Transceiver device and scheduling device

Abstract

To provide a transceiver device and scheduling device for facilitating efficient operation of particular devices, and communication methods for the transceiver device and the scheduling device.SOLUTION: A communication system includes a scheduling device, which is a base station, and a transceiver device, which is user equipment. The transceiver device comprises: a transceiver which receives, over a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), a sub-band occupancy indicator indicating sub-bands determined to be available for transmission, and a resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the available sub-bands and assigned to the transceiver device for the transmission; and an assigned resource determination circuit which determines the assigned resources according to the resource allocation indicator and the sub-band occupancy indicator.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE The present disclosure relates to transmitting and receiving signals in a communication system. In particular, the present disclosure relates to methods and apparatus for such transmission and reception. [Background technology]

[0002] The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is working on technical specifications for next-generation cellular technology, also known as fifth generation (5G), which includes "new radio" (NR) radio access technologies (RATs) operating in frequency bands ranging from sub-1 GHz to millimeter wave bands. NR is the successor to technologies represented by Long Term Evolution (LTE) and LTE Advanced (LTE-A).

[0003] In systems such as LTE, LTE-A, and NR, further modifications and options may facilitate efficient operation of the communication system and certain devices associated with the system. [Prior art documents] [Non-patent literature]

[0004] [Non-Patent Document 1] 3GPP TR 38.889, Study on NR-based access to unlicensed spectrum, v1.0.0 [Non-patent document 2] ETSI 301 893 [Non-patent document 3] 3GPP TS 38.214 V15.4.0 Summary of the Invention

[0005] One non-limiting, exemplary embodiment facilitates flexible allocation of resources in unlicensed carriers.

[0006] In one embodiment, the techniques disclosed herein feature a transceiver device having a transceiver that, during operation, receives via a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH): a subband occupancy indicator indicating subbands determined to be available for transmission; and a resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the available subbands and assigned to the transceiver device for the transmission. The transceiver device has circuitry that, during operation, determines the assigned resources in accordance with the resource allocation indicator and the subband occupancy indicator.

[0007] It should be noted that the general or specific embodiments may be realized as a system, a method, an integrated circuit, a computer program, a storage medium, or any selective combination thereof.

[0008] Further benefits and advantages of the disclosed embodiments will become apparent from the specification and drawings. These benefits and / or advantages may be obtained individually by various embodiments and features of the specification and drawings, but they need not all be provided to obtain one or more of such benefits and / or advantages. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates an example architecture for a 3GPP NR system, including an example user and control plane architecture for LTE eNBs, gNBs, and UEs. [Figure 2] Schematic diagram showing free channel determination on unlicensed wideband carriers [Figure 3] Schematic showing channel occupancy [Figure 4] An explanatory diagram showing an example of Type 0 resource allocation directly applicable to NR-U wideband operation. [Figure 5]An explanatory diagram showing an example of Type 1 resource allocation directly applicable to NR-U wideband operation. [Figure 6] Diagram showing wideband operations in unlicensed spectrum where only a portion of the active BWP is determined to be usable [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating functional components of a scheduling device and a transceiver device according to an embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 illustrates steps of a method for a scheduling device according to an embodiment. [Figure 9] 1 illustrates steps of a method for a transceiver device according to an embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating resource allocation according to Type 0 according to an embodiment in which resource block group allocation is performed on the union of available subbands excluding guard bands. [Figure 11] FIG. 1 illustrates a method for a transceiver device according to an embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating resource allocation according to Type 0, in which resource block group allocation is performed for a union of available subbands including guard bands, according to an embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 1 illustrates a method for a transceiver device according to an embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating resource allocation according to Type 1, in which resource block group allocation is performed for a union of available subbands including guard bands, according to an embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 1 illustrates a method for a transceiver device according to an embodiment when RA Type 1 is applied. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Exemplary embodiments will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0011] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary example of a communication system including a base station, a terminal, and a core network. Such a communication system may be a 3GPP system, such as NR and / or LTE and / or UMTS. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, a base station (BS) may be a gNB (gNodeB (e.g., an NR base station)) or an eNB (eNodeB (e.g., an LTE base station)). However, the present disclosure is not limited to these 3GPP systems or any other systems. Even if embodiments and example implementations are described using certain terminology of a 3GPP system, the present disclosure is also applicable to any other communication system, in particular, any cellular, wireless, and / or mobile system.

[0012] NR is planned to facilitate the provision of a single technical framework that addresses several defined usage scenarios, requirements, and deployment scenarios, including enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC), and massive machine-type communications (mMTC). For example, eMBB deployment scenarios can include indoor hotspots, dense urban, rural, urban macro, and high-speed. URLLC deployment scenarios can include industrial control systems, mobile healthcare (remote monitoring / diagnosis / treatment), real-time control of vehicles, and wide-area monitoring / control systems for smart grids. mMTC can include scenarios with a large number of devices involving non-time-critical data transfer, such as smart wearables and sensor networks. eMBB and URLLC services are similar in that both require very high bandwidth, but differ in that URLLC services require ultra-low latency. In NR, the physical layer is based on time-frequency resources (such as orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) similar to LTE) and can support multi-antenna operation.

[0013] In LTE and NR, a terminal is called user equipment (UE). This may be a mobile device such as a mobile phone, smartphone, tablet computer, or USB (Universal Serial Bus) stick with user equipment functionality. However, the term mobile device is not limited thereto, and in general, a relay may have the functionality of such a mobile device, and a mobile device may also function as a relay.

[0014] A base station is a network node forming part of a network for providing services to terminals, for example, a base station is a network node that provides wireless access to terminals.

[0015] 3GPP is considering NR-based operation in unlicensed frequency bands (NR-U) (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 1). NR-U can operate at 5 GHz or 6 GHz in the sub-7 GHz band. However, the present disclosure is not limited to a specific band and can also be applied to, for example, the 52 GHz millimeter wave band.

[0016] Wideband operation in unlicensed spectrum is one of the essential elements for NR-U. For example, NR-U can support the possibility of configuring a serving cell with a bandwidth (within an unlicensed wideband carrier) larger than 20 MHz (see FIG. 2). Furthermore, if it is not possible to guarantee that the band in which NR-U is operating is free of transmissions by other radio access technologies (RATs), such as Wi-Fi, the NR-U operating bandwidth can be selected as a multiple of 20 MHz, such as 80 MHz as shown in FIG. 2. Furthermore, at least for bands in which it is not possible to guarantee, e.g., due to regulations, that the band is free of Wi-Fi or other competing systems, clear channel determination (e.g., listen before talk (LBT)) can be performed in increments of 20 MHz or frequency ranges, as shown in FIG. 2.

[0017] The LBT procedure is defined as a mechanism for a device to apply a Clear Channel Assessment (CCA) check before using a channel. CCA utilizes at least energy detection to determine whether a channel is occupied or free, respectively, and whether other signals are present or absent on the channel.

