COMMUNICATION DEVICE, COMMUNICATION METHOD, AND INTEGRATED CIRCUIT

Abstract

This communication device comprises: a control circuit for disposing a signal for side-link communication in a frequency resource that satisfies a bandwidth limit regarding the frequency range in an unlicensed band; and a transmission circuit for transmitting the signal.

Description

Communication device and communication method

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a communication device and a communication method.

[0002] The expansion of communication systems known as 5th Generation mobile communication systems (5G) is currently being considered. The international standardization organization 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) is considering the advancement of communication systems from both the perspective of upgrading the Long Term Evolution (LTE) system and New Radio (NR). For example, with the increasing capacity of communication, 3GPP is considering the use of unlicensed bands in addition to licensed bands.

[0003] 3GPP, TR 38.885 V16.0.0, “Study on NR Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X)”RP-201385, “WID revision: NR sidelink enhancement,” LG Electronics, June 29 - July 3, 2020RP-213678, “New WID on NR sidelink evolution,” OPPO, LG Electronics, Dec. 6 - 17, 20213GPP, TS 37.213 V17.1.0, “Physical layer procedures for shared spectrum channel access,”

[0004] However, in unlicensed bands, there is room for further consideration regarding resource allocation in the frequency direction.

[0005] Non-limiting examples of the present disclosure contribute to providing a communication device and a communication method that can appropriately allocate resources in the frequency direction in an unlicensed band.

[0006] A communication device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a control circuit that allocates a signal for sidelink communication to a frequency resource that satisfies a bandwidth restriction related to a frequency band in an unlicensed band, and a transmission circuit that transmits the signal.

[0007] These comprehensive or specific aspects may be realized as a system, an apparatus, a method, an integrated circuit, a computer program, or a recording medium, or may be realized as any combination of a system, an apparatus, a method, an integrated circuit, a computer program, and a recording medium.

[0008] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, it is possible to appropriately allocate resources in the frequency direction in an unlicensed band.

[0009] Further advantages and benefits of certain aspects of the present disclosure will become apparent from the specification and drawings. Such advantages and / or benefits may be provided by some of the embodiments and features described in the specification and drawings, respectively, but not necessarily all of them may be provided to obtain one or more identical features.

[0010] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of arrangement of PSCCH, PSSCH, and PSFCH in a slot. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of specifications related to the frequency of signals in an unlicensed band. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of interlace allocation. Block diagram showing a configuration example of a part of a base station. Block diagram showing a configuration example of a part of a terminal. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of arrangement of S-SS / PSBCH blocks in operation example 1-1 of embodiment 1. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of arrangement of S-SS / PSBCH blocks in operation example 1-2 of embodiment 1. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of arrangement of S-SS / PSBCH blocks in operation example 1-3 of embodiment 1. Block diagram showing a configuration of a terminal according to embodiment 1. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of subchannels in operation example 2-1 of embodiment 2. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of subchannels in operation example 2-2 of embodiment 2. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a first example of allocation in operation example 2-3 of embodiment 2. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a second example of allocation in operation example 2-3 of embodiment 2. Block diagram showing a configuration of a terminal according to embodiment 2. FIG. 11 is an example of arrangement in operation example 3-1 of embodiment 3. FIG. 12 is an example of allocation in operation example 3-2 of embodiment 3. A sequence diagram of the procedure for setup / reconfiguration of a 5G (Mobile Broadband Control) connection. A schematic diagram illustrating usage scenarios for enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), massive Machine Type Communications (mMTC), and Ultra Reliable and Low Latency Communications (URLLC). A block diagram illustrating an exemplary 5G system architecture for a non-roaming scenario.

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0012] [Vehicle to X (V2X)] An expansion of communication systems known as 5th Generation mobile communication systems (5G) is being considered. 5G is being considered to provide flexible functions for each use case that requires increased communication traffic, an increase in the number of connected devices, high reliability, and low latency.

[0013] The 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project), an international standardization organization, is studying the advancement of communication systems from both the perspective of the Long Term Evolution (LTE) system and New Radio (NR). 3GPP has been studying support for V2X (vehicle to X) in the LTE system. NR, which can use a wider bandwidth than LTE, is also studying support for V2X (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 1).

[0014] In addition to V2X, further expansion of communication using side links is being considered (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 2). V2X is expected to cover vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V: Vehicle to Vehicle), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I: Vehicle to Infrastructure), vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P: Vehicle to Pedestrian), and vehicle-to-network (V2N: Vehicle to Network) communication.

[0015] In V2V, V2I, and V2P, signals can be transmitted and received directly between terminals using a link called a sidelink (SL) or PC5, without going through a network with a base station (for example, a network via a base station). In V2N, communication is assumed to occur via a link called Uu between a base station and a terminal. Note that a base station may be referred to as a gNB in ​​NR or an eNB in ​​LTE.

[0016] In addition, the use of sidelink communication in unlicensed bands is also being considered (see, for example, Non-Patent Document 3).

[0017] [NR Sidelink] NR sidelink supports unicast, groupcast, and broadcast transmissions. Unicast is assumed to be one-to-one transmission from a transmitting terminal (e.g., Tx UE) to a receiving terminal (e.g., Rx UE). Groupcast is assumed to be transmission from a transmitting terminal to one or more receiving terminals included in a group. Broadcast is assumed to be transmission from a transmitting terminal without specifying a receiving terminal.

[0018] In the NR sidelink, a control signal called SCI (sidelink control information) is transmitted and received. The SCI may also be referred to as control information. The SCI is divided into a first-stage SCI and a second-stage SCI. The first-stage SCI is allocated to a physical SL control channel (PSCCH). The second-stage SCI is allocated to at least a portion of a physical SL shared channel (PSSCH) that transmits and receives data. Dividing the SCI into two parts can reduce the number of bits and size of the first-stage SCI. In the sidelink, a certain terminal (e.g., terminal A) has a function of receiving a PSCCH transmitted from another terminal other than terminal A, understanding the resource usage status of the other terminal, and then determining the resources that terminal A will use for transmission. This function is also referred to as sensing.

[0019] In the sidelink, signals are transmitted and received on the following channels: -PSCCH (physical SL control channel): 1st-stage SCI (Sidelink control information) is allocated in the PSCCH. -PSSCH (physical SL shared channel): Data signals and 2nd-stage SCI are allocated in the PSSCH. -PSFCH (physical SL feedback channel): Feedback signals for the PSSCH are allocated in the PSFCH. The feedback signals indicate, for example, an acknowledgement (ACK) indicating successful reception of the PSSCH or a negative acknowledgement (NACK) indicating unsuccessful reception of the PSSCH. The feedback signals can be applied when the PSSCH is unicast or groupcast. In addition, in Release 17 (Rel. 17) and later, the PSFCH may be transmitted as inter-UE coordination when a collision is detected. -PSBCH (physical SL broadcast channel): Broadcast signals are allocated in the PSBCH. The SBCH is transmitted together with a synchronization signal. The synchronization signal may be, for example, a sidelink primary synchronization signal (S-PSS) and / or a sidelink secondarily synchronization signal (S-SSS). The SBCH transmitted together with the synchronization signal is also referred to as a sidelink synchronization signal block (S-SSB).

[0020] Note that a signal transmitted and received in a sidelink may be referred to as a sidelink signal. Also, for example, "transmission of information (or a signal) allocated to a PSCCH" may be abbreviated as "transmission of a PSCCH" hereinafter. Also, in the following description, PSCCH may refer to a resource defined as a PSCCH, or may refer to information (or a signal) allocated to a resource defined as a PSCCH. Channels other than a PSCCH may also be abbreviated as PSCCH.

[0021] Figure 1 shows an example of the arrangement of PSCCH, PSSCH, and PSFCH in a slot. The horizontal axis of Figure 1 represents the time axis, and the vertical axis represents the frequency axis in units of PRB (physical resource block). Figure 1 shows two examples, example (a) and example (b).

[0022] Note that the PSFCH may be arranged as shown in example (a). Alternatively, as shown in example (b), the PSFCH may not be arranged depending on the setting. If the PSFCH is not arranged, the PSSCH area may be increased.

[0023] The number of symbols of the sidelink signal in a slot may be variable depending on the setting. Furthermore, the arrangement of the 2nd-stage SCI is changed depending on the arrangement of the DMRS of the PSSCH (not shown). The 1st-stage SCI is arranged starting from the lowest frequency resource among the frequency resources to which the PSSCH is allocated. A copy of the first symbol of the PSCCH and PSSCH is arranged in the symbol before the first symbol of the PSCCH and PSSCH for AGC (Auto Gain Control). Furthermore, as shown in example (a), a copy of the PSFCH is also arranged before the PSFCH symbol for AGC.

[0024] In example (a), gaps for switching between transmission and reception are placed in the interval between the PSSCH and the PSFCH and in the interval after the last symbol of the PSFCH. In example (b), gaps for switching between transmission and reception are placed in the interval after the last symbol of the PSSCH. The gaps may correspond to intervals in which no signals are transmitted or received.

[0025] NR sidelink communication has two modes, Mode 1 and Mode 2. In Mode 1, the base station determines the resources that a terminal will use on the sidelink. In Mode 2, the terminal determines the resources to use on the sidelink from resources in a predetermined resource pool. Mode 1 is intended for use in an environment where the base station and terminal are connected and the terminal communicating on the sidelink can receive instructions from the base station. In Mode 2, the terminal can transmit on the sidelink without instructions from the base station, allowing communication on the sidelink with terminals under different operators and / or terminals outside the base station's coverage.

[0026] The resources used for the sidelink are configured by the SL BWP (sidelink bandwidth part) and resource pool. The SL BWP specifies the frequency band available for the sidelink and is configured separately from the DL BWP (downlink bandwidth part) and UL BWP (uplink bandwidth part) configured between the base station and the terminal (Uu). However, at least a portion of the frequency band available for the sidelink may overlap with the UL BWP. The resource pool specifies resources within the SL BWP in the frequency and time directions. Multiple resource pools may be configured for one terminal. The frequency resources within a resource pool are divided into units called subchannels, and resource allocation can be configured for each subchannel. A subchannel includes multiple PRBs (physical resource blocks). PSSCH can be allocated in units called subchannels, which are groups of multiple PRBs.

