User equipment and base stations involved in resource instruction for control channel carrier switching.

Abstract

The techniques disclosed herein feature a user equipment (UE), a base station, a method for the UE, and a method for the base station, the UE including a transceiver that, in operation, receives an indication of a reference resource and an indication of a component carrier, and a circuit that, in operation, selects a component carrier for transmitting uplink control information UCI based on the indication of the component carrier, selects a resource offset applicable to the selected component carrier based on a configuration or a UE capability, determines resources for transmitting the UCI by applying the resource offset to the reference resource, and controls transmission of the UCI on the selected component carrier and the determined resource.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to signal transmission and reception in a communication system. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to methods and apparatus for such transmission and reception.

Background Art

[0002] The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP (registered trademark): 3rd Generation Partnership Project) is working on the technical specifications of next-generation cellular technology, also known as the 5th generation (5G: fifth generation), including "New Radio" (NR: New Radio) radio access technology (RAT: radio access technology) that operates in a frequency range up to 100 GHz. NR is a successor to technologies represented by Long Term Evolution (LTE) and LTE Advanced (LTE-A: LTE Advanced).

[0003] In systems such as LTE, LTE-A, and NR, further improvements and options can facilitate the efficient operation of communication systems and specific devices related to the systems.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] One non-limiting and exemplary embodiment facilitates the indication of resources and settings across different component carriers when component carrier switching is enabled.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] In one embodiment, the technology disclosed herein is user equipment (UE) comprising: a transceiver that, during operation, receives instructions for a reference resource and instructions for a component carrier; and a circuit that, during operation, selects a component carrier for transmitting uplink control information (UCI) based on the instructions for the component carrier, selects a resource offset applicable to the selected component carrier based on the settings or UE capability, applies the resource offset to the reference resource to determine a resource for transmitting the UCI, and controls the transmission of the UCI on the selected component carrier and the determined resource.

[0006] It should be noted that general or specific embodiments may be implemented as systems, methods, integrated circuits, computer programs, storage media, or any selective combination thereof. For example, an integrated circuit may control processing at a UE or base station.

[0007] Further benefits and advantages of the disclosed embodiments will become apparent from this specification and the drawings. These benefits and / or advantages can be obtained individually by the various embodiments and features of this specification and the drawings, and it is not necessary to provide all embodiments and features for the purpose of obtaining one or more such benefits and / or advantages. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] The following embodiments will be described in more detail with reference to the attached drawings. [Figure 1] This is a diagram illustrating an exemplary architecture of a 3GPP NR system. [Figure 2] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the functional separation between NG-RAN and 5GC. [Figure 3] This is a sequence diagram of the RRC connection setup / reconfiguration procedure. [Figure 4] This is a schematic diagram illustrating usage scenarios for Extended Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Massive Machine Type Communications (mMTC), and Ultra-High Reliability Low Latency Communications (URLLC). [Figure 5] This block diagram shows an exemplary 5G system architecture for a non-roaming scenario. [Figure 6] This figure illustrates the potential ambiguities that can arise when instructing timing offsets for PUCCH resources on carriers with different neural networks. [Figure 7] This figure shows the minimum processing time requirement for preparing a PUCCH transmission using resources on carriers with different neural networks. [Figure 8] This is a block diagram of user equipment and base stations. [Figure 9] This block shows the UCI resource and carrier decision circuit. [Figure 10] This is a flowchart showing methods for UEs and methods for base stations. [Figure 11] This figure shows the slot offset relative to the time reference according to the reference carrier. [Figure 12] This figure shows the slot offset relative to the time reference corresponding to the target carrier. [Figure 13] This diagram shows the PUCCH settings for different carriers. [Figure 14] This diagram shows the timing pattern settings along with the offset values. [Figure 15] Blocks for UEs and base stations. [Figure 16] This is a flowchart showing the steps of the UE method. [Figure 17] This diagram shows the simultaneous configuration of dynamic and semi-static carrier switching. [Figure 18] This is a flowchart showing the steps of the UE method. [Figure 19]A diagram showing simultaneous settings of dynamic and quasi-static carrier switching. [Figure 20] A flowchart showing steps of a method of a base station.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0009] <5G NR System Architecture and Protocol Stack> 3GPP is continuing work towards the next release of 5G cellular technology (also simply referred to as "5G"), which includes the development of a new radio access technology (NR) operating in the frequency range up to 100 GHz. The first version of the 5G standard was completed at the end of 2017, which enables the prototype and commercial deployment of smartphones compliant with the 5G NR standard.

[0010] Specifically, the overall system architecture assumes an NG-RAN (Next Generation - Radio Access Network) with gNBs. The gNB (gNodeB) provides the UE-side termination of the user plane (SDAP / PDCP / RLC / MAC / PHY) and control plane (RRC: Radio Resource Control) protocols of NG radio access. The gNBs are interconnected by the Xn interface. Also, the gNBs are connected to the next-generation core (NGC: Next Generation Core) by the next-generation (NG: Next Generation) interface, more specifically, to the access and mobility management function (AMF: Access and Mobility Management Function. For example, a specific core entity executing AMF) by the NG-C interface, and to the user plane function (UPF: User Plane Function. For example, a specific core entity executing UPF) by the NG-U interface. The NG-RAN architecture is shown in Figure 1 (see, for example, Section 4 of 3GPP TS 38.300 v15.6.0).

[0011] The user plane protocol stack of NR (see, for example, Section 4.4.1 of 3GPP TS 38.300) includes a PDCP (Packet Data Convergence Protocol; see Section 6.4 of TS 38.300) sublayer, an RLC (Radio Link Control; see Section 6.3 of TS 38.300) sublayer, and a MAC (Medium Access Control; see Section 6.2 of TS 38.300) sublayer that are terminated on the network side in the gNB. Further, a new access stratum (AS) sublayer (SDAP: Service Data Adaptation Protocol) is introduced above PDCP (see, for example, sub-clause 6.5 of TS 38.300). Also, a control plane protocol stack is defined in NR (see, for example, Section 4.4.2 of TS 38.300). The functions of the PDCP, RLC, and MAC sublayers are listed in Sections 6.4, 6.3, and 6.2 of TS38.300, respectively. The functions of the RRC layer are listed in sub-clause 7 of TS 38.300.

[0012] For example, the MAC layer is responsible for scheduling and scheduling-related functions, including multiplexing of logical channels and processing of various numerologies.

[0013] The physical layer (PHY) is responsible for tasks such as encoding, PHY HARQ processing, modulation, multi-antenna processing, and the placement of signals to appropriate physical time-frequency resources. It also places transport channels to physical channels. The physical layer provides services to the MAC layer in the form of transport channels. A physical channel corresponds to a set of time-frequency resources used for transmitting a particular transport channel, and each transport channel is placed on its corresponding physical channel. For example, physical channels on the uplink are PRACH (Physical Random Access Channel), PUSCH (Physical Uplink Shared Channel), and PUCCH (Physical Uplink Control Channel), and on the downlink are PDSCH (Physical Downlink Shared Channel), PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel), and PBCH (Physical Broadcast Channel).

[0014] Use cases / deployment scenarios for NR include eMBB (enhanced Mobile Broadband), URLLC (Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communications), and / or mMTC (massive Machine Type Communication), which have diverse requirements regarding data rate, latency, and coverage. For example, eMBB requires support for peak data rates (20Gbps downlink, 10Gbps uplink) and effective (user-experienced) data rates about three times that of IMT-Advanced. On the other hand, URLLC has even stricter requirements: ultra-low latency (user plane latency of 0.5ms for both UL and DL) and high reliability (1-10ms within 1ms). -5) is required. Finally, mMTCs preferably require high connectivity density (1 million units per square kilometer in urban environments), wide coverage in harsh environments, and ultra-long-life batteries (15 years) for low-cost equipment.

[0015] Therefore, OFDM numerology suitable for one use case (e.g., subcarrier interval, OFDM symbol length, cyclic prefix (CP) length, number of symbols per scheduling interval) may not be effective for other use cases. For example, low-latency services may preferably require shorter symbol lengths (and thus larger subcarrier intervals) and / or fewer symbols per scheduling interval (in other words, fewer TTIs) than mMTC services. Furthermore, deployment scenarios with large channel delay spreads may preferably require longer CP lengths than scenarios with smaller delay spreads. To maintain similar CP overhead, the subcarrier interval needs to be optimized accordingly. NR may support multiple subcarrier interval values. Accordingly, subcarrier intervals of 15kHz, 30kHz, 60kHz, ... are currently being considered. Symbol length T u The subcarrier spacing Δf is given by the equation Δf = 1 / T u It is directly related by the following: Similar to the LTE system, the term "resource element" can be used to refer to the smallest resource unit consisting of one subcarrier for the length of one OFDM / SC-FDMA symbol.

[0016] In the new 5G-NR wireless system, resource grids for subcarriers and OFDM symbols are defined for each numerology and carrier, for both the uplink and downlink. Each element of the resource grid is called a resource element and is identified based on its frequency index in the frequency domain and its symbol position in the time domain (see 3GPP TS 38.211 v15.6.0).

[0017] In NR, a resource block (RB) is defined as 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain. Resource blocks are numbered in ascending order from 0 in the frequency domain as common resource blocks for setting subcarrier spacing. Physical resource blocks (PRBs) are defined within bandwidth parts (a subset of consecutive common resource blocks) and are numbered for each bandwidth part.

[0018] <Functional separation between NG-RAN and 5GC in 5G NR> Figure 2 shows the functional separation between NG-RAN and 5GC. The logical nodes of NG-RAN are gNB or ng-eNB (next generation eNB). 5GC has logical nodes AMF, UPF, and SMF.

[0019] In particular, gNB and ng-eNB host the following main functions: - Radio resource management functions such as radio bearer control, radio admission control, connection mobility control, and dynamic allocation (scheduling) of resources to UEs on both uplink and downlink; - Compression, encryption, and integrity protection of the IP header of the data; - Selection of the AMF when the UE attaches if routing to the AMF cannot be determined from the information provided by the UE; - Routing user plane data toward UPF; - Routing of control plane information to AMF; - Setting up and disconnecting connections; - Scheduling and sending paging messages; - Scheduling and transmission of system notification information (originating from AMF or Operation, Admission, Maintenance functions (OAM)); - Setting up measurements and reporting for mobility and scheduling; - Transport-level packet marking on the uplink; - Session management; - Support for network slicing; - QoS flow management and mapping to data radio bearers; - Support for UEs in the RRC_INACTIVE state; - Non-Access Stratum (NAS) message delivery function; - Sharing of wireless access network; - Dual connectivity; - Close cooperation between NR and E-UTRA.