[0018] If the detected energy level exceeds the configured CCA threshold (e.g., -73 dBm / MHz in Europe, see section 4.8.3 of 3GPP TS 2013-01-10), the channel is considered occupied; conversely, if the detected power level is lower than the configured CCA threshold, the channel is considered free. If the channel is classified as free, the device is allowed to transmit immediately. The maximum transmission duration is limited to facilitate fair resource sharing with other devices operating in the same band.

[0019] As can be seen in Figure 2, as a result of the LBT free channel determination for each 20 MHz frequency range, it may happen that some portions of the wideband carrier are blocked by Wi-Fi or other competing systems. However, NR can still use the free portions that are not used by one or more competing RATs. It may also happen that the blocking of certain portions of the wideband carrier results from the NR gNB's own scheduling decision (regardless of whether LBT is performed or, if LBT is performed, regardless of the outcome of LBT), for example, to reserve certain frequency resources.

[0020] In unlicensed spectrum operation, after acquiring a channel, an initiating device (e.g., a scheduling device such as an NR gNB) can occupy the channel for up to a maximum channel occupation period (COT), as shown in Figure 3.

[0021] An initiating device (e.g., a gNB) can share the acquired time-frequency resources with a responding device (e.g., one or more transceiver devices, such as UEs). Sharing the acquired time-frequency resources can facilitate enabling flexible resource usage between an uplink (UL), downlink (DL), or sidelink (SL) (see FIG. 3). For example, DL, UL, and SL resources can be reallocated based on traffic demand in each direction.

[0022] Furthermore, sharing the acquired resources can facilitate enabling UL or SL transmissions without performing LBT in the gNB's acquired COT. In particular, if the interval between a UL transmission and a DL or SL transmission is sufficiently small (e.g., less than 16 μs), the UE does not need to perform LBT for the UL or SL transmission immediately after the DL burst, thus reducing LBT overhead.

[0023] Furthermore, sharing the acquired time-frequency resources may allow for the transmission of semi-statically configured or periodic reference signals, signaling, or data. For example, if a semi-statically configured UL transmission configured by higher layers is within the COT of the gNB, but the UL resources are not shared by the gNB, the UL transmission needs to be dropped.

[0024] In FIG. 3, for illustrative purposes, the COT is shown to span only two slots. For example, the maximum COT can be 8 ms or 9 ms. For example, with a 15 kHz subcarrier spacing, a COT of 8 ms corresponds to 8 slots, and with a 30 kHz subcarrier spacing, it corresponds to 16 slots. Also, in the example shown in FIG. 3, the clear channel determination is performed at the end of slot (#j-1), and the COT begins with the first symbol of the slot preceding the slot in which the clear channel determination is performed. However, various opportunities or time instances at which the initiating device can acquire the channel can be considered. For example, the opportunity may be every symbol or twice per slot.

[0025] In NR Release 15, two types of frequency domain resource allocation schemes (Type 0 and Type 1) are used, both of which signal allocations over the active bandwidth part (BWP).

[0026] Type 0 is a bitmap-based allocation scheme. The most flexible way to indicate the set of allocated resource blocks is to include a bitmap of the same size as the number of resource blocks in the BWP. A resource block corresponds to the smallest allocable unit for transmitting data and is defined by the number of subcarriers in frequency. (Note that the NR definition of a resource block differs from that in LTE. An NR resource block is a one-dimensional unit spanning only the frequency domain, while LTE uses a two-dimensional resource block consisting of 12 subcarriers in frequency and one slot in time.) This allows any combination of resource blocks to be scheduled for transmission. Unfortunately, the larger the bandwidth, the larger the bitmap becomes. Therefore, the bitmap in the Type 0 resource allocation scheme is used to refer to a group of contiguous resource blocks, called a RBG, rather than individual resource blocks. The size of the RBG depends on the size of the active BWP. For example, as defined by [3] and summarized in Table 1, two different configurations are possible for each size of the BWP:

[0027] [Table 1]

[0028] For example, as can be seen from Table 1, an RBG allocated according to Type 0 and having a BWP bandwidth size corresponding to the number of RBs from 1 to 36 includes two RBs when Configuration 1 is applied. Also, for example, an RBG allocated according to Type 0 and having a BWP size corresponding to the number of RBs from 73 to 144 includes 16 RBs when Configuration 2 is applied. That is, the number of RBs in an RBG depends on the bandwidth of the active BWP.

[0029] The Type 1 resource allocation scheme does not rely on bitmaps. Instead, it uses a Resource Indication Value (RIV). The RIV encodes the resource allocation as a starting position and the length of the allocation in terms of the number of resource blocks. It therefore does not support arbitrary allocation of resource blocks, but only frequency-contiguous allocation, thereby reducing the number of bits required to signal the resource block allocation.

[0030] Both resource allocation types refer to virtual resource blocks. For Type 0, non-interleaved mapping from virtual resource blocks to physical resource blocks is used, i.e., virtual resource blocks are directly mapped to the corresponding physical resource blocks. On the other hand, for Type 1 resource allocation scheme, non-interleaved mapping is supported for the UL. For DL, both interleaved and non-interleaved mapping are supported for Type 1 resource allocation scheme. In this case, the interleave size is the bandwidth of the active BWP. The VRB to PRB mapping bit (if present, downlink only) indicates whether the allocation signaling uses interleaved or non-interleaved mapping.

[0031] Figure 4 illustrates an example of a Type 0 resource allocation directly applicable to NR-U wideband operation. As shown in Figure 4, the active BWP includes four subbands, each with a frequency range of 20 MHz. Three of the illustrated subbands have been determined to be unavailable for transmission during, for example, LBT (Long-Term Bandwidth Test). The unavailable subbands are indicated by star symbols in Figure 4.

[0032] Because the size of the RBG, i.e., the number of virtual RBs in one RBG, depends on the active BWP, if it is determined that only a portion of the active BWP is usable, the RBG granularity may be too coarse for the available subband bandwidth. In the example shown in the figure, the active BWP can have a total of 220 virtual RBs (with a subcarrier spacing of 30 kHz), which results in an RBG size of 16 RBs according to Table 1. However, because only a single 20 MHz subband is usable, the RBG granularity is too coarse, limiting the flexibility of resource allocation.

[0033] Figure 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of Type 1 RA directly applied to NR-U wideband operation for a case similar to that shown in Figure 4, where it is determined that only a portion of the active BWP is usable. In this case, when Type 1 RA is applied, many RIV entries become unusable. In particular, in the example shown in Figure 5, RIV entries that indicate a starting position from RB#55 of any length cannot be used.

[0034] FIG. 6 illustrates a situation of wideband operation in an unlicensed spectrum for NR-U, where only a portion of the active BWP is determined to be usable. To compensate for RF leakage from and into subbands determined to be unusable, guard band resources located between usable and unusable subbands, i.e., located at the edges of adjacent subbands, can be used. This is applicable to both Type 0 RA and Type 1 RA. In embodiments that employ guard bands, whether or not guard band resources are inserted between accessible (usable) and unaccessible (unusable) subbands depends on the availability of the subbands. This can be determined, for example, by LBT as a result of clear channel determination.

