Downlink Scheduling Over Cellular Carrier Aggregation - Patent application

Abstract

Various systems and methods are presented for scheduling data transmissions from a base station to user equipment (UE). Channel quality indicator values ​​corresponding to multiple UEs may be determined for multiple carrier components of a carrier aggregation in a cellular network. A scheduling matrix including instantaneous data rates for the UEs may be created. Elements in the scheduling matrix may be normalized by modifying the instantaneous data rates using an average data transmission rate. Scheduling decisions for data transmissions may be made for the UEs based on the normalized scheduling matrix.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This patent application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62 / 888,001, entitled "Methods and Systems for Scheduling Across a Cellular Carrier Aggregation," filed on August 16, 2019, which claims priority to U.S. Non-Provisional Patent Application No. 16 / 678,974, entitled "DOWNLINK SCHEDULING ACROSS A CELLULAR CARRIER AGGREGATION," filed on November 8, 2019, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes. [Background technology]

[0002] When scheduling data transmissions between wireless devices and base stations, communication resources such as physical resource blocks may be allocated to increase the overall efficiency of the cellular network. Furthermore, scheduling may need to be performed fairly so that different wireless devices are given an opportunity to transmit data to the cellular network. The embodiments detailed herein focus on configurations for efficiently allocating spectrum across user equipment. Summary of the Invention

[0003] Various embodiments are described with respect to a method for scheduling data transmissions from a base station to a user equipment (UE). In some embodiments, a method for scheduling data transmissions from a base station to a user equipment (UE) is described. The method may include determining, by a cellular network, a plurality of channel quality indicator (CQI) values ​​that may correspond to a plurality of UEs. For each UE of the plurality of UEs, a CQI value of the plurality of CQI values ​​may be determined for each carrier component of a plurality of carrier components that may comprise a carrier aggregation. The method may include determining, by the cellular network, an average data rate for each UE of the plurality of UEs. The method may include creating, by a scheduler system of the cellular network, a scheduling matrix including a plurality of elements that store a plurality of instantaneous data rates based on the determined plurality of CQI values. The method may include normalizing, by the scheduler system of the cellular network, each element of the plurality of elements of the scheduling matrix by modifying the plurality of instantaneous data rates that may be based on the plurality of average data rates. Each average data rate of the plurality of average data rates may correspond to a UE of the plurality of UEs mapped to an element of the plurality of elements. The method may include making, by a scheduler, scheduling decisions for the plurality of UEs based on the normalized scheduling matrix.

[0004] An embodiment of such a method may include one or more of the following features. The method may further include transmitting, by a base station of the cellular network, the data to the plurality of UEs based on the scheduling decision. For communication with the UE, the cellular network may use a 5G New Radio (NR) Radio Access Technology (RAT). Each row of the scheduling matrix may correspond to a PRB of a plurality of physical resource blocks (PRBs). Each column of the scheduling matrix may correspond to a UE of the plurality of UEs. Each PRB of the plurality of PRBs may correspond to one of a plurality of carrier components. For each row of the scheduling matrix, removing entries corresponding to a carrier component of a plurality of carrier components for which the corresponding UE of the row may be out of communication range from a base station on the carrier component. For each row of the scheduling matrix, removing entries corresponding to a PRB of a plurality of PRBs that may be outside one or more active bandwidth portions (BWPs) to which the corresponding UE of the row may be assigned. For each UE of the plurality of UEs, a CQI value of each carrier component of the plurality of carrier components and a plurality of CQI values ​​that may correspond to the UE may be used to calculate an average data rate. The method may further include identifying, by the scheduler system, an element of the plurality of elements of the scheduling matrix that may have a maximum value of the plurality of elements. The method may further include allocating, for a UE of the plurality of UEs that may correspond to the element, a PRB of the plurality of PRBs that may correspond to the element. The method may further include determining that an additional PRB may not be needed for data transmission to the UE to which the PRB may be assigned. The method may further include deleting all other entries for the UE in the scheduling matrix in response to determining that an additional PRB may not be needed for data transmission to the UE to which the PRB may be assigned. The method may further include determining that an additional PRB may be needed for data transmission to the UE to which the PRB may be assigned.The method may further include, in response to determining that additional PRBs may be required for data transmission to the UE, updating the data rates for all other elements mapped to the UE in the scheduling matrix. Updating the data rates may include decreasing the magnitude of all other elements mapped to the UE.