[0020] The Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) hosts the following main functions: - A function to terminate signaling in the Non-Access Stratum (NAS); - Security of NAS signaling; - Security control at the access layer (AS); - Core Network (CN) node-to-node signaling for mobility between 3GPP access networks; - Reachability of the UE in idle mode (including control and execution of paging retransmissions); - Management of registration areas; - Support for intra-system and inter-system mobility; - Access authentication; - Access authorization including roaming permission checks; - Mobility management and control (enrollment and policies); - Support for network slicing; - Selection of Session Management Function (SMF).

[0021] Furthermore, the User Plane Function (UPF) hosts the following main functions: - Anchor points for mobility within RATs / inter-RATs (where applicable); - External PDU (Protocol Data Unit) session points for interconnection with data networks; - Routing and forwarding of packets; - Packet inspection and enforcement of policy rules in the user plane. - Reporting traffic usage; - Uplink classifier that supports routing of traffic flow to data networks; - Branching point for supporting multi-homed PDU sessions; - QoS processing for the user plane (e.g., packet filtering, gating, UL / DL rate enforcement); - Verification of upstream link traffic (mapping to SDF QoS flow); - Buffering of downlink packets and triggering of downlink data notifications. Finally, the Session Management Function (SMF) hosts the following main functions: - Session management; - Assignment and management of IP addresses for UEs; - UPF selection and control; - A traffic steering configuration function in the User Plane Function (UPF) for routing traffic to the appropriate destination; - Policy enforcement and QoS for the control unit; - Notification of downlink data.

[0022] <Procedures for RRC Connection Setup and Reconfiguration> Figure 3 shows some of the interactions between the UE, gNB, and AMF (5GC entity) when the UE transitions from RRC_IDLE to RRC_CONNECTED in the NAS portion (see TS 38.300 v15.6.0).

[0023] RRC is the upper layer signaling (protocol) used for the configuration of the UE and gNB. In particular, during this transition, the AMF prepares UE context data (which includes, for example, PDU session context, security keys, UE radio capability, UE security capabilities, etc.) and sends it to the gNB together with an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST. Then, the gNB activates AS security together with the UE. This is done by the gNB sending a SecurityModeCommand message to the UE and the UE responding to the gNB with a SecurityModeComplete message. Thereafter, the gNB sends an RRCReconfiguration message to the UE, and upon receiving the RRCReconfigurationComplete from the UE, performs reconfiguration for setting up Signaling Radio Bearer 2 (SRB2) and Data Radio Bearer (DRB). For signaling-only connections, since SRB2 and DRB are not set up, the steps related to RRCReconfiguration are skipped. Finally, the gNB notifies the AMF with an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE that the setup procedure is complete.

[0024] Accordingly, this disclosure provides a 5th Generation Core (5GC) entity (e.g., AMF, SMF, etc.) comprising a control circuit that establishes a Next Generation (NG) connection with a gNodeB during operation, and a transmission unit that sends an initial context setup message to the gNodeB via the NG connection during operation so that a signaling radio bearer between the gNodeB and the user equipment (UE) is set up. Specifically, the gNodeB transmits radio resource control (RRC) signaling, including an Information Element, to the UE via the signaling radio bearer. The UE then transmits on the uplink or receives on the downlink based on the resource allocation setting.

[0025] <IMT Usage Scenarios from 2020 Onward> Figure 4 shows some of the use cases for 5G NR. The 3rd Generation Partnership Project NR (3GPP NR) is considering three use cases where IMT-2020 is expected to support a wide variety of services and applications. The first phase of specification development for high-speed, high-capacity (eMBB) has been completed. In addition to further expanding eMBB support, research into standardization for ultra-high reliability, low latency (URLLC) and massive simultaneous connections is currently underway and will continue in the future. Figure 4 shows examples of usage scenarios expected for IMT from 2020 onwards (see, for example, Figure 2 of ITU-R M.2083).

[0026] URLLC use cases have stringent performance requirements for throughput, latency, and availability, and are envisioned as one of the future vertical applications enabling wireless control of industrial production and manufacturing processes, telemedicine surgery, smart grid power distribution automation, and traffic safety. The ultra-high reliability of URLLC is supported by identifying technologies that meet the requirements set by TR 38.913v16.0.0. For NR URLLC in Release 15, a primary requirement is to target user plane latency of 0.5 ms for UL (uplink) and 0.5 ms for DL ​​(downlink). A typical URLLC requirement for a single packet transmission is a block error rate (BLER) of 1E-5 for a 32-byte packet size with a user plane latency of 1 ms.

[0027] From a physical layer perspective, reliability can be improved in many ways. Current room for reliability improvements includes defining a separate CQI table for URLLC, a more compact DCI (Downlink Control Information) format, and repeated transmission of PDCCH. However, this room for improvement could expand towards achieving ultra-high reliability as NR becomes more stable and developed (in terms of the critical requirements of NR URLLC). Specific use cases for NR URLLC in Release 15 include augmented reality / virtual reality (AR / VR), e-health, e-safety, and mission-critical applications.

[0028] Furthermore, the technical enhancements targeted by NR URLLC aim to improve latency and reliability. Technical enhancements for latency improvement include configurable numerology, non-slot-based scheduling with flexible mapping, grant-free (configurable grant) uplink, slot-level repeat transmission on data channels, and preemption on downlink. Preemption means that a transmission for which a resource has already been allocated is stopped, and that allocated resource is used for other transmissions with lower latency / higher priority requirements that are requested later. Thus, transmissions that were already permitted are replaced by later transmissions. Preemption is applicable regardless of the specific service type. For example, a transmission of service type A (URLLC) may be replaced by a transmission of service type B (eMBB, etc.). Technical enhancements for reliability improvement include a dedicated CQI / MCS table for the 1E-5 target BLER.

[0029] A key characteristic of mMTC (Major Machine Type Communications) use cases is the extremely large number of connected devices that typically transmit relatively small amounts of data that are less susceptible to latency. These devices require low cost and very long battery life. From a noise reduction (NR) perspective, utilizing a very narrow bandwidth is one solution that saves power from the UE (User Interface) and extends battery life.

[0030] As mentioned above, the scope of reliability improvements in NR is expected to broaden. High or very high reliability is a critical requirement in all cases, and especially for URLLC and mMTC. Several mechanisms can be considered to improve reliability from both a radio and network perspective. Generally, there are two to three key areas that can help improve reliability. These areas include compact control channel information, repeated transmission of data channel / control channel, and diversity in the frequency, time, and / or spatial domains. These areas are generally applicable to reliability improvements regardless of the specific communication scenario.

[0031] Regarding NR URLLC, further use cases with more stringent requirements are envisioned, such as factory automation, transportation, and power distribution. These stringent requirements include high reliability (10 -6 Features include reliability up to a certain level, high availability, packet size up to 256 bytes, and time synchronization down to a few microseconds (depending on the use case, the value can be set to 1 microsecond or a few microseconds depending on the frequency range and short latency of approximately 0.5 ms to 1 ms (especially 0.5 ms latency on the target user plane)).

[0032] Furthermore, several technical enhancements are possible for NR URLLC from a physical layer perspective. These enhancements include enhancements to the PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel) for compact DCI, repeated transmission of the PDCCH, and increased monitoring of the PDCCH. Enhancements to the UCI (Uplink Control Information) relate to enhanced HARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request) and CSI feedback. There are also possible enhancements to the PUSCH related to mini-slot level hopping, and enhancements to retransmission / repeated transmission. The term "mini-slot" refers to a transmission time interval (TTI) containing fewer symbols than a slot (a slot, for example, contains 14 symbols).

[0033] In slot - based scheduling or allocation, a slot corresponds to the granularity of the timing of the scheduling allocation (TTI: transmission time interval). Generally, the TTI determines the granularity of the timing of the scheduling allocation. One TTI is the time interval during which a given signal is mapped to the physical layer. For example, conventionally, the TTI length can vary from 14 symbols (slot - based scheduling) to 2 symbols (non - slot - based scheduling). Downlink (DL: downlink) and uplink (UL: uplink) transmissions are defined to be organized into frames (with a duration of 10 ms) consisting of 10 sub - frames (with a duration of 1 ms). In slot - based transmission, a sub - frame is further divided into slots, and the number of those slots is defined by the numerology / sub - carrier spacing. The defined values range from 10 slots per frame (1 slot per sub - frame) when the sub - carrier spacing is 15 kHz to 80 slots per frame (8 slots per sub - frame) when the sub - carrier spacing is 120 kHz. The number of OFDM symbols per slot is 14 for the normal cyclic prefix and 12 for the extended cyclic prefix (see Sections 4.1 (general frame structure), 4.2 (Numerologies), 4.3.1 (frames and sub - frames), and 4.3.2 (slots) of 3GPP TS38.211 V15.3.0, Physical channels and modulation, September 2018). However, the time resource allocation for transmission can also be non - slot - based. Specifically, the TTI for non - slot - based allocation can correspond to a mini - slot rather than a slot. That is, one or more mini - slots can be allocated for the transmission of the required data / control signaling. In non - slot - based allocation, the minimum TTI length can be, for example, 1 or 2 OFDM symbols.

[0034] <QoS control> The 5G QoS (Quality of Service) model is based on QoS flows and supports both QoS flows that require a guaranteed flow bit rate (GBR (Granteed Bit Rate) QoS flows) and QoS flows that do not require a guaranteed flow bit rate (non-GBR QoS flows). Therefore, at the NAS level, a QoS flow is the finest granularity of QoS within a PDU session. QoS flows are identified within a PDU session by a QoS Flow ID (QFI) carried in the encapsulation header via the NG-U interface.

[0035] For each UE, the 5GC establishes one or more PDU sessions. For each UE, the NG-RAN establishes at least one data radio bearer (DRB) in accordance with the PDU session, as shown above, for example, referring to Figure 3. Additional DRBs for the QoS flow of that PDU session can be configured later (when this is done is up to the NG-RAN). The NG-RAN maps packets belonging to various PDU sessions to various DRBs. NAS-level packet filters in the UE and 5GC associate UL and DL packets with QoS flows, while AS-level mapping rules in the UE and NG-RAN associate UL and DL QoS flows with DRBs.

[0036] Figure 5 shows the non-roaming reference architecture for 5G NR (see, for example, TS 23.501 v16.1.0 or v16.7.1.1, section 4.23). Application functions (AFs), such as external application servers hosting 5G services as illustrated in Figure 4, interact with the 3GPP core network to provide services. Examples include accessing Network Exposure Functions (NEFs) to support applications that affect traffic routing, and interacting with policy frameworks for policy controls such as QoS control (see Policy Control Functions (PCFs)). Application functions that are considered trusted by the operator based on operator deployment can interact directly with the relevant network functions. Application functions that are not permitted direct access to network functions by the operator interact with the relevant network functions using an open framework to the outside via the NEF.

[0037] Figure 5 further illustrates the functional units of the 5G architecture, namely the Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF), Network Repository Function (NRF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Authentication Server Function (AUSF), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), and Data Network (DN, e.g., Operator Services, Internet Access, or Third-Party Services). All or part of the core network functions and application services may be deployed and operate in a cloud computing environment.

