may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features described in the context of a single embodiment may be implemented individually or in any suitable combination of sub-features in multiple embodiments.

[0131] While this disclosure is described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological actions, it should be understood that the disclosure as defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or actions described above. Rather, the specific features and actions described above are disclosed as exemplary forms of implementing the claims.

[0132] In summary, embodiments of this disclosure can provide the following solutions.

[0133] The terminal device includes a processor. The processor is configured to cause the terminal device to receive from the network device a Physical Resource Block (PRB) bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity for the downlink channel in a Subband non-overlapping Full Duplex (SBFD) time unit. The SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions. The terminal device is further configured to determine a PRB bundling having a precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity based on the PRB bundling configuration and within one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit.

[0134] In one embodiment, the terminal device determines whether the initial PRB bundling divided based on the precoding granularity overlaps with both the downlink frequency subband and other frequency subbands in SBFD time units, and determines the first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling as another adapted precoding granularity, wherein the first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling does not overlap with other frequency subbands, and replaces the initial PRB bundling with a PRB bundling having another adapted precoding granularity.

[0135] In one embodiment, the terminal device is configured to determine PRB bundling with other adapted precoding granularities, based on the downlink frequency subband and precoding granularity in SBFD time units, by determining other adapted precoding granularities for PRB bundling at the boundary of the downlink frequency subband such that the PRB bundling at the boundary does not overlap with the guard band or uplink frequency subband in SBFD time units.

[0136] In one embodiment, the terminal device is configured to determine PRB bundling by determining multiple PRB bundlings in one or more downlink frequency subbands by omitting PRBs in guard bands and uplink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, based on precoding granularity, where one of the multiple PRB bundlings includes two subsets of PRBs, the two subsets of PRBs located in two downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, respectively.

[0137] In one embodiment, the precoding granularity is broadband granularity, and the downlink channel is configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, and the terminal device is configured to determine the PRB bundling by determining a first PRB bundling in a first downlink frequency subband and a second PRB bundling in a second downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, and by applying the same precoding matrix to the first PRB bundling and the second PRB bundling.

[0138] In one embodiment, the precoding granularity is broadband granularity, and the downlink channel is configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, and the terminal device is configured to determine the PRB bundling by determining a first PRB bundling in a first downlink frequency subband and a second PRB bundling in a second downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, and by applying a first precoding matrix to the first PRB bundling and a second precoding matrix to the second PRB bundling, respectively.

[0139] In one embodiment, broadband granularity is set based on the number of PRBs scheduled for the downlink channel and the bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, and precoding granularity is set to broadband granularity when the first bandwidth of the PRBs allocated to the downlink frequency subband exceeds half the second bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband.

[0140] In one embodiment, the terminal device is further configured to receive a first instruction from the network device indicating that the same precoding matrix is ​​applied to the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, or a second instruction from the network device indicating that a different precoding matrix is ​​applied to the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, where the first or second instruction is determined based on the channel state of the downlink frequency subband.

[0141] In one embodiment, the precoding granularity includes at least one of 2 PRBs, 4 PRBs, 8 PRBs, 16 PRBs, 32 PRBs, subband granularity, or broadband granularity.

[0142] In one embodiment, the terminal device is configured to further determine a precoding matrix to be applied based on PRB bundling having a precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity, and to decode a downlink shared channel from a network device based on the precoding matrix.

[0143] The network device includes a processor. The processor is configured to cause the network device to determine the precoding granularity for the downlink channel in an SBFD time unit based on one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit. The SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions. The network device is further configured to transmit a PRB bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity to the terminal device.

[0144] In one embodiment, the network device is further configured to determine PRB bundling having a precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity within one or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units.

[0145] In one embodiment, the network device determines whether the initial PRB bundling, divided based on the precoding granularity, overlaps with both the downlink frequency subband and other frequency subbands in SBFD time units, and determines the first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling as another adapted precoding granularity, wherein the first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling does not overlap with other frequency subbands, and replaces the initial PRB bundling with a PRB bundling having another adapted precoding granularity.

[0146] In one embodiment, the network device is configured to determine PRB bundling with other adapted precoding granularities, based on the downlink frequency subband and precoding granularity in SBFD time units, by determining other adapted precoding granularities for PRB bundling at the boundary of the downlink frequency subband such that the PRB bundling at the boundary does not overlap with the guard band or uplink frequency subband in SBFD time units.

[0147] In one embodiment, the network device is configured to determine PRB bundling by determining multiple PRB bundlings within one or more downlink frequency subbands by omitting PRBs in guard bands and uplink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, based on precoding granularity, where one of the multiple PRB bundlings includes two subsets of PRBs, the two subsets of PRBs located in two downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, respectively.

[0148] In one embodiment, the precoding granularity is broadband granularity, and the downlink channel is configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, and the terminal device is configured to determine the PRB bundling by determining a first PRB bundling in a first downlink frequency subband and a second PRB bundling in a second downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, and by applying the same precoding matrix to the first PRB bundling and the second PRB bundling.