[0005] In some embodiments, a cellular network that can schedule downlink data transmissions is described. The network can include a base station that can include a scheduler system. The base station can be configured to determine a plurality of channel quality indicator (CQI) values ​​that can correspond to a plurality of UEs. For each UE of the plurality of UEs, a CQI value of the plurality of CQI values ​​can be determined for each carrier component of a plurality of carrier components that can comprise a carrier aggregation. The base station can be configured to determine an average data rate for each UE of the plurality of UEs. The base station can be configured to create a scheduling matrix including a plurality of elements that store a plurality of instantaneous data rates. The base station can be configured to normalize each element of the plurality of elements of the scheduling matrix by modifying the plurality of instantaneous data rates based on the plurality of average data rates. Each average rate of the plurality of average data rates can correspond to a UE of the plurality of UEs mapped to an element of the plurality of elements. The base station can be configured to make a scheduling decision for the plurality of UEs based on the normalized scheduling matrix.

[0006] An embodiment of such a network may include one or more of the following features: The cellular network may further include a plurality of UEs. The base station may be a gNodeB, and the cellular network may be a 5G New Radio (NR) Radio Access Technology (RAT) cellular network. The cellular network may include a plurality of base stations, each of which may be configured to perform the functions of the base station. The base station may be further configured to transmit data to the plurality of UEs based on the scheduling decision. Each row of the scheduling matrix may correspond to a PRB of a plurality of physical resource blocks (PRBs). Each column of the scheduling matrix may correspond to a UE of the plurality of UEs. Each PRB of the plurality of PRBs may correspond to one of a plurality of carrier components. The base station may be further configured to identify an element of the plurality of elements of the scheduling matrix that may have a maximum value of the plurality of elements. The base station may be further configured to assign a PRB of the plurality of PRBs that may correspond to the element for a UE of the plurality of UEs that may correspond to the element. The base station may be further configured to determine that an additional PRB may not be needed for data transmission to a UE to which the PRB may be assigned. The base station may be further configured to delete all other entries for the UE in the scheduling matrix in response to determining that additional PRBs may not be required for data transmission to the UE.

[0007] A further understanding of the characteristics and advantages of the various embodiments may be realized by reference to the following drawings. In the accompanying drawings, similar components or features may have the same reference numbers. Furthermore, various components of the same type may be distinguished by following the reference number with a dash followed by a second number that distinguishes between the similar components. When only a first reference number is used in this specification, the description is applicable to any of the similar components having the same first reference number regardless of the second reference number. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of multiple carrier components (CC) forming a carrier aggregation (CA). [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a cellular system capable of performing proportional fair scheduling. [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a method for scheduling. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of a scheduling matrix. [Diagram 5] FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a method of how scheduling decisions are made using a normalized scheduling matrix. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment 100 of multiple carrier components (CCs) forming a carrier aggregation (CA). A cellular network carrier may have rights to different parts of a non-contiguous spectrum. For example, the rights to different parts of the spectrum may be obtained from different sources over time. In the embodiment 100, there are three carrier components: carrier component 101-1, carrier component 101-2, and carrier component 101-3. The carrier components may have different bandwidths. For example, CC 101-1 may have a larger bandwidth than CC 101-2. A cellular network carrier may not be authorized to use frequencies between CC 101-1 and CC 101-2 or between CC 101-2 and CC 101-3.

[0010] CC101 may span a wide range of frequencies. For example, CC101-1 may be centered around 600 MHz, CC101-2 may be centered around 800 MHz, and CC101-3 may be centered around 1.9 GHz. It may be expected that the signal strength between a base station (BS) and a user equipment (UE) in each CC may vary based on the location of the UE relative to the BS due to distance and obstacles between the UE and the BS. For example, a UE may experience a greater signal strength from a BS in CC101-1 than in CC101-3 due to path loss dependency on frequency. In general, the higher the frequency, the greater the path loss. The embodiments detailed herein focus on a fair and proportional arrangement for scheduling communications between BSs and UEs across CAs.

[0011] Although embodiment 100 shows three CCs, it should be understood that this number is merely an example. More or fewer CCs are possible, e.g., Rep-15NR may support carrier aggregation of up to 16 carrier components. In some embodiments, there may be only a single CC. In other embodiments, there may be two, four, five, six, or more CCs. Furthermore, the bandwidth of the individual CCs may vary, e.g., for a 5G NR cellular network, the bandwidth of each CC may be up to 100 MHz, and the total carrier aggregation bandwidth may be up to 1 GHz.

