Method, apparatus and computer program product for wireless communication - Patents.com

Abstract

A method, apparatus, and computer program product for wireless communication are provided, the method including a wireless communication node switching from a first uplink listen-before-talk (LBT) scheme to a second uplink LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and a network device, or in response to a first or second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from the network device.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communications. In particular, the present disclosure relates to methods, apparatus, and computer program products for wireless communications. In particular, the present disclosure relates to 5G wireless communications. [Background technology]

[0002] With the development of 5G New Radio (NR) networks, there will be an explosion of new user data applications. Such rapid growth in user data will dramatically increase the demand for wide frequency spectrum. To mitigate spectrum requirements, equipment manufacturers and operators around the world are focusing on resource-rich, free, unlicensed spectrum.

[0003] In low-frequency NR unlicensed bands, such as 5 GHz, it is mandatory for user equipment (UE) and / or base station (BS) to perform Listen Before Talk (LBT) operation before transmission. The only LBT scheme allowed in low-frequency unlicensed bands is the omnidirectional LBT scheme. Moreover, the signal transmission direction is also omnidirectional due to the relatively long wavelength.

[0004] At the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) General Assembly RAN#86, a new study item (SI) was approved for research to support NR from 52.6GHz to 71GHz. For transmission in high frequency bandwidth, large antenna elements for beamforming are required to combat high propagation loss. Under this situation, using omnidirectional LBT method is unnecessary and may not be compatible with directional transmission in high frequency communication, which is why directional LBT method is introduced. However, in some cases, NR system may still require omnidirectional LBT method because omnidirectional LBT method is also used for high frequency transmission. In addition, No LBT method, which means no talk / transmit before listening, is also widely discussed in 3GPP RAN1 meeting, because interference with directional transmission after beamforming may be limited. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The present disclosure relates to a method, an apparatus, and a computer program product for wireless communication, which enables a wireless communication node or a network device to operatively change its LBT scheme according to actual circumstances, so that the configuration may be more flexible.

[0006] An aspect of the present disclosure relates to a wireless communication method, in one embodiment, the wireless communication method includes a wireless communication node switching from a first uplink Listen Before Talk (LBT) scheme to a second uplink LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and a network device or in response to a first or second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from the network device.

[0007] Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a wireless communication method, in one embodiment, the wireless communication method includes a network device transmitting a first or second downlink signal to a wireless communication node, the first or second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information for causing the wireless communication node to switch from a first uplink LBT scheme to a second uplink LBT scheme, the first downlink signal being transmitted in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device, and the second downlink signal being transmitted in response to one or more trigger events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device.

[0008] Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a wireless communication method, in one embodiment, the wireless communication method includes the network device switching from a first downlink listen-before-talk (LBT) scheme to a second downlink LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of a downlink channel between the network device and a wireless communication node, or in response to one or more trigger events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device.

[0009] Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a wireless communication node. In one embodiment, the wireless communication node includes a communication unit and a processor. The processor is configured to switch from a first uplink LBT scheme to a second uplink LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and a network device, or in response to a first or second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from the network device.

[0010] Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a network device. In one embodiment, the network device includes a communication unit and a processor. The processor is configured to transmit a first or second downlink signal via the communication unit, the first or second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information for causing a wireless communication node to switch from a first uplink listen-before-talk (LBT) scheme to a second uplink LBT scheme.

[0011] Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a network device. In one embodiment, the network device includes a communication unit and a processor. The processor is configured to switch from a first downlink listen-before-talk (LBT) scheme to a second downlink LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of a downlink channel between the network device and a wireless communication node, or in response to one or more trigger events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device.

[0012] Various embodiments may preferably implement the following features. Preferably, the congestion level of the uplink channel is determined according to whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected by the network equipment.

[0013] Preferably, the congestion level of the uplink channel corresponds to at least one of an amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node, a NACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel, a no-feedback time corresponding to the uplink channel, a number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node, a retransmission probability corresponding to the uplink channel, an amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node, or an ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel.

[0014] Preferably, the congestion level is determined in response to the radio quality. Preferably, the wireless quality corresponds to signal strength.

[0015] Preferably, the radio quality corresponds to a signal to noise ratio or a reference signal received power. Preferably, the first uplink LBT scheme and the second uplink LBT scheme are two of a No LBT scheme, an omnidirectional LBT scheme, or a directional LBT scheme.

[0016] Preferably, the wireless communication node switches from the No LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme or the directional LBT scheme, or from the directional LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme, in response to a signal-to-noise ratio or a reference signal received power being equal to or greater than a first threshold and at least one of the following conditions: an amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node is greater than or equal to a second threshold; a NACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is greater than or equal to a third threshold; A no-feedback time corresponding to the uplink channel is equal to or greater than a fourth threshold; the number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node is greater than or equal to a fifth threshold; a retransmission probability corresponding to the uplink channel is greater than or equal to a sixth threshold; the amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node is less than a seventh threshold; or The ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is less than an eighth threshold.

[0017] Preferably, the wireless communication node switches from the omnidirectional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme or the directional LBT scheme, or from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme, in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: an amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node being less than a ninth threshold; a NACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is less than a tenth threshold; the number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node is less than an eleventh threshold; a retransmission probability corresponding to the uplink channel is less than a twelfth threshold; The amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node is equal to or greater than a thirteenth threshold; or The ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is greater than or equal to a fourteenth threshold.

[0018] Preferably, the first downlink signal is a user equipment specific downlink control information signal, or a medium access control control element (MAC CE).

[0019] Preferably, the second downlink signal is a common downlink control information signal, a broadcast system information message, or a radio resource control message.

[0020] Preferably, the wireless communication method further includes the wireless communication node sending feedback information corresponding to a congestion level of the downlink channel to the network device, so as to cause the network device to switch from the first downlink LBT scheme to the second downlink LBT scheme according to the feedback information.

[0021] Preferably, the wireless communication method further includes the network device sending feedback information corresponding to a congestion level of the uplink channel to the wireless communication node, so as to cause the wireless communication node to operatively switch from the first uplink LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme according to the feedback information.

[0022] Preferably, the network device transmits a first downlink signal including a first type of LBT scheme switching information for causing the wireless communication node to switch from the first uplink LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme in response to a signal-to-noise ratio or a reference signal received power being equal to or greater than a first threshold and at least one of the following conditions: a number of missed detections of the uplink transmissions is greater than or equal to a second threshold; a missed detection probability of the uplink transmission is greater than or equal to a third threshold; the number of successful detections of uplink transmissions is less than a fourth threshold; or The probability of successful detection of the uplink transmission is less than a fifth threshold.

[0023] Preferably, the network device transmits a first downlink signal including a first type of LBT scheme switching information in response to the first uplink LBT scheme of the wireless communication node being a No LBT scheme or a directional LBT scheme.

[0024] Preferably, the network device transmits a first downlink signal including a second type of LBT scheme switching information to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the first uplink LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: a number of missed detections of uplink transmissions is less than a sixth threshold; a missed detection probability of the uplink transmission is less than a seventh threshold; The number of successful detections of uplink transmissions is equal to or greater than an eighth threshold; or The probability of successful detection of the uplink transmission is greater than or equal to a ninth threshold.

[0025] Preferably, the network device transmits a first downlink signal including a second type of LBT scheme switching information in response to the first uplink LBT scheme of the wireless communication node being a directional LBT scheme or an omnidirectional LBT scheme.

[0026] Preferably, the one or more trigger events include at least one of whether another wireless system is within service range, the number of nodes accessing the network device, or the overall probability of decoding error for the network device.

[0027] Preferably, the network device transmits a second downlink signal including the first type of LBT scheme switching information to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the first uplink LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: the presence of another radio system within range; The number of nodes accessing the network device is equal to or greater than the tenth threshold; or The overall probability of decoding errors in the network devices is greater than or equal to an eleventh threshold.

[0028] Preferably, the network device transmits a second downlink signal including a second type of LBT scheme switching information to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the first uplink LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: There are no other wireless systems within range of the service; The number of nodes accessing the network device is less than the twelfth threshold; or The overall probability of decoding errors for the network devices is less than a thirteenth threshold.

[0029] Preferably, the network device transmits a second downlink signal including a second type of LBT scheme switching information in response to the first uplink LBT scheme of the wireless communication node being a directional LBT scheme or an omnidirectional LBT scheme.

[0030] Preferably, the congestion level of the downlink channel is determined according to whether one or more downlink transmissions are successfully detected by the wireless communications node.

[0031] Preferably, the congestion level of the downlink channel corresponds to at least one of an amount of NACK signals corresponding to the downlink channel, a NACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel, a no-feedback time corresponding to the downlink channel, a number of retransmissions corresponding to the downlink channel, a retransmission probability corresponding to the downlink channel, an amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node, or an ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel.

[0032] Preferably, the first downlink LBT scheme and the second downlink LBT scheme are two of a No LBT scheme, an omnidirectional LBT scheme, or a directional LBT scheme.

[0033] Preferably, the network device switches from the No LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme or the directional LBT scheme, or from the directional LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme, in response to a signal-to-noise ratio or a reference signal reception power being equal to or greater than a first threshold and at least one of the following conditions: an amount of NACK signals corresponding to the downlink channel is greater than or equal to a second threshold; a NACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel is greater than or equal to a third threshold; A no-feedback time corresponding to the downlink channel is greater than or equal to a fourth threshold; a number of retransmissions corresponding to the downlink channel is greater than or equal to a fifth threshold; a retransmission probability corresponding to the downlink channel is greater than or equal to a sixth threshold; the amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node is less than a seventh threshold; or The ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is less than an eighth threshold.