[0027] [Background: NR-U] As communication capacity increases, 3GPP is also considering the use of unlicensed bands in addition to licensed bands. NR that utilizes unlicensed bands is also called NR-U (unlicensed). NR-U adds and enhances operations to maintain fairness when coexisting with other devices, such as Wi-Fi (registered trademark) and / or LTE-based Licensed Assisted Access (LAA).

[0028] In unlicensed bands, a communication device (e.g., an NR-U base station or terminal) performs LBT (Listen Before Talk) to maintain fairness with other devices and starts transmission only after confirming that no other devices are transmitting signals nearby. LBT may be replaced with other terms such as carrier sense or sensing. After performing LBT and confirming that no other devices are transmitting signals nearby, the communication device sets a channel occupancy time (COT). Within the COT, the communication device can transmit and receive signals in downlink (DL) resources and UL resources.

[0029] There are two methods for operating LBT. The first method is LBE (Load Based Equipment). In LBE, when a communication device acquires a COT, it performs Type 1 LBT (also known as category 4 LBT). In addition, except at the beginning of the COT, the communication device can perform Type 2 LBT and start transmission after it has performed it.

[0030] In the following description, when a communication device (e.g., a base station or a terminal) "starts transmission after performing LBT," this corresponds to the communication device starting transmission after performing LBT and confirming that no other devices are transmitting signals nearby.

[0031] Table 1 shows an example of the sensing interval of the LBT for acquiring the transmission right in the LBE and the interval to be applied.

[0032] In Type 1 LBT, each parameter related to LBT is set by setting the Channel Access Priority Class. Table 2 shows an example of the setting of each parameter shown in Non-Patent Document 4. Table 2 shows the correspondence between the Channel Access Priority Class and each parameter.

[0033] The terminal (an example of a communication device) is 16+9*m p In addition to the sensing interval, carrier sense is repeated for 9*N sensing intervals, and if it is confirmed that the channel is free, transmission can be started. Note that a state in which the channel is free is sometimes referred to as an idle state, and a state in which the channel is not free (for example, a state in which the channel is in use) is sometimes referred to as a busy state. Confirming that the channel is free may be confirmation that other devices are not transmitting signals. Furthermore, the sensing interval may be replaced with other notations such as sensing time or carrier sense interval.

[0034] The value of N is decremented (counted down) by 1 each time it is confirmed that the channel is free. If the channel is busy, the countdown of N is stopped and it is counted down to 16+9*m p After confirming that the channel is free during this period, it counts down again. The initial value of N is randomly selected from 0 to CW_p. CW_p is selected from the allowed CW_p sizes. The initial value of CW_p is CW_(min,p). If a specified number of communication errors occurred due to collisions in the previous transmission, the value of CW_p is increased by one step. For example, if Channel Access Priority Class p=1 and CW_p=CW_(min,p), then according to Table 2, CW_p=3. In this case, the initial value of N is randomly set from 0 to 3, i.e., from {0,1,2,3}. For example, when the initial values ​​of N are 0, 1, 2, and 3, the sensing periods are 25 μs, 34 μs, 43 μs, and 52 μs, respectively.

[0035] In Type 2A, if the interval between two consecutive resources is 25 μs, the terminal performs LBT within 25 μs. The terminal can start transmission if it does not confirm transmission from other devices in the LBT. In Type 2B, if the interval between two consecutive resources is 16 μs, the terminal performs LBT within 16 μs. The terminal can start transmission if it does not confirm transmission from other devices. In Type 2C, if the interval between two consecutive resources is less than 16 μs, the terminal can start transmission without LBT. As an exception, when transmitting a DRS (Discovery Reference Signal), since the transmission time of the DRS is short, it is possible to start transmission by performing Type 2A LBT instead of Type 1 LBT.

[0036] Type 1 LBT, Type 2A LBT, Type 2B LBT, and Type 2C LBT are examples of sensing methods for checking the availability of a channel. As described above, the sensing period is defined depending on the sensing method.

[0037] The second operating method is FBE (Frame Based Equipment). FBE assumes that other devices such as Wi-Fi are not installed in the same space, and operates by fixing the frame period and performing LBT at the beginning of the frame to obtain the COT. In FBE, the COT can only be obtained from the beginning of the frame interval (Fixed Frame Period). FBE also stipulates that an idle period of 5% or more must be set for each frame interval.

[0038] In each of the following embodiments, an example of performing sidelink communication in an unlicensed band is shown.

[0039] In sidelink communications in the licensed band, the PSCCH is transmitted in consecutive PRBs. The PSSCH is also transmitted in consecutive PRBs. When the PSCCH and the PSSCH are transmitted in the same symbol, the PSCCH is allocated to a PRB with a lower PRB number, and the PSSCH is allocated to PRBs allocated to the PSSCH that were not used for the PSCCH. The size of the PSCCH is set to 10, 12, 15, 20, or 25 PRBs, and is set for each resource pool. The subchannel size of the PSSCH is set for each resource pool from among 10, 12, 15, 20, 25, 50, 75, or 100, and the subchannel position and number of resources to which the PSSCH is allocated are specified in the PSCCH.

[0040] In unlicensed bands, ETSI (ETSI EN 301 893 V2.1.1 (2017-05)) stipulates that the Occupied Channel Bandwidth (OCB) must be 80% to 100% of the Nominal Channel Bandwidth (NCB). The requirement that the OCB must be 80% or more of the NCB is hereinafter referred to as the OCB requirement. When this OCB requirement is met, the unlicensed band signal is transmitted using frequencies that are 80% or more of the NCB frequency band.

[0041] In the following description, the OCB requirement is that the OCB must satisfy 80% or more of the NCB, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. The OCB requirement that the OCB must satisfy 80% or more of the NCB is an example of a bandwidth restriction related to a frequency band.

[0042] Figure 2 shows an example of regulations regarding the frequencies of signals in unlicensed bands. "OCB 80%" in Figure 2 indicates that OCB occupies 80% or more of the frequency band of NCB. Note that in the following figures, "OCB 80%" also indicates that OCB occupies 80% or more of the frequency band of NCB.

[0043] As shown in FIG. 2, the signal of the unlicensed band may be transmitted continuously using 80% or more of the frequency band of the NCB, or may be arranged so that the width of both ends of the frequency axis of the divided multiple resources is 80% or more of the frequency band of the NCB.

[0044] In NR-U and LAA, interlace allocation is introduced to meet the OCB requirements in this frequency domain.

[0045] Table 3 shows an example of the relationship between SCS (subcarrier spacing) and interlaces. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of interlace allocation. In Table 3, M indicates the number of interlaces, and N indicates the number of PRBs. FIG. 3 shows interlace allocation when the SCS is 30 kHz. In NR-U interlace allocation, as shown in Table 3 and FIG. 3, for example, when the SCS is 30 kHz, there are five interlaces (M=5) in a 20 MHz band, and one interlace has 10 or 11 PRBs (N PRBs).

[0046] For sidelink communications in unlicensed bands, there is room for further consideration regarding resource allocation that satisfies the above-mentioned OCB regulations. For example, there has been insufficient consideration to ensure that resource allocation for sidelink communications signals is appropriate to satisfy the OCB regulations.

[0047] Therefore, in one non-limiting embodiment of the present disclosure, a method for appropriately allocating resources in the frequency direction in an unlicensed band will be described.

[0048] For example, in each of the following embodiments, sidelink signals in an unlicensed band are distributed and transmitted on the frequency axis, thereby satisfying the above-mentioned OCB regulations and enabling appropriate resource allocation.

[0049] Although the embodiments described below exemplify sidelink communication, the present disclosure is not limited to sidelink communication. Furthermore, although the embodiments described below exemplify unlicensed bands, the present disclosure is not limited to unlicensed bands.

[0050] [Overview of Communication System] A communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a base station 100 and a terminal 200.

[0051] Fig. 4A is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a portion of the base station 100. In the base station 100 shown in Fig. 4A, the control unit 102 controls communication between the terminal 200 and the base station 100 via a link called Uu. The radio transceiver unit 101 transmits a signal via the link called Uu under the control of the control unit 102. The control unit 102 may also perform control related to sidelink communication between multiple terminals (e.g., determining resources in Mode 1).

[0052] 4B is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a portion of the terminal 200. In the terminal 200 (an example of a "communication device") shown in FIG. 4B, the control unit 220 (e.g., corresponding to a control circuit) allocates a sidelink communication signal to a frequency resource that satisfies a bandwidth restriction related to a frequency band in an unlicensed band. Furthermore, the radio transceiver unit 221 (e.g., corresponding to a transmission circuit) transmits the signal. The sidelink communication signal may be at least one of a synchronization signal, a broadcast signal, a data signal, a control signal, and a feedback signal. Furthermore, the bandwidth restriction related to the frequency band may correspond to, for example, the OCB specification described above, or may correspond to a restriction different from the OCB specification described above.

[0053] (Embodiment 1) In this embodiment 1, an example will be described in which, when a terminal transmits a synchronization signal and / or a broadcast signal in an unlicensed band, the synchronization signal and / or the broadcast signal are distributed on the frequency axis so as to satisfy the OCB regulations.

[0054] The sidelink synchronization signal S-PSS / S-SSS and a broadcast signal (e.g., PSBCH) are transmitted in the same slot. The S-PSS / S-SSS and a broadcast signal (e.g., PSBCH) are collectively referred to as an S-SS / PSBCH block. In the following description, the term "synchronization signal" may include both the synchronization signal and the broadcast signal.

[0055] In the licensed band, the S-SS / PSBCH block is allocated to 132 consecutive subcarriers (hereinafter, the 132 subcarriers may be referred to as indexes #0 to #131). The position of the subcarrier with index #66 is set by a higher layer or by the predetermined parameter sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB, which determines the frequency position of the S-SS / PSBCH block.

[0056] The 132 subcarriers correspond to 11 consecutive PRBs. The terminal does not transmit the PSCCH and / or PSSCH in slots in which it transmits S-SS / PSBCH blocks. Note that hereinafter, the PSCCH and / or PSSCH may be referred to as "PSCCH / PSSCH" or "PSSCH / PSCCH."