[0012] FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of a cellular system 200 capable of performing proportional fair scheduling. The cellular system 200 may include a UE 110, a base station tower 120, a gNodeB 130, and a 5G core network 140. The BS tower 120 and the gNodeB 130 may be collectively referred to as a BS. While the cellular system 200 refers to 5G and gNodeB, the embodiments detailed herein are applicable to other types of cellular networks, such as a 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) cellular network that uses eNodeB instead of gNodeB. The cellular system 200 operates according to a 5G New Radio (NR) Radio Access Technology (RAT). In other embodiments, a different RAT, such as 3G, 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE), or some other RAT, may be used. In some embodiments, the 5G network may use an Evolved Packet Core (EPC). Communications from the base station tower 120 to the UE 110 may be scheduled. Various physical resource blocks (PRBs) may be available across multiple CCs of a CA for communication. Each PRB may define a time slot at a particular frequency within the CC. The number of PRBs available on a given CC depends on the bandwidth of the CC and the subcarrier spacing (SCS) of the CC.

[0013] The UE 110 may be various forms of wireless devices capable of communicating according to the RAT of the cellular system 200. For example, the UE 110 may be a smartphone, a wireless modem, a cellular phone, a laptop computer, a wireless access point (AP), etc. In response to the data received from the BS tower 120, each UE may perform a signal strength measurement. A channel quality indicator (CQI) may be an index value representing the downlink (gNB to UE) channel quality. The CQI indicates a particular data rate that can be achieved between the UE and the BS. Since different CCs of a CA are at different frequencies, the CQI for the PRBs in different CCs of a CA may be different. Thus, in some situations, a higher or lower data rate may be achievable in one CC of a CA than in another CC. Furthermore, it may be possible for the CQI to vary for UEs within the same CC, especially for CCs with large bandwidths. For example, the CQI may be higher near the lower end of the CC's bandwidth than near the upper end of the CC's bandwidth.

[0014] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2, the RAT of the cellular network is 5G NR. Thus, the BS includes a gNodeB (gNB). In other embodiments, the BS may include a different system for controlling communication with the UE. For example, in a 4G LTE cellular network, an eNodeB (eNB) may be used instead of a gNB. In the illustrated embodiment, the gNodeB 130 includes a CQI measurement result collection component 131 and a scheduler 132. For other types of wireless networks, these components may be part of the BS or part of the core wireless network. In the cellular system 200, the scheduler 132 is performed by the gNB 130, but in other embodiments, it may be possible for a component of the 5G core network 140 to perform the scheduling task.

[0015] The CQI measurement collection component 131 may receive CQI measurements from the UE 110 and store the received CQI measurements. Since each PRB data transmission has at least some reference signal, the UE may measure the quality of the reference signal to obtain the CQI measurements. Thus, the CQI measurements indicate the downlink channel quality of the PRBs on which data was previously received by the UE from the BS. From these received CQIs for a given UE, the scheduler 132 may create a proportionally fair schedule that takes into account the CQI of each UE across the CA. In other embodiments, rather than using CQI measurements, signal strength or some other indication of channel quality may be used. The scheduler 132 creates a schedule for data transmissions across the CA based on the channel quality experienced by each UE on an individual CC. Details of how the scheduler 132 works are described in connection with FIG. 3. The functions of the scheduler 132 and the CQI measurement collection component 131 may be performed using one or more processors and one or more non-transitory processor-readable media.

[0016] The scheduler 132 may include one or more dedicated or general-purpose processors. Such dedicated processors may include processors specifically designed to perform the functions detailed herein. Such dedicated processors may be ASICs or FPGAs, which are general-purpose components physically and electrically configured to perform the functions detailed herein. Such general-purpose processors may execute dedicated software stored using one or more non-transitory processor-readable media, such as random access memory (RAM), flash memory, hard disk drive (HDD), or solid-state drive (SSD).

[0017] In FIG. 2, a single gNodeB is illustrated. In a cellular network, there may be many gNodeBs, or more generally, base stations. Each BS may have its own scheduler, either locally integrated as part of the BS or part of a system that communicates with the BS. For example, a gNodeB may be capable of communicating with multiple base station towers distributed in a geographical area. Thus, the scheduler 132 may be capable of managing scheduling for multiple base station towers.