[0034] Preferably, the wireless communication node switches from the omnidirectional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme or the directional LBT scheme, or from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme, in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: the amount of NACK signals corresponding to the downlink channel is less than a ninth threshold; a NACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel is less than a tenth threshold; a number of retransmissions corresponding to the downlink channel is less than an eleventh threshold; a retransmission probability corresponding to the downlink channel is less than a twelfth threshold; The amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node is equal to or greater than a thirteenth threshold; or The ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is greater than or equal to a fourteenth threshold.

[0035] Preferably, the network device switches from the No LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme or the directional LBT scheme, or from the directional LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme, in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: the presence of another radio system within range; The number of nodes accessing the network device is equal to or greater than the fifteenth threshold; or The overall probability of decoding errors for the network devices is greater than or equal to a sixteenth threshold.

[0036] Preferably, the network device switches from the omni-directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme or the directional LBT scheme, or from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme, in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: There are no other wireless systems within range of the service; The number of nodes accessing the network device is less than the seventeenth threshold; or The overall probability of decoding errors for the network devices is less than an eighteenth threshold.

[0037] Preferably, the wireless communication method further includes the network device sending feedback information corresponding to a congestion level of the uplink channel to the wireless communication node, so as to cause the wireless communication node to operatively switch from the first uplink LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme according to the feedback information.

[0038] The present disclosure also relates to a computer program product including a computer readable program medium code stored thereon, which when executed by a processor causes the processor to perform a wireless communication method as set forth in any of the preceding methods. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0039] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates a wireless communication method according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 illustrates another wireless communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 3] FIG. 13 illustrates yet another wireless communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] 1 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication node according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0040] The exemplary embodiments disclosed herein are intended to provide features that will be readily apparent by reference to the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. According to various embodiments, exemplary systems, methods, apparatus, and computer program products are disclosed herein. However, it is understood that these embodiments are presented by way of example and not by way of limitation, and it will be apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading this disclosure that various modifications to the disclosed embodiments may be made while remaining within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0041] Therefore, the present disclosure is not limited to the exemplary embodiments and applications described and illustrated herein. Moreover, the specific order and / or hierarchy of steps in the methods disclosed herein are merely exemplary approaches. Based on design preferences, the specific order or hierarchy of steps of a disclosed method or process can be rearranged while remaining within the scope of the present disclosure. Thus, those skilled in the art will understand that the methods and techniques disclosed herein present various steps or operations in a sample order, and that the present disclosure is not limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented, unless otherwise stated.

[0042] These and other aspects and implementations thereof are described in more detail in the drawings, description, and claims.

[0043] One aspect of the present disclosure relates to a wireless communication method that supports a plurality of LBT schemes. Different LBT schemes have different effects on the congestion level of a corresponding channel. For example, when a No LBT scheme is configured, transmission is permitted without listening, so the congestion level of the corresponding channel becomes heavy. Therefore, in some embodiments of the present disclosure, different LBT schemes can be adopted in response to the congestion level of the corresponding channel.

[0044] FIG. 1 illustrates a wireless communication method 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the wireless communication method 100 can be performed using a wireless communication node. In the following paragraphs, a wireless communication node such as a UE is used in the illustrative example, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Details of the wireless communication node can be confirmed by referring to the paragraphs related to FIG. 4 below.

[0045] In one embodiment, the wireless communication method 100 includes an operation 110 . In operation 110, the wireless communication node switches from a first uplink LBT scheme to a second uplink LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device or in response to a first or second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from the network device.

[0046] By this method, the wireless communication node can operatively change its LBT scheme, so that the configuration of the wireless communication node can be made more flexible. Moreover, through some embodiments of the method, when there are multiple wireless communication nodes within the service area (e.g., cell) of a network device (e.g., base station), the above method allows multiple LBT schemes to coexist. Furthermore, some embodiments of the method can avoid congestion in the service area caused by inappropriate LBT scheme configuration.

[0047] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method 100 further includes the wireless communication node receiving feedback information from the network device corresponding to a congestion level of the uplink channel, to cause the wireless communication node to operatively switch from the first uplink LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme according to the feedback information. In one embodiment, the feedback information includes, but is not limited to, Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request-Acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) information.

[0048] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the first downlink signal is transmitted by the network device in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device. In one embodiment, the first downlink signal is a device specific signal, i.e., only the wireless communication node within a service range corresponding to the network device can receive the first downlink signal.

[0049] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the second downlink signal is transmitted by the network device in response to one or more trigger events corresponding to a congestion level in a service area (e.g., a cell) corresponding to the network device. In one embodiment, the first downlink signal is a common signal. That is, all wireless communication nodes within the service area corresponding to the network device can receive the second downlink signal.

[0050] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the first uplink LBT scheme and the second uplink LBT scheme are two of, but not limited to, a No LBT scheme, an omnidirectional LBT scheme, or a directional LBT scheme.

[0051] Details of the method 100 are described in the following embodiments 1 to 12 (particularly embodiments 1 to 3 and 7 to 9).

[0052] FIG. 2 illustrates a wireless communication method 200 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the wireless communication method 200 can be performed using a network device. In the following paragraphs, a network device such as a BS is used in the illustrative example, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Details of the network device can be confirmed by referring to the paragraphs related to FIG. 5 below.

[0053] In one embodiment, the wireless communication method 200 includes an operation 210 . In operation 210, the network device transmits a first or second downlink signal to the wireless communication node, the first or second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information for causing the wireless communication node to switch from a first uplink LBT scheme to a second uplink LBT scheme. In one embodiment, the first downlink signal is transmitted in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device. In one embodiment, the second downlink signal is transmitted in response to one or more trigger events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device.

[0054] By this method, the network device can make the wireless communication node perform an operable change of its LBT scheme, so that the configuration of the wireless communication node can be made more flexible. Furthermore, by some embodiments of the method, when there are multiple wireless communication nodes within the service range of the network device, the method allows multiple LBT schemes to coexist. Furthermore, by some embodiments of the method, congestion in the service range caused by inappropriate LBT scheme configuration can be avoided.

[0055] In some embodiments, the first and second downlink signals in method 200 may have the same characteristics as the first and second downlink signals in method 100, but are not limited to such.

[0056] Details of the method 200 are described in the following embodiments 1 to 12 (especially embodiments 1 to 3 and 7 to 9).

[0057] FIG. 3 illustrates a wireless communication method 300 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the wireless communication method 300 can be performed using a network device. In the following paragraphs, a network device such as a BS is used in the illustrative example, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Details of the network device can be confirmed by referring to the paragraphs related to FIG. 5 below.

[0058] In one embodiment, the wireless communication method 300 includes an operation 310 . In operation 310, the network device switches from the first downlink LBT scheme to the second downlink LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of a downlink channel between the network device and the wireless communication node or in response to one or more trigger events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device.

[0059] By this method, the network device can change its LBT scheme, so that the configuration of the LBT scheme of the network device can be made more flexible. Furthermore, some embodiments of the method can avoid congestion in the service area caused by inappropriate LBT scheme configuration.

[0060] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method 300 further includes the network device receiving feedback information from the wireless communication node corresponding to a congestion level of a downlink channel, so as to cause the network device to switch from the first downlink LBT scheme to the second downlink LBT scheme according to the feedback information. In one embodiment, the feedback information includes, but is not limited to, HARQ-ACK information. In one embodiment, the feedback information corresponds to whether one or more downlink transmissions are successfully detected / decoded.

[0061] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the first downlink LBT scheme and the second downlink LBT scheme are two of, but not limited to, a No LBT scheme, an omnidirectional LBT scheme, or a directional LBT scheme.

[0062] Details of the method 300 are described in the following embodiments 1 to 12 (especially embodiments 4 to 6 and 10 to 12).

[0063] In the following paragraphs, embodiments 1 to 12 are described to provide details of the present disclosure, but the present disclosure is not limited to these embodiments.

[0064] For ease of reading, the types of LBT method switching in embodiments 1 to 12 are summarized in the table below.

[0065] [Table 1]

[0066] EMBODIMENT 1 In embodiment 1, the wireless communication node switches from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme. In some embodiments, there are three approaches to LBT switching.

[0067] Embodiment 1 - Method 1 In one embodiment, the wireless communication node switches from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device. In this embodiment, the wireless communication node determines the congestion level of the uplink channel according to a transmission quality corresponding to the uplink channel, such as whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected (or decoded) by the network device.

[0068] In one embodiment, the wireless communication node measures the transmission quality according to feedback information from the network device. In one embodiment, the feedback information can include HARQ-ACK information. In one embodiment, the feedback information corresponds to whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected / decoded.

[0069] In one embodiment, the wireless communication node determines a congestion level corresponding to at least one of an amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node, a NACK probability corresponding to an uplink channel, a no-feedback time corresponding to an uplink channel, a number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node, a retransmission probability corresponding to the uplink channel, an amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node, and / or an ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel.