[0057] The sl-Absolute Frequency SSB is selected from a frequency interval called the synchronization raster, which can be identified by the Global Synchronization Channel Number (GSCN). This allows a terminal to detect the synchronization signal when it is turned on or when it loses synchronization.

[0058] If the allocation of S-SS / PSBCH blocks in a licensed band is applied to an unlicensed band as is, for example, in a case where the SCS is 30 kHz and a 20 MHz band is used, transmission is performed using only 11 PRBs out of 51. If transmission is performed using only 11 PRBs out of 51 PRBs, there is a problem in that the OCB regulations illustrated in Figure 2 are not met.

[0059] In NR-U, GSCNs are set for frequencies n46 and n96, but the positions set by the GSCNs are absolute positions relative to the band. Therefore, for example, the relative positions from the position of PRB#0 differ depending on the setting of the 20 MHz band used.

[0060] Table 4 shows an example of the position of the SS / PSBCH block. Table 4 also shows the range of GSCN for the frequencies n46 and n96. As shown in Table 4, the position of the SS / PSBCH block may be limited to the GSCN numbers shown in the NOTE. In n46 and n96, one GSCN is set for each 20 Hz band, but the position set by the GSCN is an absolute position with respect to the band, so the relative position from the position of PRB#0 will vary depending on the setting of the 20 MHz band used, for example.

[0061] As described above, when the allocation of S-SS / PSBCH blocks in a licensed band is applied to an unlicensed band, the allocation of S-SS / PSBCH blocks may not satisfy the OCB regulations. Therefore, in this first embodiment, the S-SS / PSBCH blocks are allocated by distributing them on the frequency axis so as to satisfy the OCB regulations, using the following operation example.

[0062] [Operation Example 1-1] This operation example 1-1 shows an example in which the sidelink S-SS / PSBCH block is transmitted at the position set by sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB, and additionally, an S-SS / PSBCH block or a part of an S-SS / PSBCH block is transmitted at a position other than the position set by sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB, thereby satisfying the OCB regulations.

[0063] In this operation example 1-1, the frequency position specified by sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB may be the same as the GSCN value of AbsoluteFrequencySSB used for the Uu link between the base station and the terminal.

[0064] Figure 5 is a diagram showing an example of S-SS / PSBCH block allocation in operation example 1-1 of embodiment 1. (1), (2), and (3) of Figure 5 show examples of S-SS / PSBCH block allocation on the frequency axis. Note that the vertical axis of (1), (2), and (3) of Figure 5 represents the frequency axis.

[0065] For example, in Operation Example 1-1, as shown in (1) of FIG. 5, the OCB requirement is satisfied by transmitting an additional S-SS / PSBCH block ("S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd)" in FIG. 5) in addition to the S-SS / PSBCH block configured by sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB ("S-SS / PSBCH block (1st)" in FIG. 5). Hereinafter, as in FIG. 5, the S-SS / PSBCH block configured by sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB will be referred to as the "S-SS / PSBCH block (1st)," and the additionally transmitted S-SS / PSBCH block will be referred to as the "S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd)" or the "S-SS / PSBCH block (3rd)." As shown in (1), (2), and (3) of FIG. 5, sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB indicates, for example, the center position of the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st) in the frequency direction. In other words, the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st) is arranged in the frequency direction in a band centered on the position indicated by sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB.

[0066] The S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) may be the same signal as the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st), may be a signal in which the PRBs of the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st) are arranged in reverse order, or may be a signal in which part of the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st) is copied. The S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) may be arranged from the edge of the NCB band.

[0067] Furthermore, for example, in operation example 1-1, as shown in (2) of FIG. 5, if the OCB regulations are not satisfied even when an S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) is transmitted in addition to the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st) set by sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB, an additional S-SS / PSBCH block ("S-SS / PSBCH block (3rd)" in FIG. 5) may be transmitted.

[0068] The S-SS / PSBCH block (3rd) may be located at the opposite frequency end of the S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) on the frequency axis. For example, if the SCS is 30 kHz and the bandwidth is 20 MHz, the NCB includes 51 PRBs. If the frequency location of the S-SS / PSBCH block specified by the GSCN is PRB #10 to PRB #21, placing the S-SS / PSBCH block in the PRB with the larger frequency number (e.g., PRB #39 to PRB #50) would not satisfy the OCB requirement. Therefore, transmitting the S-SS / PSBCH block (3rd) satisfies the OCB requirement.

[0069] Also, for example, in operation example 1-1, as shown in (3) of FIG. 5, in addition to the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st) set by sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB, an S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) and an S-SS / PSBCH block (3rd) may be transmitted in addition, regardless of the position where the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st) is set.

[0070] Note that the S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) and the S-SS / PSBCH block (3rd) may be a signal obtained by copying at least a portion of the signal of the S-SS / PSBCH block, such as a signal identical to the demodulation reference signal (DMRS) of the PSBCH block, or may be a signal obtained by changing the arrangement (order) of at least a portion of the signal of the S-SS / PSBCH block. Furthermore, the number of PRBs between the S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) and the S-SS / PSBCH block (3rd) may be 11 PRBs or may be a number less than 11 PRBs, such as 1 PRB or 2 PRBs. Furthermore, the total size of the S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) and the S-SS / PSBCH block (3rd) may be 11 PRBs, or a signal equivalent to the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st) may be transmitted by combining the S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) and the S-SS / PSBCH block (3rd).

[0071] As described above, in Operation Example 1-1, even if the OCB regulations cannot be met by transmitting only the S-SS / PSBCH block set by sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB, the OCB regulations can be met by transmitting an additional signal. Furthermore, the position of the additionally transmitted signal (e.g., S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd)) may be a position set by a fixed value, a position determined for each resource pool, or may be notified in the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st).

[0072] [Operation Example 1-2] Figure 6 is a diagram showing an example of S-SS / PSBCH block allocation in Operation Example 1-2 of Embodiment 1. (1) and (2) of Figure 6 show an example of S-SS / PSBCH block allocation on the frequency axis. Note that the vertical axis of (1) and (2) of Figure 6 represents the frequency axis.

[0073] In this operation example 1-2, as shown in FIG. 6 , in the unlicensed band of the sidelink, the OCB regulations are satisfied by the position of the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st) set by sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB and the S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) to be additionally transmitted.

[0074] In this operation example 1-2, the position of the S-SS / PSBCH block specified by sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB may be a value different from the GSCN value set by AbsoluteFrequencySSB used for the S-SS / PSBCH block of the Uu link.

[0075] As described above, in Operation Example 1-2, the position of the S-SS / PSBCH block set by sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB is set at one end of the frequency direction, and the position of the S-SS / PSBCH block to be transmitted is set at the other end of the frequency direction, thereby satisfying the OCB regulations. Furthermore, by setting the position different from the Uu link synchronization signal, mutual interference can be prevented.

[0076] The additionally transmitted S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) may have the same size as the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st), as shown in (1) of FIG. 6 . In this case, the additionally transmitted S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) may be a copy of the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st). Alternatively, the additionally transmitted S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) may have a different size from the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st), as shown in (2) of FIG. 6 . In this case, the additionally transmitted S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) may be a copy of part of the S-SS / PSBCH block (1st). Alternatively, the additionally transmitted S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) of FIG. 6 (2) may be specified in the same way as the S-SS / PSBCH block (2nd) shown in (3) of FIG. 5 .

[0077] [Operation Example 1-3] Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of S-SS / PSBCH block allocation in Operation Example 1-3 of Embodiment 1. Fig. 7 shows an example of S-SS / PSBCH block allocation on the frequency axis. Note that the vertical axis in Fig. 7 represents the frequency axis.

[0078] In this operation example 1-3, as shown in FIG. 7, the S-SS / PSBCH block is transmitted in an interlace. The interlace to be used may be specified depending on the number of PRBs. For example, in a resource of 11 PRBs, it may be specified that the S-SS / PSBCH block is transmitted in interlace #0. In this case, a signal similar to the S-SS / PSBCH block of the licensed band transmitted in 11 PRBs is assigned to the interlaced PRB. Furthermore, when a guard band is set for each frequency band in which LBT is implemented, even if the frequency band in which LBT is implemented is 20 MHz, the number of PRBs may not be 51 PRBs. In this case, if 11 PRBs cannot be secured in one interlace, the S-SS / PSBCH block may be transmitted using two interlace numbers. Furthermore, the interlace arrangement may be the same as or different from that of the PSCCH / PSSCH.

[0079] [Configuration of Terminal 200] Fig. 8 is a block diagram showing the configuration of terminal 200 according to the first embodiment. Terminal 200 shown in Fig. 8 includes receiving section 201, LBT carrier sensing section 202, demodulating section 203, error correction decoding section 204, synchronization signal setting section 205, signal allocation section 206, error correction coding section 207, modulating section 208, and transmitting section 209. Note that LBT carrier sensing section 202, demodulating section 203, error correction decoding section 204, synchronization signal setting section 205, signal allocation section 206, error correction coding section 207, and modulating section 208 may be included in control section 220. Also, receiving section 201 and transmitting section 209 may correspond to radio transmitting / receiving section 221 shown in Fig. 4B.

[0080] In sidelink communication, the terminal 200 may be a transmitting terminal that transmits a sidelink signal or a receiving terminal that receives a sidelink signal.

[0081] The receiving unit 201 receives a received signal via an antenna and performs reception processing such as down-conversion on the received signal. The received signal is, for example, a sidelink signal including a PSSCH and / or a PSCCH. The sidelink signal may also include a PSFCH. The sidelink signal may also include a synchronization signal and / or a broadcast signal. The received signal received by the receiving unit 201 may also include a non-transmission interval or a signal other than the sidelink signal. The receiving unit 201 outputs the received signal after reception processing to the demodulation unit 203 and the LBT carrier sense unit 202.

[0082] Demodulation section 203 performs demodulation processing on the received signal and outputs the demodulated signal obtained by performing the demodulation processing to error correction decoding section 204.

[0083] The error correction decoding unit 204 decodes the demodulated signal output from the demodulation unit 203 and outputs it as received data. The error correction decoding unit 204 also outputs to the synchronization signal setting unit 205 a control signal of an upper layer related to a synchronization signal, which is included in the received data.