[0149] In one embodiment, the precoding granularity is broadband granularity, and the downlink channel is configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in SBFD time units, and the terminal device is configured to determine the PRB bundling by determining a first PRB bundling in a first downlink frequency subband and a second PRB bundling in a second downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, and by applying a first precoding matrix to the first PRB bundling and a second precoding matrix to the second PRB bundling, respectively.

[0150] In one embodiment, broadband granularity is set based on the number of PRBs scheduled for the downlink channel and the bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband in SBFD time units, and precoding granularity is set to broadband granularity when the first bandwidth of the PRBs allocated to the downlink frequency subband exceeds half the second bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband.

[0151] In one embodiment, the network device is configured to further determine whether the difference between the first channel state of the first downlink frequency subband and the second channel state of the second downlink frequency subband exceeds a threshold in an SBFD time unit, and based on the determination that the difference does not exceed the threshold, transmit a first instruction to the terminal device indicating that the same precoding matrix is ​​applied to the downlink frequency subbands in an SBFD time unit, and based on the determination that the difference exceeds the threshold, transmit a second instruction to the terminal device indicating that different precoding matrices are applied to the downlink frequency subbands in an SBFD time unit.

[0152] In one embodiment, the precoding granularity includes at least one of 2 PRBs, 4 PRBs, 8 PRBs, 16 PRBs, 32 PRBs, subband granularity, or broadband granularity.

[0153] In one embodiment, the network device is configured to further determine a precoding matrix to be applied based on PRB bundling having a precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity, encode the downlink shared channel based on the precoding matrix, and transmit the precoded downlink shared channel to the terminal device.

[0154] A communication method comprising: a terminal device receiving from a network device a physical resource block (PRB) bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity of downlink channels in subband non-overlapping full-duplex (SBFD) time units, wherein the SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions; and determining a PRB bundling having a precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity within one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit, based on the PRB bundling configuration.

[0155] A communication method comprising: determining a precoding granularity for a downlink channel in a subband non-overlapping full-duplex (SBFD) time unit based on one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit, wherein the SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions; and transmitting a physical resource block (PRB) bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity to a terminal device.

[0156] A computer-readable medium on which instructions are stored, wherein, when executed on at least one processor, the instructions cause the at least one processor to perform the method according to the above embodiment.

Claims

1. A terminal device, The device comprises a processor, and the processor provides the terminal device with Receiving a Physical Resource Block (PRB) bundling configuration from a network device that indicates the precoding granularity for downlink channels in subband non-overlapping full-duplex (SBFD) time units, Here, the SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions, Based on the PRB bundling configuration, and within one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit, determine the PRB bundling having the precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity, Configured to execute, Terminal device.

2. The aforementioned terminal device is Determining whether the initial PRB bundling divided based on the precoding granularity overlaps with both the downlink frequency subband and other frequency subbands in the SBFD time unit, Based on the determination that the initial PRB bundling overlaps with both the downlink frequency subband and the other frequency subbands, the first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling is determined as the other adapted precoding granularity, wherein the first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling does not overlap with the other frequency subbands. Replacing the initial PRB bundling with the PRB bundling having the other suitable pre-coating granules, The configuration is configured to determine the PRB bundling having the other adapted pre-coding particle size, The terminal device according to claim 1.

3. The aforementioned terminal device is Based on the downlink frequency subband and the precoding granularity in the SBFD time unit, the configuration is configured to determine the PRB bundling having the other adapted precoding granularity for the PRB bundling at the boundary of the downlink frequency subband, such that the PRB bundling at the boundary does not overlap with the guard band or uplink frequency subband in the SBFD time unit. The terminal device according to claim 1.

4. The aforementioned terminal device is The system is configured to determine the PRB bundling by determining multiple PRB bundlings within one or more downlink frequency subbands by omitting the PRBs of the guard band and uplink frequency subband in the SBFD time unit based on the precoding granularity, Here, one of the plurality of PRB bundlings includes two subsets of the PRB, and the two subsets of the PRB are located in two downlink frequency subbands in the SBFD time unit, The terminal device according to claim 1.

5. The precoding granularity is broadband granularity, and the downlink channel is configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in the SBFD time unit, and the terminal device is In the aforementioned SBFD time unit, the first PRB bundling within the first downlink frequency subband and the second PRB bundling within the second downlink frequency subband are determined. Applying the same precoding matrix to the first PRB bundling and the second PRB bundling, The PRB bundling is configured to be determined by the above, The terminal device according to claim 1.

6. The precoding granularity is broadband granularity, and the downlink channel is configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in the SBFD time unit, and the terminal device is In the aforementioned SBFD time unit, the first PRB bundling within the first downlink frequency subband and the second PRB bundling within the second downlink frequency subband are determined. The first precoding matrix is ​​applied to the first PRB bundling, and the second precoding matrix is ​​applied to the second PRB bundling, The PRB bundling is configured to be determined by the above, The terminal device according to claim 1.

7. The broadband granularity is set based on the number of PRBs scheduled for the downlink channel and the bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband in the SBFD time unit. The precoding granularity is set to the broadband granularity when the first bandwidth of the PRB allocated to the downlink frequency subband exceeds half of the second bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband. The terminal device according to claim 5 or 6.