[0070] In one embodiment, the amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node may be the amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time or an unlimited time period. In one embodiment, the amount of NACK signals described herein may be the amount of NACK signals in one HARQ process or the cumulative amount of NACK signals in multiple HARQ processes.

[0071] In one embodiment, the NACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel can be determined according to the amount of NACK signals and ACK signals received by the wireless communication node corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from the configured time) or within an unlimited period of time. In one embodiment, the NACK probability can be calculated by dividing the amount of NACK signals by the sum of the amount of NACK signals and the amount of ACK signals.

[0072] In one embodiment, the no-feedback time corresponding to the uplink channel may be a time during which the wireless communication node does not receive feedback information from the network device after transmitting through the uplink channel. Using the no-feedback time to determine the congestion level can avoid the wireless communication node from not receiving the NACK signal / message due to an unexpected reason (e.g., downlink LBT failure).

[0073] In one embodiment, the number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node may be the number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from any of the configured times described above) or within an unlimited time period. In one embodiment, the number of retransmissions described herein may be the number of retransmissions in one HARQ process or the cumulative number of retransmissions in multiple HARQ processes.

[0074] In one embodiment, the retransmission probability corresponding to an uplink channel may be determined according to the number of retransmissions or new transmissions performed by the wireless communication node corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from any of the configured times above) or within an unlimited time period. In some embodiments, a new transmission performed by the wireless communication node corresponds to a feedback from the network device indicating that a previous uplink transmission was successfully decoded, and a retransmission performed by the wireless communication node corresponds to another feedback from the network device indicating that a previous uplink transmission was not successfully decoded. In one embodiment, the retransmission probability may be calculated by dividing the number of retransmissions by the sum of the number of retransmissions and the number of new transmissions.

[0075] In one embodiment, the amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node may be the amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from any of the configured times described above) or within an unlimited time period. In one embodiment, the amount of ACK signals described herein may be the amount of ACK signals in one HARQ process or the cumulative amount of ACK signals in multiple HARQ processes.

[0076] In one embodiment, the ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel may be determined according to the amount of NACK and ACK signals received by the wireless communication node corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from any of the above configured times) or within an unlimited period of time. In one embodiment, the ACK probability may be calculated by dividing the amount of NACK signals by the sum of the amount of NACK signals and the amount of ACK signals.

[0077] In some embodiments, the wireless communication node determines a congestion level of an uplink channel corresponding to a radio quality. In one embodiment, the radio quality corresponds to the uplink channel. In one embodiment, the radio quality corresponds to a signal strength. In one embodiment, the radio quality corresponds to a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) or a reference signal received power (RSRP).

[0078] In one embodiment, the wireless communication node determines the congestion level according to both the wireless quality and the transmission quality. For example, the wireless communication node can determine that the congestion level is relatively high according to the transmission quality being weaker than a certain criterion (e.g., many uplink transmissions cannot be successfully detected by the network device) and the wireless quality being greater than another certain criterion. In this way, the wireless communication node can avoid erroneously determining that the congestion level is relatively high due to poor wireless quality.

[0079] In one embodiment, the wireless communication node determines that the congestion level is relatively high and switches from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme in response to the aforementioned SNR or RSRP being equal to or greater than a threshold s1_1 and at least one of the following conditions: the amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node is greater than or equal to a threshold n_1; The NACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is greater than or equal to a threshold p_1; The no-feedback time corresponding to the uplink channel is equal to or greater than a threshold tf_1; the number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node is greater than or equal to a threshold m_1; the retransmission probability corresponding to the uplink channel is greater than or equal to a threshold q_1; The amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node is less than a threshold value x_1; or The ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is less than the threshold y_1.

[0080] In one embodiment, one or more of the thresholds s1_1, n_1, p_1, tf_1, m_1, q_1, x_1, y_1 may be predetermined or may be configured by another device. For example, the thresholds may be configured using a broadcast SI message, an RRC message, or another actionable message from the network device.

[0081] From the perspective of the network device, in one embodiment, the network device transmits feedback information to the wireless communication node to enable the wireless communication node to determine a congestion level of the uplink channel and operatively switch from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme in response to the feedback information. In one embodiment, the feedback information can include HARQ-ACK information. In one embodiment, the feedback information corresponds to whether one or more uplink transmissions have been successfully detected / decoded.

[0082] Embodiment 1 - Method 2 In one embodiment, the wireless communication node switches from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme in response to a first downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from a network device. In this embodiment, the first downlink signal is a device-specific signal. That is, only the wireless communication node within the service range corresponding to the network device can receive the first downlink signal. For example, the first downlink signal is a user equipment-specific downlink control information (UE-specific DCI) signal or a medium access control control element (MAC CE).

[0083] From the perspective of a network device, in one embodiment, the network device transmits a first downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information to a wireless communication node to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme.

[0084] In one embodiment, the first downlink signal is transmitted in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device, in which the network device determines the congestion level of the uplink channel according to a transmission quality corresponding to the uplink channel, such as whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected (or decoded) by the network device.

[0085] In one embodiment, the network device determines a congestion level corresponding to at least one of a number of missed detections of uplink transmissions, a probability of missed detection of uplink transmissions, a number of successful detections of uplink transmissions, and / or a probability of successful detection of uplink transmissions.

[0086] In one embodiment, the number of failed detections of uplink transmissions may be the number of failed detections of uplink transmissions performed by the network device corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time period (which may be the same as or different from any of the configured times listed above) or within an unlimited time period.

[0087] In one embodiment, the failure to detect probability of an uplink transmission may be determined according to the number of failures to detect an uplink transmission performed by a network device corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from any of the above configured times) or within an unlimited time period, and the total number of uplink transmissions received by a network device corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time period or within an unlimited time period. In one embodiment, the failure to detect probability of an uplink transmission may be calculated by dividing the number of failures to detect an uplink transmission by the total number of uplink transmissions.

[0088] In one embodiment, the number of successful detections of uplink transmissions may be the number of successful detections of uplink transmissions performed by a network device corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time period (which may be the same as or different from any of the configured times listed above) or within an unlimited time period.

[0089] In one embodiment, the successful detection probability of the uplink transmission may be determined according to the number of successful detections of the uplink transmissions performed by the network device corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from any of the above configured times) or within an unlimited time period, and the total number of uplink transmissions received by the network device corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time period or within an unlimited time period. In one embodiment, the successful detection probability of the uplink transmission may be determined according to the number of successful detections of the uplink transmissions performed by the network device corresponding to the uplink channel within a configured time period or within an unlimited time period. Number of successful detections It can be calculated by dividing by the total number of uplink transmissions.

[0090] In some embodiments, the network device determines a congestion level of an uplink channel corresponding to a radio quality. In one embodiment, the radio quality corresponds to the uplink channel. In one embodiment, the radio quality corresponds to a signal strength. In one embodiment, the radio quality corresponds to a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) or a reference signal received power (RSRP).

[0091] In one embodiment, the network device determines the congestion level according to both the radio quality and the transmission quality. For example, the network device can determine that the congestion level is relatively high according to the transmission quality being weaker than a certain criterion (e.g., many uplink transmissions cannot be successfully detected by the wireless communication node) and the radio quality being greater than another certain criterion. In this way, the network device can avoid erroneously determining that the congestion level is relatively high due to poor radio quality.

[0092] In one embodiment, the network device determines that the congestion level is relatively high, and transmits a first downlink signal including a first type of LBT scheme switching information for causing the wireless communication node to switch from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme in response to the above-mentioned SNR or RSRP being equal to or greater than a threshold s2_1 and at least one of the following conditions: The number of detection failures of uplink transmissions is equal to or greater than a threshold a_1; the probability of missed detection of the uplink transmission is greater than or equal to a threshold b_1; The number of successful detections of uplink transmissions is less than a threshold e_1, or The probability of successful detection of uplink transmission is less than a threshold f_1.

[0093] In one embodiment, one or more of the thresholds s2_1, a_1, b_1, e_1, d_1 may be predetermined or may be configured by another device. In one embodiment, the threshold s2_1 may be the same as or different from the threshold s1_1 described above.

[0094] In one embodiment, the first downlink signal including the first type of LBT scheme switching information is used to cause the wireless communication node to switch from an LBT scheme corresponding to a relatively high congestion level to an LBT scheme corresponding to a relatively low congestion level, such as from a No LBT scheme to a directional LBT scheme or an omnidirectional LBT scheme, or from a directional LBT scheme to an omnidirectional LBT scheme.

[0095] In one embodiment, the network device transmits a first downlink signal including the first type of LBT scheme switching information in response to the wireless communication node being in the No LBT scheme or the directional LBT scheme, i.e., if the wireless communication node is in the omnidirectional LBT scheme, the network device may determine not to transmit the first downlink signal including the first type of LBT scheme switching information to the wireless communication node since the wireless communication node may not make a change.

[0096] Embodiment 1 - Method 3 In one embodiment, the wireless communication node switches from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme in response to a second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from the network device. In this embodiment, the second downlink signal is a common signal. That is, all wireless communication nodes within a service range corresponding to the network device can receive the second downlink signal. For example, the second downlink signal is a common downlink control information (DCI) signal, a broadcast system information (SI) message, or a radio resource control (RRC) message.

[0097] From the perspective of the network device, in one embodiment, the network device transmits a second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information to the wireless communication node to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme.

[0098] In one embodiment, the second downlink signal is transmitted in response to one or more triggering events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device (e.g., an overall congestion level within the service area). In one embodiment, the one or more triggering events include at least one of whether another wireless system (e.g., a WiFi system) is present within the service area, a number of nodes accessing the network device, and / or an overall probability of decoding (or detection) errors for the network device.

[0099] In one embodiment, the overall probability of a decoding error may be determined according to the number of decoding errors and the total number of transmissions within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from any of the configured times described above) or within an unlimited time period. In one embodiment, the overall probability of a decoding error may be calculated by dividing the number of decoding errors by the total number of transmissions.

[0100] In one embodiment, the network device determines that an overall congestion level within a service area is relatively high, and transmits a second downlink signal including a first type of LBT scheme switching information to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions: the presence of another radio system within range; The number of nodes accessing the network device is equal to or greater than a threshold c_1, or The overall probability of decoding errors in the network devices is greater than or equal to a threshold d_1.

[0101] In one embodiment, the second downlink signal including the first type of LBT scheme switching information is used to cause the wireless communication node to switch from an LBT scheme corresponding to a relatively high congestion level to an LBT scheme corresponding to a relatively low congestion level, such as from a No LBT scheme to a directional LBT scheme or an omnidirectional LBT scheme, or from a directional LBT scheme to an omnidirectional LBT scheme.

[0102] In one embodiment, the network device transmits a second downlink signal including the first type of LBT scheme switching information in response to the wireless communication node being in the No LBT scheme or the directional LBT scheme, i.e., if the wireless communication node is in the omnidirectional LBT scheme, the network device may determine not to transmit the second downlink signal including the first type of LBT scheme switching information to the wireless communication node since the wireless communication node may not make a change.

[0103] EMBODIMENT 2 In embodiment 2, the wireless communication node switches from the No LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme. In some embodiments, there are three approaches to LBT switching.

[0104] Embodiment 2 - Method 1 In one embodiment of this approach, the wireless communication node switches from the No LBT scheme to the Omni-directional LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device. In this embodiment, the wireless communication node determines the congestion level of the uplink channel according to a transmission quality corresponding to the uplink channel, such as whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected (or decoded) by the network device.

[0105] From the perspective of a network device, in one embodiment of this approach, the network device transmits feedback information to the wireless communication node to enable the wireless communication node to determine a congestion level of the uplink channel and operatively switch from the No LBT scheme to the Omni-directional LBT scheme in response to the feedback information.

[0106] It should be noted that many aspects of method 1 of embodiment 2 are similar to method 1 of embodiment 1 described above, and can be confirmed by referring to the above paragraphs. Similar descriptions are not repeated here.

[0107] It should also be noted that in some embodiments of Method 1 in Embodiment 2, thresholds s1_2, n_2, p_2, tf_2, m_2, q_2, x_2, y_2 are used similarly to thresholds s1_1, n_1, p_1, tf_1, m_1, q_1, x_1, y_1 described above, respectively. In some embodiments, the values ​​of thresholds s1_2, n_2, p_2, tf_2, m_2, q_2, x_2, y_2 are equal to, different from, or partially different from the values ​​of thresholds s1_1, n_1, p_1, tf_1, m_1, q_1, x_1, y_1, respectively.

[0108] Embodiment 2 - Method 2 In one embodiment of this approach, the wireless communication node switches from the No LBT scheme to the omni-directional LBT scheme in response to a first downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from the network device.

[0109] From the perspective of the network device, in one embodiment of this technique, the network device transmits a first downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information to the wireless communication node to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the No LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme. In one embodiment, the first downlink signal is transmitted in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device. In this embodiment, the network device determines the congestion level of the uplink channel according to a transmission quality corresponding to the uplink channel, such as whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected (or decoded) by the network device.

[0110] It should be noted that many aspects of Method 2 of Embodiment 2 are similar to those of Method 2 of Embodiment 1 described above, and can be confirmed by referring to the above paragraphs. Similar descriptions are not repeated here.

[0111] It should also be noted that in some embodiments of Method 2 in Embodiment 2, thresholds s2_2, a_2, b_2, e_2, and f_2 are used similarly to thresholds s2_1, a_1, b_1, e_1, and f_1 described above, respectively. In some embodiments, the values ​​of thresholds s2_2, a_2, b_2, e_2, and f_2 are equal to, different from, or partially different from the values ​​of thresholds s2_1, a_1, b_1, e_1, and f_1, respectively.

[0112] Embodiment 2 - Method 3 In one embodiment of this approach, the wireless communication node switches from the No LBT scheme to the omni-directional LBT scheme in response to a second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from the network device.

[0113] From the perspective of the network device, in one embodiment of this approach, the network device transmits a second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information to the wireless communication node to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the No LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme. In one embodiment, the second downlink signal is transmitted in response to one or more trigger events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device (e.g., an overall congestion level within the service area).

[0114] It should be noted that many aspects of Method 3 in Embodiment 2 are similar to those of Method 3 in Embodiment 1 described above, and can be confirmed by referring to the above paragraphs. Similar descriptions are not repeated here.

[0115] It should also be noted that in some embodiments of Method 3 of Embodiment 2, thresholds c_2, d_2 are used in a manner similar to thresholds c_1, d_1, respectively, described above. In some embodiments, the values ​​of thresholds c_2, d_2 are equal to, different from, or partially different from the values ​​of thresholds c_1, d_1, respectively.

[0116] EMBODIMENT 3 In embodiment 3, the wireless communication node switches from the directional LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme. In some embodiments, there are three approaches to LBT switching.

[0117] Embodiment 3 - Method 1 In one embodiment of this approach, the wireless communication node switches from the directional LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device. In this embodiment, the wireless communication node determines the congestion level of the uplink channel according to a transmission quality corresponding to the uplink channel, such as whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected (or decoded) by the network device.

[0118] From the perspective of a network device, in one embodiment of this approach, the network device transmits feedback information to the wireless communication node to enable the wireless communication node to determine a congestion level of the uplink channel and operatively switch from a directional LBT scheme to an omnidirectional LBT scheme in response to the feedback information.

[0119] It should be noted that many aspects of method 1 of embodiment 3 are similar to method 1 of embodiment 1 described above, and can be confirmed by referring to the above paragraphs. Similar descriptions are not repeated here.

[0120] It should also be noted that in some embodiments of Method 1 of Embodiment 3, thresholds s1_3, n_3, p_3, tf_3, m_3, q_3, x_3, and y_3 are used similarly to thresholds s1_1, n_1, p_1, tf_1, m_1, q_1, x_1, and y_1 described above, respectively. In some embodiments, the values ​​of thresholds s1_3, n_3, p_3, tf_3, m_3, q_3, x_3, and y_3 are equal to, different from, or partially different from the values ​​of thresholds s1_1, n_1, p_1, tf_1, m_1, q_1, x_1, and y_1, respectively.

[0121] Embodiment 3 - Method 2 In one embodiment of this approach, the wireless communication node switches from the directional LBT scheme to the omni-directional LBT scheme in response to a first downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from a network device.

[0122] From the perspective of the network device, in one embodiment of this technique, the network device transmits a first downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information to the wireless communication node to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the directional LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme. In one embodiment, the first downlink signal is transmitted in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device. In this embodiment, the network device determines the congestion level of the uplink channel according to a transmission quality corresponding to the uplink channel, such as whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected (or decoded) by the network device.

[0123] It should be noted that many aspects of Method 2 of Embodiment 3 are similar to those of Method 2 of Embodiment 1 described above, and can be confirmed by referring to the above paragraphs. Similar descriptions are not repeated here.

[0124] It should also be noted that in some embodiments of Method 2 of Embodiment 3, thresholds s2_3, a_3, b_3, e_3, and f_3 are used similarly to thresholds s2_1, a_1, b_1, e_1, and f_1 described above, respectively. In some embodiments, the values ​​of thresholds s2_3, a_3, b_3, e_3, and f_3 are equal to, different from, or partially different from the values ​​of thresholds s2_1, a_1, b_1, e_1, and f_1, respectively.

[0125] Embodiment 3 - Method 3 In one embodiment of this approach, the wireless communication node switches from the directional LBT scheme to the omni-directional LBT scheme in response to a second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from the network device.

[0126] From the perspective of the network device, in one embodiment of this technique, the network device transmits a second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information to the wireless communication node to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the directional LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme. In one embodiment, the second downlink signal is transmitted in response to one or more trigger events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device (e.g., an overall congestion level within the service area).

[0127] It should be noted that many aspects of Method 3 of Embodiment 3 are similar to Method 3 of Embodiment 1 described above, and can be confirmed by referring to the above paragraphs. Similar descriptions are not repeated here.

[0128] It should also be noted that in some embodiments of Method 3 of Embodiment 3, thresholds c_3 and d_3 are used in a manner similar to thresholds c_1 and d_1 described above, respectively. In some embodiments, the values ​​of thresholds c_3 and d_3 are equal to, different from, or partially different from the values ​​of thresholds c_1 and d_1, respectively.

[0129] EMBODIMENT 4 In embodiment 4, the network device switches from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme. In some embodiments, there are two approaches to LBT switching.