[0084] The synchronization signal setting unit 205 specifies the position (e.g., the frequency position of the S-SS / PSBCH block) at which to transmit the synchronization signal (e.g., the S-SS / PSBCH block) based on information related to the synchronization signal defined in a control signal of a higher layer or in a pre-configured setting called "pre-configured." Furthermore, if the frequency position of the S-SS / PSBCH block does not satisfy the OCB regulations, the synchronization signal setting unit 205 generates an additional signal to be transmitted and outputs the generated S-SS / PSBCH block to the signal allocation unit 206. The synchronization signal setting unit 205 may also output information related to the frequency position of the S-SS / PSBCH block to the signal allocation unit 206.

[0085] The error correction coding unit 207 acquires the data signal, performs error correction coding on the data signal, and outputs the error correction coded data signal to the modulation unit 208 .

[0086] The modulation unit 208 modulates the data signal received from the error correction coding unit 207 and outputs the modulated signal to the signal allocation unit 206 .

[0087] Signal allocation section 206 allocates resources to the modulated signal output from modulation section 208. Signal allocation section 206 also allocates resources to the S-SS / PSBCH block output from synchronization signal setting section 205. At this time, signal allocation section 206 may perform resource allocation based on information related to the frequency position of the S-SS / PSBCH block output from synchronization signal setting section 205. Signal allocation section 206 outputs the transmission signal after resource allocation to transmission section 209.

[0088] The LBT carrier sense unit 202 performs carrier sensing (also referred to as LBT) based on the received signal output from the receiving unit 201. The LBT carrier sense unit 202 may determine whether the channel state is "busy" or "idle" based on the received signal output from the receiving unit 201. In other words, the LBT carrier sense unit 202 may determine whether the channel is available for use based on the received signal output from the receiving unit 201. The LBT carrier sense unit 202 outputs information indicating the determined channel state to the transmitting unit 209.

[0089] If the sensing result obtained from the LBT carrier sense unit 202 indicates an idle state, the transmitting unit 209 performs transmission processing such as upconversion on the transmission signal, and transmits the transmission signal after the transmission processing via the antenna.

[0090] As described above, in the first embodiment, when transmitting a synchronization signal and / or a broadcast signal, the synchronization signal and / or the broadcast signal are transmitted using a first frequency resource indicated by a parameter (e.g., sl-AbsoluteFrequencySSB) and a second frequency resource different from the first frequency resource. With this configuration, the frequency resources for transmitting the synchronization signal and / or the broadcast signal can be distributed on the frequency axis, thereby satisfying the OCB regulations and enabling appropriate resource allocation in the frequency direction.

[0091] (Embodiment 2) In this embodiment 2, an example will be shown in which a terminal arranges a PSCCH and a PSSCH in an unlicensed band in such a way that the arrangement satisfies the OCB regulations. The PSSCH is an example of a data signal, and the PSCCH may be an example of a control signal (or control information).

[0092] Table 5 shows the relationship between SCS, bandwidth, and maximum number of PRBs in NR. In NR, the maximum number of PRBs is defined as shown in Table 5 depending on the bandwidth.

[0093] When setting the frequency band in SL BWP (Sidelink Band Width Part), the number of PRBs can be set to a value less than the maximum number of PRBs. In addition, when setting the sidelink resource pool, the start RB of the subchannel and the number of subchannels in the resource pool can be specified using two parameters, "sl-StartRB-Subchannel-r16" and "sl-NumSubchannel-r16".

[0094] [Operation Example 2-1] In this operation example 2-1, the size of the subchannel used when allocating the PSSCH is adjusted to the SL BWP. When adjusting the size of the subchannel to the SL BWP, the number of PRBs included in the BWP set in the SL BWP is set as one subchannel.

[0095] Fig. 9 is a diagram showing an example of subchannels in operation example 2-1 of the second embodiment. (1) and (2) of Fig. 9 show examples of subchannel settings for different SL BWPs. Note that the vertical axis of (1) and (2) of Fig. 9 represents the frequency axis, and the horizontal axis represents the time axis.

[0096] For example, as shown in (1) of Fig. 9, when the SL BWP is set to a PRB with a bandwidth of 20 MHz, the maximum number of PRBs is 51 PRBs when the SCS is 30 kHz, as shown in Table 5. When the subchannel size is 51 PRBs, in the case of transmitting PSSCH, transmission is performed in 51 consecutive PRBs, which satisfies the OCB requirement that OCBs account for 80% or more of the 20 MHz NCBs.

[0097] Furthermore, when the SL BWP is set to the maximum value of the PRBs for a 100 MHz bandwidth, the maximum number of PRBs is 273 PRBs when the SCS is 30 kHz, as shown in Table 5. When the subchannel size is 273 PRBs, in the case of transmitting PSSCH, the PSSCH is transmitted in 273 consecutive PRBs. In this case, as shown in (2) of Figure 9, in each of the five frequency bands obtained by dividing 100 MHz into 20 MHz bands, the OCB requirement that OCBs account for 80% or more of the 20 MHz NCBs is met.

[0098] The number of PRBs included in the SL BWP may be variable by a setting called (pre-)configured and / or notification from a higher layer. Furthermore, if a guard band is provided at the edge of the band or for each NCB band, the number of PRBs may be set to a value smaller than the number of PRBs included in the SL BWP. Even in this case, a subchannel size is set that satisfies the OCB requirement that OCBs account for 80% or more of the 20 MHz NCBs.

[0099] Furthermore, when a guard band is provided for each band of an NCB, if resources are allocated to bands of consecutive NCBs, resources may also be allocated to PRBs that correspond to the guard bands that are not included in the subchannel.

[0100] The terminal performs LBT in the band where the PRBs included in the subchannel are allocated, and starts transmission when it is confirmed that the channel is not in use. If one subchannel spans multiple LBT BWs (bandwidths), the terminal performs LBT in multiple LBT BWs, and starts transmission when it is confirmed that the channel is not in use in all LBT BWs. In this operation example 2-1, the PSSCH is transmitted with one subchannel.

[0101] [Operation Example 2-2] In this operation example 2-2, the size of the subchannel used when allocating the PSSCH is matched to the LBT BWP (bandwidth part).

[0102] Fig. 10 is a diagram showing an example of subchannels in operation example 2-2 of embodiment 2. Examples of setting different subchannels are shown in (1) and (2) of Fig. 10. Note that the vertical axis of (1) and (2) of Fig. 10 represents the frequency axis, and the horizontal axis represents the time axis.

[0103] When adjusting the subchannel size to the LBT BW, for example, if the LBT BW is 20 MHz, the subchannel size is the number of PRBs included in 20 MHz. For example, if the SCS is 30 kHz, and the subchannel size is the number of all PRBs in the 20 MHz band, the subchannel size is 51 PRBs.

[0104] Also, as shown in FIG. 10(1), when the LBT BW is 20 MHz and the SL BWP is 100 MHz, the subchannel size can be set to the number of PRBs included in the 20 MHz LBT BW, and the number of subchannels can be set to 5.

[0105] Furthermore, as shown in (2) of FIG. 10, if the LBT BW has a guard band every 20 MHz, the subchannel size may be set smaller than when there is no guard band. Even in this case, the number of PRBs in the subchannel size is set to a value that satisfies 80% or more of the OCB. The guard band may be a higher layer signaling called (pre-)configured and / or a predetermined setting. When a guard band is present, a terminal can confirm that a channel is not in use in a 20 MHz bandwidth band by LBT. Therefore, even if a channel in one of two adjacent 20 MHz bands is in use, the terminal can start transmission in the unused 20 MHz band. When the SL BWP is 100 MHz, LBT is performed for each 20 MHz band, and in bands where LBT confirms that a channel is available, transmission can be performed on the available channel.

[0106] In Operation Example 2-1 and Operation Example 2-2, the size of the PSCCH may be selected from 10, 12, 15, 20, and 25 PRBs, similar to the licensed band. Then, the PSSCH may be arranged in the selected PRB. In this case, the PSSCH may be arranged in the PRB with the lowest PRB number among the plurality of PRBs.

[0107] Furthermore, particularly in operation example 2-2, the size of the PSCCH may be made the same as the size of the subchannel. By making the size of the PSCCH and the size of the subchannel the same, it is possible to avoid the PSCCH being transmitted beyond the LBT BW.

[0108] [Operation Example 2-3] In this operation example 2-3, PSSCH / PSCCH is transmitted in interlaces. Note that consecutive interlace numbers may be assigned to PSSCH.

[0109] Fig. 11 is a diagram showing a first example of allocation in operation example 2-3 of embodiment 2. Fig. 12 is a diagram showing a second example of allocation in operation example 2-3 of embodiment 2.

[0110] For example, in Figure 11, allocation of the PSCCH to one interlace is configured on a resource pool basis. In the example of Figure 11, the PSCCH is allocated to interlace #0, and the PSSCH is allocated to interlaces #0, #1, and #2. In interlace #0, the PSCCH is allocated to the front symbols of the slot, so the PSSCH is transmitted in symbols in interlace #0 where the PSCCH is not allocated. Furthermore, the PSCCH is allocated to the lowest interlace among the interlaces to which the PSSCH is allocated.

[0111] Note that, although the number of interlaces allocated to the PSCCH is one in FIG. 11 , the number of interlaces allocated to the PSCCH may be more than one. For example, the number of interlaces allocated to the PSCCH may be set for each resource pool. Furthermore, the number of interlaces allocated to the PSCCH may be set according to the size of the PSCCH. For example, when the PSCCH is allocated to interlaces #2, #3, and #4, if the PSCCH has a size equivalent to two interlaces, the PSCCH is allocated to the lower interlaces among the interlaces to which the PSSCH is allocated, i.e., interlaces #2 and #3. For example, if the PSCCH has a size equivalent to one interlace, terminals other than the transmitting terminal attempt to detect the PSCCH in each of interlaces #0, #1, #2, #3, and #4.

[0112] If the number of PRBs included in an interlace varies depending on the interlace number, the number of PRBs used for the PSCCH may vary depending on the interlace number used. Also, if only interlace #0 has 11 PRBs and the other interlace numbers have 10 PRBs, the format of interlace #0 may be aligned with the formats of the other interlaces by arranging a PSSCH in the last PRB of interlace #0 without arranging a PSCCH.