8. The aforementioned terminal device further, The network device receives a first instruction indicating that the same precoding matrix is ​​applied to the downlink frequency subband in the SBFD time unit, or The network device is configured to receive a second instruction indicating that a different precoder matrix is ​​applied to the downlink frequency subband in the SBFD time unit, wherein the first or second instruction is determined based on the channel state of the downlink frequency subband. The terminal device according to claim 1.

9. The terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the precoding granularity includes at least one of two PRBs, four PRBs, eight PRBs, sixteen PRBs, 32 PRBs, subband granularity, or broadband granularity.

10. The aforementioned terminal device further, Determine the precoding matrix to be applied based on the PRB bundling having the aforementioned precoding granularity or the aforementioned other suitable precoding granularity, and Based on the precoding matrix, it is configured to decode the downlink shared channel from the network device. A terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

11. Network device, The network device comprises a processor, and the processor provides the network device with Determining the precoding granularity for a downlink channel in a subband non-overlapping full-duplex (SBFD) time unit based on one or more downlink frequency subbands in the SBFD time unit, Here, the SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions, The physical resource block (PRB) bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity is transmitted to the terminal device. Configured to execute, Network device.

12. The aforementioned network device further, The system is configured to determine PRB bundling having the precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity within one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit. The network device according to claim 11.

13. The aforementioned network device is Determining whether the initial PRB bundling divided based on the precoding granularity overlaps with both the downlink frequency subband and other frequency subbands in the SBFD time unit, Based on the determination that the initial PRB bundling overlaps with both the downlink frequency subband and the other frequency subbands, the first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling is determined as the other adapted precoding granularity, wherein the first number of PRBs in the initial PRB bundling does not overlap with the other frequency subbands. Replacing the initial PRB bundling with the PRB bundling having the other suitable pre-coating granules, The configuration is configured to determine the PRB bundling having the other adapted pre-coding particle size, The network device according to claim 12.

14. The aforementioned network device is Based on the downlink frequency subband in the SBFD time unit and the precoding granularity, the configuration is configured to determine the other adapted precoding granularity for PRB bundling at the boundary of the downlink frequency subband such that the PRB bundling at the boundary does not overlap with the guard band or uplink frequency subband in the SBFD time unit, thereby determining the PRB bundling having the other adapted precoding granularity. The network device according to claim 12.

15. The aforementioned network device is The system is configured to determine the PRB bundling by determining multiple PRB bundlings within one or more downlink frequency subbands by omitting the PRBs of the guard band and uplink frequency subband in the SBFD time unit based on the precoding granularity, Here, one of the plurality of PRB bundlings includes two subsets of the PRB, and the two subsets of the PRB are located in two downlink frequency subbands in the SBFD time unit, The network device according to claim 12.

16. The precoding granularity is broadband granularity, and the downlink channel is configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in the SBFD time unit, and the terminal device is In the aforementioned SBFD time unit, the first PRB bundling within the first downlink frequency subband and the second PRB bundling within the second downlink frequency subband are determined. Applying the same precoding matrix to the first PRB bundling and the second PRB bundling, The PRB bundling is configured to be determined by the above, The network device according to claim 12.

17. The precoding granularity is broadband granularity, and the downlink channel is configured on two or more downlink frequency subbands in the SBFD time unit, and the terminal device is In the aforementioned SBFD time unit, the first PRB bundling within the first downlink frequency subband and the second PRB bundling within the second downlink frequency subband are determined. The first precoding matrix is ​​applied to the first PRB bundling, and the second precoding matrix is ​​applied to the second PRB bundling, The PRB bundling is configured to be determined by the above, The network device according to claim 12.

18. The broadband granularity is set based on the number of PRBs scheduled for the downlink channel and the bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband in the SBFD time unit. The precoding granularity is set to the broadband granularity when the first bandwidth of the PRB allocated to the downlink frequency subband exceeds half of the second bandwidth of the downlink frequency subband. The network device according to claim 16 or 17.

19. The aforementioned network device further, In the aforementioned SBFD time unit, it is determined whether the difference between the first channel state of the first downlink frequency subband and the second channel state of the second downlink frequency subband exceeds a threshold. Based on the determination that the difference does not exceed the threshold, a first instruction is transmitted to the terminal device indicating that the same precoding matrix is ​​applied to the downlink frequency subband in the SBFD time unit, and Based on the determination that the difference exceeds the threshold, the system is configured to transmit a second instruction to the terminal device indicating that a different precoder matrix is ​​applied to the downlink frequency subband in the SBFD time unit. The network device according to claim 11.

20. A method of communication, In a terminal device, receiving from a network device a physical resource block (PRB) bundling configuration indicating the precoding granularity for the downlink channel in subband non-overlapping full-duplex (SBFD) time units, Here, the SBFD time unit consists of frequency subbands for different link directions, Based on the PRB bundling configuration, and within one or more downlink frequency subbands of the SBFD time unit, a resource block bundling having the precoding granularity or other adapted precoding granularity is determined. including, Communication method.

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