[0018] Various methods may be performed using the embodiments and systems detailed in connection with Figures 1 and 2. Figure 3 illustrates an embodiment of a method 300 for scheduling. The method 300 may be performed by components of a base station, such as a gNB of a 5G NR RAT cellular network or an eNB of a 4G LTE RAT cellular network. In particular, the blocks of the method 300 may be performed by the CQI measurement collection component 131 and the scheduler 132 of Figure 2.

[0019] At block 305, a CQI may be received by the BS from a UE communicating with the BS. The CQI may be received and stored by a base station (e.g., gNB). Each CQI may indicate quality for a particular resource block for which the UE previously received data. Multiple CQIs may be received from each UE and stored for that UE. For example, a separate CQI may be received for each PRB for which data was previously transmitted for the UE. If the UE received data across each CC of the CA, at least one CQI may be stored that represents the channel quality for each CC of the CA. There may be PRBs for which no CQI value is available for a particular UE because the UE has been assigned an active bandwidth portion (BWP) for each CC. In some embodiments, only a recent CQI or an average of recent CQIs may be stored for a particular CC. In other embodiments, multiple CQIs may be stored for each UE, such as for each PRB within a CC. Storing multiple CQIs for a given CC may allow for taking into account variations in channel quality that occur across the bandwidth of the CC. For example, a UE may experience different channel quality in the lower frequency portions of a CC compared to the higher frequency portions.

[0020] At block 310, which may be performed before, while, or after the CQI data is read at block 305, a past data transmission rate, which may be an average data transmission rate, may be calculated by the scheduler for each UE. Thus, a single past data transmission rate may be calculated for each UE. The past data transmission rate r n (t) may be calculated by an exponential filter as shown in Equation 1 below.

number

[0021] In Equation 1, n denotes the nth UE, and t denotes the current time when scheduling is performed. Therefore, r n(t-1) represents the historical data transmission rate at the previous scheduling time. Thus, the scheduler may store or have access to the average data transmission rate for each UE. T represents the time constant of the exponential filter. In some embodiments, the value of T may be between 3 and 5. Although Equation 1 provides one possible way in which the average data transmission rate may be calculated using an exponential filter, various other filtering methods can be used to determine the historical data transmission rate.

[0022] R n (t) is the UE at scheduling time t n R represents the instantaneous velocity of n (t) is based on the CQI determined for a particular PRB. Based on the CQI, the number of data bits in the PRB varies. While the total number of symbols transmitted as part of the PRB remains the same, as the channel quality increases, the ratio of symbols that can be allocated to data in the PRB compared to error correction increases. Therefore, for different PRBs, individual R n A (t) value can be calculated.

[0023] The calculated value r n (t) can be stored by the scheduler. For scheduling in the next time interval, r n (t) is r n (t-1).

[0024] At block 315, a scheduling matrix may be created. The scheduling matrix may be created such that there is an entry corresponding to each PRB of the CA and UE connected to the BS. Since the PRBs are spread across the CA, the scheduling matrix includes a PRB for each CC of the CA. In some embodiments, each row of the scheduling matrix corresponds to a different UE. (In other embodiments, each column of the scheduling matrix corresponds to a different UE). Each column may correspond to a different PRB. Thus, the columns correspond to PRBs on different CCs of the CA. (In other embodiments, different rows may correspond to different PRBs). Thus, each entry in the scheduling matrix corresponds to a particular UE and PRB. FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment 400 of a scheduling matrix. Scheduling matrix 401 has entries for N UEs and M PRBs. The value R of each entry represents the instantaneous downlink data transmission rate of the UE, which depends on the CQI. Thus, the PRB m UE transmitting on n The instantaneous velocity of is R nm (t).

[0025] For each UE for which there is a row in the scheduling matrix, if the UE cannot receive data on the carrier component associated with the PRB, the matrix element is set to zero in block 320. For example, the farther the UE is from the BS, the higher frequency CC may not have sufficient signal strength to be used for communication.

[0026] Additionally, or alternatively, a UE may be permitted to use only a portion of a given CC, even though the UE may potentially be able to communicate using that CC. Each UE may be provided with an active BWP definition that defines the portion of each CC that is suitable for use by that UE, or potentially excluding one or more entire CCs from use. For example, if a CA includes three CCs, each UE may have three active BWP definitions for uplink communications and three active BWP definitions for downlink communications. At block 325, for each UE with a row in the scheduling matrix, the scheduler sets the matrix elements to zero for PRBs that are not within the UE's active downlink BWP on each CC of the CA.