[0113] For example, Figure 12 shows an example in which the size of the PSCCH is specified in PRB units. Figure 12 also shows, as an example, a case in which the PSCCH is allocated to 12 PRBs. If interlace #0 includes 11 PRBs, the number of PRBs is insufficient with interlace #0 alone, so the PRB with the lowest PRB number in interlace #1 is used to secure 12 PRBs. In the example of Figure 12, the PSSCH is allocated to interlaces #0, #1, and #2. Since the PSCCH is allocated to the first symbol of the slot, the PSSCH is transmitted in symbols where no PSCCH is allocated.

[0114] According to operation example 2-3, PSSCH and PSCCH can be arranged in an interlaced manner, and the OCB requirement that OCB is 80% or more of NCB can be met. In addition, since the number of PRBs to be transmitted can be reduced compared to when the OCB requirement is met by transmitting consecutive PRBs, this is suitable for transmission by terminals with limited transmission power.

[0115] [Configuration of terminal 200a] Figure 13 is a block diagram showing the configuration of terminal 200a according to the second embodiment. In Figure 13, the same components as those in Figure 8 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and their description may be omitted. Note that LBT carrier sense unit 202, demodulation unit 203, error correction decoding unit 204, signal allocation unit 206a, error correction coding unit 207, modulation unit 208, setting information receiving unit 210, and control signal generation unit 211 may be included in control unit 220a. Control unit 220a may be regarded as another example of control unit 220 shown in Figure 8. Furthermore, receiving unit 201 and transmitting unit 209 may correspond to radio transmitting / receiving unit 221 shown in Figure 4B.

[0116] In sidelink communication, the terminal 200a may be a transmitting terminal that transmits a sidelink signal or a receiving terminal that receives a sidelink signal. The terminal 200a may be regarded as another example of the terminal 200 shown in Fig. 8. Differences between the terminal 200 shown in Fig. 8 and the terminal 200a will be described below.

[0117] The setting information receiving unit 210 acquires setting information related to the determined subchannel size and PSCCH size in a control signal of a higher layer or in a pre-configured setting called "pre-configured." The setting information receiving unit 210 outputs the acquired setting information to the signal allocating unit 206a and the control signal generating unit 211.

[0118] The control signal generating unit 211 determines the size of the PSCCH (for example, the number of PRBs) based on the configuration information output from the configuration information receiving unit 210. The control signal generating unit 211 generates signals of the 1st stage SCI and the 2nd stage SCI based on control information related to sidelink communication, and outputs the generated signals to the signal allocating unit 206a.

[0119] The signal allocation unit 206a allocates resources to the modulated signal output from the modulation unit 208. The signal allocation unit 206a allocates the second stage SCI to the PSSCH region and the first stage SCI to the PSCCH region based on the number of PRBs of the PSCCH and the size of the PSSCH subchannel output from the configuration information receiving unit 210. The signal allocation unit 206a outputs the transmission signal after resource allocation to the transmitting unit 209.

[0120] As described above, in the second embodiment, when transmitting a data signal and / or a control signal (for example, PSSCH / PSCCH), the size of the subchannel is set to the size of the SL BWP or the size of the LBT BW. With this configuration, even when transmitting a data signal in units of subchannels, the OCB regulations can be satisfied, and therefore, resource allocation in the frequency direction can be performed appropriately.

[0121] (Embodiment 3) In Embodiment 3, when a terminal allocates a PSFCH in an unlicensed band, the allocation satisfies the OCB regulations. Note that the PSFCH is an example of a feedback signal.

[0122] The configuration of the terminal according to the third embodiment may be the same as that of terminal 200a shown in Fig. 13, or may be the same as that of terminal 200 shown in Fig. 8. Alternatively, the configuration of the terminal according to the third embodiment may be a configuration in which a function for performing the operation example described below is added to the configuration of terminal 200a shown in Fig. 13 or terminal 200 shown in Fig. 8.

[0123] [Operation Example 3-1] In this operation example 3-1, the terminal allocates PSFCH to an interlace and transmits it.

[0124] Figure 14 is a diagram showing an example of arrangement in operation example 3-1 of embodiment 3. (1) and (2) of Figure 14 show examples in which PSFCHs are arranged in different interlaces. Note that the vertical axes of (1) and (2) of Figure 14 represent the frequency axis.

[0125] For example, in (1) and (2) of Figure 14, the PSFCH is allocated to one interlace. In (1) of Figure 14, the PSFCH is allocated to interlace #0 and transmitted on interlace #0. In (2) of Figure 14, the PSFCH is allocated to interlace #1 and transmitted on interlace #1. Note that the interlace number to which the PSFCH is allocated may be determined based on at least one of the slot number and subchannel number in which the PSSCH for transmitting a feedback signal on the PSFCH is transmitted. Furthermore, the interlace number to which the PSFCH is allocated may be determined based on the source ID and the member ID. Furthermore, the PSFCH may be further multiplexed using cyclic shift, etc.

[0126] According to Operation Example 3-1, the OCB regulations can be met by allocating and transmitting the PSFCH to an interlace. In addition, since the PSFCH of the licensed band is transmitted in one PRB, in Operation Example 3-1, a frequency diversity effect can be obtained by transmitting in multiple PRBs, compared to the case where the PSFCH of the licensed band is transmitted in one PRB.

[0127] [Operation Example 3-2] In this operation example 3-2, PSFCH is transmitted using part of the interlace allocation.

[0128] Fig. 15 is a diagram showing an example of allocation in operation example 3-2 of embodiment 3. (1) and (2) of Fig. 15 show different PSFCH arrangement examples. Note that the vertical axis of (1) and (2) of Fig. 15 represents the frequency axis.

[0129] For example, in (1) and (2) of FIG. 15, the PSFCH is allocated to one interlace, but is transmitted only in the PRBs at both ends of the band, and is not transmitted in the PRBs inside the band.

[0130] In (1) of FIG. 15, the PSFCH is transmitted on interlace #0. In (2) of FIG. 15, the PSFCH is transmitted on interlace #1. As in Operation Example 3-1, the interlace number on which the PSFCH is transmitted may be determined based on at least one of the slot number and subchannel number on which the PSSCH for which a feedback signal is transmitted on the PSFCH is transmitted. Furthermore, the interlace number on which the PSFCH is transmitted may be determined based on at least one of the source ID and the member ID. Furthermore, the PSFCH may be further multiplexed by cyclic shift. Note that when a guard band is set at the edge of the band, the PSFCH may be placed in the PRB that is not included in the guard band and is included in the corresponding interlace and closest to the edge of the band.

[0131] In (1) and (2) of Figure 15, even if the PSFCH is transmitted at both ends of the interlace allocation, the OCB regulations can be met. Also, since the number of PRBs to be transmitted is small, power can be concentrated on two PRBs.

[0132] In addition, in the licensed band, since PSFCH is transmitted in one PRB, the number of multiplexing is large.On the other hand, as in operation example 3-1 or operation example 3-2, when PSFCH is transmitted, the number of PSFCH that can be multiplexed in the frequency direction is reduced compared to PSFCH of the licensed band.For example, as in the above-mentioned embodiment 2, if the unit of resource allocation for PSSCH / PSCCH is increased, the number of PSFCH to be transmitted also decreases, so that the number of PSFCH may be sufficient even if interlaced allocation is performed.Therefore, it is effective to implement the operation example of embodiment 3 in combination with the embodiment.

[0133] In addition, in the licensed band, the frequency at which the PSFCH is arranged and transmitted can be selected. For example, in the licensed band, the terminal can select from a method of allocating the PSFCH in one of four sidelink slots, a method of allocating the PSFCH in two of four slots, a method of allocating the PSFCH in all slots, and a method of not allocating the PSFCH at all. In the unlicensed band, the PSFCH may be set at the same frequency as in the licensed band, or may be set to be less frequent than in the licensed band, such as being allocated in one of eight slots.

[0134] As described above, in the third embodiment, when a feedback signal is transmitted, the resources for transmitting the feedback signal are arranged in an interlaced manner. With this configuration, the frequency resources for transmitting the feedback signal can be distributed on the frequency axis, so that the OCB regulations can be satisfied and the resources can be appropriately arranged in the frequency direction.

[0135] [Variations] The operation examples of the above-described embodiments may be used in combination.

[0136] In addition, terminals that transmit and receive on the sidelink include terminals that transmit but do not receive on the sidelink, terminals that receive but do not transmit, and terminals that transmit and receive.

[0137] When the sidelink configuration is preconfigured, the configuration method may be preconfigured in specifications or preconfigured in a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM). Alternatively, the sidelink configuration may be preconfigured in an application layer called "pre-configured," in a system information block (SIB) called "configured" and / or other higher layers such as radio resource control (RRC), or in medium access control (MAC).

[0138] Although the above-described embodiments have been described as examples of sidelink communication, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, in the above-described embodiments, the present disclosure may be applied to communication between a base station and a terminal by replacing the PSCCH with a PDCCH, the PSSCH with a PDSCH or a PUSCH, the PSFCH with a PUCCH, and the PSBCH with a PBCH.

[0139] Note that each of the above-described embodiments may be applied to Mode 2 but not to Mode 1, may be applied to both Mode 1 and Mode 2, or may be applied to Mode 1 but not to Mode 2. Furthermore, among the operation examples of each of the above-described embodiments, the operation example applied to Mode 1 and the operation example applied to Mode 2 may be the same or different. For example, there may be an operation example that is applied to Mode 2 but not to Mode 1.

[0140] Furthermore, when applying each of the above-described embodiments to Mode 1, the base station may instruct which operation example to select from among the operation examples of each of the above-described embodiments. For example, the base station may instruct using a licensed band.

[0141] In addition, although the above-described embodiments have shown examples of operation in unlicensed bands, the frequency bands of unlicensed bands may differ from country to country or from region to region. Examples of unlicensed band frequency bands include the 5 GHz band (5150 MHz - 5925 MHz), the 6 GHz band (5925 MHz - 7125 MHz), and 52.6 GHz to 71 GHz.

[0142] Depending on the SCS, the availability of each of the above embodiments or each of the operation examples may be changed.

[0143] The SCI format transmitted on the PSCCH may be SCI format 1-A or a newly added SCI format.