[0035] A suitable RA granularity and prevention of unnecessary RIV entries can be achieved by, for example, changing the active BWP depending on the availability of subbands as a result of clear channel determination. However, switching the active BWP involves delay and does not allow UEs to be scheduled during the transition time. This disclosure provides a technique for dynamically adapting RA granularity and preventing unnecessary RIV entries depending on the availability of subbands without the need to change the active BWP.

[0036] In addition, in state-of-the-art mobile communication standards, such as LTE Release 15 and NR Release 15, guard bands are semi-statically configured to exist at the edges of carriers, but there is no mechanism to dynamically generate guard bands within carriers with flexible frequency locations and sizes to enable guard band resources depending on subband availability, for example, as shown in Figure 6.

[0037] The present disclosure provides techniques that can facilitate flexible and efficient use of available subbands in NR-U wideband operations. In particular, the present disclosure further provides techniques for preventing RF leakage from and into unusable subbands.

[0038] To enhance wideband operation, in embodiments of the communication method and communication device described below, an initiating device (scheduling device) indicates to the transceiver device via a PDCCH a subband occupancy indicator (SBOI) indicating subbands determined to be usable for transmission and a resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the usable subbands and allocated to the transceiver device for the transmission, and the transceiver device determines the allocated resources according to the SBOI by interpreting the resource allocation indicator.

[0039] The present disclosure provides a transceiver device and a scheduling device as shown in Fig. 7. The transceiver device 560 includes a transceiver 570 (a transmitter and / or receiver having hardware components, such as one or more antennas, and control circuitry that controls operation of the hardware components) that, during operation, receives, via a PDCCH, a subband occupancy indicator indicating subbands determined to be usable for transmission and a resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the usable subbands and allocated to the transceiver device for the transmission. The receiver device 560 also includes circuitry 580 (or processing circuitry) that, during operation, determines the allocated resources according to the resource allocation indicator and the subband occupancy indicator (SBOI).

[0040] For example, the transceiver device 560 is a NR UE. Accordingly, the transceiver 570 and the circuitry 580 are also referred to as a “UE transceiver” and “UE circuitry” in this disclosure. However, these terms are used simply to distinguish the circuitry 580 and the transceiver 570 from circuits and transceivers possessed by other devices, such as base stations. The transceiver device 560 may be a terminal device, a relay device, or a communication device of a similar communication system. The UE circuitry 580 may be considered or include “allocation resource determination circuitry.”

[0041] Also provided is a scheduling device 510 (or scheduling node) as shown in Figure 7. The scheduling device 510, in operation, comprises circuitry 530 for determining a subband occupancy indicator indicating subbands determined to be usable for transmission and a resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the usable subbands and assigned to the transceiver device for the transmission. The scheduling device further comprises a transceiver 520 for transmitting the subband occupancy indicator and the resource allocation indicator via a PDCCH in operation.

[0042] For example, the scheduling device is a network node (base station) (gNB) in an NR system or a network node (base station) in a similar wireless communication system. The circuit 530 is also referred to as a “SBOI and RA determination circuit” or “network node circuit” to distinguish it from other circuits such as the UE circuit 580.

[0043] Also provided is a method for a scheduling device (or scheduling node), which, as shown in Fig. 8, comprises the step S110 of determining an SBOI indicating subbands determined to be usable for transmission, the step S120 of determining a resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the usable subbands and allocated to a transceiver device for the transmission, and the steps S130, S140 of transmitting the SBOI and the resource allocation indicator via a PDCCH.

[0044] Also provided is a method for a transceiver device, as shown in Figure 9, comprising the steps of receiving S210 via a PDCCH the SBOI indicating subbands determined to be usable for transmission, receiving S220 the resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the usable subbands and allocated to the transceiver device for the transmission, and determining S230 the allocated resources according to the resource allocation indicator and the subband occupancy indicator.

[0045] In further description, unless an explicit description or context indicates otherwise, the details and embodiments apply to the transceiver device 560, the scheduling node (or scheduling device) 510, and each of the methods for the transceiver device and the scheduling node.

[0046] The scheduling node 510 transmits the SBOI and a resource allocation indicator to the transceiver device 560. The subbands indicated by the SBOI are usable frequency ranges included in the carrier and available for transmission between the transceiver device and the scheduling device. The carrier may be an unlicensed carrier (or an unlicensed wideband carrier). These usable subbands are frequency ranges ((sub)intervals, subbands, or partitions) within the unlicensed carrier that are not used by competing RAT systems (e.g., Wi-Fi) for the duration of one slot or for the duration of a COT that includes multiple slots. The subbands may each have equal widths. For example, as described above, if the bandwidth within the carrier in which NR-U is operating is a multiple of 20 MHz, the width of the subbands may be 20 MHz.

[0047] The usable subband is a frequency range available for transmission between the transceiver device 560 and the scheduling node 510. This transmission may be an uplink transmission from the transceiver device 560 to the scheduling node 510 (the transceiver device 560 transmits and the scheduling node 510 receives), or a downlink transmission from the scheduling node 510 to the transceiver device 560 (the scheduling node 510 transmits and the transceiver device 560 receives), or a sidelink transmission between the transceiver device 560 and a second transceiver device different from the transceiver device (the transceiver device 560 transmits and the second transceiver device receives, or vice versa). The transceiver device 560 and the scheduling node 510 communicate with each other via a wireless channel, in particular a channel in an unlicensed frequency band / carrier.

[0048] The subband occupancy indicator indicates subbands available for transmission, for example, according to the result of a clear channel determination (e.g., LBT). For example, a bit field for a group-common PDCCH or a UE-specific PDCCH can be defined for the SBOI.

[0049] The availability of subbands for transmission is not limited to being determined according to the result of a clear channel determination, but may also be, for example, a scheduler decision to intentionally reserve some resources.

[0050] The scheduling node 510 allocates resources to the transceiver device for transmission. In particular, the scheduling node 510 generates a resource allocation indicator and transmits the indicator to the transceiver device 560. The transceiver device 560 receives the resource allocation indicator.

[0051] As described above, the carrier including the subbands may be an unlicensed carrier. For example, the carrier may be shared by a first communication system, such as an NR or NR-U system, including the scheduling device 510 and the transceiver device 560, and a second communication system, such as a Wi-Fi system, that uses the same unlicensed wideband carrier or a portion of the unlicensed wideband carrier. The scheduling device 510 may further perform a clear channel determination to determine usable subbands not currently used by the second communication system and thus obtain one or more usable subbands for one or more transmissions within the COT. For example, the multiple frequency ranges are multiple 20 MHz ranges. By obtaining the usable subbands, the scheduling device 510 may be considered to initiate communication on the unlicensed wideband carrier and may be considered an initiating device. Then, in step S110, the scheduling device determines an SBOI, for example, based on the result of the clear channel determination. Specifically, the scheduling device selects one or more subbands from the usable subbands as usable subbands and determines and generates an SBOI to be transmitted via the PDCCH.