[0038] Accordingly, the disclosure provides an application server (e.g., AF in a 5G architecture) comprising: a transmitter that, in operation, transmits a request to at least one of the 5GC functions (e.g., NEF, AMF, SMF, PCF, UPF, etc.) that includes QoS requirements for at least one of the URLLC service, eMMB service, and mMTC service, in order to establish a PDU session including a radio bearer between a gNodeB and a UE in accordance with QoS requirements; and a control circuit that, in operation, performs the service using the established PDU session.

[0039] Carrier switching 3GPP has been working on enhancing the capabilities of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and Ultra-High Reliability Low Latency (URLLC) in 3GPP Rel. 17. The IIoT aims to extend internet connectivity to industrial sectors such as manufacturing and energy distribution that require internet connectivity with URLLC features. This effort includes modifications related to UE feedback, such as HARQ-ACK and CQI transmission.

[0040] Our focus is on the problem in time-division duplex (TDD) systems, particularly when the downlink (DL) slot configuration is heavy, where the transmission of the physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) carrying uplink control information (UCI) can often be delayed or postponed because the uplink (UL) slots become unavailable. This problem can be mitigated by using PUCCH carrier switching, which allows the use of different carriers for PUCCH transmission.

[0041] Specifically, PUCCH carrier switching can be used to transmit HARQ-ACKs related to DL data transmission, including dynamic scheduling and semi-persistent scheduling (SPS). Carrier switching approaches include dynamic carrier switching and quasi-static (semi-static) carrier switching.

[0042] Dynamic carrier switching can be achieved by specifying the carrier target for PUCCH transmissions within the Downlink Control Information (DCI). The carrier specification can be defined as a dedicated field within the DCI or as part of the PUCCH resource indicator (PRI). This approach can offer high flexibility because it allows for dynamic changes to the PUCCH carrier for each DL transmission. However, this approach is primarily limited to scheduled DL transmissions and cannot be directly applied to SPS DL transmissions.

[0043] Quasi-static carrier switching can be achieved by defining a timing pattern for the UE to select a target carrier for PUCCH transmission. The advantage of this approach is that it does not increase DCI signaling overhead. It can also be used for both scheduled DL transmission and SPS DL transmission schemes. However, a limitation of quasi-static carrier switching is that the timing pattern may need to be updated after enabling / disabling carriers or changing slot settings across carriers.

[0044] At the RAN1#105-e meeting on PUCCH carrier switching, it was agreed that PUCCH carrier switching based on dynamic instruction and quasi-static configuration in the DCI for scheduling PUCCH should be supported. The aim is to minimize the impact on the standard. Furthermore, dynamic instruction and / or quasi-static configuration should be subject to the capabilities of individual UEs. Quasi-static configuration should be based on the PUCCH cell timing pattern set in the Radio Resource Control (RRC) of applicable PUCCH cells and should support PUCCH carrier switching between cells with different neurology (in this context, "cell" corresponds to carrier or component carrier). Whether additional rules are required to support PUCCH carrier switching between cells with different neurology was left to further standards. Details including the applicability of dynamic and / or quasi-static means, the maximum number of PUCCH cells, whether and how to support integrated operation of dynamic and quasi-static carrier switching for UEs, and whether and how to support integrated operation of PUCCH carrier switching and SPS HARQ-ACK deferral were also left to further standards.

[0045] In the case of PUCCH carrier switching, it has been further agreed that PUCCH resource configuration should be per UL BWP (bandwidth part), that is, per candidate cell and per UL BWP of a particular candidate cell.

[0046] Furthermore, in the case of PUCCH carrier switching based on dynamic instructions of DCI in DCI scheduling PUCCH, it is agreed that the offset k1 from PDSCH to HARQ-ACK should be interpreted based on the neurology of the dynamically instructed target PUCCH cell.

[0047] Issues related to supporting PUCCH carrier switching include instructions for PUCCH resources / configurations across different carriers, e.g., carriers with different neurology. In particular, for SPS, a timing offset (k1) is set on the UE, indicating the number of slots between DL data reception and HARQ-ACK transmission. The offset is defined according to the neurology of the PDSCH carrier, e.g., PCell (primary cell). Using a timing offset defined for PUCCH transmission on carriers with different neurology can lead to ambiguity in resource usage. This is illustrated in Figure 6. Figure 6 shows an example where SPS traffic is carried on CC#0 with k1=2. If the UE is configured (e.g., through a timing pattern) to send a HARQ-ACK report on one of the component carriers CC#1 or CC#2, there are several possible opportunities for HARQ-ACK transmission. In particular, if many active users are using the cell, it is not always desirable to use the earliest available slot.

[0048] Other issues relate to considering the minimum processing time for carriers with different neurology. Minimum processing time, or PDSCH processing time, is the minimum time interval from PDSCH reception until the UE can report a HARQ-ACK corresponding to or in response to the PDSCH, which is, for example, the number of symbols. For example, UE processing time depends on the UE capability and the subcarrier spacing (SCS) and corresponding symbol duration used.

[0049] In particular, in the case of dynamic scheduling, the UE receives timing indicators from the PDSCH to the HARQ feedback, mapped to a set of k1 values, as part of the Downlink Control Information (DCI). For a single PUCCH carrier, the set of k1 values ​​can be appropriately set considering the processing time. However, using a unified set of k1 values ​​for all PUCCH carriers with different neurology can result in large time variations, and only a small fraction of those values ​​may be usable for each carrier (other values ​​may violate the minimum processing time). This can limit the timing flexibility for reporting HARQ-ACK reports. An example is shown in Figure 7. Figure 7 shows a downlink transmission scheduled using a defined set of k1 k1={2,3,4,5}. Assuming a minimum processing time of one slot according to SCS=15kHz, some of the k1 values ​​cannot be used for other carriers (e.g., k1=2 for component carrier CC#1 at SCS=30kHz, or k1={2,3,4} for component carrier CC#3 at SCS=60kHz).

[0050] A further issue lies in supporting PUCCH carrier switching when both dynamic and quasi-static modes are enabled.

[0051] Taking these issues into consideration, this disclosure provides a technique for resource instruction for control channel carrier switching.

[0052] More specifically, according to embodiments of this disclosure, a reference PUCCH setting is configured for the UE, which may include, for example, the starting symbol in the slot, the number of symbols, the starting PRB (Physical Resource Block), the subcarrier, and / or the cyclic shift index. Other PUCCH settings for the UE are defined relative to the reference PUCCH setting using offset sets, which may include, for example, a set of timing offset values, a set of starting symbol offset values, a set of symbol number offset values, a set of PRB offset values, a set of subcarrier offset values, and / or a set of cyclic shift index offset values. The UE applies the specified offset values ​​to the reference PUCCH setting to adapt it for transmission on the target carrier.

[0053] For example, an offset set can be uniquely specified for each carrier (PUCCH settings may differ between carriers), uniquely specified for all carriers configured for dynamic carrier switching (PUCCH settings will be the same for all carriers configured for dynamic carrier switching), uniquely specified for all carriers configured for quasi-static carrier switching (PUCCH settings will be the same for all carriers configured for quasi-static carrier switching), or uniquely specified for all carriers with the same neurology (PUCCH settings will be the same for all carriers with the same neurology).

[0054] The offset set can also be uniquely defined for the entire carrier (the PUCCH setting will be the same across all slots), uniquely defined for each minislot / slot / frame within the carrier (the PUCCH setting may differ for each minislot / slot / frame), or uniquely defined for several consecutive minislots / slots / frames within the carrier (the PUCCH setting will be the same for several consecutive minislots / slots / frames).

[0055] Furthermore, according to embodiments of this disclosure in which both dynamic and quasi-static carrier switching are enabled, the UE may first attempt to apply dynamic carrier switching. If the PUCCH resource is not available on the dynamically directed carrier, the UE will follow quasi-static carrier switching for PUCCH transmission.

[0056] In LTE and NR, terminals are called user devices (UEs). These can be mobile devices or communication devices such as wireless phones, smartphones, tablet computers, or USB (Universal Serial Bus) sticks that have the functionality of a user device. However, the term mobile device is not limited to these, and generally, a repeater may also have the functionality of such a mobile device, and a mobile device may function as a repeater.

[0057] A base station is a network node or scheduling node that forms part of a network to provide services to terminals, for example. A base station is a network node that provides wireless access to terminals. For example, in NR, a base station is called a gNB.

[0058] As shown in Figure 8, a user device 860 (UE) is provided, which includes a circuit 880 (the “UE circuit” including a control circuit and / or processing circuit) and a transceiver 870 (or “UE transceiver”). The transceiver 870 receives reference resource instructions and component carrier instructions during operation. The circuit 880, during operation, selects a component carrier for transmitting uplink control information (UCI) based on the component carrier instructions. The circuit further selects an applicable resource offset for the selected component carrier during operation. As will be further described, this selection is made based on configuration or UE capability. By applying the resource offset to the reference resource, the UE circuit 880 determines the resource for transmitting the UCI and controls the transmission of the UCI on the selected component carrier and the determined resource.

[0059] Controlling the transmission includes, but is not limited to, controlling the UE transceiver 870 that transmits the UCI, and also includes coding and mapping. This is because resources may include time resources and frequency resources, but may also include other resources such as coding resources that are not obvious at the transceiver level.

[0060] As also shown in Figure 8, a base station 810 is further provided, which includes a circuit 830 (or “base station circuit,” “BS circuit”) and a transceiver 820 (or “base station transceiver,” “BS transceiver”). During operation, the base station circuit 830 determines a resource for receiving uplink control information (UCI) on the component carrier and determines a reference resource, where the reference resource can be determined by applying a configured resource offset applicable to the component carrier to the reference resource. During operation, the base station transceiver 820 transmits instructions for the reference resource and instructions for the component carrier. The base station circuit controls the reception of UCI on the resource for receiving UCI on the component carrier.

[0061] Control includes, but is not limited to, controlling base station transceivers that receive UCI.

[0062] For example, the UE circuit 880 includes a UCI resource and carrier determination circuit 885, and the BS circuit 830 includes a UCI resource, carrier, and reference determination circuit 835. An exemplary UCI resource and carrier determination circuit 885 of the UE is shown in Figure 8. The UCI resource and carrier determination circuit 885 includes a carrier determination circuit 986, an offset and reference determination circuit 987, and a UCI resource determination circuit 988.

[0063] Furthermore, methods for UEs (e.g., communication methods) and methods for base stations (e.g., communication methods) are provided, which are shown in Figure 10.

[0064] The base station method includes step S1005, which allocates a resource for receiving uplink control information (UCI) on a component carrier. The base station method further includes step S1010, which determines a reference resource such that a resource for transmitting UCI can be determined by applying a set resource offset applicable to the component carrier to the reference resource. The base station method further includes step S1015, which transmits an instruction for the reference resource, and step S1025, which transmits an instruction for the component carrier on which the UCI will be received. For example, in steps S1015 and S1025, these instructions are transmitted to the UE. Finally, the BS station method includes step S1055, which controls the reception of UCI on the resource for receiving UCI on the component carrier.

[0065] Accordingly, the UE method includes the step S1020 of receiving instructions for a reference resource and the step S1030 of receiving instructions for a component carrier. Then, in step S1035 of the UE method, a resource offset applicable to the selected component carrier is selected based on the setting or UE capability, in step S1045, the resource for transmitting the UCI is determined by applying the resource offset to the reference resource, and in step S1050, the transmission of the UCI is performed on the selected component carrier and the determined resource (received by the base station according to step S1055 above).

[0066] In this disclosure, any embodiments, examples, and details mentioned in the description of the features of the device imply the steps of the corresponding method, and vice versa. Furthermore, since the UE860 and base station 810 constitute an interrelated product, unless the context indicates otherwise, the features of the UE and the steps of the method of the UE should be understood as implying the features of the corresponding base station and the steps of the method of the BS.

[0067] The above-mentioned indications for the reference resource and component carrier may be transmitted and received within a single message, for example, dynamically via DCI (Downlink Control Information), or quasi-statically via Radio Resource Control (RRC signaling). For example, there may be fields for the reference resource and component carrier within the DCI, or they may both be part of the above-mentioned PRI. Alternatively, the reference resource and component carrier may be indicated via different signals or signal types. For example, the component carrier may be indicated via quasi-static carrier switching, while the reference resource is indicated via DCI.

[0068] As described above, the component carrier for transmitting the UCI is selected based on the instructions of the received component carrier. For example, the UE may select the component carrier indicated by the instructions. Alternatively, in some embodiments described further, the UE may determine, based on the value indicated in the instructions, whether to select the indicated component carrier or another component carrier indicated elsewhere, such as a set component carrier.

[0069] Furthermore, as described above, resource offsets can be selected based on settings such as the quasi-static settings of PUCCH. For example, for each selectable or switchable component carrier (also abbreviated as "carrier"), a corresponding resource offset is set in the UE, for example, via a quasi-static setting. For example, the BS circuit 830 sets the respective resource offset for each carrier, the BS transceiver 820 transmits that setting via RRC signaling, and the UE transceiver 870 receives the RRC signaling or quasi-static signaling containing that setting. The resource offset is an offset relative to a reference resource. By applying the resource offset to the reference resource, resources for transmitting the UCI are obtained.

[0070] Alternatively, as also explained, the resource offset may be determined based on the capabilities of the UE860, or more specifically, to satisfy the minimum processing time for the UE between the time of receiving the downlink message and the time when the UCI is sent in response to the downlink message.

[0071] For example, uplink control information (UCI) may include feedback or responses to downlink messages (e.g., data transmissions on the PDSCH), such as HARQ (Hybrid Automatic Retransmission Request) ACK or NACK (Acknowledgement / Negative Acknowledgment). Thus, the BS transceiver 820 may further transmit downlink messages via the PDSCH, and the UE transceiver 870 may receive them. However, this disclosure is not limited to the types of UCI, and other examples of UCI may include the transmission of SR (Scheduling Request) or CQI (Channel Quality Indicator).

[0072] Furthermore, the resources for transmitting / receiving UCI may include any resources for mapping data, including resources in the time domain, frequency domain, code domain, or diversity (e.g., space, antenna pattern, or polarization), such as MIMO (multiple input, multiple output) and / or beamforming, either alone or in combination. For example, the resources for transmitting UCI may include one or more of the following: start slot, number of slots, start symbol, number of symbols (as an example of a time domain resource), physical resource block (as an exemplary frequency resource), or cyclic shift index (as an exemplary code domain resource).

[0073] The component carrier for transmitting the UCI (or "target component carrier" or second component carrier) may be one of several component carriers, including a first component carrier which may be considered a reference component carrier (e.g., the component carrier with the narrowest SCS, component carrier number 0, the primary carrier, or the component carrier on which the DCI / PDCCH and / or PDSCH are received). The UE (e.g., UE circuit 880) may switch to the second component carrier to transmit the UCI, or may remain on the first component carrier if the second component carrier is indicated and / or determined to be the same component carrier as the first component carrier.

[0074] Timing instructions according to the reference carrier Some embodiments include determining the timing on a target carrier (the carrier on which the UCI is transmitted) (e.g., a slot for PUCCH / UCI transmission) given a timing instruction for a reference timing according to the PDSCH carrier. A time offset is provided, which can be applied to quasi-static carrier switching, etc.

[0075] For example, a component carrier for transmitting a UCI is set quasi-statically according to the above description of quasi-static switching, and the component carrier instruction is transmitted / received via quasi-static signaling, such as RRC signaling. The reference resource includes a timing reference, and the resource offset includes a timing offset. In determining the resource for transmitting a UCI, UE circuit 880 (and correspondingly BS circuit 830 when determining the offset to be signaled to the UE) interprets the timing reference according to the reference neurology and the timing offset according to the neurology of the selected component carrier, the selected component carrier being the target carrier on which the UCI is transmitted (and if the target carrier is different from the reference carrier, UE circuit 880 switches to it). The reference neurology could be, for example, the neurology of the component carrier on which the PDSCH is received when the UCI is a response to a PDSCH.

[0076] By applying a timing offset to the timing criterion, a resource (or time resource) in the timing domain is determined as a resource for transmitting a UCI. A timing resource for transmitting a UCI may refer to a slot or other time unit on which the UCI is transmitted, such as a symbol, a minislot, or any combination thereof. The timing offset value and the reference timing value can be expressed by the number of symbols, minislots, and / or slots. The "reference neurology" may be the neurology of a defined carrier, such as the carrier on which the PUCCH is transmitted / received, or a set carrier (such as a quasi-statically set carrier), such as carrier #0 or the carrier with the narrowest SCS corresponding to the longest symbol duration.

[0077] An example is shown in Figure 11. Here, semi-persistent scheduling is set to k1=2 (slot number 2) according to the PDSCH carrier (the carrier on which the PDSCH was received). Accordingly, the UE is configured to transmit the UCI in slot number 2, which corresponds to the neurology of the PDSCH carrier. Therefore, the reference timing is determined by measuring the slot length according to the slot duration according to the reference neurology. A timing offset indicating the number of slots is set in the UE for all carriers configured for switching. As shown in Figure 11, CC#0 is set to a 0-slot offset, CC#1 is set to a 0-slot offset, and CC#2 is set to a 2-slot offset. The slot offset corresponds to the neurology of each component carrier and is measured in slot durations corresponding to the subcarrier intervals of each neurology. In the illustrated example, the timing offset values ​​are provided individually for all carriers (offsets may also be set for any group of carriers, as will be explained further).

[0078] The UE first identifies a slot for PUCCH transmission according to the PDSCH carrier neurology as a timing reference or time reference point. Then, the UE determines the PUCCH carrier, for example, based on a defined timing pattern. Once the carrier is identified, the UE determines the slot for PUCCH transmission by applying a specified timing offset value associated with the target carrier to the time reference point (the beginning of the slot indicated by k1 according to the PDSCH carrier).

[0079] As described above, by providing a timing offset, this disclosure facilitates clear direction of PUCCH resources considering the aforementioned issues shown in Figure 6.

[0080] Timing instructions based on the target carrier Some embodiments provide a method for determining the timing (e.g., slot) of a UCI transmission (or PUCCH transmission) on a target carrier, where a reference timing instruction is provided or interpreted according to the target carrier. For example, the same timing instruction value or set of the same timing instruction values ​​is used across different carriers. A timing offset is determined, which is applicable to dynamic carrier switching, etc.

[0081] For example, component carrier instructions are received dynamically via DCI (e.g., as a dedicated field within DCI or as part of a PUCCH Resource Indicator (PRI)). The reference resource includes a timing reference (e.g., one or more symbols, minislots, or slots), and the resource offset includes a timing offset (e.g., a symbol offset, slot offset, or minislot offset). By applying the resource offset to the reference resource, the time resources for transmitting the UCI are determined. The timing reference and timing offset are indicated in time units (e.g., symbol duration, slot duration) corresponding to the neurology of the component carrier or target carrier selected for UCI transmission and interpreted by the UE circuit.

[0082] In the example shown in Figure 12, a set of slots {2,3,4,5} called k1, which constitute the "reference resource," is set in the UE. The UE can receive the value of k1 via DCI. Timing offset values ​​for all carriers available for UCI transmission are further set in the UE. In the example in Figure 12, a 0-slot offset for CC#0, a 1-slot offset for CC#1, and a 3-slot offset for CC#2 are set in the UE.

[0083] When the UE identifies the component carrier index and the reference timing value of k1 from the DCI, it applies a specified (e.g., set) timing offset value when determining the resources for transmitting the UCI. The slot offset is applied to each value in set k1. For example, by applying the slot offset, the UE determines the set {3,4,5,6} as the resources for transmitting the UCI in CC#1, or {5,6,7,8} in CC#3. For example, the total number of slots (the sum of the slot offset and the slots indicated by k1) is counted starting from the end of the slot where the PDSCH was received (e.g., the PDSCH where the UCI is the response), or some other suitable starting point, e.g., the beginning of a subframe. One could think of it as applying the offset to the starting point rather than applying the offset to the k1 value, and the k1 value is counted from the point in time resulting from applying the offset, with the same result.

[0084] As described above, the offset value can be set quasi-statically (for example, through RRC) to the UE. Alternatively, the offset value can be determined by the UE without signaling, based on the UE's capabilities as described above. For example, the UE can adjust the offset value of each component carrier to satisfy its minimum processing time. The timing criterion may be expressed in time units applicable to the neurology of the selected component carrier, and the timing offset is calculated so that resources for sending the UCI begin at least a minimum processing time after the end of receiving the downlink message.

[0085] As described above, the minimum processing time (for example, the time interval starting at the end of the downlink message and before the UE can provide HARQ feedback for the DL message) is based on or corresponds to the UE capabilities. Specifically, the number of time units (e.g., symbols and / or slots) that make up the minimum processing time depends on the UE capabilities, as well as the symbol / slot duration corresponding to the neurology of the component carrier for UCI transmission.

[0086] For example, the UE reports the minimum processing time to the base station in response to a UE Capability Enquiry message signaled via RRC. Since the minimum processing time is also known to the base station, the base station is aware of when it will receive the UCI.

[0087] The timing offset is determined such that the sum of the timing criterion and the timing offset is greater than or equal to the minimum processing time. For example, the timing offset is determined to be greater than or equal to the difference between the number of slots (or other time units such as symbols or minislots) that constitute the minimum processing time in the target carrier's neurology and the first slot number (or minislot number or symbol number) of the reference resource k1. As an example, the time to transmit a UCI could be the minimum of the slot indicated by the reference timing (e.g., slot number k1 or the lowest slot number in set k1) and the number of slots that constitute the minimum processing time in each neurology.

[0088] According to the embodiments described above in which timing instructions are interpreted according to the target carrier, the use of timing offsets makes it possible to align the values ​​of signaled reference resources (e.g., slot instruction k1) across different carriers, which can facilitate improved scheduling flexibility. Furthermore, the disclosed embodiments can facilitate meeting minimum processing times in both cases: when the offset is signaled and when the offset is determined by the UE based on its minimum processing time (or the number of symbols or minislots may be used).

[0089] Offset value type Since PUCCH settings can vary by carrier, in an exemplary wireless communication system, PUCCH settings may be defined individually for each carrier. On the other hand, according to this disclosure, a PUCCH setting on one carrier (e.g., a “reference carrier” such as component carrier #0 or primary cell / primary carrier) may be considered a reference setting (e.g., one that defines the reference resource), while the settings of other carriers may be defined using an offset (or “resource offset”) value relative to the reference PUCCH setting.

[0090] For example, the UE interprets the settings indicating a resource on a first component carrier ("reference carrier") as the reference resource, and the settings on one or more second component carriers as indicating resource offsets.

[0091] As described above, the baseline settings for a baseline resource may include the baseline start symbol, baseline number of symbols, baseline PRB, and / or baseline cyclic shift (CS) index. Correspondingly, resource offset values ​​may include the baseline symbol offset, the number of symbols offset, the baseline PRB offset, and / or the CS index offset. For example, baseline settings and the setting of resource offsets for baseline carriers and other carriers are signaled quasi-statically via RRC signaling or in system information such as a system information block (SIB). For example, the setting of resource offsets for different carriers may be included in the RRC, and one or more baseline resources may be quasi-statically configurable via an SIB.

[0092] In the example shown in Figure 13, we consider three carriers. Carrier CC#0 is considered the baseline for defining the PUCCH settings. The baseline carrier CC#0 has two PUCCH settings: PUCCH0 and PUCCH1. In the illustrated example, PUCCH0 consists of two symbols starting with PRB#0, with symbol number 8 being the first symbol and an initial cyclic shift index of 0 (cyclic shift is not shown in Figure 13). PUCCH1 consists of four symbols starting with PRB#1, with symbol number 4 being the first symbol and an initial cyclic shift index of 3. Based on this baseline setting, the PUCCH setting on CC#1 is derived using PRB offset 2, starting symbol offset 4, and cyclic shift offset 3. Furthermore, the PUCCH setting on CC#2 is derived using PRB offset 1, starting symbol offset 2, and cyclic shift offset 1.

[0093] Signaling reference settings and setting offsets can easily reduce the signaling overhead required to define PUCCH settings across different carriers. For example, multiple PUCCH settings (e.g., PUCCH0 and PUCCH1 shown in Figure 13) only need to be defined for the reference carrier, while for the remaining carriers, only one value per resource (start symbol, number of symbols, cyclic shift, etc.) needs to be defined. This makes it possible to define different PUCCH settings across carriers while reducing signaling overhead. Furthermore, changing the reference PUCCH setting of the reference carrier directly affects the PUCCH settings of all other component carriers. Therefore, changing the setting of the reference carrier can indicate changes in resource settings across different component carriers. Possible use cases for such an approach include PUCCH reconfiguration after dual connections or handovers.

[0094] However, any of the resources referred to herein can be dynamically specified by including reference resources in the DCI, such as the reference start symbol, reference number of symbols, reference for the start PRB, and / or reference for the cyclic shift (CS) index.

[0095] Semi-static configuration As described above, quasi-static carrier switching can be achieved by defining a timing pattern for the UE to select the target carrier for a PUCCH transmission. For example, the timing pattern defines instructions for a slot or other time instance to switch component carriers, or to send / receive a given message on a particular component carrier (e.g., to send a UCI). For example, the timing pattern may specify a time instance (e.g., a slot) for receiving or sending, and the component carrier on which that transmission or reception will occur.

[0096] Furthermore, in addition to, or in combination with, the timing pattern, the base station may transmit offset values ​​relative to the reference resource used by different component carriers. For example, the timing pattern and reference offset settings may be quasi-statically carried and signaled, for example, by RRC signaling.

[0097] By providing an offset in relation to the timing pattern, it becomes possible to set an offset relative to a given transmission timing (e.g., a specific slot) rather than setting an offset for each component carrier.

[0098] For example, the reference resource instruction includes a timing pattern. The timing pattern (or settings provided in addition to the timing pattern) provides component carrier instructions and resource offset instructions for each of several reference timings (for example, time instances such as slots (or mini-slots) that define the reference resource). For time resources such as slots or frequency resources, the resource offset of the neurology of each component carrier is instructed.

[0099] As explained in “Timing Instructions Based on a Reference Carrier,” a timing pattern may define a slot or other time instance as the reference resource in terms of the reference neurology, but the indicated offset is evaluated or interpreted in terms of the target neurology of the target carrier indicated by the timing pattern.

[0100] Below, as shown in Figure 14, the timing pattern settings and slot offset values ​​are described for SPS traffic with k1=2 (the UE is scheduled by SPS to transmit the UCI two slot lengths after the slot in which the PDSCH is received, and the slot length is interpreted according to the reference neurology). Three component carriers CC#0 to CC#2 and seven slots numbered 0 to 6 (reference slots) according to the neurology of CC#0 (SCS=15kHz) are shown.

[0101] By using timing patterns to instruct the active carrier and slot offsets, the settings can be signaled to the UE, defining an offset set or offset for all slots (or mini-slots). For example, the instructions for the active carrier and slot offsets are signaled for all slots, for example, for all consecutive slots within the time range to which the settings are applicable. In the example in Figure 14, the instructions could be as follows: • Active carriers: 2, 2, 0, 2, X, 1, 2 Slot offset: 2, 0, X, 1, X, 1, 3 Here, X can be any value, for example, zero or NA. In the case of an active carrier, since no slot is set for UCI transmission in reference slot number 4, any value can be indicated for the component carrier and slot offset. Furthermore, in the case of CC#0 in reference slot number 2, the UE is aware that the slot offset is zero (because at SCS=15kHz there is only one slot within the applicable slot duration), and therefore any value can be signaled as the slot offset, and the UE will determine the slot offset to be zero regardless of the signaled value. Thus, 0 or any value can be signaled.

[0102] Alternatively, instead of signaling placeholders for slots without UL transmission opportunities, the settings can be signaled with a timing pattern only for slots with UL or UCI transmission opportunities (all slots except slot number 4 in the example in Figure 14). In that case, the offset and offset set are defined only for minislots / slots that have UL transmission opportunities among all carriers. Therefore, the following values ​​are signaled: • Active Carriers: 2, 2, 0, 2, 1, 2 Slot offset: 2, 0, 0, 2, 1, 3 or 2, 0, X, 2, 1, 3

[0103] By omitting resource offsets and component carrier instructions for reference slots that do not perform UL transmission, a reduction in signaling overhead can be achieved.

[0104] However, further signaling reduction can be provided by setting and defining the component carrier and slot / minislot offset in the timing pattern only for the reference slot (or minislot) for transmitting HARQ-ACK reports (including ACK / NACK) for SPS DL transmissions or other quasi-statically scheduled UCIs. In the example in Figure 14, where the PDSCHs are in slot numbers 0 and 4 and k1=2, only the settings for reference slot numbers 2 and 6 need to be signaled. • Active careers: 0, 2 Slot offset: 0, 3

[0105] When setting a timing pattern only for (mini) slots configured for SPS HARQ-ACK, the timing pattern, including carrier and offset values ​​for possible PUCCH report instances, can be included in the SPS configuration, and it is not necessary to send the timing pattern separately from the SPS configuration.

[0106] Simultaneous configuration of dynamic and quasi-static carrier switching Dynamic and quasi-static carrier switching can be configured simultaneously for the UE. The UE needs to decide which of these to apply to transmit the PUCCH assigned to the scheduled DL transmission. The following describes approaches for instructing the UE to follow either dynamic or quasi-static carrier switching.

[0107] In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the UE circuit 880 determines, based on a component carrier indication, whether to select a first component carrier indicated by that indication or a second component carrier indicated by a timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching (e.g., set by RRC signaling).

[0108] This determination of whether to use dynamically directed or quasi-statically directed component carriers can be combined with the direction of resources for UCI transmission, as described in the embodiments above. For example, if a dynamically directed component carrier is selected, the UE may determine the reference resource in “timing direction according to target carrier” according to the embodiments described above, and if a quasi-statically configured component carrier is selected, the UE may determine the UCI resource, for example, as described in the embodiments titled “timing direction according to target carrier” and “quasi-static configuration”.

[0109] However, this disclosure also provides a determination of whether to use dynamically configured component carriers or quasi-statically configured component carriers, independently of (and possibly without) resource instructions.

[0110] Accordingly, as shown in Figure 15, a UE 1560 is provided comprising a circuit 1580 and a transceiver 1570. The UE transceiver 1570 dynamically receives component carrier instructions via DCI. Based on the component carrier instructions, the UE circuit determines whether to select a first component carrier indicated by the component carrier instructions or a second component carrier indicated by a timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching (in a quasi-static setting), selects a component carrier for UCI transmission based on the result of the determination, and controls the transmission of UCI on the component carrier selected based on the result of the determination.

[0111] A base station 1510 is also provided, comprising a BS circuit 1530 and a BS transceiver 1520. During operation, the BS circuit 1530 determines a component carrier for receiving the UCI from among component carriers configured for dynamic carrier switching and component carriers configured for quasi-static switching. The BS transceiver 1520 indicates a component carrier for receiving the DCI if a component carrier for dynamic switching is selected as the component carrier for receiving the DCI, or transmits a DCI indicating a value that indicates quasi-static switching will be performed, or a value for a component carrier that is unavailable for the UCI, if a component carrier for quasi-static switching is selected. During operation, the BS circuit 1530 controls the reception of the UCI on the indicated component carrier.

[0112] As shown in Figure 15, the UE circuit 1580 may include a dynamic or quasi-static switching determination circuit 1585. The base station circuit 1530 may also include a dynamic or quasi-static switching determination circuit.

[0113] Furthermore, as already mentioned, the UE1560 and UE860, as well as the base stations 1510 and 810, can be provided as a single device comprising UE circuits 880 and 1580 and base station circuits 1530 and 830, respectively.

[0114] A method for the UE shown in Figures 16 and 18 is also provided. This method includes the step of dynamically receiving a component carrier instruction via DCI. The method further includes the steps of S1610, S1810 determining, based on the component carrier instruction, whether to select a first component carrier indicated by the component carrier instruction or a second component carrier indicated by a timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching; and the steps of S1615, S1615 or S1625 selecting a component carrier for transmitting uplink control information (UCI) based on the result of the determination. The method further includes the step of controlling the transmission of UCI on the component carrier selected based on the result of the determination.

[0115] One approach to providing instructions on whether to perform quasi-static or dynamically configured carrier switching is to use a specific CI value that is different from the CI value that indicates the dynamic component carrier for dynamic switching, for example, by providing an explicit instruction in the DCI to follow quasi-static switching. For example, the carrier index (CI) can be provided as a dedicated field in the DCI or as part of the PRI that defines the resources for DCI transmission.

[0116] For example, the first value indicates the first component carrier, and the second value indicates quasi-static carrier switching. If the instruction (CI) indicates the first value, UE circuits 880 and 1580 select the first component carrier to transmit the UCI, and if the instruction indicates the second value, UE circuits 880 and 1580 select the second component carrier.

[0117] An example is shown in Table 1, where a 2-bit CI value is provided. Three values ​​are assigned to the carrier for dynamic switching, and one value is assigned to enable quasi-static carrier switching. [Table 1]

[0118] An example is shown in Figure 17, where three different carriers (CC#0 to CC#2) can be dynamically selected for PUCCH transmission according to Table 1, and two carriers (CC#3 and CC#4) can be quasi-statically selected.

[0119] Figure 16 shows a flowchart of the steps of the UE's method for simultaneous dynamic and quasi-static PUCCH carrier switching by explicit instruction. In step S1605, the UE (e.g., UE circuits 880, 1580) determines the instructed carrier index (and possibly the PUCCH setting) from the received DCI. Then, in step 1610, the UE circuits 880, 1580 check whether the instructed carrier index is set for dynamic switching. If NO, the UE circuits 880, 1580 determine the carrier using the quasi-static setting in step S1620 and select the quasi-static carrier set for PUCCH transmission (e.g., according to the timing pattern set by the quasi-static setting) in step 1625. If YES, the UE circuits 880, 1580 select the dynamically instructed carrier indicated in the DCI for PUCCH transmission (transmission of UCI via PUCCH). In step S1630, the UCI is transmitted via PUCCH on the selected carrier (for example, UE circuits 880 and 1580 control the transmission, and UE transceivers 870 and 1570 transmit the UCI).

[0120] Simultaneous dynamic and quasi-static carrier switching allows for support of more carriers and PUCCH configurations without significantly increasing DCI overhead. In the example in Table 1 and Figure 17, a total of five carriers are supported, but the CI field contains only two bits.

[0121] Another approach is to use quasi-static switching when it is not possible to transmit the indicated PUCCH on the default (e.g., DCI format 1_0 for NR) or indicated (e.g., DCI format 1_1) component carrier. For example, the (default or indicated) carrier is unavailable for UL transmission on a slot (or minislot, or more generally, time-domain resource) allocated in DCI for UCI transmission. This approach does not require explicit instruction to enable quasi-static switching (e.g., there is no specific value indicating that a quasi-static pattern is used, such as the value "11" in Table 1).

[0122] In some embodiments, the first component carrier is a component carrier available for uplink transmission. If the component carrier indication indicates the first component carrier, UE circuits 880 and 1580 select the first component carrier for transmitting the UCI; if the component carrier indication indicates a component carrier unavailable for uplink transmission, UE circuits 880 and 1580 select a second component carrier.

[0123] For example, the component carrier instruction is a CI value in the DCI (e.g., a 1-bit or 2-bit value, or more bits). Depending on whether the component carrier instruction indicates a component carrier available in a slot (or other time resource) scheduled or configured for UCI transmission, the UE circuit 880 controls the UE transceiver 870 to transmit the UCI, and accordingly, the UE transceiver 870 transmits the UCI on either the indicated component carrier or a quasi-statically configured component carrier.

[0124] For example, the UE first determines the PUCCH setting and, if applicable, the target carrier (as indicated in DCI format 1_1, etc.) according to a dynamic DCI. If no PUCCH opportunity is available on that carrier, the UE determines a carrier for PUCCH transmission according to a quasi-static rule (e.g., a quasi-statically configured timing pattern).

[0125] An example is shown in Figure 19, where two carriers can be represented using a 1-bit CI, and two other carriers can be selected quasi-statically.

[0126] As described above, instructions for dynamic component carriers may, in some cases, be included in the DCI, such as DCI format 1_1, in addition to instructions for resources for PUCCH (e.g., time resources). However, alternatively, if the DCI does not include instructions for component carriers, for example, if the DCI is DCI format 1_0, a switch to a quasi-static setting may be performed. For example, the DCI may indicate a resource, such as a PUCCH transmission opportunity, and if that resource is available, the UE sends a UCI for that transmission opportunity. Otherwise, the UE circuitry determines the CC for which that transmission opportunity is available according to a quasi-static timing pattern.

[0127] A flowchart for simultaneous dynamic and quasi-static PUCH without explicit instruction to enable quasi-static switching is shown in Figure 18. In step S1805, UE circuits 880 and 1580 determine the PUCCH setting from the DCI. If instructed, the UE may further determine the carrier index from the DCI, and step S1805 becomes equivalent to S1605. In step S1810, it is determined whether the PUCCH resource indicated by the setting is available on the default / instructed carrier. If YES, in step S1815, the default or instructed carrier is selected. Steps S1620 and S1525 and S1630 following the negation determination in step S1810 correspond to the steps of the same reference numerals in Figure 16.

[0128] Similar to the explicit instruction approach of quasi-static signaling, the implicit instruction-free approach of quasi-static signaling allows for supporting more carriers without significantly increasing DCI overhead. Furthermore, it eliminates the need to assign dedicated CI values ​​to explicitly indicate quasi-static instruction.

[0129] In correspondence with base station 1510, a method for a base station shown in Figure 20 is provided. This BS method includes: step S2005 determining a component carrier for receiving a UCI from a UE from among component carriers configured for dynamic carrier switching and component carriers configured for quasi-static switching; step S2010 transmitting a DCI that, if a component carrier for dynamic switching is selected as the component carrier for receiving a DCI, indicates the component carrier for receiving the DCI, and if a component carrier for quasi-static switching is selected, indicates a value indicating that quasi-static switching will be performed, or a value for a component carrier that is unavailable for the UCI; and step S2015 controlling the reception of the UCI on the indicated component carrier.

[0130] In some embodiments of this disclosure, examples have been described in which a resource offset is specified for each of a plurality of component carriers from which a component carrier for transmitting UCI is selected (for example, the slot offsets shown in Figures 11 and 12). For example, for each component carrier, its own resource offset (for example, a slot offset) is set.

[0131] Alternatively, the resource offset may be common to all component carriers with the same neurology among multiple component carriers from which a component carrier for transmitting UCI is selected (if two or more component carriers have the same neurology). For example, the resource offset setting may be provided per neurology rather than per component carrier, which may reduce quasi-static signaling.

[0132] In a further example, a first resource offset or offset set may be defined for all carriers configured for dynamic carrier switching, and a second resource offset or offset set may be specified for quasi-static carrier switching. For example, a group of component carriers from which component carriers are selected to transmit UCIs may include component carriers configured for dynamic component carrier switching and component carriers for quasi-static component carrier switching, with a first resource offset specified as common to component carriers configured for dynamic component carrier switching and a second resource offset specified as common to component carriers configured for quasi-static component carrier switching. For example, such different offsets for carriers for dynamic and quasi-static carrier switching may be configured in combination with embodiments having simultaneous configuration of quasi-static and dynamic carrier switching.

[0133] In this disclosure, the downlink control signals (information) relating to this disclosure may be signals (information) transmitted via the PDCCH of the physical layer, or signals (information) transmitted via the MAC control element (CE) or RRC of the upper layer. The downlink control signals may be predefined signals (information).

[0134] The uplink control signals (information) relating to this disclosure may be signals (information) transmitted via PUCCH at the physical layer, or signals (information) transmitted via MAC CE or RRC at the upper layer. The uplink control signals may also be predefined signals (information). The uplink control signals may be replaced by uplink control information (UCI), first-stage sidelink control information (SCI), or second-stage SCI.

[0135] In this disclosure, a base station may be, for example, a Transmission Reception Point (TRP), a cluster head, an access point, a Remote Radio Head (RRH), an eNodeB (eNB), a gNodeB (gNB), a Base Station (BS), a Base Transceiver Station (BTS), a base unit, or a gateway. In sidelink communications, a terminal may be used instead of a base station. A base station may be a relay device that relays communications between a higher-level node and a terminal. A base station may be a roadside unit.

[0136] This disclosure may apply to uplinks, downlinks, and sidelinks.

[0137] This disclosure may apply, for example, to uplink channels such as PUSCH, PUCCH, and PRACH, downlink channels such as PDSCH, PDCCH, and PBCH, and sidelink channels such as Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH), Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH), and Physical Sidelink Broadcast Channel (PSBCH).

[0138] PDCCH, PDSCH, PUSCH, and PUCCH are examples of downlink control channels, downlink data channels, updater channels, and uplink control channels, respectively. PSCCH and PSSCH are examples of sidelink control channels and sidelink data channels, respectively. PBCH and PSBCH are examples of broadcast channels, respectively, and PRACH is an example of a random access channel.

[0139] This disclosure may apply to either data channels or control channels. The channels in this disclosure may be replaced with data channels including PDSCH, PUSCH, and PSSCH, and / or control channels including PDCCH, PUCCH, PBCH, PSCCH, and PSBCH.

[0140] In this disclosure, a reference signal is a signal known to both the base station and the mobile station, and each reference signal may be called a reference signal (RS) or, in some cases, a pilot signal. A reference signal may be any of the following: DMRS, Channel State Information-Reference Signal (CSI-RS), Tracking Reference Signal (TRS), Phase Tracking Reference Signal (PTRS), Cell-Specific Reference Signal (CRS), and Sounding Reference Signal (SRS).

[0141] In this disclosure, a time resource unit is not limited to one or a combination of slots and symbols, but may be a time resource unit such as a frame, superframe, subframe, slot, time slot subslot, or minislot, or a time resource unit such as a symbol, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol, or single carrier frequency division multiplexing access (SC-FDMA) symbol, or any other time resource unit. The number of symbols contained in a slot is not limited to any number of symbols exemplified in the above embodiments, but may be any other number of symbols.

[0142] This disclosure may apply to both licensed and unlicensed bands.

[0143] This disclosure may apply to any of the following: communication between a base station and a terminal (Uu-link communication), communication between terminals (side-link communication), and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication. The channels in this disclosure may be replaced with PSCCH, PSSCH, Physical Sidelink Feedback Channel (PSFCH), PSBCH, PDCCH, PUCCH, PDSCH, PUSCH, and PBCH.

[0144] Furthermore, this disclosure may apply to terrestrial networks or non-terrestrial networks (NTNs) that use satellites or high-altitude pseudo-satellites (HAPS). This disclosure may also apply to terrestrial networks with large cell sizes or large latency relative to symbol length or slot length, such as ultra-wideband transmission networks.

[0145] An antenna port refers to a logical antenna (antenna group) formed by one or more physical antennas. That is, an antenna port does not necessarily refer to a single physical antenna, but may also refer to an array antenna formed by multiple antennas. For example, the number of physical antennas forming an antenna port is not defined; instead, an antenna port is defined as the smallest unit on which a terminal can transmit a reference signal. Alternatively, an antenna port can be defined as the smallest unit for multiplying the weights of a precoding vector.

[0146] This disclosure can be implemented by software, hardware, or software in conjunction with hardware. Each functional block used in the description of each embodiment above can be partially or completely implemented by a large-scale integrated circuit (LSI), such as an integrated circuit (IC), and each process described in each embodiment can be partially or completely controlled by the same LSI or combination of LSIs. An LSI may be formed individually as a chip, or a single chip may be formed to include some or all of the functional blocks. An LSI may include data inputs and outputs coupled thereto. In this specification, LSIs may be called ICs, system LSIs, super LSIs, or ultra LSIs depending on their level of integration. However, the technology for implementing integrated circuits is not limited to LSIs and may be implemented using dedicated circuits, general-purpose processors, or application-specific processors. Furthermore, a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) may be used, which is programmable after manufacturing, allowing for the reconfiguration and configuration of the circuit cells located inside the LSI. This disclosure can be implemented as digital or analog processing. As a result of advancements in semiconductor technology and other derivative technologies, if future integrated circuit technology replaces LSIs, functional blocks can be integrated using future integrated circuit technology. Biotechnology can also be applied.

[0147] This disclosure can be implemented by any type of device, apparatus, or system having communication capabilities, referred to as a communication apparatus.

[0148] The communication device may have a transceiver and a processing / control circuit. The transceiver may have and / or function as a receiver and a transmitter. The transceiver as a transmitter and receiver may include an RF (Radio Frequency) module including an amplifier, an RF modulator / demodulator, and one or more antennas.

[0149] Some non-exclusive examples of such communication devices include telephones (e.g., cellular phones, smartphones), tablets, personal computers (PCs) (e.g., laptops, desktops, netbooks), cameras (e.g., digital still / video cameras), digital players (digital audio / video players), wearable devices (e.g., wearable cameras, smartwatches, tracking devices), game consoles, digital book readers, telehealth / telemedicine (remote health and medicine) devices, and vehicles that provide communication capabilities (e.g., automobiles, airplanes, ships), as well as various combinations thereof.

[0150] Communication devices are not limited to portable or mobile devices, but may include any type of non-portable or fixed device, device, or system, such as smart home devices (e.g., appliances, lighting, smart meters, control panels), vending machines, and any other "things" in the "Internet of Things (IoT)" network.

[0151] Communication may include, for example, exchanging data via cellular systems, wireless LAN systems, satellite systems, and various combinations thereof.

[0152] A communication device may include devices such as controllers or sensors coupled to a communication device that performs the communication functions described in this disclosure. For example, a communication device may include a controller or sensor that generates control signals or data signals used by the communication device that performs the communication functions of the communication device.

[0153] In addition, the communication equipment may include infrastructure facilities such as base stations, access points, and any other equipment, devices, or systems that communicate with or control equipment such as those in the non-limiting examples above.

[0154] Further aspects According to the first aspect, the user equipment UE is, During operation, the transceiver receives instructions for the reference resource and the component carrier, During operation, Based on the component carrier's instructions, select a component carrier to transmit the uplink control information UCI. Based on the configuration or UE capabilities, select the resource offset applicable to the selected component carrier. By applying the resource offset to the reference resource, the resource for sending the UCI is determined. Controls the transmission of UCI on the selected component carrier and determined resource. Circuits and, A user device UE is provided that includes the following features.

[0155] According to a second aspect provided in addition to the first aspect, the instruction of a component carrier is received via quasi-static signaling, the reference resource includes a timing reference, the resource offset includes a timing offset, and in determining the resource for transmitting the UCI, the circuit interprets the timing reference according to the reference neurology and interprets the timing offset according to the neurology of the selected component carrier.

[0156] According to a third aspect provided in addition to the first aspect, the component carrier instruction is dynamically received via downlink control information DCI, where the reference resource includes a timing reference, the resource offset includes a timing offset, and the timing reference and timing offset are indicated in time units applicable to the neurology of the selected component carrier.

[0157] According to a fourth aspect provided in addition to any of the first to third aspects, the resource offset is specified for each of a plurality of component carriers from which a component carrier for transmitting the UCI is selected.

[0158] According to a fifth aspect provided in addition to any of the first to third aspects, the resource offset is specified as common to all component carriers having the same neurology among a plurality of component carriers from which a component carrier for transmitting UCI is selected.

[0159] According to a sixth aspect provided in addition to any of the first to third aspects, a plurality of component carriers from which a component carrier for transmitting UCI is selected includes a component carrier configured for dynamic component carrier switching and a component carrier for quasi-static component carrier switching, wherein a first resource offset is specified as common to the component carrier configured for dynamic component carrier switching and a second resource offset is specified as common to the component carrier configured for quasi-static component carrier switching.

[0160] According to a seventh aspect provided in addition to the first aspect, the reference resource includes a timing reference, the resource offset includes a timing offset, the timing reference and resource offset are expressed in time units applicable to the neurology of a selected component carrier, and the circuit calculates the timing offset such that, during operation, the resource for transmitting the UCI starts at least a minimum processing time after the end of receiving the downlink message, the minimum processing time is based on UE capability.

[0161] According to an eighth aspect provided in addition to the first aspect, the reference resource instruction includes a timing pattern that, for each of a plurality of reference timings, instructs a component carrier instruction and a resource offset instruction.

[0162] According to the ninth aspect provided in addition to any of the first to seventh aspects, the resources for transmitting the UCI include one or more of the following: a starting slot, a number of slots, a starting symbol, a number of symbols, a physical resource block, or a cyclic shift index.

[0163] According to a tenth aspect provided in addition to any of the first to ninth aspects, a component carrier indication is dynamically received via DCI, and the circuit, during operation, determines, based on the component carrier indication, whether to select a first component carrier indicated by the indication or a second component carrier indicated by a timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching, and selects a component carrier for UCI transmission based on the result of the determination.

[0164] According to the 11th aspect, During operation, the transceiver dynamically receives instructions for the component carrier via downlink control information DCI, During operation, Based on the component carrier indication, it is determined whether to select a first component carrier indicated by the component carrier indication, or a second component carrier indicated by the timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching. Based on the determination result, select a component carrier for transmitting uplink control information UCI. Controls the transmission of UCI on the selected component carrier based on the determination result. Circuits and, A user device UE is provided that includes the following features.

[0165] According to a twelfth aspect provided in addition to the tenth or eleventh aspect, a first value indicates a first component carrier, and a second value indicates quasi-static carrier switching, wherein if the instruction indicates a first value, the circuit selects a first component carrier to transmit the UCI, and if the instruction indicates a second value, the circuit selects a second component carrier.

[0166] According to a thirteenth aspect provided in addition to the tenth or eleventh aspect, the first component carrier is a component carrier available for uplink transmission, If the component carrier instruction indicates the first component carrier, the circuit selects the first component carrier to transmit the UCI. If the component carrier indication indicates a component carrier unavailable for uplink transmission, the circuit selects a second component carrier.

[0167] According to the 14th aspect, A circuit that, during operation, allocates resources for receiving uplink control information UCI on a component carrier and a reference resource, wherein the resources for transmitting UCI can be determined by applying a set resource offset applicable to the component carrier to the reference resource. During operation, a transceiver transmits instructions for the reference resource and instructions for the component carrier, Equipped with, The circuit controls the reception of UCI on the resource for receiving UCI on the component carrier during operation. A base station will be provided.

[0168] According to a 15th aspect provided in addition to the 14th aspect, the instruction of a component carrier is transmitted via quasi-static signaling, the reference resource includes a timing reference, the resource offset includes a timing offset, and the resource for receiving the UCI can be determined by interpreting the timing reference according to the reference neurology and interpreting the timing offset according to the neurology of the selected component carrier.

[0169] According to a sixteenth aspect provided in addition to the fourteenth aspect, the instruction for the component carrier is transmitted dynamically via downlink control information DCI, where the reference resource includes a timing reference, the resource offset includes a timing offset, and the timing reference and timing offset are indicated in time units applicable to the neurology of the selected component carrier.

[0170] According to a 17th aspect provided in addition to any of the 14th to 16th aspects, the resource offset is specified for each of a plurality of component carriers from which a component carrier for receiving UCI is selected.

[0171] According to the 18th aspect, provided in addition to any of the 14th to 16th aspects, the resource offset is specified as common to all component carriers having the same neurology among a plurality of component carriers from which a component carrier for receiving UCI is selected.

[0172] According to a 19th aspect provided in addition to any of the 14th to 16th aspects, a plurality of component carriers from which a component carrier for receiving UCI is selected includes a component carrier configured for dynamic component carrier switching and a component carrier for quasi-static component carrier switching, wherein a first resource offset is specified as common to the component carrier configured for dynamic component carrier switching and a second resource offset is specified as common to the component carrier configured for quasi-static component carrier switching.

[0173] According to a 20th aspect provided in addition to the 14th aspect, the reference resource includes a timing reference, the resource offset includes a timing offset, the timing reference and resource offset are expressed in time units applicable to the neurology of a selected component carrier, and the circuit calculates the timing offset such that, during operation, the resource for receiving the UCI starts at least a minimum processing time after the end of receiving the downlink message, the minimum processing time is based on the UE capability.

[0174] According to a 21st aspect provided in addition to the 14th aspect, the reference resource instruction includes a timing pattern that, for each of a plurality of reference timings, instructs a component carrier instruction and a resource offset instruction.

[0175] According to the 22nd aspect, provided in addition to any of the 14th to 22nd aspects, the resources for receiving the UCI include one or more of the following: a starting slot, a number of slots, a starting symbol, a number of symbols, a physical resource block, or a cyclic shift index.

[0176] According to a 23rd aspect provided in addition to any one of the 14th to 22nd aspects, a component carrier instruction is transmitted dynamically via DCI and indicates whether to select a first component carrier indicated by the instruction or a second component carrier indicated by a timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching.

[0177] According to the 24th aspect, During operation, a circuit determines the component carrier for receiving the UCI from among the component carriers configured for dynamic carrier switching and component carriers configured for quasi-static switching. A transceiver that transmits a DCI indicating a component carrier for receiving DCI when a component carrier for dynamic switching is selected as the component carrier for receiving DCI, and a value indicating that quasi-static switching will be performed, or a value for a component carrier that is unavailable for UCI, when a component carrier for quasi-static switching is selected. Equipped with, The circuit controls the reception of UCI on the designated component carrier during operation. A base station will be provided.

[0178] According to the 25th aspect, performed by the UE, The steps include receiving instructions for a reference resource, Steps include receiving instructions from the component carrier, The steps include selecting a component carrier to transmit uplink control information UCI based on the component carrier's instructions, The steps include selecting a resource offset applicable to the selected component carrier based on the configuration or UE capabilities, The steps include determining the resource for sending the UCI by applying the resource offset to the reference resource, A step of controlling the transmission of UCI on the selected component carrier and determined resource, A method including this is provided.

[0179] Embodiments of the method according to the 25th aspect are provided in accordance with the features of the UE according to the second to tenth, twelfth, and thirteenth aspects.

[0180] According to the 26th aspect, performed by the UE, Steps include dynamically receiving instructions for the component carrier via downlink control information DCI, A step of determining, based on the component carrier indication, whether to select a first component carrier indicated by the component carrier indication or a second component carrier indicated by a timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching, The steps include selecting a component carrier for transmitting uplink control information UCI based on the result of the determination, A step of controlling the transmission of UCI on the component carrier selected based on the result of the determination, A method including this is provided.

[0181] Embodiments of the method according to the 26th aspect are provided in correspondence with the features of the UE according to the 12th or 13th aspect.

[0182] According to the 27th aspect, the following is performed by the base station: The steps include allocating resources to receive uplink control information UCI on the component carrier, A step of determining a reference resource, wherein the resource for transmitting the UCI can be determined by applying a set resource offset applicable to the component carrier to the reference resource, The steps include sending instructions for the reference resource, Steps include sending instructions to the component carrier, A step to control the reception of UCI in a resource for receiving UCI in a component carrier, A method including this is provided.

[0183] Embodiments of the method according to the 27th aspect are provided in correspondence with the features of the base station according to the 14th to 23rd aspects.

[0184] According to the 28th aspect, the following is performed by the base station: The steps include determining a component carrier for receiving UCI from among component carriers configured for dynamic carrier switching and component carriers configured for quasi-static switching, The steps include sending a DCI that indicates the component carrier for receiving the DCI if a component carrier for dynamic switching is selected as the component carrier for receiving the DCI, and a value indicating that quasi-static switching will be performed, or a value for a component carrier that is unavailable for the UCI, if a component carrier for quasi-static switching is selected. A step to control the reception of UCI on the designated component carrier, A method including this is provided.

[0185] According to the 29th aspect, an integrated circuit (IC) that controls the processing of user equipment during operation, wherein the processing is performed by the user equipment, The steps include receiving instructions for a reference resource, Steps include receiving instructions from the component carrier, The steps include selecting a component carrier to transmit uplink control information UCI based on the component carrier's instructions, The steps include selecting a resource offset applicable to the selected component carrier based on the configuration or UE capabilities, The steps include determining the resource for sending the UCI by applying the resource offset to the reference resource, A step of controlling the transmission of UCI on the selected component carrier and determined resource, including, Integrated circuits (ICs) are provided.

[0186] Embodiments of the IC according to the 29th aspect are provided in accordance with the features of the UE according to any of the second to tenth, twelfth, and thirteenth aspects.

[0187] According to the 30th aspect, an integrated circuit that controls the processing of user equipment during operation, wherein the processing is performed by the user equipment, Steps include dynamically receiving instructions for the component carrier via downlink control information DCI, A step of determining, based on the component carrier indication, whether to select a first component carrier indicated by the component carrier indication or a second component carrier indicated by a timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching, The steps include selecting a component carrier for transmitting uplink control information UCI based on the result of the determination, A step of controlling the transmission of UCI on the component carrier selected based on the result of the determination, including, An integrated circuit is provided.

[0188] According to the 31st aspect, an integrated circuit that controls the processing of a base station during operation, wherein the processing is performed by the base station, The steps include allocating resources to receive uplink control information UCI on the component carrier, A step of determining a reference resource, wherein the resource for transmitting the UCI can be determined by applying a set resource offset applicable to the component carrier to the reference resource, The steps include sending instructions for the reference resource, Steps include sending instructions to the component carrier, A step to control the reception of UCI in a resource for receiving UCI in a component carrier, including, An integrated circuit is provided.

[0189] An embodiment of the IC according to the 31st aspect is provided corresponding to the features of a base station according to any of the 14th to 23rd aspects.

[0190] According to the 32nd aspect, an integrated circuit that controls the processing of a base station during operation, wherein the processing is performed by the base station, The steps include determining a component carrier for receiving UCI from among component carriers configured for dynamic carrier switching and component carriers configured for quasi-static switching, The steps include sending a DCI that indicates the component carrier for receiving the DCI if a component carrier for dynamic switching is selected as the component carrier for receiving the DCI, and a value indicating that quasi-static switching will be performed, or a value for a component carrier that is unavailable for the UCI, if a component carrier for quasi-static switching is selected. A step to control the reception of UCI on the designated component carrier, including, An integrated circuit is provided.

[0191] In summary, the technology disclosed herein comprises user equipment (UE), base stations, methods for UE, and methods for base stations. The UE includes a transceiver that, in operation, receives instructions for a reference resource and instructions for a component carrier, and a circuit that, in operation, selects a component carrier for transmitting uplink control information UCI based on the instructions for a component carrier, selects a resource offset applicable to the selected component carrier based on the configuration or UE capability, applies the resource offset to the reference resource to determine the resource for transmitting the UCI, and controls the transmission of the UCI on the selected component carrier and the determined resource.

Claims

1. User equipment (UE), A transceiver that receives instructions for a reference resource and instructions for a component carrier, the instructions for the component carrier being dynamically received via downlink control information (DCI), Based on the instruction of the component carrier, it is determined whether to select either the first component carrier indicated by the instruction or the second component carrier indicated by the timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching. Based on the results of the above determination, a component carrier for transmitting uplink control information (UCI) is selected. Based on the settings or UE capabilities, select a resource offset applicable to the selected component carrier. By applying the resource offset to the reference resource, the resource for transmitting the UCI is determined. Controls the transmission of the UCI on the selected component carrier and the determined resource. Circuits and, User equipment (UE) equipped with these features.

2. The instruction of the component carrier is received via quasi-static signaling, the reference resource includes a timing reference, the resource offset includes a timing offset, and in the determination of the resource for transmitting the UCI, the circuit interprets the timing reference according to the reference neurology and interprets the timing offset according to the neurology of the selected component carrier. The UE according to claim 1.

3. The instruction for the component carrier is dynamically received via downlink control information (DCI), the reference resource includes a timing reference, the resource offset includes a timing offset, and the timing reference and the timing offset are indicated in time units applicable to the neurology of the selected component carrier. The UE according to claim 1.

4. The reference resource includes a timing reference, the resource offset includes a timing offset, the timing reference and the resource offset are expressed in time units applicable to the neurology of the selected component carrier, the circuit calculates the timing offset such that the resource for transmitting the UCI starts at least a minimum processing time after the end of receiving the downlink message, the minimum processing time is based on UE capability, The UE according to claim 1.

5. The instruction of the reference resource includes a timing pattern indicating the instruction of the component carrier for each of the multiple reference timings, The UE according to claim 1.

6. The resource for transmitting the UCI includes one or more of the following: a starting slot, a number of slots, a starting symbol, a number of symbols, a physical resource block, or a cyclic shift index. The UE according to claim 1.

7. A first value indicates the first component carrier, and a second value indicates quasi-static carrier switching. When the instruction indicates the first value, the circuit selects the first component carrier to transmit the UCI, and when the instruction indicates the second value, the circuit selects the second component carrier. The UE according to claim 6.

8. The aforementioned first component carrier is a component carrier that can be used for uplink transmission. If the instruction for the component carrier indicates the first component carrier, the circuit selects the first component carrier to transmit the UCI. If the instruction for the component carrier indicates a component carrier that is unavailable for uplink transmission, the circuit selects the second component carrier. The UE according to claim 6.

9. A circuit for allocating resources for receiving uplink control information (UCI) and a reference resource on a component carrier, wherein the resources for transmitting the UCI can be determined by applying a set resource offset applicable to the component carrier to the reference resource, A transceiver that dynamically transmits instructions for the aforementioned reference resource and instructions for the aforementioned component carrier via downlink control information (DCI), Equipped with, Based on the instruction for the component carrier, either a first component carrier indicated by the instruction or a second component carrier indicated by a timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching is selected. The circuit controls the reception of the UCI on the resource for receiving the UCI on the selected component carrier. Base station.

10. A communication method for user equipment (UE), Receiving instructions for the reference resource, The component carrier receives instructions, and these instructions are dynamically received via downlink control information (DCI). Based on the instruction of the component carrier, it is determined whether to select either the first component carrier indicated by the instruction or the second component carrier indicated by the timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching. Based on the results of the above determination, a component carrier for transmitting uplink control information (UCI) is selected, Select a resource offset applicable to the selected component carrier based on the settings or UE capabilities, The resource for transmitting the UCI is determined by applying the resource offset to the reference resource, Controlling the transmission of the UCI on the selected component carrier and the determined resource, A communication method for user equipment (UE), including [the specified term].

11. Allocating resources to receive uplink control information (UCI) on the component carrier, Determining a reference resource, wherein the resource for transmitting the UCI can be determined by applying a set resource offset applicable to the component carrier to the reference resource, Sending instructions for the aforementioned reference resource, The instructions for the component carrier are dynamically transmitted via downlink control information (DCI), Controlling the reception of the UCI on the resource for receiving the UCI on either the first component carrier indicated by the instruction, selected based on the instruction of the component carrier, or the second component carrier indicated by the timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching, A communication method for base stations, including...

12. User equipment (UE) The steps include receiving instructions for a reference resource, The steps include receiving instructions from a component carrier, the instructions from the component carrier being dynamically received via downlink control information (DCI), A step of determining whether to select a first component carrier indicated by the instruction for the component carrier, or a second component carrier indicated by a timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching, based on the instruction for the component carrier, Based on the result of the above determination, the step of selecting a component carrier for transmitting uplink control information (UCI), The steps include selecting a resource offset applicable to the selected component carrier based on the settings or UE capabilities, The steps include determining the resources for transmitting the UCI by applying the resource offset to the reference resource, A step of controlling the transmission of the UCI on the selected component carrier and the determined resource, An integrated circuit that makes something happen.

13. A base station, The steps include allocating resources to receive uplink control information (UCI) on the component carrier, A step of determining a reference resource, wherein the resource for transmitting the UCI can be determined by applying a set resource offset applicable to the component carrier to the reference resource, The steps include sending instructions for the aforementioned reference resource, The steps include dynamically transmitting instructions for the component carrier via downlink control information (DCI), A step of controlling the reception of the UCI on the resource for receiving the UCI on either of the component carriers, which is a first component carrier selected based on the instruction of the component carrier and indicated by the instruction, and a second component carrier indicated by a timing pattern for quasi-static carrier switching; An integrated circuit that makes something happen.

Images