[0144] The guard band may also be referred to as an intra-cell guard band.

[0145] In an unlicensed band, when interlaced allocation is applied to PSCCH / PSSCH as in embodiment 2, PSFCH may not be supported. By specifying whether or not to support such support, it is possible to support interlaced allocation of PSCCH / PSSCH without supporting a new format of PSFCH.

[0146] Note that the resource allocations for sidelink communication illustrated in the above-described embodiments are merely examples, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the resources for sidelink communication may include signals, channels, non-transmission periods, etc. that are not illustrated. Furthermore, the time and frequency widths of the signals illustrated in each figure are not limited to the illustrated examples. Furthermore, the slot size, resource size, channel size, signal size, etc. are not limited to the above-described examples. Furthermore, the SCS value, LBT sensing period, etc. are not limited to the above-described examples.

[0147] In addition, in the above-described embodiments, the length of the sidelink signal is adjusted by increasing the CP length of the sidelink signal using the CP extension, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. Instead of increasing the CP length, the length may be adjusted by adding a known signal.

[0148] In addition, in each of the above-described embodiments, checking the availability of a channel may be replaced with an expression such as sensing (or monitoring) the availability of a channel. In this case, the term "channel" may be replaced with other terms such as "carrier" or "resource."

[0149] Furthermore, the method of notifying the control information from the base station 100 to the terminal 200 is not limited to the above-mentioned example, and may be notified (or reported, indicated, or set) by at least one of system information such as MIB and SIB, RRC control information, MAC control information, and downlink control information (DCI), or may be set in advance in the terminal 200, or may be specified in advance in a standard.

[0150] The base station may be referred to as a gNodeB or a gNB, and the terminal may be referred to as a UE.

[0151] A time resource unit such as a slot may be replaced with another unit such as a system frame, time slot, minislot, frame, subframe, or block.

[0152] The terms "band," "bandwidth," "frequency band," "frequency resource," "frequency position," "resource block," "PRB," and the like, which indicate a specific location in the frequency domain, may be interchangeable. Furthermore, in the above description, the frequency position is not limited to the example of indicating one location in the frequency domain. For example, the frequency position may indicate a range having a width in the frequency domain.

[0153] Furthermore, the notation "... section" in the above-described embodiments may be replaced with other notations such as "... circuitry," "... device," "... unit," or "... module."

[0154] It should be noted that terms such as "interpretation," "identification," "judgment," "determination," "decision," "calculation," "grasp," "recognition," "confirmation," or "understanding" may be used interchangeably.

[0155] (Supplementary Note) Information indicating whether the terminal 200 supports the functions, operations, or processes described in the above-described embodiments may be transmitted (or notified) from the terminal 200 to the base station 100, for example, as capability information or capability parameters of the terminal 200.

[0156] The capability information may include an information element (IE) that individually indicates whether or not the terminal 200 supports at least one of the functions, operations, or processes described in the above-described embodiments. Alternatively, the capability information may include an information element that indicates whether or not the terminal 200 supports a combination of any two or more of the functions, operations, or processes described in the above-described embodiments.

[0157] For example, the base station 100 may determine (or decide or assume) functions, operations, or processes that the terminal 200 that transmitted the capability information supports (or does not support) based on the capability information received from the terminal 200. The base station 100 may perform operations, processes, or control according to the determination result based on the capability information. For example, the base station 100 may control sidelink communication between the terminals 200 based on the capability information received from the terminal 200.

[0158] Note that the fact that terminal 200 does not support some of the functions, operations, or processes described in the above-described embodiments may be interpreted as meaning that such some of the functions, operations, or processes are restricted in terminal 200. For example, information or a request regarding such restrictions may be notified to base station 100.

[0159] Information regarding the capabilities or limitations of terminal 200 may, for example, be defined in a standard, or may be implicitly notified to base station 100 in association with information known at base station 100 or information transmitted to base station 100.

[0160] (Control Signal) In the present disclosure, a downlink control signal (or downlink control information) related to an embodiment of the present disclosure may be, for example, a signal (or information) transmitted in a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) of a physical layer, or a signal (or information) transmitted in a Medium Access Control Control Element (MAC CE) or Radio Resource Control (RRC) of a higher layer. Furthermore, the signal (or information) is not limited to being notified by a downlink control signal, but may be predefined in a specification (or standard) or preconfigured in a base station and a terminal.

[0161] In the present disclosure, an uplink control signal (or uplink control information) related to an embodiment of the present disclosure may be, for example, a signal (or information) transmitted in a PUCCH of a physical layer, or a signal (or information) transmitted in a MAC CE or RRC of a higher layer. Furthermore, the signal (or information) is not limited to being notified by an uplink control signal, but may be predefined in a specification (or standard) or preconfigured in a base station and a terminal. Furthermore, the uplink control signal may be replaced with, for example, uplink control information (UCI), 1st stage sidelink control information (SCI), or 2nd stage SCI.

[0162] (Base Station) In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the base station may be 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 parent device, a gateway, or the like. In sidelink communication, a terminal may play the role of a base station. Instead of a base station, a relay device that relays communication between an upper node and a terminal may be used. Alternatively, a roadside unit may be used.

[0163] (Uplink / Downlink / Sidelink) An embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to, for example, any of the uplink, downlink, and sidelink. For example, an embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), a Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), or a Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) in the uplink, a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), a PDCCH, or a Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) in the downlink, or a Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH), a Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH), or a Physical Sidelink Broadcast Channel (PSBCH) in the sidelink.

[0164] The PDCCH, PDSCH, PUSCH, and PUCCH are examples of a downlink control channel, a downlink data channel, an uplink data channel, and an uplink control channel, respectively. The PSCCH and PSSCH are examples of a sidelink control channel and a sidelink data channel. The PBCH and PSBCH are examples of a broadcast channel, and the PRACH is an example of a random access channel.

[0165] (Data Channel / Control Channel) An embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to, for example, either a data channel or a control channel. For example, the channel in an embodiment of the present disclosure may be replaced with any of the data channels PDSCH, PUSCH, and PSSCH, or the control channels PDCCH, PUCCH, PBCH, PSCCH, and PSBCH.

[0166] (Reference Signal) In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a reference signal is, for example, a signal known by both a base station and a mobile station, and may also be called a Reference Signal (RS) or a pilot signal. The reference signal may be any of a Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS), a Channel State Information - Reference Signal (CSI-RS), a Tracking Reference Signal (TRS), a Phase Tracking Reference Signal (PTRS), a Cell-specific Reference Signal (CRS), or a Sounding Reference Signal (SRS).

[0167] (Time Interval) In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the unit of time resource is not limited to one or a combination of slots and symbols, but may be, for example, a time resource unit such as a frame, a superframe, a subframe, a slot, a time slot subslot, a minislot, or a symbol, an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbol, a Single Carrier-Frequency Division Multiplexing (SC-FDMA) symbol, or another time resource unit. Furthermore, the number of symbols included in one slot is not limited to the number of symbols exemplified in the above-mentioned embodiment, and may be another number of symbols.

[0168] (Frequency Band) An embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to either a licensed band or an unlicensed band.

[0169] (Communication) An embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to communication between a base station and a terminal (Uu link communication), communication between terminals (Sidelink communication), or Vehicle to Everything (V2X) communication. For example, the channel in an embodiment of the present disclosure may be replaced with any of PSCCH, PSSCH, Physical Sidelink Feedback Channel (PSFCH), PSBCH, PDCCH, PUCCH, PDSCH, PUSCH, or PBCH.

[0170] An embodiment of the present disclosure may be applied to a terrestrial network, a non-terrestrial network (NTN) using a satellite or a high altitude pseudo satellite (HAPS), or a terrestrial network in which transmission delay is large compared to the symbol length or slot length, such as a network with a large cell size or an ultra-wideband transmission network.

[0171] (Antenna Port) In one embodiment of the present disclosure, an antenna port refers to a logical antenna (antenna group) consisting of one or more physical antennas. For example, an antenna port does not necessarily refer to a single physical antenna, but may refer to an array antenna consisting of multiple antennas. For example, the number of physical antennas that an antenna port is composed of is not specified, and the antenna port may be specified as the smallest unit by which a terminal station can transmit a reference signal. Furthermore, an antenna port may also be specified as the smallest unit by which a weighting of a precoding vector is multiplied.

[0172] 5G NR System Architecture and Protocol Stack 3GPP continues work on the next release of fifth-generation cellular technology (also referred to simply as "5G"), which includes the development of 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, allowing for the prototyping and commercial deployment of 5G NR-compliant devices (e.g., smartphones).

[0173] For example, the system architecture generally assumes a Next Generation - Radio Access Network (NG-RAN) comprising gNBs. The gNBs provide UE-side termination of NG radio access user plane (SDAP / PDCP / RLC / MAC / PHY) and control plane (RRC) protocols. The gNBs are connected to each other via an Xn interface. The gNBs are also connected to a Next Generation Core (NGC) via a Next Generation (NG) interface, more specifically to an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) (e.g., a specific core entity performing AMF) via an NG-C interface, and to a User Plane Function (UPF) (e.g., a specific core entity performing UPF) via an NG-U interface. The NG-RAN architecture is shown in Figure 16 (see, for example, 3GPP TS 38.300 v15.6.0, section 4).

[0174] The NR user plane protocol stack (see, for example, 3GPP TS 38.300, section 4.4.1) includes a PDCP (Packet Data Convergence Protocol (see, for example, TS 38.300, section 6.4)) sublayer, a RLC (Radio Link Control (see, for example, TS 38.300, section 6.3)) sublayer, and a MAC (Medium Access Control (see, for example, TS 38.300, section 6.2)) sublayer, which are terminated on the network side in the gNB. A new access stratum (AS) sublayer (SDAP: Service Data Adaptation Protocol) has also been introduced above PDCP (see, for example, 3GPP TS 38.300, section 6.5). A control plane protocol stack has also been defined for the NR (see, for example, TS 38.300, section 4.4.2). An overview of Layer 2 functions is described in Section 6 of TS 38.300. The functions of the PDCP sublayer, RLC sublayer, and MAC sublayer are listed in clauses 6.4, 6.3, and 6.2 of TS 38.300, respectively. The functions of the RRC layer are listed in clause 7 of TS 38.300.