[0052] For example, the PDCCH indicating the available subbands is a group common (GC) PDCCH that the scheduling device 510 transmits to a group of transceiver devices including the transceiver device 560. Thus, the indicated available subbands are used by the group of transceiver devices. The transceiver devices in the group may be configured (e.g., by RRC) with a group common RNTI (Radio Network Temporary Identifier) ​​(i.e., the CRC bits of the DCI) that the scheduling device 510 uses to scramble the DCI carried by the GC PDCCH. The transceiver devices use the group common RNTI to descramble the DCI carried by the GC PDCCH.

[0053] [SBOI and resource allocation submission] In some embodiments, the SBOI is transmitted by the scheduling device 510 and received by the transceiver device 560 via a group-common PDCCH, and the resource allocation indicator is transmitted by the scheduling device 510 and received by the transceiver device 560 via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device.

[0054] In some embodiments, both the SBOI and the resource allocation indicator are transmitted by the scheduling device 510 and received by the transceiver device 560 via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device.

[0055] In some embodiments, the usable subbands are explicitly indicated. For example, the PDCCH includes a bit field that indicates the usable subbands. Thus, the PDCCH carries an explicit indicator of a range (or ranges) within the wideband carrier that are not currently being used for communication (unlicensed). For example, the bit field can be one of the following options: First option: The available subbands are explicitly represented by a bitmap, with one bit in the bitmap representing an applicable range (eg, a 20 MHz range). Second option: The usable subband (if contiguous, the applicable portion of the unlicensed wideband carrier) is represented by the start position and length of the applicable portion, the length having a specified granularity, such as 20 MHz.

[0056] In general, a mix of both or other signaling is also applicable. According to a first option, in some embodiments, the bit field (i.e., SBOI) is a bitmap including a number of bits corresponding respectively to a number of subbands (e.g., 20 MHz ranges) included in the carrier. The bitmap indicates whether (each) range among the ranges is usable for transmission. In particular, a bit in the bitmap (or each bit in the bitmap) indicates whether the corresponding subband is usable for transmission to take place.

[0057] In the example shown in Figure 2, an 80 MHz wide unlicensed wideband carrier is subdivided into four 20 MHz sub-bands. A gNB (or similar scheduling device 510) can perform clear channel determination (LBT) to determine the usability of each 20 MHz range. For example, the scheduling device 510 may be successful over frequency ranges (20 MHz (sub)bands) #1, #2, and #3 (determine that ranges #1-#3 are usable) but fail for frequency range #4 (i.e., determine that this frequency is blocked / used by another system / RAT and therefore not usable).

[0058] The scheduling device 510 generates a bitmap indicating the applicable frequency ranges (e.g., "0111"), where frequency range #1 corresponds to the least significant bit. However, the present disclosure is not limited in this respect, and the bitmap may be, for example, "1110".

[0059] The scheduling device 510 may then transmit a PDCCH including an available subband bitmap indicator (SBOI) to a transceiver device or group of transceiver devices (if transmitted via a GC PDCCH) that communicates with the scheduling device.

[0060] When the SBOI is transmitted via the GC PDCCH, the UE (or other transceiver device 560 UE) monitors the GC PDCCH according to the search space configuration provided by the RRC. The search space configuration for monitoring the GC PDCCH includes both time-domain and frequency-domain configurations. In the time domain, a monitoring period, such as once per slot or multiple times per slot, and a monitoring offset, which indicates which one or more symbols the UE should monitor, are configured. In the frequency domain, the above configurations indicate to the UE frequency-domain resources for monitoring the (GC) PDCCH. Such frequency-domain resources may be located within one 20 MHz subband or multiple 20 MHz subbands. This may be determined by the scheduling device 510 based on statistics regarding blocking in each subband. Therefore, the search space may be configured in a subband where blocking by other systems is least likely or least likely to occur, to facilitate reliable reception of the GC PDCCH by the UE. If such statistical information is not available and / or to maximize the success rate of the scheduling device 510 in delivering the (GC ) PDCCH including the SBOI, the transceiver device 560 (UE) may be configured to monitor the (GC ) PDCCH across all 20 MHz subbands.

[0061] If the SBOI is transmitted via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device, the transceiver device obtains the SBOI, for example, from the scheduling DCI in the PDCCH specific to the transceiver device.

[0062] In the above example, the available subbands are indicated by the SBOI, which is a bitmap containing bits corresponding to the subbands according to option 1 above. However, the availability or applicability of a subband may also be determined by an indicator of the start position and length of the applicable part of the unlicensed carrier, signaled (by the gNB) according to option 2 above.

[0063] Thus, in some embodiments, the usable subbands are included in a set of contiguous usable subbands, and a bit field indicates the starting position of the set of contiguous subbands and the length of the set of contiguous applicable frequency ranges. For example, in the case of an 80 MHz wideband carrier subdivided into 20 MHz frequency ranges, two bits can indicate the starting position (or starting frequency range) of the set of applicable frequency ranges, and two additional bits can indicate the length in units of usable (20 MHz) subbands. In the example shown in FIG. 2, the starting position is frequency range 1 (represented by two bits, e.g., as "00"), and the length of the set of applicable ranges is 3 (represented by "10"). Such a set of contiguous applicable frequency ranges may be signaled by a bit field "0010". If there are no usable subbands (the entire carrier is blocked), an "impossible" combination such as "1111" (a set of applicable frequency ranges with a length of 4 starting at frequency range position #4) may be indicated. In another example, the start position and length can be jointly coded instead of having two separate bit fields. In the above case where an 80 MHz wideband carrier is subdivided into four 20 MHz sub-bands, the following coding table can be used:

[0064] [Table 2]

[0065] Compared with having two separate bit fields, the joint encoding method illustrated in Table 2 can save signaling overhead when the number of subbands increases.

[0066] As mentioned above, if a particular (20 MHz) subband included in the unlicensed carrier is indicated as usable (by the SBOI according to the first or second option), the UE follows a resource allocation decision rule that determines the resources allocated to the UE obtained from a resource allocation indicator from a further channel (e.g., in a scheduling DCI if the transmission is dynamically scheduled). If a particular subband is indicated as unusable, the UE will not receive or transmit via this unusable subband, even if the resource allocation indicator indicates resources within the subband allocated to the UE.

[0067] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates virtual RBs as resources allocated to the transceiver device 560 based on the available subbands indicated by the SBOI, which are then mapped to physical RBs with or without interleaving.

[0068] [Type 0RA] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates the RBs allocated to the transceiver device 560 within one or more contiguous usable subbands, excluding guard bands at the edges of the usable subbands.

[0069] In some embodiments, when RA is performed by the scheduling device according to Type 0, the guard amount may be set semi-statically for the transceiver device, but the position of the guard band should be determined (dynamically, for example, according to the LBT result). The guard amount may correspond to a minimum guard condition for preventing RF leakage from and into non-usable subbands. The scheduling device (e.g., a gNB in ​​NR-U) determines an SBOI indicating usable subbands, for example, as a result of LBT, as shown in FIG. 10, and derives the size of the RBG in terms of the number of RBs in a single RBG by considering only the bandwidth of the usable subbands excluding the guard bands located between the usable subbands and the non-usable subbands (here, the bandwidth of the guard band may be defined in terms of the RBs within the guard band). The number of RBs per RBG may be determined, for example, according to Table 1. Here, the size of the bandwidth portion is replaced by the bandwidth of the union of the usable subbands excluding the guard bands. The RBG is formed over the usable RBs after excluding the guard bands. The scheduling device then indicates the available subbands to the transceiver device UE via the PDCCH.

[0070] As shown in FIG. 11 , the transceiver device receives a guard band condition, for example, two guard band RBs, via RRC (S310). Then, the transceiver device (UE) receives an SBOI, for example, via a GC PDCCH, and a resource allocation indicator, for example, via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device (S320). Then, the transceiver device derives an RBG size after excluding the guard band RBs, for example, according to Table 1 (S330). Here, the size of the bandwidth portion is replaced with the bandwidth of the union of the usable subbands excluding the guard bands. Based on this, the receiver derives the number of bits for the resource allocation indicator (S340). Then, the transceiver device decodes the resource allocation indicator to obtain an RGB allocation (S350).

[0071] Since the size of the RBG is determined based on the union of the available subbands indicated by the SBOI and excluding the guard band RB, the granularity of the RA is improved in cases where only a portion of the active BWP is available.

[0072] If the SBOI is transmitted via a GC PDCCH, the transceiver device (UE) can determine the bitmap size of the resource allocation indicator using information about the available subbands, or simply assume a fixed size. If the SBOI is transmitted via a UE-specific PDCCH, a fixed bitmap size (e.g., 18 bits) can be used.

[0073] As an alternative to the RBG size being determined based on the union of usable subbands as described above, the RBG size can be set to be equal to the configured guard band size (in terms of the number of RBs) in the case where RA is performed by the scheduling device according to Type 0 and the guard amount is semi-statically set for the transceiver device. The fact that the guard band resources can be generated by one RBG is a particular advantage of this approach.

[0074] In either of the above cases, additional guard band resources may be generated by avoiding assigning RBGs to the UE in the resource allocation indicator (eg, in the scheduling DCI).

[0075] In some embodiments, when RA is performed by the scheduling device according to Type 0, the guard amount may be semi-statically set for the transceiver device, which may correspond to a worst-case guard condition for preventing RF leakage from and into non-usable subbands. However, the location of the guard band should be determined (dynamically, for example, according to the LBT result). The scheduling device (e.g., a gNB in ​​NR-U) determines an SBOI indicating usable subbands, for example, as a result of LBT, as shown in FIG. 12, and derives the size of the RBG in terms of the number of RBs in a single RBG by considering only the bandwidth of the usable subbands, including the guard bands located between the usable subbands and the non-usable subbands. The number of RBs per RBG may be determined, for example, according to Table 1. Here, the size of the bandwidth portion is replaced by the bandwidth of the union of usable subbands that do not exclude the guard bands. Then, the RBG is formed over the usable RBs that do not exclude the guard bands. The scheduling device then indicates the usable subbands to the transceiver device UE via the SBOI. In addition, a guard band at the end of each block of consecutive usable subbands is made available with a size equal to a quasi-statically set value, i.e., the RBs within the guard band are not used for transmission to prevent RF leakage into or from non-usable subbands.

[0076] As shown in FIG. 13, the transceiver device receives a guard band condition, e.g., three guard band RBs, for example, via RRC (S410). Then, the transceiver device (UE) receives an SBOI, e.g., via a GC PDCCH, and a resource allocation indicator, e.g., via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device (S420). Then, the transceiver device derives an RBG size that does not exclude the guard band RBs, e.g., according to Table 1 (S430). Here, the size of the bandwidth portion is replaced with the bandwidth of the union of the usable subbands without considering the existence of the guard band. Based on this, the receiver derives the number of bits for the resource allocation indicator (S440). Then, the transceiver device decodes the resource allocation indicator to obtain an RGB allocation (S450). Also, during data transmission, the UE can recognize that guard band resources are required at the end of the consecutive usable subbands through the SBOI, and therefore, the resource blocks in the guard band at the end of the consecutive usable subbands are ignored (S460), even if the guard band RBs are assigned to the transceiver device according to the resources assigned according to the resource allocation indicator. As a result, there is no ambiguity about whether the guard band resources should be assumed by the UE.

[0077] An important feature of the design described above with reference to Figures 12 and 13, compared to the previously described embodiment (see Figures 10 and 11), is that the determination of the RBG size is decoupled from the specification of the guard band. Therefore, the design of the resource allocation indicator can be performed without taking the guard band into consideration. As described in Figures 10 and 11, the RBG size is determined based on the union of the available subbands indicated by the SBOI, thereby improving the granularity of the RA in cases where only a portion of the active BWP is available.

[0078] If the SBOI is transmitted via a GC PDCCH, the transceiver device (UE) can determine the bitmap size of the resource allocation indicator using information about the available subbands, or simply assume a fixed bitmap size. If the SBOI is transmitted via a UE-specific PDCCH, a fixed bitmap size (e.g., 18 bits) can be used.

[0079] In some embodiments, when RA is performed by the scheduling device according to Type 0, the guard amount may be set semi-statically to the transceiver device, but this guard amount may correspond to the worst-case guard condition. However, the position of the guard band should be determined (dynamically, for example, according to the LBT result). The scheduling device (e.g., a gNB in ​​NR-U) determines the SBOI indicating the usable subbands, for example, as a result of the LBT. However, the RBG size in terms of the number of RBs in a single RBG is determined taking into account only the bandwidth of a single usable subband, even if two or more subbands are usable. As a result, the RGB allocation is indicated with respect to a single subband in the resource allocation indicator transmitted to the transceiver device.

[0080] If more than one subband is available, the RBG allocation within the single subband is then applied to all available subbands by the scheduling device and the transceiver device, i.e., the RBG allocation is determined to be equal for equivalent RBs in different subbands.

[0081] One advantage of this resource allocation scheme is that the bitmap size of the resource allocation indicator can be significantly reduced because it refers to the allocation of RBGs only within a single subband. Therefore, a constant bitmap size can be achieved regardless of the number of available subbands or the bandwidth of the active BWP. For example, consider an 80 MHz wideband carrier operation using a subcarrier spacing of 30 kHz. The RBG size can be determined by considering only one 20 MHz (55 RBs in this example). According to Table 1 in the example above, the RBG size can be determined to include four RBs (see Setting 1). As a result, the bitmap size becomes ceil(55 / 4) = 14 bits. This 14-bit bitmap indication is used whether the available subband is 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 60 MHz, or 80 MHz.

[0082] For guard band generation, a mechanism similar to that described with reference to Figures 12 and 13 can be employed. More specifically, a guard band at the end of each block of contiguous usable subbands is made available with a size equal to a quasi-statically set amount, i.e., RBs within the guard band are not used for transmission to prevent RF leakage into or from non-usable subbands.

[0083] Also, on the transceiver device (e.g., UE) side, after receiving the SBOI, the UE is notified of usable subbands and non-usable subbands. With this information, the UE can recognize that guard band resources are required at the end of consecutive usable subbands, and therefore, resource blocks in the guard band at the end of consecutive usable subbands are ignored, even if the guard band RBs are assigned to the transceiver device according to the resources assigned according to the resource allocation indicator. As a result, there is no ambiguity as to whether guard band resources should be assumed by the UE.

[0084] [Type 1RA] In some embodiments, when RA is performed by the scheduling device according to Type 1, the guard amount may be set semi-statically to the transceiver device, and this guard amount may correspond to the worst-case guard condition. However, the position of the guard band should be determined (dynamically, for example, according to the LBT result). The scheduling device (e.g., a gNB in ​​NR-U) determines the SBOI, for example, as a result of the LBT, and indicates usable subbands to the transceiver device via the SBOI. The RIV has one RB granularity and is indicated with respect to the union of usable subbands that do not exclude the guard band, as shown in Figure 14. If interleaving is applied to the mapping to the physical RBs, the interleaving size is the entire union of usable subbands to maximize diversity. Then, the scheduling device indicates usable subbands to the transceiver device UE via the SBOI. In addition, a guard band at the end of each block of consecutive usable subbands is made available with a size equal to a quasi-statically set value, i.e., the RBs within the guard band are not used for transmission to prevent RF leakage into or from non-usable subbands.

[0085] As shown in FIG. 15, the transceiver device receives guard band conditions, e.g., three guard band RBs, via RRC (S510). The transceiver device (UE) then receives an SBOI, e.g., via a GC PDCCH, and a resource allocation indicator, e.g., via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device (S520), and derives an RIV coding range that does not consider the guard band RBs (S530). The transceiver device then derives the number of bits for the RIV allocation indication (S540) and decodes the resource allocation indicator to obtain the RB allocation (S550). The SBOI allows the transceiver device to recognize the location of the guard bands (which are at the end of each block of contiguous usable subbands). Therefore, RBs within the guard band are ignored (assuming that no data is carried by these RBs) to prevent RF leakage into or from non-usable subbands, even if the guard band RBs are assigned to the transceiver device according to the resource allocation indicator.

[0086] In some embodiments, when RA is performed by a scheduling device according to Type 1, the guard amount may be set semi-statically to the transceiver device, and this guard amount may correspond to a minimum guard condition. However, the position of the guard band should be determined (dynamically, for example, according to the LBT result). The scheduling device (e.g., a gNB in ​​NR-U) determines the SBOI (and therefore the position of the guard band), for example, as a result of the LBT, and indicates the usable subbands to the transceiver device. The RIV has one RB granularity and is indicated with respect to the union of usable subbands excluding the (minimum) guard bands at the edges. When non-interleaving mapping is performed between virtual RBs and physical RBs, the guard bands can be generated by the RA itself, since the RIV has one RB granularity. When interleaving mapping is applied, the interleaving size is the entire union of usable subbands excluding the guard bands at the edges of consecutive usable subbands. In either case, the amount of guard band, i.e., the size of the guard band, can be expressed as the number of RBs within the guard band, but if more guard band resources are required than the semi-statically set minimum amount, the one RB granularity of the RIV can be generated without wasting resources.

[0087] In some embodiments, when RA is performed according to Type 1, the amount of guard may be set semi-statically to the transceiver device, and this guard amount may correspond to worst-case conditions. However, the position of the guard band should be determined (dynamically, for example, according to the LBT result). The SBOI (and therefore the position of the guard band) may be determined, for example, as a result of the LBT and transmitted to the transceiver device. The granularity of the RIV may depend on the number of usable subbands, which may be determined from the result of the LBT. For example, the granularity is one RB when there is one usable subband, two RBs when there are two usable subbands, three RBs when there are three usable subbands, and so on. Below, 1-RB granularity and 2-RB granularity of RIV encoding are provided as examples in Tables 3 and 4.

[0088] [Table 3]

[0089] [Table 4]

[0090] However, this embodiment is not limited to such a specific dependency of the granularity of the RIV on the number of usable subbands, and the granularity can reflect any dependency on the usable subbands. The RIV is indicated with respect to the union of usable subbands that does not exclude the guard band, and if interleaving is applied, the interleaving size is the entire union of the usable subbands. This approach maximizes diversity. The guard band, whose amount is set semi-statically but whose position is dynamically determined at the end of each block of contiguous subbands, is not used for data transmission, and therefore the transceiver device ignores RBs within the guard band, even if the RBs are assigned to the transceiver device according to the RA in the resource allocation indicator.

[0091] One advantage of this approach is that the RIV overhead is fixed regardless of the number of available subbands. Consider an example of 80 MHz wideband operation with 30 KHz subcarrier spacing, where one subband has a bandwidth of 20 MHz. Thus, one subband has 55 RBs. If the granularity of the RIV increases linearly with the number of available subbands, the number of coding bits for the RIV becomes a fixed value of ceil(log2(55 × 56 / 2)) = 11 bits. As a result, it is possible to decode the scheduling DCI without knowing the amount of available subbands.

[0092] If the SBOI is transmitted over a GC PDCCH, the transceiver device may determine the size of the RIV before receiving the scheduling DCI or may simply assume a fixed size, such as 11 bits. However, if the SBOI is transmitted over a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device, the transceiver device may assume a fixed size.

[0093] In some embodiments, when RA is performed according to Type 1, the guard amount may be set semi-statically to the transceiver device, and this guard amount may correspond to worst-case conditions. However, the position of the guard band should be determined (dynamically, for example, according to the LBT result). The usable subbands (and therefore the position of the guard band) are determined and notified to the transceiver device by the SBOI. The granularity of the RIV is set to one RB, and the RIV is indicated with respect to a single usable subband, for example, one of a single usable 20 MHz subband, even if two or more subbands are usable. If interleaving is applied when mapping from virtual RBs to physical RBs, the interleaving size is set to the size of one usable subband (e.g., 20 MHz), regardless of the number of usable subbands. Guard bands at the edges of consecutive usable subbands are not used for transmission, and the transceiver device ignores RBs within the guard band, even if the RBs are assigned to the transceiver device according to the RA of the resource allocation indicator.

[0094] When determining resources allocated to the transceiver device, the transceiver device determines the resource allocation according to a single usable subband from the resource allocation indicator. If two or more subbands are usable, the determined RB allocation is then applied to all usable subbands by the transceiver device. That is, the RB allocation is determined to be equal for equivalent RBs in different subbands. Therefore, the bits for the RIV indication of the resource allocation indicator can be significantly reduced because it refers to the allocation of RBs only in a single subband.

[0095] In particular, when the SBOI is transmitted via a GC PDCCH, the transceiver device may determine the RIV size based on the available subbands according to the received SBOI, or may simply assume a fixed size (e.g., 11 bits). When the SBOI is transmitted via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device, the transceiver device may apply the fixed size.

[0096] The present disclosure can be realized by software, hardware, or software in conjunction with hardware. Each functional block described in the above embodiments can be realized, in whole or in part, by an LSI such as an integrated circuit. Furthermore, each process described in each embodiment can be controlled, in whole or in part, by the same LSI or a combination of LSIs. The LSI may be formed as an individual chip, or a single chip may be formed to include some or all of the functional blocks. The LSI may include a data input and a data output connected thereto. Here, LSIs are sometimes referred to as ICs, system LSIs, super LSIs, or ultra LSIs depending on their degree of integration. However, technologies for realizing integrated circuits are not limited to LSIs and may be realized using dedicated circuits, general-purpose processors, or dedicated processors. Furthermore, FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Arrays), which can be programmed after LSI fabrication, or reconfigurable processors, which allow the connections and settings of circuit cells arranged within LSIs to be reconfigured, may also be used. The present disclosure can be realized as digital or analog processing. If future integrated circuit technology replaces LSI as a result of advances in semiconductor technology or other derivative technologies, the functional blocks can be integrated using that future integrated circuit technology. Biotechnology is also applicable.

[0097] The present disclosure may be implemented by any type of apparatus, device, or system having communication capabilities, referred to as a communications apparatus.

[0098] Some non-limiting examples of such communication devices include telephones (e.g., mobile phones, smartphones), tablets, personal computers (PCs) (e.g., laptops, desktops, notebooks), cameras (e.g., digital still / video cameras), digital players (digital audio / video players), wearable devices (e.g., wearable cameras, smart watches, tracking devices), game consoles, digital book readers, telehealth / telemedicine devices, vehicles (e.g., automobiles, airplanes, ships) that provide communication capabilities, and various combinations thereof.

[0099] Communications devices are not limited to portable or mobile devices, but may also include any type of non-portable or fixed equipment, device, or system, such as, for example, smart home devices (e.g., appliances, lighting, smart meters, control panels), vending machines, or any other "things" in an "Internet of Things" network.

[0100] Communications may include, for example, the exchange of data over cellular systems, wireless LAN systems, satellite systems, and the like, as well as various combinations thereof.

[0101] A communications device may have devices such as controllers or sensors connected to the communications device to perform the communications functions described in this disclosure. For example, a communications device may have a controller or sensor that generates control or data signals used by the communications device to perform the communications functions of the communications device.

[0102] Communications equipment may also include infrastructure facilities, such as base stations, access points, or any other equipment, device, or system that communicates with or controls the equipment in the above non-limiting examples.

[0103] As described above, devices and methods are provided that enable efficient and flexible resource allocation in NR-U (or similar wireless communication systems operating on unlicensed carriers).

[0104] A transceiver device is provided, the transceiver device comprising: a transceiver that, during operation, receives via a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH): a subband occupancy indicator indicating subbands determined to be usable for transmission; and a resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the usable subbands and assigned to the transceiver device for the transmission; and circuitry that, during operation, determines the assigned resources according to the resource allocation indicator and the subband occupancy indicator.

[0105] In some embodiments, during operation, the transceiver receives the subband occupancy indicator via a group-common PDCCH, the resource allocation indicator via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device, or receives both the subband occupancy indicator and the resource allocation indicator via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device.

[0106] In some embodiments, the subband occupancy indicator indicates the subbands that are determined to be available for transmission according to the result of a clear channel determination.

[0107] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks as the resources allocated to the transceiver device based on the available subbands indicated by the subband occupancy indicator.

[0108] For example, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device within one or more contiguous usable subbands, excluding guard bands at the ends of the usable subbands.

[0109] In some embodiments, during operation, the circuitry ignores multiple resource blocks as the guard band resource blocks, even if guard band resource blocks at the edges of one or more contiguous usable subbands are assigned to the transceiver device in accordance with the resource allocation indicator.

[0110] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the usable subbands excluding the guard bands, and during operation, the circuitry determines the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups according to a total number of resource blocks in a union of the usable subbands excluding the guard bands.

[0111] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the usable subband excluding the guard bands, and during operation the circuitry determines the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups as equal to the number of guard band resource blocks in each of the guard bands.

[0112] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the available subbands, and during operation, the circuitry determines the number of resource blocks in each of the resource block groups according to a total number of resource blocks in a union of available subbands.

[0113] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups within a single usable subband from the usable subbands, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the single usable subband, and the circuitry, during operation, determines the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups according to the total number of resource blocks in the single usable subband and determines resource block group allocations of other usable subbands as equal to the resource block group allocations of the single usable subband.

[0114] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length in terms of contiguously allocated resource blocks.

[0115] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates the resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length with respect to contiguously allocated resource blocks within the available subbands, the length increasing with the number of available subbands.

[0116] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates the resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length with respect to contiguously allocated resource blocks within a single usable subband among the usable subbands, and the circuitry, during operation, determines resource block group allocations of other usable subbands as equal to the resource block group allocation of the single usable subband.

[0117] There is further provided a scheduling device having, during operation, circuitry for determining a subband occupancy indicator indicating subbands determined to be usable for transmission and a resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the usable subbands and assigned to the transceiver device for the transmission, and a transceiver for transmitting, during operation, the subband occupancy indicator and the resource allocation indicator via a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

[0118] In some embodiments, the subband occupancy indicator indicates the subbands that are determined to be available for transmission according to the result of a clear channel determination.

[0119] In some embodiments, during operation, the transceiver transmits the subband occupancy indicator via a group-common PDCCH, the resource allocation indicator via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device, or transmits both the subband occupancy indicator and the resource allocation indicator via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device.

[0120] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks as the resources allocated to the transceiver device based on the available subbands indicated by the subband occupancy indicator.

[0121] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device within one or more contiguous usable subbands, excluding guard bands at the ends of the usable subbands.

[0122] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the usable subbands excluding the guard bands, and during operation, the circuitry determines the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups according to a total number of resource blocks in a union of the usable subbands excluding the guard bands.

[0123] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the usable subband excluding the guard bands, and during operation the circuitry determines the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups as equal to the number of guard band resource blocks in each of the guard bands.

[0124] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the available subbands, and during operation, the circuitry determines the number of resource blocks in each of the resource block groups according to a total number of resource blocks in a union of available subbands.

[0125] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups within a single usable subband from the usable subbands, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the single usable subband, and during operation, the circuitry determines the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups according to a total number of resource blocks in the single usable subband.

[0126] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length in terms of contiguously allocated resource blocks.