[0027] For each UE for which the scheduler determines that no data is pending for transmission to the UE via the downlink, all entries for that UE are set to zero in block 330. Thus, if no data transfer is pending for a UE, then each entry in an entire row of scheduling matrix entries corresponding to that UE is set to zero (or otherwise ignored). The sequence of operations of blocks 320-330 may be performed in any order.

[0028] At block 335, each entry of the scheduling matrix may be normalized. By block 335, the scheduling matrix may be sparse, meaning that many of the elements are zero. The normalization process of block 335 does not result in changing the entries in the scheduling matrix that are set to zero. Rather, for each UE, the non-zero entries in the scheduling matrix are adjusted based on the average data transmission bit rate of the UE. This normalization is reflected in the normalized scheduling matrix 402, where each entry is denoted by α N The average data transfer bit rate, r, N(t-1). The normalization process of block 335 can help make the scheduling proportionally fair. That is, by dividing the instantaneous rates by a small number, UEs that previously had relatively low data rates are prioritized over UEs that previously had relatively high data rates. Initially, all β N The value is zero. N Further details regarding the calculation of is provided in relation to FIG.

[0029] Once the scheduling matrix is ​​normalized in block 340, there is a sparse matrix with normalized entries for 1) only UEs that have data pending to be sent from the BS to the UE, 2) PRBs that are within the CCs that the UE can receive based on signal strength and BWP definition, and 3) the range of one of the UE's active downlink BWP definitions. All other entries in this scheduling matrix are set to zero.

[0030] An example of such a normalized scheduling matrix created according to method 300 is shown in Table 1. [Table 1] Table 1

[0031] In Table 1, an example scheduling matrix for six UEs and six PRBs is shown. It should be understood that in a real embodiment, the number of UEs and PRBs can be very large. However, it is also possible that there are a smaller number of UEs, a smaller number of PRBs, or both. Table 1 is sparse due to the removal (e.g., zeroing out) of various entries based on blocks 320, 325, and 330 of method 300. As an example, the PRB 6 UE 1 As it is part of the CC that is not eligible for UE 1 About PRB 6 is set to zero. As another example, PRB 2 PRB 2Because it is outside the BWP definition for CC that exists, PRB 2 UE 4 Continuing with this example, UE 2 and UE 5 Since UE has no data to receive from the BS, 2 and UE 5 All entries for are set to zero.

[0032] 5 illustrates an embodiment of a method 500 of how the scheduling decisions of block 340 are made using a normalized scheduling matrix. Method 500 may be performed by a component of a base station, such as a gNB in ​​a 5G NR RAT cellular network or an eNB in ​​a 4G LTE RAT cellular network. In particular, the blocks of method 500 may be performed by scheduler 132 of FIG. 2. All of method 500 may be performed as part of block 340 of method 300, or may be performed using a scheduling matrix created according to some other method.

[0033] At block 505, the element of any row or column having a maximum value in the scheduling matrix is ​​selected. This element is mapped to UEs (e.g., row by row) and PRBs (e.g., column by column). At block 510, the PRB mapped to the maximum value is assigned to the UE mapped to the maximum value. Block 510 may include modifying the block to indicate that it has been assigned to a particular UE. Alternatively, a separate table or data storage structure may be created that indicates that a particular PRB has been assigned to that UE.

[0034] A PRB is now assigned, and since any PRB can only be assigned to a single UE at a given time, all other entries for that PRB in the matrix are deleted, such as by converting them to zero in block 515, or are otherwise deleted. For example, referring back to the example of Table 1, in Table 2, element (UE 3 , P.R.B.3 ) is determined to have the maximum value. Therefore, PRB 3 UE 3 Table 2, a modified version of Table 1, is assigned to the PRB 3 This reflects that the other entries in the row corresponding to [Table 2] Table 2

[0035] At block 520, it is determined whether the UE to which a PRB was assigned at block 510 requires additional PRBs for data to be transmitted for that UE. For example, the amount of data to be transmitted to the UE over the downlink may fit within a single PRB. Or, for a larger amount of data, one or more additional PRBs may be required. If additional PRBs are not required, method 500 proceeds to block 525. At block 525, at least all other entries for that UE are deleted, such as by converting their values ​​to zero. Thus, the entire row for that UE may be converted to all zeros. Method 500 then proceeds to block 535.

[0036] If, at block 520, one or more additional PRBs are required for downlink transmission for the UE, method 500 proceeds to block 530. At block 530, the (downlink) data rate of the UE is updated in the scheduling matrix. N reflects the average data transfer rate, while β N reflects the data transmission bit rate allocated for the UE during the current scheduling process. In sum, α N +β N may represent the data transmission bit rate of the UE. As more PRBs are allocated to a particular UE during the scheduling process, β may be denoted by β to reflect the transmission bit rate currently allocated to the UE. N The value of is increased. Therefore, NAs increases, the magnitude of the value of the corresponding element in the scheduling matrix may decrease.,To perform the update, the β,of each entry corresponding to the UE assigned to the PRB, N is updated to reflect the data transmission rate transmitted for the UE on the assigned PRB. N depends on the CQI previously measured by the UE on the PRB (or CC). N Using this has the effect of increasing the dominator of each value in the UE's row, lowering the priority of that UE compared to other UEs, since the magnitude of the UE's value is reduced and therefore less likely to be selected during subsequent allocation of other PRBs.

[0037] Continuing with the above examples of Tables 1 and 2, UEs that require additional PRBs 3 Assuming that additional data needs to be transmitted about 3 The other entries corresponding to that β N The value of β is updated. N The update value of PRB 3 The update reflects the data transfer bit rate that occurs using the IEEE 802.11b standard. Table 3 reflects such updates that have been performed. [Table 3] Table 3

[0038] PRB 3 If is the first assigned PRB, the value of β for all other UEs may still be zero. 3 The value of UE 3 The column values ​​for are recalculated, resulting in each value being decreased, thereby decreasing the likelihood that one of them will be the next largest value for allocation.

[0039] At block 535, a determination is made by the scheduler as to whether one or more additional PRBs have not yet been allocated. If one or more additional PRBs have not yet been allocated, method 500 returns to block 505. At block 505, the current element in the revised scheduling matrix having the maximum value is identified, and blocks 505-530 are repeated. Returning to the example of Table 3, the PRB 3 Therefore, the method 500 is 1 , P.R.B. 2 , P.R.B. 4 , P.R.B. 5 , and PRB 6 may be assigned. Thus, in this example of Tables 1-3, five iterations of method 500 may be performed. It should be appreciated that in the example of Tables 1-3, the tables may be rotated such that PRBs are assigned columns and UEs are assigned rows.

[0040] If it is determined at block 535 that there are no additional unallocated PRBs, method 500 may proceed to block 540. At block 540, scheduling is complete and downlink data transfers to various UEs may be performed by the BS according to the allocations made during method 500.

[0041] The methods, systems, and devices described above are examples. Various configurations may omit, substitute, or add various procedures or components, as appropriate. For example, in alternative configurations, the methods may be performed in different orders than those described above, and / or various steps may be added, omitted, and / or combined. Furthermore, features described with respect to particular configurations may be combined in various other configurations. Different aspects and elements of the configurations may be combined in a similar manner. Also, technology evolves, and thus many of the elements are examples and do not limit the scope of the disclosure or the claims.

[0042] Specific details are provided herein to achieve a thorough understanding of example configurations (including examples). However, the configurations may be practiced without those specific details. For example, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques are provided without unnecessary detail to avoid obscuring the configurations. This specification presents only example configurations and does not limit the scope, applicability, or configurations of the claims. Rather, the above description of the configurations provides those skilled in the art with an enabling description for implementing the techniques described above. Various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure.

[0043] Also, the configurations may be described as processes that are illustrated as flow diagrams or block diagrams. Although each may describe operations as a sequential process, many of the operations can be performed in parallel or simultaneously. Additionally, the order of operations may be rearranged. A process may have additional steps not included in the figures. Furthermore, method embodiments may be implemented by hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or combinations thereof. If implemented in software, firmware, middleware, or microcode, the program code or code segments to perform the necessary tasks may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium, such as a storage medium. A processor may perform the tasks described above.

[0044] While several example configurations have been described, various modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents may be used without departing from the spirit of the disclosure. For example, the elements described above may be components of a larger system, where other rules may take precedence over or otherwise modify the application of the invention. Additionally, many steps may be performed before, during, and after the elements described above are considered.

Claims

1. 1. A method for scheduling data transmissions from a base station to a user equipment (UE), comprising: Determining, by a cellular network, a plurality of channel quality indicator (CQI) values ​​corresponding to a plurality of UEs, comprising: For each UE of the plurality of UEs, a CQI value of the plurality of CQI values ​​is determined for each carrier component of a plurality of carrier components constituting a carrier aggregation; determining, by the cellular network, an average data rate for each UE of the plurality of UEs; creating, by a scheduler system of the cellular network, a scheduling matrix including a plurality of elements storing a plurality of instantaneous data rates based on the determined plurality of CQI values; normalizing, by the scheduler system of the cellular network, each of the plurality of elements of the scheduling matrix by modifying the plurality of instantaneous data rates based on a plurality of average data rates and a plurality of assigned data transfer bit rates; Each average data rate of the plurality of average data rates corresponds to a UE of the plurality of UEs mapped to an element of the plurality of elements; Each assigned data transmission bit rate of the plurality of assigned data transmission bit rates corresponds to a UE of the plurality of UEs that is mapped to an element of the plurality of elements and based on a current scheduling decision made by the scheduler. said normalizing; making, by the scheduler, scheduling decisions for the plurality of UEs based on the normalized scheduling matrix.

2. The method for scheduling data transmissions from the base station to the UEs according to claim 1 , further comprising transmitting, by the base station of the cellular network, data to the plurality of UEs based on the scheduling decision.

3. 2. The method for scheduling data transmission from the base station to the UE according to claim 1, wherein the cellular network uses a 5G New Radio (NR) radio access technology (RAT) for communication with the UE.

4. Each row of the scheduling matrix corresponds to a physical resource block (PRB) of a plurality of PRBs; Each column of the scheduling matrix corresponds to a UE of the plurality of UEs; Each PRB of the plurality of PRBs corresponds to one of the plurality of carrier components.

2. The method for scheduling data transmission from the base station to the UE according to claim 1.

5. A method for scheduling data transmission from a base station to a user equipment (UE), comprising: Determining, by a cellular network, a plurality of channel quality indicator (CQI) values ​​corresponding to a plurality of UEs, comprising: For each UE of the plurality of UEs, a CQI value of the plurality of CQI values ​​is determined for each carrier component of a plurality of carrier components constituting a carrier aggregation; determining, by the cellular network, an average data rate for each UE of the plurality of UEs; creating, by a scheduler system of the cellular network, a scheduling matrix including a plurality of elements storing a plurality of instantaneous data rates based on the determined plurality of CQI values; normalizing, by the scheduler system of the cellular network, each element of the plurality of elements of the scheduling matrix by modifying the plurality of instantaneous data rates based on a plurality of average data rates; each average data rate of the plurality of average data rates corresponds to a UE of the plurality of UEs mapped to an element of the plurality of elements; making, by the scheduler, scheduling decisions for the plurality of UEs based on the normalized scheduling matrix; Each row of the scheduling matrix corresponds to a physical resource block (PRB) of a plurality of PRBs; Each column of the scheduling matrix corresponds to a UE of the plurality of UEs; Each PRB of the plurality of PRBs corresponds to one of the plurality of carrier components; For each row of the scheduling matrix, removing an entry corresponding to a carrier component of the plurality of carrier components for which a corresponding UE of the row is out of communication range from the base station on the carrier component.

6. A method for scheduling data transmission from a base station to a user equipment (UE), comprising: Determining, by a cellular network, a plurality of channel quality indicator (CQI) values ​​corresponding to a plurality of UEs, comprising: For each UE of the plurality of UEs, a CQI value of the plurality of CQI values ​​is determined for each carrier component of a plurality of carrier components constituting a carrier aggregation; determining, by the cellular network, an average data rate for each UE of the plurality of UEs; creating, by a scheduler system of the cellular network, a scheduling matrix including a plurality of elements storing a plurality of instantaneous data rates based on the determined plurality of CQI values; normalizing, by the scheduler system of the cellular network, each element of the plurality of elements of the scheduling matrix by modifying the plurality of instantaneous data rates based on a plurality of average data rates; each average data rate of the plurality of average data rates corresponds to a UE of the plurality of UEs mapped to an element of the plurality of elements; making, by the scheduler, scheduling decisions for the plurality of UEs based on the normalized scheduling matrix; Each row of the scheduling matrix corresponds to a physical resource block (PRB) of a plurality of PRBs; Each column of the scheduling matrix corresponds to a UE of the plurality of UEs; Each PRB of the plurality of PRBs corresponds to one of the plurality of carrier components; For each row of the scheduling matrix, removing entries corresponding to PRBs of the plurality of PRBs that are outside one or more active bandwidth portions (BWPs) assigned to a corresponding UE of the row.

7. 5. The method for scheduling data transmissions from the base station to the UEs according to claim 4, wherein for each UE of the plurality of UEs, a CQI value of the plurality of CQI values ​​corresponding to each carrier component of the plurality of carrier components and the UE is used to calculate the average data rate.

8. identifying, by the scheduler system, an element of the plurality of elements of the normalized scheduling matrix that has a maximum value among the plurality of elements. The method for scheduling data transmission from the base station to the UE according to claim 4, further comprising:

9. and allocating a PRB of the plurality of PRBs corresponding to the element for a UE of the plurality of UEs corresponding to the element. The method for scheduling data transmission from the base station to the UE according to claim 8, further comprising:

10. determining that no additional PRBs are required for data transmission to the UE to which the PRBs are assigned; in response to determining that the additional PRBs are not required for data transmission to the UE, removing all other entries for the UE in the normalized scheduling matrix; 10. The method for scheduling data transmission from the base station to the UE of claim 9, further comprising:

11. determining that an additional PRB is required for data transmission to the UE to which the PRB is assigned; in response to determining that the additional PRBs are required for data transmission to the UE, updating the modified instantaneous data rates for all other elements in the normalized scheduling matrix that are mapped to the UE; 10. The method for scheduling data transmission from the base station to the UE of claim 9, further comprising:

12. 12. The method for scheduling data transmissions from the base station to the UE of claim 11, wherein updating the modified instantaneous data rate includes decreasing the magnitude of all other elements mapped to the UE.

13. 1. A cellular network for scheduling downlink data transmissions, comprising: A base station including a scheduler system, the base station comprising: configured to determine a plurality of channel quality indicator (CQI) values ​​corresponding to a plurality of UEs; For each UE of the plurality of UEs, a CQI value of the plurality of CQI values ​​is determined for each carrier component of a plurality of carrier components constituting a carrier aggregation; The base station determines an average data rate for each UE of the plurality of UEs; creating a scheduling matrix including a plurality of elements storing a plurality of instantaneous data transfer rates; configured to normalize each element of the plurality of elements of the scheduling matrix by modifying the plurality of instantaneous data rates based on a plurality of average data rates and a plurality of assigned data transfer bit rates, wherein: each average rate of the plurality of average data rates corresponds to a UE of the plurality of UEs mapped to an element of the plurality of elements; Each assigned data transmission bit rate of the plurality of assigned data transmission bit rates corresponds to a UE of the plurality of UEs that is mapped to an element of the plurality of elements and based on a current scheduling decision made by the scheduler; The base station is configured to make scheduling decisions for the plurality of UEs based on the normalized scheduling matrix.

14. The cellular network for scheduling downlink data transmissions of claim 13 further comprising the plurality of UEs.

15. 14. The cellular network for scheduling downlink data transmissions of claim 13, wherein the base station is a gNodeB and the cellular network is a 5G New Radio (NR) Radio Access Technology (RAT) cellular network.

16. 16. The cellular network for scheduling downlink data transmissions of claim 15, comprising a plurality of base stations, each of said plurality of base stations configured to perform its base station functions.

17. The cellular network for scheduling downlink data transmissions of claim 13 , wherein the base station is further configured to transmit data to the plurality of UEs based on the scheduling decision.

18. Each row of the scheduling matrix corresponds to a physical resource block (PRB) of a plurality of PRBs; Each column of the scheduling matrix corresponds to a UE of the plurality of UEs; Each PRB of the plurality of PRBs corresponds to one of the plurality of carrier components. A cellular network for scheduling downlink data transmissions according to claim 13.

19. The base station, identifying an element of the plurality of elements of the normalized scheduling matrix having a maximum value among the plurality of elements; For a UE of the plurality of UEs corresponding to the element, allocate a PRB of the plurality of PRBs corresponding to the element.

20. The cellular network for scheduling downlink data transmissions according to claim 18, further configured to:

20. The base station, determining that no additional PRBs are required for data transmission to the UE to which the PRBs are assigned; In response to determining that the additional PRBs are not required for data transmission to the UE, delete all other entries for the UE in the normalized scheduling matrix.

20. The cellular network for scheduling downlink data transmissions according to claim 19, further configured to:

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