[0175] For example, the Medium-Access-Control layer handles logical channel multiplexing and scheduling and scheduling-related functions, including handling various numerologies.

[0176] For example, the physical layer (PHY) is responsible for coding, PHY HARQ processing, modulation, multi-antenna processing, and mapping of signals to appropriate physical time-frequency resources. The physical layer also handles mapping of 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 specific transport channel, and each transport channel is mapped to a corresponding physical channel. For example, physical channels include the Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH), the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), and the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) as uplink physical channels, and the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), and the Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) as downlink physical channels.

[0177] NR use cases / deployment scenarios may include enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC), and massive machine-type communication (mMTC), which have diverse requirements in terms of data rate, latency, and coverage. For example, eMBB is expected to support peak data rates (20 Gbps in the downlink and 10 Gbps in the uplink) and effective (user-experienced) data rates approximately three times higher than those offered by IMT-Advanced. On the other hand, URLLC imposes stricter requirements on ultra-low latency (0.5 ms for user plane latency in both UL and DL) and high reliability (1-10-5 within 1 ms). Finally, mMTC preferably requires high connection density (1,000,000 devices / km in urban environments).２ ), wide coverage in adverse environments, and extremely long battery life (15 years) for a low-cost device may be desired.

[0178] Therefore, OFDM numerology (e.g., subcarrier spacing, OFDM symbol length, cyclic prefix (CP) length, number of symbols per scheduling interval) suitable for one use case may not be valid for another use case. For example, low-latency services may preferably require a shorter symbol length (and therefore a larger subcarrier spacing) and / or fewer symbols per scheduling interval (also referred to as TTI) than mMTC services. Furthermore, deployment scenarios with large channel delay spreads may preferably require a longer CP length than scenarios with short delay spreads. The subcarrier spacing may be optimized accordingly to maintain similar CP overhead. NR may support one or more subcarrier spacing values. Correspondingly, subcarrier spacings of 15 kHz, 30 kHz, 60 kHz, etc. are currently considered. The symbol length Tu and subcarrier spacing Δf are directly related by the formula Δf = 1 / Tu. Similar to LTE systems, the term "resource element" can be used to mean the smallest resource unit consisting of one subcarrier for the length of one OFDM / SC-FDMA symbol.

[0179] In the new radio system 5G-NR, for each numerology and each carrier, a resource grid of subcarriers and OFDM symbols is defined for each uplink and downlink. Each element of the resource grid is called a resource element and is specified based on a frequency index in the frequency domain and a symbol position in the time domain (see 3GPP TS 38.211 v15.6.0).

[0180] <Functional Separation Between NG-RAN and 5GC in 5G NR> Figure 17 shows the functional separation between NG-RAN and 5GC. The logical node of NG-RAN is gNB or ng-eNB. 5GC has logical nodes AMF, UPF, and SMF.

[0181] For example, gNB and ng-eNB host the following main functions: - Radio Resource Management functions such as Radio Bearer Control, Radio Admission Control, Connection Mobility Control, dynamic allocation (scheduling) of resources to UEs in both uplink and downlink; - IP header compression, ciphering and integrity protection of data; - AMF selection at UE attach time if routing to the AMF cannot be determined from the information provided by the UE; - Routing of user plane data towards the UPF; - Routing of control plane information towards the AMF; - Connection setup and release; - Scheduling and transmission of paging messages; - Scheduling and transmission of system broadcast information (sourced from the AMF or Operation, Admission, Maintenance (OAM)); - Configuration of measurements and measurement reports for mobility and scheduling; - Transport level packet marking in the uplink; - Session management; Support for network slicing; - QoS flow management and mapping to data radio bearers; - Support for UEs in RRC_INACTIVE state; - NAS message delivery function; - Radio access network sharing; - Dual connectivity; - Close coordination between NR and E-UTRA.

[0182] The Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) hosts the following main functions: - Termination of Non-Access Stratum (NAS) signaling; - Security of NAS signaling; - Security control of Access Stratum (AS); - Signaling between Core Network (CN) nodes for mobility between 3GPP access networks; - Reachability to idle mode UEs (including control and execution of paging retransmissions); - Registration area management; - Support for intra-system and inter-system mobility; - Access authentication; - Access authorization including checking of roaming rights; - Mobility management control (subscription and policy); - Support for network slicing; - Selection of Session Management Function (SMF).

[0183] Furthermore, the User Plane Function (UPF) hosts the following main functions: - anchor point for intra-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (if applicable); - external PDU (Protocol Data Unit) session point for interconnection with data networks; - packet routing and forwarding; - packet inspection and policy rule enforcement for the user plane part; - traffic usage reporting; - uplink classifier to support routing of traffic flows to the data network; - branching point to support multi-homed PDU sessions; - QoS processing for the user plane (e.g. packet filtering, gating, UL / DL rate enforcement); - uplink traffic validation (mapping of SDF to QoS flows); - downlink packet buffering and triggering of downlink data notifications.

[0184] Finally, the Session Management Function (SMF) hosts the following main functions: session management; allocation and management of IP addresses for UEs; selection and control of UPF; configuration of traffic steering in the User Plane Function (UPF) to route traffic to the appropriate destination; policy enforcement and QoS of the control part; downlink data notification.

[0185] <RRC connection setup and reconfiguration procedure> Figure 18 shows some of the interactions between the UE, gNB, and AMF (5GC entities) when the UE transitions from RRC_IDLE to RRC_CONNECTED in the NAS part (see TS 38.300 v15.6.0).

[0186] RRC is a higher layer signaling (protocol) used to configure the UE and gNB. With this transition, the AMF prepares UE context data (including, for example, PDU session context, security keys, UE radio capabilities, UE security capabilities, etc.) and sends it to the gNB along with an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP REQUEST. The gNB then activates AS security together with the UE. This is done by the gNB sending a SecurityModeCommand message to the UE, and the UE responding with a SecurityModeComplete message to the gNB. The gNB then sends an RRCReconfiguration message to the UE, and upon receiving an RRCReconfigurationComplete from the UE, the gNB performs reconfiguration to set up Signaling Radio Bearer 2 (SRB2) and Data Radio Bearer (DRB). For signaling-only connections, the steps related to RRCReconfiguration are omitted because SRB2 and DRB are not set up. Finally, the gNB notifies the AMF that the setup procedure is complete with an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE.

[0187] Accordingly, the present disclosure provides a 5th Generation Core (5GC) entity (e.g., AMF, SMF, etc.) that includes: a control circuit that, upon operation, establishes a Next Generation (NG) connection with a gNodeB; and a transmitter that, upon operation, transmits an initial context setup message to the gNodeB via the NG connection so that a signaling radio bearer between the gNodeB and a user equipment (UE) is set up. Specifically, the gNodeB transmits Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, including a resource allocation configuration information element (IE), to the UE via the signaling radio bearer. The UE then transmits in uplink or receives in downlink based on the resource allocation configuration.

[0188] <IMT Usage Scenarios Beyond 2020> Figure 19 shows some use cases for 5G NR. The 3rd Generation Partnership Project New Radio (3GPP NR) is considering three use cases envisioned by IMT-2020 to support a wide variety of services and applications. The first phase of specifications for enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) has been completed. Current and future work includes standardization for ultra-reliable and low-latency communications (URLLC) and massive machine-type communications (mMTC), in addition to expanding support for eMBB. Figure 19 shows some examples of envisioned usage scenarios for IMT beyond 2020 (see, for example, ITU-R M.2083 Figure 2).

[0189] The URLLC use case has stringent performance requirements for throughput, latency, and availability. It is envisioned as one of the enabling technologies for future applications such as wireless control of industrial production or manufacturing processes, remote medical surgery, automated power transmission and distribution in smart grids, and road safety. URLLC's ultra-high reliability is supported by identifying technologies that meet the requirements set by TR 38.913. Key requirements for NR URLLC in Release 15 include a target user plane latency of 0.5 ms on the uplink (UL) and 0.5 ms on the downlink (DL). The overall 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.

[0190] From a physical layer perspective, reliability can be improved in many possible ways. Current room for reliability improvement includes defining a separate CQI table for URLLC, more compact DCI formats, PDCCH repetition, etc. However, this room can be expanded to achieve ultra-high reliability as NR (with respect to the key requirements of NR URLLC) becomes more stable and developed. Specific use cases for NR URLLC in Release 15 include Augmented Reality / Virtual Reality (AR / VR), e-health, e-safety, and mission-critical applications.

[0191] Additionally, the technology enhancements targeted by NR URLLC aim to improve latency and reliability. Technology enhancements for latency improvement include configurable numerology, non-slot-based scheduling with flexible mapping, grant-free (configured grant) uplink, slot-level repetition in the data channel, and preemption in the downlink. Preemption means that a transmission with already allocated resources is stopped and the already allocated resources are used for another transmission with a later requested lower latency / higher priority. Therefore, a previously allowed transmission is preempted by a later transmission. Preemption is applicable regardless of the specific service type. For example, a transmission of service type A (URLLC) may be preempted by a transmission of service type B (eMBB, etc.). Technology enhancements for reliability improvement include a dedicated CQI / MCS table for a target BLER of 1E-5.

[0192] The use case of mMTC (massive machine type communication) is characterized by a very large number of connected devices that typically transmit relatively small amounts of data that are not sensitive to delays. These devices are required to be low-cost and have very long battery life. From the NR perspective, utilizing very narrow bandwidth portions is one solution that saves power and extends battery life from the UE's perspective.

[0193] As mentioned above, the scope of reliability improvement in NR is expected to be broader. One of the key requirements for all cases, for example, URLLC and mMTC, is high or ultra-high reliability. Several mechanisms can improve reliability from a radio perspective and a network perspective. Generally, there are two to three key areas that can help improve reliability. These areas include compact control channel information, repetition of data channels / control channels, and diversity in the frequency, time, and / or spatial domains. These areas are generally applicable to reliability improvement regardless of the specific communication scenario.

[0194] For NR URLLC, further use cases with more stringent requirements are envisaged, such as factory automation, transportation, and power distribution, with high reliability (up to 10-6 level reliability), high availability, packet size up to 256 bytes, time synchronization down to a few μs (depending on the use case, the value can be 1 μs or a few μs depending on the frequency range and low latency in the order of 0.5 ms to 1 ms (e.g., 0.5 ms latency on the targeted user plane)).