[0127] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates the resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length with respect to contiguously allocated resource blocks within the available subbands, the length increasing with the number of available subbands.

[0128] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates the resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length with respect to contiguously allocated resource blocks within a single usable subband among the usable subbands.

[0129] There is further provided a method including receiving, via a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), a subband occupancy indicator indicating subbands determined to be usable for transmission and a resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the usable subbands and assigned to the transceiver device for the transmission; and determining the assigned resources according to the resource allocation indicator and the subband occupancy indicator.

[0130] In some embodiments, the subband occupancy indicator indicates the subbands that are determined to be available for transmission according to the result of a clear channel determination.

[0131] In some embodiments, the subband occupancy indicator is received via a group-common PDCCH and the resource allocation indicator is received via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device, or both the subband occupancy indicator and the resource allocation indicator are received via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device.

[0132] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks as the resources allocated to the transceiver device based on the available subbands indicated by the subband occupancy indicator.

[0133] For example, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device within one or more contiguous usable subbands, excluding guard bands at the ends of the usable subbands.

[0134] In some embodiments, the method further includes ignoring multiple resource blocks as the guard band resource blocks, even if guard band resource blocks at an edge of one or more consecutive usable subbands are assigned to the transceiver device in accordance with the resource allocation indicator.

[0135] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the usable subbands excluding the guard bands, and the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups is determined according to the total number of resource blocks in a union of the usable subbands excluding the guard bands.

[0136] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the usable subband excluding the guard bands, and the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups is determined to be equal to the number of guard band resource blocks in each of the guard bands.

[0137] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the usable subband, and the number of resource blocks in each of the resource block groups is determined according to the total number of resource blocks in a union of usable subbands.

[0138] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups within a single usable subband from the usable subbands, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the single usable subband, the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups being determined according to the total number of resource blocks in the single usable subband, and the resource block group allocation of other usable subbands being determined as equal to the resource block group allocation of the single usable subband.

[0139] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length in terms of contiguously allocated resource blocks.

[0140] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates the resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length with respect to contiguously allocated resource blocks within the available subbands, the length increasing with the number of available subbands.

[0141] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates the resource blocks assigned to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length with respect to contiguously assigned resource blocks within a single usable subband among the usable subbands, and the resource block group assignments of other usable subbands are determined to be equal to the resource block group assignments of the single usable subband.

[0142] Further provided is a method that includes determining a subband occupancy indicator indicating subbands determined to be usable for transmission, determining a resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the usable subbands and assigned to the transceiver device for the transmission, and transmitting the subband occupancy indicator and the resource allocation indicator via a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

[0143] In some embodiments, the subband occupancy indicator indicates the subbands that are determined to be available for transmission according to the result of a clear channel determination.

[0144] In some embodiments, the subband occupancy indicator is transmitted via a group-common PDCCH and the resource allocation indicator is transmitted via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device, or both the subband occupancy indicator and the resource allocation indicator are transmitted via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device.

[0145] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks as the resources allocated to the transceiver device based on the available subbands indicated by the subband occupancy indicator.

[0146] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device within one or more contiguous usable subbands, excluding guard bands at the ends of the usable subbands.

[0147] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the usable subbands excluding the guard bands, and the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups is determined according to the total number of resource blocks in a union of the usable subbands excluding the guard bands.

[0148] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the usable subband excluding the guard bands, and the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups is determined to be equal to the number of guard band resource blocks in each of the guard bands.

[0149] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the usable subband, and the number of resource blocks in each of the resource block groups is determined according to the total number of resource blocks in a union of usable subbands.

[0150] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups within a single usable subband from the usable subbands, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the single usable subband, and the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups is determined according to the total number of resource blocks in the single usable subband.

[0151] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length in terms of contiguously allocated resource blocks.

[0152] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates the resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length with respect to contiguously allocated resource blocks within the available subbands, the length increasing with the number of available subbands.

[0153] In some embodiments, the resource allocation indicator indicates the resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length with respect to contiguously allocated resource blocks within a single usable subband among the usable subbands.

Claims

1. 1. A communication system including a transceiver device and a scheduling device, the transceiver device via the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), a subband occupancy indicator indicating subbands determined to be available for transmission; a resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the available subband and allocated to the transceiver device for the transmission; a transceiver for receiving the signal; a circuit for determining the allocated resources according to the resource allocation indicator and the subband occupancy indicator; and the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks as the resources allocated to the transceiver device based on the available subbands indicated by the subband occupancy indicator; the circuitry disregards resource blocks as the guard band resource blocks at an edge of one or more contiguous usable subbands even if the guard band resource blocks are assigned to the transceiver device according to the resource assignment indicator; The scheduling device a transceiver of the scheduling device configured to transmit the subband occupancy indicator and the resource allocation indicator via a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) of the scheduling device; having Communication system.

2. The transceiver comprises: receiving the subband occupancy indicator via a group-common PDCCH and the resource allocation indicator via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device; or receiving both the subband occupancy indicator and the resource allocation indicator via a PDCCH specific to the transceiver device; The communication system of claim 1 .

3. the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups, each resource block group including at least one resource block in the usable subband; the circuitry determines the number of resource blocks in each of the resource block groups according to a total number of resource blocks in a union of available subbands. The communication system of claim 1 .

4. the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a bitmap indicating resource block groups within a single usable subband from the usable subbands, each resource block group including at least one resource block within the single usable subband; The circuit comprises: determining the number of resource blocks in one of the resource block groups according to a total number of resource blocks in the single usable subband; determining resource block group assignments of other usable subbands as being equal to the resource block group assignment of the single usable subband; The communication system of claim 1 .

5. the resource allocation indicator indicates the resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length in terms of consecutively allocated resource blocks. The communication system of claim 1 .

6. the resource allocation indicator indicates the resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length with respect to contiguously allocated resource blocks within the available subbands, the length increasing with the number of available subbands. The communication system of claim 1 .

7. the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks allocated to the transceiver device by a resource indication value indicating a starting resource block and a length with respect to contiguously allocated resource blocks within a single usable subband among the usable subbands; the circuitry determines resource block group assignments of other usable subbands as equal to the resource block group assignment of the single usable subband. The communication system of claim 1 .

8. A transceiver device, comprising: a subband occupancy indicator indicating subbands determined to be available for transmission; a resource allocation indicator indicating resources included in the available subband and allocated to the transceiver device for the transmission; and a scheduling device receiving the subband occupancy indicator and the resource allocation indicator via the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH); the transceiver device determining the allocated resources according to the resource allocation indicator and the subband occupancy indicator; the resource allocation indicator indicates resource blocks as the resources allocated to the transceiver device based on the available subbands indicated by the subband occupancy indicator; the transceiver device ignoring a plurality of resource blocks as the guard band resource blocks even if guard band resource blocks at an edge of one or more consecutive usable subbands are assigned to the transceiver device according to the resource assignment indicator; A method comprising:

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