[0130] Embodiment 4 - Method 1 In one embodiment, the network device switches from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of a downlink between the network device and the wireless communication node. In this embodiment, the network device determines the congestion level of the downlink channel according to a transmission quality corresponding to the downlink channel, such as whether one or more downlink transmissions are successfully detected (or decoded) by the wireless communication node.

[0131] In one embodiment, the network device measures the transmission quality according to feedback information from the wireless communication node. In one embodiment, the feedback information can include HARQ-ACK information. In one embodiment, the feedback information corresponds to whether one or more downlink transmissions are successfully detected / decoded.

[0132] In one embodiment, the network device determines a congestion level corresponding to at least one of an amount of NACK signals received by the network device, a NACK probability corresponding to a downlink channel, a no-feedback time corresponding to the downlink channel, a number of retransmissions performed by the network device, a retransmission probability corresponding to the downlink channel, an amount of ACK signals received by the network device, and / or an ACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel.

[0133] In one embodiment, the amount of NACK signals received by the network device may be the amount of NACK signals received by the network device corresponding to the downlink channel within a configured time or within an unlimited period of time. In one embodiment, the amount of NACK signals described herein may be the amount of NACK signals in one HARQ process or the cumulative amount of NACK signals in multiple HARQ processes.

[0134] In one embodiment, the NACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel may be determined according to the amount of NACK and ACK signals received by the wireless communication node corresponding to the downlink channel within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from the configured time) or within an unlimited period of time. In one embodiment, the NACK probability may be calculated by dividing the amount of NACK signals by the sum of the amount of NACK signals and the amount of ACK signals.

[0135] In one embodiment, the no-feedback time corresponding to the downlink channel may be a time during which the network device does not receive feedback information from the wireless communication node after transmitting through the downlink channel. Using the no-feedback time to determine the congestion level can avoid the network device not being able to receive the NACK signal / message due to an unexpected reason (e.g., downlink LBT failure).

[0136] In one embodiment, the number of retransmissions performed by the network device may be the number of retransmissions performed by the network device corresponding to the downlink channel within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from the configured time) or within an unlimited time period. In one embodiment, the number of retransmissions described herein may be the number of retransmissions in one HARQ process or the cumulative number of retransmissions in multiple HARQ processes.

[0137] In one embodiment, the retransmission probability corresponding to a downlink channel may be determined according to the number of retransmissions or new transmissions performed by the wireless communication node corresponding to the downlink channel within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from any of the above configured times) or within an unlimited time period. In some embodiments, a new transmission performed by the wireless communication node corresponds to a feedback from a network device indicating that a previous downlink transmission was successfully decoded, and a retransmission performed by the wireless communication node corresponds to another feedback from the network device indicating that a previous downlink transmission was not successfully decoded. In one embodiment, the retransmission probability may be calculated by dividing the number of retransmissions by the sum of the number of retransmissions and the number of new transmissions.

[0138] In one embodiment, the amount of ACK signals received by the network device may be the amount of ACK signals received by the network device corresponding to the downlink channel within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from any of the configured times above) or within an unlimited time period. In one embodiment, the amount of ACK signals described herein may be the amount of ACK signals in one HARQ process or the cumulative amount of ACK signals in multiple HARQ processes.

[0139] In one embodiment, the ACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel may be determined according to the amount of NACK and ACK signals received by the wireless communication node corresponding to the downlink channel within a configured time (which may be the same as or different from any of the above configured times) or within an unlimited period of time. In one embodiment, the ACK probability may be calculated by dividing the amount of NACK signals by the sum of the amount of NACK signals and the amount of ACK signals.

[0140] In some embodiments, the network device determines a congestion level of a downlink channel corresponding to a radio quality. In one embodiment, the radio quality corresponds to a downlink channel. In one embodiment, the radio quality corresponds to a signal strength. In one embodiment, the radio quality corresponds to a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) or a reference signal received power (RSRP).

[0141] In one embodiment, the network device determines the congestion level according to both the radio quality and the transmission quality. For example, the network device can determine that the congestion level is relatively high according to the transmission quality being weaker than a certain criterion (e.g., many uplink transmissions cannot be successfully detected by the wireless communication node) and the radio quality being greater than another certain criterion. In this way, the network device can avoid erroneously determining that the congestion level is relatively high due to poor radio quality.

[0142] In one embodiment, the network device determines that the congestion level is relatively high, and switches from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme in response to the aforementioned SNR or RSRP being equal to or greater than a threshold s1_4 and at least one of the following conditions: the amount of NACK signals received by the network device is greater than or equal to a threshold n_4; The NACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel is greater than or equal to a threshold p_4; The no-feedback time corresponding to the downlink channel is equal to or greater than a threshold tf_4; the number of retransmissions performed by the network device is greater than or equal to a threshold m_4; the retransmission probability corresponding to the downlink channel is greater than or equal to a threshold q_4; The amount of ACK signals received by the network device is less than a threshold value x_4; or The ACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel is less than the threshold y_4.

[0143] In one embodiment, one or more of the thresholds s1_4, n_4, p_4, tf_4, m_4, q_4, x_4, y_4 may be predetermined or may be configured by another device.

[0144] From the perspective of the wireless communication node, in one embodiment, the wireless communication node transmits feedback information to the network device to enable the wireless communication node to determine a congestion level of the downlink channel and operatively switch from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme in response to the feedback information. In one embodiment, the feedback information can include HARQ-ACK information. In one embodiment, the feedback information corresponds to whether one or more downlink transmissions have been successfully detected / decoded.

[0145] Embodiment 4 - Method 2 In one embodiment, the network device switches from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme in response to one or more trigger events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device (e.g., an overall congestion level within the service area).

[0146] In one embodiment, the one or more trigger events include at least one of whether another wireless system (e.g., a WiFi system) is within service range, the number of nodes accessing the network device, and / or the overall probability of a decoding error (or detection error) for the network device.

[0147] Details of the overall probability of decoding errors can be found in the paragraphs above and will not be repeated here.

[0148] In one embodiment, the network device determines that an overall congestion level within a service area is relatively high and switches from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: the presence of another radio system within range; The number of nodes accessing the network device is equal to or greater than a threshold c_4, or The overall probability of decoding errors in the network devices is greater than or equal to a threshold d_4.

[0149] Embodiment 5 and embodiment 6 In embodiment 5, the network device switches from the No LBT scheme to the omni-directional LBT scheme. In some embodiments, similar to embodiment 4, there are two approaches to LBT switching.

[0150] In embodiment 6, the network device switches from the directional LBT method to the omnidirectional LBT method. In some embodiments, similar to embodiment 4, there are two approaches to LBT switching.

[0151] It should be noted that many aspects of the fifth and sixth embodiments are similar to those of the fourth embodiment described above, and can be confirmed by referring to the above paragraphs. The same description is not repeated here.

[0152] Further, in some embodiments, the thresholds s1_5, n_5, p_5, tf_5, m_5, q_5, x_5, y_5, c_5, and d_5 of embodiment 5 are used similarly to the thresholds s1_4, n_4, p_4, tf_4, m_4, q_4, x_4, y_4, c_4, and d_4 of embodiment 4, respectively. In some embodiments, the values ​​of the thresholds s1_5, n_5, p_5, tf_5, m_5, q_5, x_5, y_5, c_5, and d_5 are equal to, different from, or partially different from the values ​​of the thresholds s1_4, n_4, p_4, tf_4, m_4, q_4, x_4, y_4, c_4, and d_4, respectively.

[0153] Similarly, in some embodiments, the thresholds s1_6, n_6, p_6, tf_6, m_6, q_6, x_6, y_6, c_6, and d_6 of embodiment 6 are used similarly to the thresholds s1_4, n_4, p_4, tf_4, m_4, q_4, x_4, y_4, c_4, and d_4 of embodiment 4. In some embodiments, the values ​​of the thresholds s1_6, n_6, p_6, tf_6, m_6, q_6, x_6, y_6, c_6, and d_6 in the embodiments are equal to, different from, or partially different from the values ​​of the thresholds s1_4, n_4, p_4, tf_4, m_4, q_4, x_4, y_4, c_4, and d_4, respectively.

[0154] EMBODIMENT 7 In embodiment 7, the wireless communication node switches from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme. In some embodiments, there are three approaches to LBT switching.

[0155] Embodiment 7 - Method 1 In one embodiment, the wireless communication node switches from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device. In this embodiment, the wireless communication node determines the congestion level of the uplink channel according to a transmission quality corresponding to the uplink channel, such as whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected (or decoded) by the network device.

[0156] In one embodiment, the wireless communication node measures the transmission quality according to feedback information from the network device. In one embodiment, the feedback information can include HARQ-ACK information. In one embodiment, the feedback information corresponds to whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected / decoded.

[0157] In one embodiment, the wireless communication node determines a congestion level corresponding to at least one of an amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node, a NACK probability corresponding to an uplink channel, a number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node, a retransmission probability corresponding to the uplink channel, an amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node, and / or an ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel.

[0158] Details of the amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node, the NACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel, the number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node, the retransmission probability corresponding to the uplink channel, the amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node, and the ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel can be found by referring to the paragraphs above and will not be repeated here.

[0159] In one embodiment, the wireless communication node determines that a congestion level is relatively low and switches from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: the amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node is less than a threshold n_7; the NACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is less than a threshold p_7; the number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node is less than a threshold m_7; the retransmission probability corresponding to the uplink channel is less than a threshold q_7; The amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node is greater than or equal to a threshold value x_7; or The ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is greater than or equal to the threshold y_7.

[0160] In one embodiment, one or more of the thresholds n_7, p_7, m_7, q_7, x_7, y_7 may be predetermined or may be configured by another device. For example, the thresholds may be configured using a broadcast SI message, an RRC message, or another actionable message from a network device.

[0161] From the perspective of the network device, in one embodiment, the network device transmits feedback information to the wireless communication node to enable the wireless communication node to determine a congestion level of the uplink channel and operatively switch from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme in response to the feedback information. In one embodiment, the feedback information can include HARQ-ACK information. In one embodiment, the feedback information corresponds to whether one or more uplink transmissions have been successfully detected / decoded.

[0162] Embodiment 7 - Method 2 In one embodiment, the wireless communication node switches from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme in response to a first downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from a network device. In this embodiment, the first downlink signal is a device-specific signal. That is, only the wireless communication node within the service range corresponding to the network device can receive the first downlink signal. For example, the first downlink signal is a user equipment-specific downlink control information (UE-specific DCI) signal or a medium access control control element (MAC CE).

[0163] From the perspective of a network device, in one embodiment, the network device transmits a first downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information to a wireless communication node to cause the wireless communication node to switch from a directional LBT scheme to a No LBT scheme.

[0164] In one embodiment, the first downlink signal is transmitted in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device, in which the network device determines the congestion level of the uplink channel according to a transmission quality corresponding to the uplink channel, such as whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected (or decoded) by the network device.

[0165] In one embodiment, the network device determines a congestion level corresponding to at least one of a number of missed detections of uplink transmissions, a probability of missed detection of uplink transmissions, a number of successful detections of uplink transmissions, and / or a probability of successful detection of uplink transmissions.

[0166] Details of the number of failed detections of uplink transmissions, the probability of failed detection of uplink transmissions, the number of successful detections of uplink transmissions, and the probability of successful detection of uplink transmissions can be found in the paragraphs above and will not be repeated here.

[0167] In one embodiment, the network device determines that the congestion level is relatively low and transmits a first downlink signal including a second type of LBT scheme switching information to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions: The number of detection failures of uplink transmissions is less than a threshold a_7, or the probability of missed detection of the uplink transmission is less than a threshold b_7; The number of successful detections of uplink transmissions is equal to or greater than a threshold e_7, or The probability of successful detection of uplink transmission is greater than or equal to a threshold f_7.

[0168] In one embodiment, one or more of the thresholds a_7, b_7, e_7, f_7 may be predetermined or may be configured by another device.

[0169] In one embodiment, the first downlink signal including the second type of LBT scheme switching information is used to cause the wireless communication node to switch from an LBT scheme corresponding to a relatively low congestion level to an LBT scheme corresponding to a relatively high congestion level, such as from an omnidirectional LBT scheme to a no LBT scheme or a directional LBT scheme, or from a directional LBT scheme to a no LBT scheme.

[0170] In one embodiment, the network device transmits the first downlink signal including the second type of LBT scheme switching information in response to the wireless communication node being an omnidirectional LBT scheme or a directional LBT scheme, i.e., if the wireless communication node is a No LBT scheme, the network device may not make a change and may therefore determine not to transmit the first downlink signal including the second type of LBT scheme switching information to the wireless communication node.

[0171] Embodiment 7 - Method 3 In one embodiment, the wireless communication node switches from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme in response to a second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from the network device. In this embodiment, the second downlink signal is a common signal. That is, all wireless communication nodes within a service range corresponding to the network device can receive the second downlink signal. For example, the second downlink signal is a common downlink control information (DCI) signal, a broadcast system information (SI) message, or a radio resource control (RRC) message.

[0172] From the perspective of the network device, in one embodiment, the network device transmits a second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information to the wireless communication node to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme.

[0173] In one embodiment, the second downlink signal is transmitted in response to one or more triggering events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device (e.g., an overall congestion level within the service area). In one embodiment, the one or more triggering events include at least one of whether another wireless system (e.g., a WiFi system) is present within the service area, a number of nodes accessing the network device, and / or an overall probability of decoding (or detection) errors for the network device.

[0174] Details of the overall probability of decoding errors can be found in the paragraphs above and will not be repeated here.

[0175] In one embodiment, the network device determines that an overall congestion level within a service area is relatively low, and transmits a second downlink signal including a second type of LBT scheme switching information to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions: There are no other wireless systems within range of the service; The number of nodes accessing the network device is less than the threshold c_7, or The overall probability of decoding errors in the network devices is less than the threshold d_7.

[0176] In one embodiment, the second downlink signal including the second type of LBT scheme switching information is used to cause the wireless communication node to switch from an LBT scheme corresponding to a relatively low congestion level to an LBT scheme corresponding to a relatively high congestion level, such as from an omnidirectional LBT scheme to a no LBT scheme or a directional LBT scheme, or from a directional LBT scheme to a no LBT scheme.

[0177] In one embodiment, the network device transmits a second downlink signal including the second type of LBT scheme switching information in response to the wireless communication node being in the No LBT scheme or the directional LBT scheme, i.e., if the wireless communication node is in the omnidirectional LBT scheme, the network device may determine not to transmit the second downlink signal including the second type of LBT scheme switching information to the wireless communication node since the wireless communication node may not make a change.

[0178] Embodiment 8 and embodiment 9 In embodiment 8, the network device switches from the omni-directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme. In some embodiments, similar to embodiment 7, there are three approaches to LBT switching.

[0179] In embodiment 9, the network device switches from the omni-directional LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme. In some embodiments, similar to embodiment 7, there are three approaches to LBT switching.

[0180] It should be noted that many aspects of the eighth and ninth embodiments are similar to the seventh embodiment described above, and can be confirmed by referring to the above paragraphs. The same description is not repeated here.

[0181] Further, in some embodiments, the thresholds n_8, p_8, m_8, q_8, x_8, y_8, a_8, b_8, c_8, d_8, e_8, and f_8 of embodiment 8 are used similarly to the thresholds n_7, p_7, m_7, q_7, x_7, y_7, a_7, b_7, c_7, d_7, e_7, and f_7 of embodiment 7. In some embodiments, the values ​​of the thresholds n_8, p_8, m_8, q_8, x_8, y_8, a_8, b_8, c_8, d_8, e_8, and f_8 are equal to, different from, or partially different from the values ​​of the thresholds n_7, p_7, m_7, q_7, x_7, y_7, a_7, b_7, c_7, d_7, e_7, and f_7, respectively.

[0182] Similarly, in some embodiments, the thresholds n_9, p_9, m_9, q_9, x_9, y_9, a_9, b_9, c_9, d_9, e_9, and f_9 of embodiment 9 are used similarly to the thresholds n_7, p_7, m_7, q_7, x_7, y_7, a_7, b_7, c_7, d_7, e_7, and f_7 of embodiment 7. In some embodiments, the values ​​of the thresholds n_9, p_9, m_9, q_9, x_9, y_9, a_9, b_9, c_9, d_9, e_9, and f_9 are equal to, different from, or partially different from the values ​​of the thresholds n_7, p_7, m_7, q_7, x_7, y_7, a_7, b_7, c_7, d_7, e_7, and f_7, respectively.

[0183] EMBODIMENT 10 In embodiment 10, the network device switches from the No LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme. In some embodiments, there are two approaches to LBT switching.

[0184] Embodiment 10 - Method 1 In one embodiment, the network device switches from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of a downlink between the network device and the wireless communication node. In this embodiment, the network device determines the congestion level of the downlink channel according to a transmission quality corresponding to the downlink channel, such as whether one or more downlink transmissions are successfully detected (or decoded) by the wireless communication node.

[0185] In one embodiment, the network device measures the transmission quality according to feedback information from the wireless communication node. In one embodiment, the feedback information can include HARQ-ACK information. In one embodiment, the feedback information corresponds to whether one or more downlink transmissions are successfully detected / decoded.

[0186] In one embodiment, the network device determines a congestion level corresponding to at least one of an amount of NACK signals received by the network device, a NACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel, a number of retransmissions performed by the network device, a retransmission probability corresponding to the downlink channel, an amount of ACK signals received by the network device, and / or an ACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel.

[0187] Details of the amount of NACK signals received by the network equipment, the NACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel, the number of retransmissions performed by the network equipment, the retransmission probability corresponding to the downlink channel, the amount of ACK signals received by the network equipment, and the ACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel can be confirmed by referring to the paragraphs above and will not be repeated here.

[0188] In one embodiment, the network device determines that the congestion level is relatively low and switches from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: the amount of NACK signals received by the network device is less than a threshold n_10; the NACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel is less than a threshold p_10; the number of retransmissions performed by the network device is less than a threshold m_10; the retransmission probability corresponding to the downlink channel is less than a threshold q_10; The amount of ACK signals received by the network device is greater than or equal to a threshold value x_10; or The ACK probability corresponding to the downlink channel is greater than or equal to a threshold y_10.

[0189] In one embodiment, one or more of the thresholds n_10, p_10, m_10, q_10, x_10, y_10 may be predetermined or may be configured by another device.

[0190] From the perspective of the wireless communication node, in one embodiment, the wireless communication node transmits feedback information to the network device to enable the wireless communication node to determine a congestion level of the downlink channel and operatively switch from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme in response to the feedback information. In one embodiment, the feedback information can include HARQ-ACK information. In one embodiment, the feedback information corresponds to whether one or more downlink transmissions have been successfully detected / decoded.

[0191] Embodiment 10 - Method 2 In one embodiment, the network device switches from the directional LBT scheme to the no LBT scheme in response to one or more trigger events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device (e.g., an overall congestion level within the service area).

[0192] In one embodiment, the one or more trigger events include at least one of whether another wireless system (e.g., a WiFi system) is within service range, the number of nodes accessing the network device, and / or the overall probability of a decoding error (or detection error) for the network device.

[0193] Details of the overall probability of decoding errors can be found in the paragraphs above and will not be repeated here.

[0194] In one embodiment, the network device determines that an overall congestion level within a service area is relatively low, and switches from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: There are no other wireless systems within range of the service; The number of nodes accessing the network device is less than a threshold c_10, or The overall probability of decoding errors in the network devices is less than the threshold d_10.

[0195] Embodiment 11 and embodiment 12 In embodiment 11, the network device switches from the omni-directional LBT mode to the No LBT mode. In some embodiments, similar to embodiment 10, there are two approaches to LBT switching.

[0196] In embodiment 12, the network device switches from the omni-directional LBT scheme to the directional LBT scheme. In some embodiments, similar to embodiment 10, there are two approaches to LBT switching.

[0197] It should be noted that many aspects of the embodiments 11 and 12 are similar to the above-mentioned embodiment 10, and can be confirmed by referring to the above paragraphs. The same description is not repeated here.

[0198] Further, in some embodiments, the thresholds n_11, p_11, m_11, q_11, x_11, y_11, c_11, and d_11 of embodiment 11 are used similarly to the thresholds n_10, p_10, m_10, q_10, x_10, y_10, c_10, and d_10 of embodiment 10, respectively. In some embodiments, the values ​​of the thresholds n_11, p_11, m_11, q_11, x_11, y_11, c_11, and d_11 are equal to, different from, or partially different from the values ​​of the thresholds n_10, p_10, m_10, q_10, x_10, y_10, c_10, and d_10, respectively.

[0199] Similarly, in some embodiments, the thresholds n_12, p_12, m_12, q_12, x_12, y_12, c_12, and d_12 of embodiment 12 are used similarly to the thresholds n_10, p_10, m_10, q_10, x_10, y_10, c_10, and d_10 of embodiment 10. In some embodiments, the values ​​of the thresholds n_12, p_12, m_12, q_12, x_12, y_12, c_12, and d_12 in the embodiment are equal to, different from, or partially different from the values ​​of the thresholds n_10, p_10, m_10, q_10, x_10, y_10, c_10, and d_10, respectively.

[0200] FIG. 4 relates to a schematic diagram of a wireless communication node 40 (e.g., a wireless terminal) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The wireless communication node 40 may be a user equipment (UE), a mobile phone, a laptop, a tablet computer, an e-book, or a portable computer system, and is not limited herein. The wireless communication node 40 may include a processor 400, such as a microprocessor or an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a storage unit 410, and a communication unit 420. The storage unit 410 may be any data storage device that stores program code 412 that is accessed and executed by the processor 400. Embodiments of the storage unit 410 include, but are not limited to, a subscriber identity module (SIM), a read only memory (ROM), a flash memory, a random access memory (RAM), a hard disk, and an optical data storage device. The communication unit 420 may be a transceiver, and is used to transmit and receive signals (e.g., messages or packets) according to the processing results of the processor 400. In one embodiment, the communication unit 420 is a to 4 The wireless device transmits and receives signals via at least one antenna 422 shown.

[0201] In one embodiment, the storage unit 410 and the program code 412 may be omitted and the processor 400 may include a storage unit having the program code stored therein.

[0202] The processor 400 may, for example, by executing the program code 412 to perform any of the steps in the illustrated embodiments in the wireless communication node 40 .

[0203] The communication unit 420 may be a transceiver. Alternatively or additionally, the communication unit 420 may combine a transmitting unit and a receiving unit configured to transmit and receive signals, respectively, to and from the network device.

[0204] In some embodiments, the wireless communication node 40 can be used to perform the operations described above (e.g., the operations in the method 100 and other related operations). In some embodiments, the processor 400 and the communication unit 420 cooperate to perform the operations described above. For example, the processor 400 performs operations via the communication unit 420 to transmit or receive information.

[0205] In one embodiment, the processor 400 is configured to switch from the first LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device, or in response to a first or second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from the network device.

[0206] The details of the operation of the wireless communication node 40 can be confirmed with reference to the above embodiments, and will not be described here.

[0207] figure 55 relates to a schematic diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The network device 50 may be a satellite, a base station (BS), a network entity, a mobility management entity (MME), a serving gateway (S-GW), a packet data network (PDN) gateway (P-GW), a radio access network (RAN), a next generation RAN (NG-RAN), a data network, a core network, or a radio network controller (RNC), and is not limited herein. Furthermore, the network device 50 may include (perform) at least one network function, such as an access and mobility management function (AMF), a session management function (SMF), a user place function (UPF), a policy control function (PCF), an application function (AF), etc. The network device 50 may include a processor 500, such as a microprocessor or ASIC, a storage unit 510, and a communication unit 520. The storage unit 510 may be any data storage device that stores program code 512 that is accessed and executed by the processor 500. Examples of the storage unit 510 include, but are not limited to, a SIM, a ROM, a flash memory, a RAM, a hard disk, and an optical data storage device. The communication unit 520 may be a transceiver and is used to transmit and receive signals (e.g., messages or packets) according to the processing results of the processor 500. In one example, the communication unit 520 is to 5 The communication unit 520 transmits and receives signals via at least one antenna 522 shown. In one embodiment, the communication unit 520 can also transmit and receive signals via physical wires / cables.

[0208] In one embodiment, the storage unit 510 and the program code 512 may be omitted. The processor 500 may include a storage unit having the program code stored therein.

[0209] The processor 500 may, for example, by executing the program code 512, perform any of the steps described in the illustrated embodiment on the network device 50.

[0210] The communication unit 520 may be a transceiver. Alternatively, or in addition, the communication unit 520 may combine a transmitting unit and a receiving unit configured to transmit and receive signals, respectively, to and from a communication device (e.g., user equipment).

[0211] In some embodiments, the network device 50 can be used to perform the operations described above (e.g., the operations in the method 100 and other related operations). In some embodiments, the processor 500 and the communication unit 520 cooperate to perform the operations described above. For example, the processor 500 performs the operations and transmits or receives signals via the communication unit 520.

[0212] In one embodiment, the processor 500 is configured to transmit, via the communication unit 520, a first or second downlink signal including scheme switching information to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the first uplink LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme.

[0213] In one embodiment, the processor 500 is configured to switch from a first downlink listen-before-talk (LBT) scheme to a second downlink LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of a downlink channel between the network device and the wireless communication node or in response to one or more trigger events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device.

[0214] The details of the operation of the network device 50 can be confirmed with reference to the above embodiments, and will not be described here.

[0215] Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a computer program product including a computer readable program medium code stored thereon, which when executed by a processor causes the processor to perform a wireless communication method as set forth in any of the preceding methods.

[0216] Although various embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, it should be understood that they are presented only as examples and not as limitations. Similarly, various figures may depict example architectures or configurations provided to enable those skilled in the art to appreciate the exemplary features and functionality of the present disclosure. However, such skilled in the art will appreciate that the present disclosure is not limited to the illustrated example architectures or configurations, but may be implemented using various alternative architectures and configurations. Furthermore, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, one or more features of one embodiment may be combined with one or more features of another embodiment described herein. Thus, the breadth and scope of the present disclosure should not be limited by any of the exemplary embodiments described above.

[0217] It is also understood that any reference to an element herein using a designation such as "first," "second," etc., generally does not limit the quantity or order of those elements. Rather, these designations may be used herein as a convenient means of distinguishing between two or more elements or instances of an element. Thus, a reference to a first and a second element does not imply that only two elements may be used or that the first element must precede the second element in any way.

[0218] Further, those skilled in the art will understand that information and signals may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, the data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits and symbols that may be referenced in the above description may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

[0219] Those skilled in the art will further appreciate that any of the various illustrative logical blocks, units, processors, means, circuits, methods, and functions described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be realized by electronic hardware (e.g., digital implementations, analog implementations, or a combination of the two), firmware, various forms of program or design code incorporating instructions (which may be referred to herein for convenience as "software" or "software units"), or any combination of these technologies.

[0220] To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware, firmware, and software, various exemplary components, blocks, units, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware, firmware, or software, or a combination of these technologies, depends on the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Those skilled in the art may implement the described functionality in various ways for each particular application, and such implementation decisions do not depart from the scope of the present disclosure. According to various embodiments, a processor, device, component, circuit, structure, machine, unit, etc. may be configured to perform one or more of the functions described herein. The term "configured to" or "configured for" as used herein with respect to a specified operation or function refers to a processor, device, component, circuit, structure, machine, unit, etc. that is physically constructed, programmed, and / or arranged to perform the specified operation or function.

[0221] Moreover, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the various exemplary logical blocks, units, devices, components and circuits described herein can be implemented in or performed by an integrated circuit (IC), which may include a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, or any combination thereof. The logical blocks, units and circuits may further include an antenna and / or a transceiver for communicating with various components in a network or in a device. The general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, or state machine. The processor may also be realized as a combination of computing devices, for example, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other suitable configuration for performing the functions described herein. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium. Thus, the steps of a method or algorithm disclosed herein may be implemented as software stored on a computer-readable medium.

[0222] Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media, including any medium that can enable a computer program or code to be transferred from one place to another. Storage media can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media can include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage, or any other medium that can be used to store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer.

[0223] The term "unit" as used herein refers to software, firmware, hardware, and any combination of these elements for performing the relevant functions described herein. Moreover, for purposes of description, various units are described as separate units. However, as would be apparent to one skilled in the art, two or more units may be combined to form a single unit performing the relevant functions according to embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0224] Furthermore, memory or other storage devices, as well as communication components, may be used in embodiments of the present disclosure. For clarity, it will be appreciated that the above description has described embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to different functional units and processors. However, it will be apparent that any suitable distribution of functionality between different functional units, processing logic elements, or domains may be used without detracting from the present disclosure. For example, functions shown to be performed by separate processing logic elements or controllers may be performed by the same processing logic element or controller. Thus, references to specific functional units are merely to suitable means for providing the described functions, rather than to a strict logical or physical structure or organization.

[0225] Various modifications to the embodiments described in this disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the novel features and principles disclosed herein, as set forth in the following claims.

Claims

1. Switching the wireless communication node from a first uplink LBT scheme to a second uplink LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and a network device or in response to a first or second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from the network device. Including, The wireless communication node switches from the No LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme or the directional LBT scheme, or from the directional LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme, in response to a signal-to-noise ratio or a reference signal received power being equal to or greater than a first threshold and at least one of the following conditions, wherein the conditions are: an amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node is greater than or equal to a second threshold; a NACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is greater than or equal to a third threshold; a no-feedback time corresponding to the uplink channel is equal to or greater than a fourth threshold; a number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node is greater than or equal to a fifth threshold; a retransmission probability corresponding to the uplink channel is greater than or equal to a sixth threshold; the amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node is less than a seventh threshold; or the ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is less than an eighth threshold. A wireless communication method.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the congestion level of the uplink channel is determined according to whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected by the network device.

3. 2. The wireless communication method of claim 1, wherein the congestion level of the uplink channel corresponds to at least one of an amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node, a NACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel, a no-feedback time corresponding to the uplink channel, a number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node, a retransmission probability corresponding to the uplink channel, an amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node, or an ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel.

4. The congestion level is determined in response to a wireless quality; The wireless quality corresponds to a signal strength; The wireless communication method according to claim 1 , wherein the radio quality corresponds to a signal-to-noise ratio or a reference signal received power.

5. The first uplink LBT scheme and the second uplink LBT scheme are The wireless communication method according to claim 1 , which is two of an LBT method, an omnidirectional LBT method, or a directional LBT method.

6. The wireless communication node switches from the omnidirectional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme or the directional LBT scheme, or from the directional LBT scheme to the No LBT scheme, in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: the amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node is less than a ninth threshold; a NACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is less than a tenth threshold; the number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node is less than an eleventh threshold; a retransmission probability corresponding to the uplink channel is less than a twelfth threshold; the amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node is greater than or equal to a thirteenth threshold; or The ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is equal to or greater than a fourteenth threshold. The wireless communication method according to claim 1 ,

7. the first downlink signal is a user equipment specific downlink control information signal, or a medium access control control element (MAC CE); The method of claim 1 , wherein the second downlink signal is a common downlink control information signal, a broadcast system information message, or a radio resource control message.

8. The wireless communication node transmits feedback information corresponding to a congestion level of a downlink channel to the network device, so as to cause the network device to switch from a first downlink LBT scheme to a second downlink LBT scheme according to the feedback information. The wireless communication method of claim 1 , further comprising:

9. A network device transmits a first or second downlink signal including LBT mode switching information to a wireless communication node, the LBT mode switching information causing the wireless communication node to switch from a first uplink LBT mode to a second uplink LBT mode. A wireless communication method comprising: the first downlink signal is transmitted in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device, and the second downlink signal is transmitted in response to one or more trigger events corresponding to a congestion level within a service area corresponding to the network device; The network device transmits the first downlink signal including a first type of LBT scheme switching information for causing the wireless communication node to switch from a first uplink LBT scheme to a second uplink LBT scheme in response to a signal-to-noise ratio or a reference signal received power being equal to or greater than a first threshold and at least one of the following conditions, wherein the conditions are: a number of missed detections of uplink transmissions is greater than or equal to a second threshold; a missed detection probability of the uplink transmission is greater than or equal to a third threshold; the number of successful detections of uplink transmissions is less than a fourth threshold; or The probability of successful detection of the uplink transmission is less than a fifth threshold. and A wireless communication method, in which the network device transmits the first downlink signal including the first type of LBT scheme switching information in response to the first uplink LBT scheme of the wireless communication node being a No LBT scheme or a directional LBT scheme.

10. transmitting, by the network device, to the wireless communication node, the feedback information corresponding to the congestion level of the uplink channel, so as to cause the wireless communication node to operatively switch from the first uplink LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme according to the feedback information; Further comprising: The method of claim 9 , wherein the congestion level of the uplink channel is determined according to whether one or more uplink transmissions are successfully detected by the network device.

11. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the congestion level of the uplink channel corresponds to at least one of a number of missed detections of an uplink transmission, a probability of missed detection of an uplink transmission, a number of successful detections of an uplink transmission, or a probability of successful detection of an uplink transmission.

12. The congestion level is determined in response to a wireless quality; The wireless quality corresponds to a signal strength; The wireless communication method according to claim 9 , wherein the radio quality corresponds to a signal-to-noise ratio or a reference signal received power.

13. The wireless communication method according to claim 9, wherein the first uplink LBT scheme and the second uplink LBT scheme are two of a No LBT scheme, an omnidirectional LBT scheme, or a directional LBT scheme.

14. The network device transmits the first downlink signal including a second type of LBT scheme switching information for causing the wireless communication node to switch from the first uplink LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: a number of missed detections of uplink transmissions is less than a sixth threshold; a missed detection probability of the uplink transmission is less than a seventh threshold; the number of successful detections of uplink transmissions is greater than or equal to an eighth threshold; or The probability of successful detection of the uplink transmission is equal to or greater than a ninth threshold. and The network device transmits the first downlink signal including the second type of LBT scheme switching information in response to the first uplink LBT scheme of the wireless communication node being a directional LBT scheme or an omnidirectional LBT scheme; 10. The wireless communication method of claim 9, wherein the first downlink signal is a user equipment specific downlink control information signal or a medium access control control element (MAC CE).

15. The one or more trigger events include: whether there is another wireless system within said service range; the number of nodes accessing the network device; or the overall probability of decoding error for said network device; The wireless communication method of claim 9, comprising at least one of:

16. The network device transmits the second downlink signal including a first type of LBT scheme switching information to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the first uplink LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: the presence of another wireless system within said service range; The number of nodes accessing the network device is equal to or greater than a tenth threshold; or the overall probability of decoding errors of the network devices is greater than or equal to an eleventh threshold; and The wireless communication method according to claim 9, wherein the network device transmits the second downlink signal including the first type of LBT scheme switching information in response to the first uplink LBT scheme of the wireless communication node being a No LBT scheme or a directional LBT scheme.

17. The network device transmits the second downlink signal including a second type of LBT scheme switching information to cause the wireless communication node to switch from the first uplink LBT scheme to the second uplink LBT scheme in response to at least one of the following conditions, the conditions being: There are no other wireless systems within said service range; The number of nodes accessing the network device is less than a twelfth threshold; or the overall probability of decoding errors of the network devices is less than a thirteenth threshold; and The network device transmits the second downlink signal including the second type of LBT scheme switching information in response to the first uplink LBT scheme of the wireless communication node being a directional LBT scheme or an omnidirectional LBT scheme; 10. The wireless communication method of claim 9, wherein the second downlink signal is a common downlink control information signal, a broadcast system information message, or a radio resource control message.

18. A wireless communication node, comprising: a communication unit configured to communicate with the network device; and a processor configured to switch from a first uplink LBT scheme to a second uplink LBT scheme in response to a congestion level of an uplink channel between the wireless communication node and the network device, or in response to a first or second downlink signal including LBT scheme switching information transmitted from the network device, The processor is configured to switch from a No LBT scheme to an omnidirectional LBT scheme or a directional LBT scheme, or from the directional LBT scheme to the omnidirectional LBT scheme, in response to a signal-to-noise ratio or a reference signal received power being equal to or greater than a first threshold and at least one of the following conditions, wherein the conditions include: an amount of NACK signals received by the wireless communication node is greater than or equal to a second threshold; a NACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is greater than or equal to a third threshold; a no-feedback time corresponding to the uplink channel is equal to or greater than a fourth threshold; a number of retransmissions performed by the wireless communication node is greater than or equal to a fifth threshold; a retransmission probability corresponding to the uplink channel is greater than or equal to a sixth threshold; the amount of ACK signals received by the wireless communication node is less than a seventh threshold; or the ACK probability corresponding to the uplink channel is less than an eighth threshold. A wireless communication node.

Images