[0195] Furthermore, for NR URLLC, there may be several technical enhancements from the physical layer perspective. These technical enhancements include PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel) enhancements for compact DCI, PDCCH repetition, and increased PDCCH monitoring. Also, UCI (Uplink Control Information) enhancements relate to enhanced Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) and CSI feedback enhancements. There may also be PUSCH enhancements related to minislot-level hopping and retransmission / repetition enhancements. The term "minislot" refers to a Transmission Time Interval (TTI) that contains fewer symbols than a slot (a slot comprises 14 symbols).

[0196] <QoS Control> The 5G Quality of Service (QoS) model is based on QoS flows and supports both QoS flows that require a guaranteed flow bit rate (Guaranteed Bit Rate QoS flows (GBR)) and QoS flows that do not require a guaranteed flow bit rate (non-GBR QoS flows). Thus, at the NAS level, a QoS flow is the finest granularity of QoS classification in a PDU session. A QoS flow is identified within a PDU session by a QoS Flow ID (QFI) carried in an encapsulation header over the NG-U interface.

[0197] For each UE, 5GC establishes one or more PDU sessions. For each UE, the NG-RAN establishes at least one Data Radio Bearer (DRB) for each PDU session, e.g., as shown above with reference to Figure 18. Additional DRBs for the QoS flows of that PDU session can be configured later (when this is up to the NG-RAN). The NG-RAN maps packets belonging to different PDU sessions to different 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.

[0198] Figure 20 shows the non-roaming reference architecture for 5G NR (see TS 23.501 v16.1.0, section 4.23). An Application Function (AF) (e.g., an external application server hosting 5G services, as illustrated in Figure 19) interacts with the 3GPP core network to provide services. For example, it may access a Network Exposure Function (NEF) to support applications that affect traffic routing, or interact with a policy framework for policy control (e.g., QoS control) (see Policy Control Function (PCF)). Based on operator deployment, Application Functions considered trusted by the operator can interact directly with the associated Network Functions. Application Functions not authorized by the operator to directly access Network Functions interact with the associated Network Functions using an external exposure framework via the NEF.

[0199] Figure 20 further illustrates further functional units of the 5G architecture, namely, 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-provided services, Internet access, or third-party services). All or part of the core network functions and application services may be deployed and run in a cloud computing environment.

[0200] Therefore, the present disclosure provides an application server (e.g., an AF in a 5G architecture) comprising: a transmitter that, in operation, sends a request including QoS requirements for at least one of a URLLC service, an eMMB service, and an mMTC service to at least one of 5GC functions (e.g., an NEF, an AMF, an SMF, a PCF, an UPF, etc.) to establish a PDU session including a radio bearer between a gNodeB and a UE according to the QoS requirements; and a control circuit that, in operation, performs a service using the established PDU session.

[0201] The present disclosure can be realized by software, hardware, or software in conjunction with hardware. Each functional block used in the description of the above embodiments may be partially or entirely realized as an LSI, which is an integrated circuit, and each process described in the above embodiments may be partially or entirely controlled by a single LSI or a combination of LSIs. The LSI may be composed of individual chips, or may be composed of a single chip that includes some or all of the functional blocks. The LSI may have data input and output. Depending on the degree of integration, the LSI may also be called an IC, system LSI, super LSI, or ultra LSI.

[0202] The integrated circuit method is not limited to LSI, and may be realized by a dedicated circuit, a general-purpose processor, or a dedicated processor. Also, a field programmable gate array (FPGA) that can be programmed after LSI manufacturing, or a reconfigurable processor that can reconfigure the connections and settings of circuit cells within the LSI, may be used. The present disclosure may be realized as digital processing or analog processing.

[0203] Furthermore, if an integrated circuit technology that can replace LSI emerges due to advances in semiconductor technology or other derivative technologies, it is natural that such technology may be used to integrate functional blocks. The application of biotechnology, etc. is also a possibility.

[0204] The present disclosure may be implemented in any type of apparatus, device, or system (collectively referred to as a communications apparatus) that has a communications function. The communications apparatus may include a radio transceiver and processing / control circuitry. The radio transceiver may include a receiver and a transmitter, or both functions. The radio transceiver (transmitter and receiver) may include a radio frequency (RF) module and one or more antennas. The RF module may include an amplifier, an RF modulator / demodulator, or the like. Non-limiting examples of communication devices include telephones (e.g., cell phones, smartphones), tablets, personal computers (PCs) (e.g., laptops, desktops, notebooks), cameras (e.g., digital still / video cameras), digital players (e.g., digital audio / video players), wearable devices (e.g., wearable cameras, smartwatches, tracking devices), game consoles, digital book readers, telehealth / telemedicine devices, communication-enabled vehicles or mobile transportation (e.g., cars, airplanes, ships), and combinations of the above devices.

[0205] The communication devices are not limited to portable or mobile devices, but also include any kind of non-portable or fixed equipment, devices, and systems, such as smart home devices (such as home appliances, lighting equipment, smart meters or measuring devices, control panels, etc.), vending machines, and any other "things" that may exist on an IoT (Internet of Things) network.

[0206] Communications include data communications via cellular systems, wireless LAN systems, communication satellite systems, and the like, as well as data communications via combinations of these.

[0207] A communications apparatus also includes devices such as controllers and sensors connected or coupled to a communications device that performs the communications functions described in this disclosure, such as controllers and sensors that generate control and data signals used by the communications device to perform the communications functions of the communications apparatus.

[0208] The communication apparatus also includes infrastructure facilities, such as base stations, access points, and any other apparatus, device, or system that communicates with or controls the various apparatuses listed above, but are not limited to these.

[0209] A communication device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a control circuit that allocates a signal for sidelink communication to a frequency resource that satisfies a bandwidth restriction related to a frequency band in an unlicensed band, and a transmission circuit that transmits the signal.

[0210] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control circuitry determines a first frequency resource specified by a parameter specifying resources for a synchronization signal and / or a broadcast signal of the sidelink communication, and a second frequency resource different from the first frequency resource, such that the second frequency resource satisfies the bandwidth limitation, and the transmission circuitry transmits the synchronization signal and / or the broadcast signal on the first frequency resource and the second frequency resource.

[0211] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the first frequency resource is common to the sidelink communication and a link via a base station.

[0212] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the first frequency resource is different between the sidelink communication and the link via the base station.

[0213] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control circuitry arranges synchronization signals and / or broadcast signals of the sidelink communication in interlaces in a frequency band.

[0214] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control circuitry sets a size of resources for transmitting data signals and / or control signals for the sidelink communication to a size defined for the sidelink.

[0215] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control circuitry sets the size of resources for transmitting data signals and / or control signals for the sidelink communication to a size defined for listen before talk (LBT).

[0216] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control circuit arranges the feedback signal of the sidelink communication in an interlace in a frequency band.

[0217] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control circuit determines the interlace number based on a slot number or a subchannel number in which a data signal in the sidelink communication corresponding to the feedback signal in the sidelink communication is received.

[0218] In a communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a communication device allocates a sidelink communication signal to a frequency resource that satisfies a bandwidth restriction related to a frequency band in an unlicensed band, and transmits the signal.

[0219] The disclosures of the specification, drawings and abstract contained in Japanese Patent Application No. 2022-069210, filed on April 20, 2022, are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

[0220] One aspect of the present disclosure is useful in wireless communication systems.

[0221] 100 Base station 101, 221 Radio transmission / reception unit 102, 220, 220a Control unit 200, 200a Terminal 201 Reception unit 202 LBT carrier sense unit 203 Demodulation unit 204 Error correction decoding unit 205 Synchronization signal setting unit 206, 206a Signal allocation unit 207 Error correction coding unit 208 Modulation unit 209 Transmission unit 210 Setting information reception unit 211 Control signal generation unit

Claims

1. A control circuit for arranging signals for sidelink communication in a frequency domain of an unlicensed band according to whether or not the bandwidth restriction is satisfied; A transceiver unit for transmitting the signal; A communication device comprising:

2. The control circuit determines a first frequency resource and a second frequency resource specified by a parameter specifying a resource of a synchronization signal and / or a broadcast signal of the sidelink communication; The transceiver unit transmits the synchronization signal and / or the broadcast signal in the first frequency resource and the second frequency resource. The communication device according to claim 1 .

3. The first frequency resource is common to the sidelink communication and a link via a base station. The communication device according to claim 2 .

4. The first frequency resource is different for the sidelink communication and a link via a base station. The communication device according to claim 2 .

5. The control circuitry arranges the synchronization signal and / or the broadcast signal of the sidelink communication in an interlace in the frequency domain. The communication device according to claim 1 .

6. The control circuit sets a size of resources for transmitting a data signal and / or a control signal for the sidelink communication to a size defined for the sidelink. The communication device according to claim 1 .

7. The control circuitry arranges the feedback signal of the sidelink communication into an interlace in a frequency domain. The communication device according to claim 1 .

8. The control circuit determines the interlace number based on a slot number or a subchannel number in which a data signal of the side link communication corresponding to the feedback signal of the side link communication is received. The communication device according to claim 7.

9. The control circuit arranges the data signal and / or the control signal of the sidelink communication in an interlace in the frequency domain. The communication device according to claim 1 .

10. The data signals and / or control signals are assigned consecutive interlaces. The communication device according to claim 9.

11. The control signal is assigned to an interlace having a lowest interlace number in a frequency domain to which the data signal is assigned. The communication device according to claim 9.

12. The bandwidth restriction includes a provision for Occupied Channel Bandwidth (OCB). The communication device according to claim 1 .

13. The bandwidth limit is different from the OCB specification. The communication device according to claim 1 .

14. A communication device Arranging a signal for sidelink communication in a frequency domain of an unlicensed band according to whether or not the bandwidth restriction is satisfied; Transmitting said signal; Communication methods.

15. An integrated circuit for controlling processing of a communication device, the processing comprising: - arranging signals for sidelink communication in a frequency domain of the unlicensed band according to whether the bandwidth restriction is satisfied; transmitting said signal; 4. An integrated circuit comprising: