Retransmission for ambient internet-of-things devices
By tailoring communication parameters for each repetition based on the specific capabilities of backscatter devices, the method addresses the challenge of reliable communication with ambient IoT devices, enhancing reliability and deployment flexibility in wireless communication systems.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- PCT/CN2023/137350
- Authority / Receiving Office
- WO · WO
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2023-12-08
- Publication Date
- 2025-06-12
AI Technical Summary
Existing wireless communication systems face challenges in reliably communicating with ambient Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices, particularly backscatter devices, due to varying capabilities such as energy storage and independent signal generation, which can lead to incompatible retransmission configurations.
A method and apparatus for wireless communication that involve transmitting multiple repetitions of a communication to a backscatter device, with each repetition using a different set of communication parameters tailored to the specific capabilities of the backscatter device, such as tuning delays and frequency hopping capabilities.
This approach enhances communication reliability and throughput by accommodating the diverse capabilities of backscatter devices, thereby improving deployment flexibility in wireless communication systems.
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Figure CN2023137350_12062025_PF_FP_ABST
Abstract
Description
RETRANSMISSION FOR AMBIENT INTERNET-OF-THINGS DEVICES
[0001] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE
[0002] Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communication and specifically relate to techniques, apparatuses, and methods for retransmission for ambient Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices.BACKGROUND
[0003] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various services that may include carrying voice, text, messaging, video, data, and / or other traffic. The services may include unicast, multicast, and / or broadcast services, among other examples. Typical wireless communication systems may employ multiple-access radio access technologies (RATs) capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (for example, time domain resources, frequency domain resources, spatial domain resources, and / or device transmit power, among other examples) . Examples of such multiple-access RATs include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, single-carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, and time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) systems.
[0004] The above multiple-access RATs have been adopted in various telecommunication standards to provide common protocols that enable different wireless communication devices to communicate on a municipal, national, regional, or global level. An example telecommunication standard is New Radio (NR) . NR, which may also be referred to as 5G, is part of a continuous mobile broadband evolution promulgated by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) . NR (and other mobile broadband evolutions beyond NR) may be designed to better support Internet of things (IoT) and reduced capability device deployments, industrial connectivity, millimeter wave (mmWave) expansion, licensed and unlicensed spectrum access, non-terrestrial network (NTN) deployment, sidelink and other device-to-device direct communication technologies (for example, cellular vehicle-to-everything (CV2X) communication) , massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) , disaggregated network architectures and network topology expansions, multiple-subscriber implementations, high-precision positioning, and / or radio frequency (RF) sensing, among other examples. As the demand for mobile broadband access continues to increase, further improvements in NR may be implemented, and other radio access technologies such as 6G may be introduced, to further advance mobile broadband evolution.SUMMARY
[0005] Some aspects described herein relate to a method of wireless communication performed by a wireless communication device. The method may include transmitting, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters. The method may include transmitting, to the backscatter device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.
[0006] Some aspects described herein relate to a method of wireless communication performed by an Internet-of-Things (IoT) device. The method may include receiving, from a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters. The method may include receiving, from the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.
[0007] Some aspects described herein relate to a wireless communication device for wireless communication. The wireless communication device may include one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories. The one or more processors may be configured to transmit, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters. The one or more processors may be configured to transmit, to the backscatter device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.
[0008] Some aspects described herein relate to a backscatter device for wireless communication. The backscatter device may include one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories. The one or more processors may be configured to receive, from a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters. The one or more processors may be configured to receive, from the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.
[0009] Some aspects described herein relate to a non-transitory computer-readable medium that stores a set of instructions for wireless communication by a wireless communication device. The set of instructions, when executed by one or more processors of the wireless communication device, may cause the wireless communication device to transmit, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters. The set of instructions, when executed by one or more processors of the wireless communication device, may cause the wireless communication device to transmit, to the backscatter device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.
[0010] Some aspects described herein relate to a non-transitory computer-readable medium that stores a set of instructions for wireless communication. The set of instructions, when executed by one or more processors of a backscatter device, may cause the backscatter device to receive, from a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters. The set of instructions, when executed by one or more processors of a backscatter device, may cause the backscatter device to receive, from the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.
[0011] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus may include means for transmitting, to a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters. The apparatus may include means for transmitting, to the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the wireless communication device.
[0012] Some aspects described herein relate to an apparatus for wireless communication. The apparatus may include means for receiving, from a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters. The apparatus may include means for receiving, from the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the apparatus.
[0013] Aspects of the present disclosure may generally be implemented by or as a method, apparatus, system, computer program product, non-transitory computer-readable medium, user equipment, base station, network node, network entity, wireless communication device, and / or processing system as substantially described with reference to, and as illustrated by, the specification and accompanying drawings.
[0014] The foregoing paragraphs of this section have broadly summarized some aspects of the present disclosure. These and additional aspects and associated advantages will be described hereinafter. The disclosed aspects may be used as a basis for modifying or designing other aspects for carrying out the same or similar purposes of the present disclosure. Such equivalent aspects do not depart from the scope of the appended claims. Characteristics of the aspects disclosed herein, both their organization and method of operation, together with associated advantages, will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] The appended drawings illustrate some aspects of the present disclosure, but are not limiting of the scope of the present disclosure because the description may enable other aspects. Each of the drawings is provided for purposes of illustration and description, and not as a definition of the limits of the claims. The same or similar reference numbers in different drawings may identify the same or similar elements.
[0016] Fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication network in accordance with the present disclosure.
[0017] Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example network node in communication with an example user equipment (UE) in a wireless network in accordance with the present disclosure.
[0018] Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example disaggregated base station architecture in accordance with the present disclosure.
[0019] Fig. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example associated with backscatter communications, in accordance with the present disclosure.
[0020] Figs. 5A-5K are diagrams illustrating an example associated with retransmission for ambient IoT devices, in accordance with the present disclosure.
[0021] Fig. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example process performed, for example, at a wireless communication device or an apparatus of a wireless communication device, in accordance with the present disclosure.
[0022] Fig. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example process performed, for example, at a backscatter device or an apparatus of a backscatter device, in accordance with the present disclosure.
[0023] Fig. 8 is a diagram of an example apparatus for wireless communication, in accordance with the present disclosure.
[0024] Fig. 9 is a diagram of an example apparatus for wireless communication, in accordance with the present disclosure.DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] Various aspects of the present disclosure are described hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied in many different forms and is not to be construed as limited to any specific aspect illustrated by or described with reference to an accompanying drawing or otherwise presented in this disclosure. Rather, these aspects are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art. One skilled in the art may appreciate that the scope of the disclosure is intended to cover any aspect of the disclosure disclosed herein, whether implemented independently of or in combination with any other aspect of the disclosure. For example, an apparatus may be implemented or a method may be practiced using various combinations or quantities of the aspects set forth herein. In addition, the scope of the disclosure is intended to cover an apparatus having, or a method that is practiced using, other structures and / or functionalities in addition to or other than the structures and / or functionalities with which various aspects of the disclosure set forth herein may be practiced. Any aspect of the disclosure disclosed herein may be embodied by one or more elements of a claim.
[0026] Several aspects of telecommunication systems will now be presented with reference to various methods, operations, apparatuses, and techniques. These methods, operations, apparatuses, and techniques will be described in the following detailed description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, modules, components, circuits, steps, processes, or algorithms (collectively referred to as “elements” ) . These elements may be implemented using hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software. Whether such elements are implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system.
[0027] Some wireless communications systems may allow different classes of devices to be deployed therein. For example, a network may include a full-capability user equipment (UE) and a reduced capability (RedCap) UE, as described in more detail below. Similarly, a network may include legacy UEs that implement a first set of functionalities and enhanced UEs that implement a second set of functionalities. One type of device that can be deployed in a network is an ambient Internet-of-Things (IoT) device. As described in more detail below, an ambient IoT device (which may also be referred to as a “backscatter device” ) can be deployed in a network to extend a coverage area of a network. For example, such a backscatter device may receive a transmission from a first wireless communication device (e.g., a network node) and backscatter the transmission (e.g., re-transmit or transmit as a backscatter transmission) toward a second wireless communication device (e.g., a UE) . This may enable the network node to communicate with the UE at extended ranges, around obstacles, or with improved signal strength, among other examples.
[0028] Different backscatter devices may have different capabilities. In one example, a first class of backscatter device may lack both an energy storage capability and an independent signal generation capability. A second class of backscatter device may have an energy storage capability (e.g., for amplification of reflected signals) , but may lack an independent signal generation capability. A third class of backscatter device may have both an energy storage capability and an independent signal generation capability (e.g., an active radio frequency (RF) component for transmission) . Other types of capabilities may relate to a device function, a maximum power consumption, an amount of energy storage, a maximum transmit power, a quantity of antennas, or a set of available modulation and coding schemes (MCSs) , among other examples. Additional attributes of a backscatter device can include a quantity of backscatter devices in a particular area, a set of sensors included in a backscatter device, a positioning of the backscatter device, or whether the backscatter device is deployed indoors or outdoors, among other examples.
[0029] To ensure reliability for reduced capability devices, such as backscatter devices, retransmission may be configured. When retransmission is configured, a wireless communication device, such as a network node or UE, may transmit a plurality of repetitions of data to an ambient IoT device, such as a backscatter device. The ambient IoT device may receive at least one repetition of the data and may backscatter the at least one repetition of the data. However, a single static retransmission configuration may not be compatible with all types of reduced capability devices that are deployed in a network. For example, some backscatter devices may be capable of receiving on a single frequency or group of frequencies, and other backscatter devices may be capable of frequency hopping between different groups of frequencies. Similarly, different backscatter devices may be capable of tuning between different frequencies at different rates. Accordingly, using a single static time offset between uses of different frequencies may result in slower backscatter devices failing to tune to and receive some transmissions and other, faster backscatter devices waiting an excessive delay period before receiving transmissions.
[0030] Various aspects relate generally to providing a retransmission procedure for ambient IoT devices. Some aspects more specifically relate to retransmission using a configuration that is associated with a backscatter device that is a target of the retransmission. In some aspects, a wireless communication device may transmit, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication using a first set of communication parameters and a second repetition of the communication using a second set of communication parameters. In this case, the second set of communication parameters may be associated with a device capability of the backscatter device. For example, a time offset between transmission of the first repetition on a first frequency and transmission of the second repetition on a second frequency may be associated with a tuning delay of the backscatter device. Additionally, or alternatively, use of frequency hopping, helper tones, dual tones, or a particular power level, among other examples, may be associated with a capability of the backscatter device.
[0031] Particular aspects of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented to realize one or more of the following potential advantages. In some examples, by configuring transmission to an ambient IoT device in connection with a capability of the ambient IoT device, the described techniques can be used to reduce a likelihood of dropped communications and / or improve a throughput of communications. Additionally, or alternatively, by enabling use of backscatter devices with different capabilities, some implementations described herein increase a deployment flexibility for wireless communications systems.
[0032] Multiple-access radio access technologies (RATs) have been adopted in various telecommunication standards to provide common protocols that enable wireless communication devices to communicate on a municipal, enterprise, national, regional, or global level. For example, 5G New Radio (NR) is part of a continuous mobile broadband evolution promulgated by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) . 5G NR supports various technologies and use cases including enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) , ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC) , massive machine-type communication (mMTC) , millimeter wave (mmWave) technology, beamforming, network slicing, edge computing, Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity and management, and network function virtualization (NFV) .
[0033] As the demand for broadband access increases and as technologies supported by wireless communication networks evolve, further technological improvements may be adopted in or implemented for 5G NR or future RATs, such as 6G, to further advance the evolution of wireless communication for a wide variety of existing and new use cases and applications. Such technological improvements may be associated with new frequency band expansion, licensed and unlicensed spectrum access, overlapping spectrum use, small cell deployments, non-terrestrial network (NTN) deployments, disaggregated network architectures and network topology expansion, device aggregation, advanced duplex communication, sidelink and other device-to-device direct communication, IoT (including passive or ambient IoT) networks, reduced capability (RedCap) UE functionality, industrial connectivity, multiple-subscriber implementations, high-precision positioning, radio frequency (RF) sensing, and / or artificial intelligence or machine learning (AI / ML) , among other examples. These technological improvements may support use cases such as wireless backhauls, wireless data centers, extended reality (XR) and metaverse applications, meta services for supporting vehicle connectivity, holographic and mixed reality communication, autonomous and collaborative robots, vehicle platooning and cooperative maneuvering, sensing networks, gesture monitoring, human-brain interfacing, digital twin applications, asset management, and universal coverage applications using non-terrestrial and / or aerial platforms, among other examples. The methods, operations, apparatuses, and techniques described herein may enable one or more of the foregoing technologies and / or support one or more of the foregoing use cases.
[0034] Fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a wireless communication network 100 in accordance with the present disclosure. The wireless communication network 100 may be or may include elements of a 5G (or NR) network or a 6G network, among other examples. The wireless communication network 100 may include multiple network nodes 110, shown as a network node (NN) 110a, a network node 110b, a network node 110c, and a network node 110d. The network nodes 110 may support communications with multiple UEs 120, shown as a UE 120a, a UE 120b, a UE 120c, a UE 120d, and a UE 120e.
[0035] The network nodes 110 and the UEs 120 of the wireless communication network 100 may communicate using the electromagnetic spectrum, which may be subdivided by frequency or wavelength into various classes, bands, carriers, and / or channels. For example, devices of the wireless communication network 100 may communicate using one or more operating bands. In some aspects, multiple wireless communication networks 100 may be deployed in a given geographic area. Each wireless communication network 100 may support a particular radio access technology (RAT) (which may also be referred to as an air interface) and may operate on one or more carrier frequencies in one or more frequency ranges. Examples of RATs include a 4G RAT, a 5G / NR RAT, and / or a 6G RAT, among other examples. In some examples, when multiple RATs are deployed in a given geographic area, each RAT in the geographic area may operate on different frequencies to avoid interference with one another.
[0036] Various operating bands have been defined as frequency range designations FR1 (410 MHz through 7.125 GHz) , FR2 (24.25 GHz through 52.6 GHz) , FR3 (7.125 GHz through 24.25 GHz) , FR4a or FR4-1 (52.6 GHz through 71 GHz) , FR4 (52.6 GHz through 114.25 GHz) , and FR5 (114.25 GHz through 300 GHz) . Although a portion of FR1 is greater than 6 GHz, FR1 is often referred to (interchangeably) as a “Sub-6 GHz” band in some documents and articles. Similarly, FR2 is often referred to (interchangeably) as a “millimeter wave” band in some documents and articles, despite being different than the extremely high frequency (EHF) band (30 GHz through 300 GHz) , which is identified by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) as a “millimeter wave” band. The frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are often referred to as mid-band frequencies, which include FR3. Frequency bands falling within FR3 may inherit FR1 characteristics or FR2 characteristics, and thus may effectively extend features of FR1 or FR2 into mid-band frequencies. Thus, “sub-6 GHz, ” if used herein, may broadly refer to frequencies that are less than 6 GHz, that are within FR1, and / or that are included in mid-band frequencies. Similarly, the term “millimeter wave, ” if used herein, may broadly refer to frequencies that are included in mid-band frequencies, that are within FR2, FR4, FR4-a or FR4-1, or FR5, and / or that are within the EHF band. Higher frequency bands may extend 5G NR operation, 6G operation, and / or other RATs beyond 52.6 GHz. For example, each of FR4a, FR4-1, FR4, and FR5 falls within the EHF band. In some examples, the wireless communication network 100 may implement dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS) , in which multiple RATs (for example, 4G / LTE and 5G / NR) are implemented with dynamic bandwidth allocation (for example, based on user demand) in a single frequency band. It is contemplated that the frequencies included in these operating bands (for example, FR1, FR2, FR3, FR4, FR4-a, FR4-1, and / or FR5) may be modified, and techniques described herein may be applicable to those modified frequency ranges.
[0037] A network node 110 may include one or more devices, components, or systems that enable communication between a UE 120 and one or more devices, components, or systems of the wireless communication network 100. A network node 110 may be, may include, or may also be referred to as an NR network node, a 5G network node, a 6G network node, a Node B, an eNB, a gNB, an access point (AP) , a transmission reception point (TRP) , a mobility element, a core, a network entity, a network element, a network equipment, and / or another type of device, component, or system included in a radio access network (RAN) .
[0038] A network node 110 may be implemented as a single physical node (for example, a single physical structure) or may be implemented as two or more physical nodes (for example, two or more distinct physical structures) . For example, a network node 110 may be a device or system that implements part of a radio protocol stack, a device or system that implements a full radio protocol stack (such as a full gNB protocol stack) , or a collection of devices or systems that collectively implement the full radio protocol stack. For example, and as shown, a network node 110 may be an aggregated network node (having an aggregated architecture) , meaning that the network node 110 may implement a full radio protocol stack that is physically and logically integrated within a single node (for example, a single physical structure) in the wireless communication network 100. For example, an aggregated network node 110 may consist of a single standalone base station or a single TRP that uses a full radio protocol stack to enable or facilitate communication between a UE 120 and a core network of the wireless communication network 100.
[0039] Alternatively, and as also shown, a network node 110 may be a disaggregated network node (sometimes referred to as a disaggregated base station) , meaning that the network node 110 may implement a radio protocol stack that is physically distributed and / or logically distributed among two or more nodes in the same geographic location or in different geographic locations. For example, a disaggregated network node may have a disaggregated architecture. In some deployments, disaggregated network nodes 110 may be used in an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) network, in an open radio access network (O-RAN) (such as a network configuration in compliance with the O-RAN Alliance) , or in a virtualized radio access network (vRAN) , also known as a cloud radio access network (C-RAN) , to facilitate scaling by separating base station functionality into multiple units that can be individually deployed.
[0040] The network nodes 110 of the wireless communication network 100 may include one or more central units (CUs) , one or more distributed units (DUs) , and / or one or more radio units (RUs) . A CU may host one or more higher layer control functions, such as radio resource control (RRC) functions, packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) functions, and / or service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) functions, among other examples. A DU may host one or more of a radio link control (RLC) layer, a medium access control (MAC) layer, and / or one or more higher physical (PHY) layers depending, at least in part, on a functional split, such as a functional split defined by the 3GPP. In some examples, a DU also may host one or more lower PHY layer functions, such as a fast Fourier transform (FFT) , an inverse FFT (iFFT) , beamforming, physical random access channel (PRACH) extraction and filtering, and / or scheduling of resources for one or more UEs 120, among other examples. An RU may host RF processing functions or lower PHY layer functions, such as an FFT, an iFFT, beamforming, or PRACH extraction and filtering, among other examples, according to a functional split, such as a lower layer functional split. In such an architecture, each RU can be operated to handle over the air (OTA) communication with one or more UEs 120.
[0041] In some aspects, a single network node 110 may include a combination of one or more CUs, one or more DUs, and / or one or more RUs. Additionally or alternatively, a network node 110 may include one or more Near-Real Time (Near-RT) RAN Intelligent Controllers (RICs) and / or one or more Non-Real Time (Non-RT) RICs. In some examples, a CU, a DU, and / or an RU may be implemented as a virtual unit, such as a virtual central unit (VCU) , a virtual distributed unit (VDU) , or a virtual radio unit (VRU) , among other examples. A virtual unit may be implemented as a virtual network function, such as associated with a cloud deployment.
[0042] Some network nodes 110 (for example, a base station, an RU, or a TRP) may provide communication coverage for a particular geographic area. In the 3GPP, the term “cell” can refer to a coverage area of a network node 110 or to a network node 110 itself, depending on the context in which the term is used. A network node 110 may support one or multiple (for example, three) cells. In some examples, a network node 110 may provide communication coverage for a macro cell, a pico cell, a femto cell, or another type of cell. A macro cell may cover a relatively large geographic area (for example, several kilometers in radius) and may allow unrestricted access by UEs 120 with service subscriptions. A pico cell may cover a relatively small geographic area and may allow unrestricted access by UEs 120 with service subscriptions. A femto cell may cover a relatively small geographic area (for example, a home) and may allow restricted access by UEs 120 having association with the femto cell (for example, UEs 120 in a closed subscriber group (CSG) ) . A network node 110 for a macro cell may be referred to as a macro network node. A network node 110 for a pico cell may be referred to as a pico network node. A network node 110 for a femto cell may be referred to as a femto network node or an in-home network node. In some examples, a cell may not necessarily be stationary. For example, the geographic area of the cell may move according to the location of an associated mobile network node 110 (for example, a train, a satellite base station, an unmanned aerial vehicle, or a non-terrestrial network (NTN) network node) .
[0043] The wireless communication network 100 may be a heterogeneous network that includes network nodes 110 of different types, such as macro network nodes, pico network nodes, femto network nodes, relay network nodes, aggregated network nodes, and / or disaggregated network nodes, among other examples. In the example shown in Fig. 1, the network node 110a may be a macro network node for a macro cell 130a, the network node 110b may be a pico network node for a pico cell 130b, and the network node 110c may be a femto network node for a femto cell 130c. Various different types of network nodes 110 may generally transmit at different power levels, serve different coverage areas, and / or have different impacts on interference in the wireless communication network 100 than other types of network nodes 110. For example, macro network nodes may have a high transmit power level (for example, 5 to 40 watts) , whereas pico network nodes, femto network nodes, and relay network nodes may have lower transmit power levels (for example, 0.1 to 2 watts) .
[0044] In some examples, a network node 110 may be, may include, or may operate as an RU, a TRP, or a base station that communicates with one or more UEs 120 via a radio access link (which may be referred to as a “Uu” link) . The radio access link may include a downlink and an uplink. “Downlink” (or “DL” ) refers to a communication direction from a network node 110 to a UE 120, and “uplink” (or “UL” ) refers to a communication direction from a UE 120 to a network node 110. Downlink channels may include one or more control channels and one or more data channels. A downlink control channel may be used to transmit downlink control information (DCI) (for example, scheduling information, reference signals, and / or configuration information) from a network node 110 to a UE 120. A downlink data channel may be used to transmit downlink data (for example, user data associated with a UE 120) from a network node 110 to a UE 120. Downlink control channels may include one or more physical downlink control channels (PDCCHs) , and downlink data channels may include one or more physical downlink shared channels (PDSCHs) . Uplink channels may similarly include one or more control channels and one or more data channels. An uplink control channel may be used to transmit uplink control information (UCI) (for example, reference signals and / or feedback corresponding to one or more downlink transmissions) from a UE 120 to a network node 110. An uplink data channel may be used to transmit uplink data (for example, user data associated with a UE 120) from a UE 120 to a network node 110. Uplink control channels may include one or more physical uplink control channels (PUCCHs) , and uplink data channels may include one or more physical uplink shared channels (PUSCHs) . The downlink and the uplink may each include a set of resources on which the network node 110 and the UE 120 may communicate.
[0045] Downlink and uplink resources may include time domain resources (frames, subframes, slots, and / or symbols) , frequency domain resources (frequency bands, component carriers, subcarriers, resource blocks, and / or resource elements) , and / or spatial domain resources (particular transmit directions and / or beam parameters) . Frequency domain resources of some bands may be subdivided into bandwidth parts (BWPs) . A BWP may be a continuous block of frequency domain resources (for example, a continuous block of resource blocks) that are allocated for one or more UEs 120. A UE 120 may be configured with both an uplink BWP and a downlink BWP (where the uplink BWP and the downlink BWP may be the same BWP or different BWPs) . A BWP may be dynamically configured (for example, by a network node 110 transmitting a DCI configuration to the one or more UEs 120) and / or reconfigured, which means that a BWP can be adjusted in real-time (or near-real-time) based on changing network conditions in the wireless communication network 100 and / or based on the specific requirements of the one or more UEs 120. This enables more efficient use of the available frequency domain resources in the wireless communication network 100 because fewer frequency domain resources may be allocated to a BWP for a UE 120 (which may reduce the quantity of frequency domain resources that a UE 120 is required to monitor) , leaving more frequency domain resources to be spread across multiple UEs 120. Thus, BWPs may also assist in the implementation of lower-capability UEs 120 by facilitating the configuration of smaller bandwidths for communication by such UEs 120.
[0046] As described above, in some aspects, the wireless communication network 100 may be, may include, or may be included in, an IAB network. In an IAB network, at least one network node 110 is an anchor network node that communicates with a core network. An anchor network node 110 may also be referred to as an IAB donor (or “IAB-donor” ) . The anchor network node 110 may connect to the core network via a wired backhaul link. For example, an Ng interface of the anchor network node 110 may terminate at the core network. Additionally or alternatively, an anchor network node 110 may connect to one or more devices of the core network that provide a core access and mobility management function (AMF) . An IAB network also generally includes multiple non-anchor network nodes 110, which may also be referred to as relay network nodes or simply as IAB nodes (or “IAB-nodes” ) . Each non-anchor network node 110 may communicate directly with the anchor network node 110 via a wireless backhaul link to access the core network, or may communicate indirectly with the anchor network node 110 via one or more other non-anchor network nodes 110 and associated wireless backhaul links that form a backhaul path to the core network. Some anchor network node 110 or other non-anchor network node 110 may also communicate directly with one or more UEs 120 via wireless access links that carry access traffic. In some examples, network resources for wireless communication (such as time resources, frequency resources, and / or spatial resources) may be shared between access links and backhaul links.
[0047] In some examples, any network node 110 that relays communications may be referred to as a relay network node, a relay station, or simply as a relay. A relay may receive a transmission of a communication from an upstream station (for example, another network node 110 or a UE 120) and transmit the communication to a downstream station (for example, a UE 120 or another network node 110) . In this case, the wireless communication network 100 may include or be referred to as a “multi-hop network. ” In the example shown in Fig. 1, the network node 110d (for example, a relay network node) may communicate with the network node 110a (for example, a macro network node) and the UE 120d in order to facilitate communication between the network node 110a and the UE 120d. Additionally or alternatively, a UE 120 may be or may operate as a relay station that can relay transmissions to or from other UEs 120. A UE 120 that relays communications may be referred to as a UE relay or a relay UE, among other examples.
[0048] The UEs 120 may be physically dispersed throughout the wireless communication network 100, and each UE 120 may be stationary or mobile. A UE 120 may be, may include, or may be included in an access terminal, another terminal, a mobile station, or a subscriber unit. A UE 120 may be, include, or be coupled with a cellular phone (for example, a smart phone) , a personal digital assistant (PDA) , a wireless modem, a wireless communication device, a handheld device, a laptop computer, a cordless phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a tablet, a camera, a gaming device, a netbook, a smartbook, an ultrabook, a medical device, a biometric device, a wearable device (for example, a smart watch, smart clothing, smart glasses, a smart wristband, and / or smart jewelry, such as a smart ring or a smart bracelet) , an entertainment device (for example, a music device, a video device, and / or a satellite radio) , an extended reality (XR) device, a vehicular component or sensor, a smart meter or sensor, industrial manufacturing equipment, a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) device (such as a Global Positioning System device or another type of positioning device) , a UE function of a network node, and / or any other suitable device or function that may communicate via a wireless medium.
[0049] A UE 120 and / or a network node 110 may include one or more chips, system-on-chips (SoCs) , chipsets, packages, or devices that individually or collectively constitute or comprise a processing system. The processing system includes processor (or “processing” ) circuitry in the form of one or multiple processors, microprocessors, processing units (such as central processing units (CPUs) , graphics processing units (GPUs) , neural processing units (NPUs) and / or digital signal processors (DSPs) ) , processing blocks, application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC) , programmable logic devices (PLDs) (such as field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) ) , or other discrete gate or transistor logic or circuitry (all of which may be generally referred to herein individually as “processors” or collectively as “the processor” or “the processor circuitry” ) . One or more of the processors may be individually or collectively configurable or configured to perform various functions or operations described herein. A group of processors collectively configurable or configured to perform a set of functions may include a first processor configurable or configured to perform a first function of the set and a second processor configurable or configured to perform a second function of the set, or may include the group of processors all being configured or configurable to perform the set of functions.
[0050] The processing system may further include memory circuitry in the form of one or more memory devices, memory blocks, memory elements or other discrete gate or transistor logic or circuitry, each of which may include tangible storage media such as random-access memory (RAM) or read-only memory (ROM) , or combinations thereof (all of which may be generally referred to herein individually as “memories” or collectively as “the memory” or “the memory circuitry” ) . One or more of the memories may be coupled (for example, operatively coupled, communicatively coupled, electronically coupled, or electrically coupled) with one or more of the processors and may individually or collectively store processor-executable code (such as software) that, when executed by one or more of the processors, may configure one or more of the processors to perform various functions or operations described herein. Additionally or alternatively, in some examples, one or more of the processors may be preconfigured to perform various functions or operations described herein without requiring configuration by software. The processing system may further include or be coupled with one or more modems (such as a Wi-Fi (for example, IEEE compliant) modem or a cellular (for example, 3GPP 4G LTE, 5G, or 6G compliant) modem) . In some implementations, one or more processors of the processing system include or implement one or more of the modems. The processing system may further include or be coupled with multiple radios (collectively “the radio” ) , multiple RF chains, or multiple transceivers, each of which may in turn be coupled with one or more of multiple antennas. In some implementations, one or more processors of the processing system include or implement one or more of the radios, RF chains or transceivers. The UE 120 may include or may be included in a housing that houses components associated with the UE 120 including the processing system.
[0051] Some UEs 120 may be considered machine-type communication (MTC) UEs, evolved or enhanced machine-type communication (eMTC) , UEs, further enhanced eMTC (feMTC) UEs, or enhanced feMTC (efeMTC) UEs, or further evolutions thereof, all of which may be simply referred to as “MTC UEs” ) . An MTC UE may be, may include, or may be included in or coupled with a robot, an uncrewed aerial vehicle, a remote device, a sensor, a meter, a monitor, and / or a location tag. Some UEs 120 may be considered IoT devices and / or may be implemented as NB-IoT (narrowband IoT) devices. An IoT UE or NB-IoT device may be, may include, or may be included in or coupled with an industrial machine, an appliance, a refrigerator, a doorbell camera device, a home automation device, and / or a light fixture, among other examples. Some UEs 120 may be considered Customer Premises Equipment, which may include telecommunications devices that are installed at a customer location (such as a home or office) to enable access to a service provider's network (such as included in or in communication with the wireless communication network 100) .
[0052] Some UEs 120 may be classified according to different categories in association with different complexities and / or different capabilities. UEs 120 in a first category may facilitate massive IoT in the wireless communication network 100, and may offer low complexity and / or cost relative to UEs 120 in a second category. UEs 120 in a second category may include mission-critical IoT devices, legacy UEs, baseline UEs, high-tier UEs, advanced UEs, full-capability UEs, and / or premium UEs that are capable of ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC) , enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) , and / or precise positioning in the wireless communication network 100, among other examples. A third category of UEs 120 may have mid-tier complexity and / or capability (for example, a capability between UEs 120 of the first category and UEs 120 of the second capability) . A UE 120 of the third category may be referred to as a reduced capacity UE ( “RedCap UE” ) , a mid-tier UE, an NR-Light UE, and / or an NR-Lite UE, among other examples. RedCap UEs may bridge a gap between the capability and complexity of NB-IoT devices and / or eMTC UEs, and mission-critical IoT devices and / or premium UEs. RedCap UEs may include, for example, wearable devices, IoT devices, industrial sensors, and / or cameras that are associated with a limited bandwidth, power capacity, and / or transmission range, among other examples. RedCap UEs may support healthcare environments, building automation, electrical distribution, process automation, transport and logistics, and / or smart city deployments, among other examples.
[0053] In some examples, a UE 120 may communicate with a network node 110 via a backscatter device (BSD) 160. The backscatter device 160 may include an ambient Internet-of-Things (IoT) device, a RedCap UE, a device with a low-power wake-up radio (WUR) , or another type of device capable of backscattering transmissions between two wireless communication devices, such as UE 120a and the network node 110a. In some examples, the backscatter device 160 may facilitate communications between a pair of network nodes 110, communications between a UE 120 and a pair of network nodes 110, or another architecture, as described in more detail herein.
[0054] In some examples, two or more UEs 120 (for example, shown as UE 120a and UE 120e) may communicate directly with one another using sidelink communications (for example, without communicating by way of a network node 110 as an intermediary) . As an example, the UE 120a may directly transmit data, control information, or other signaling as a sidelink communication to the UE 120e. This is in contrast to, for example, the UE 120a first transmitting data in an UL communication to a network node 110, which then transmits the data to the UE 120e in a DL communication. In various examples, the UEs 120 may transmit and receive sidelink communications using peer-to-peer (P2P) communication protocols, device-to-device (D2D) communication protocols, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication protocols (which may include vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) protocols, vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) protocols, and / or vehicle-to-pedestrian (V2P) protocols) , and / or mesh network communication protocols. In some deployments and configurations, a network node 110 may schedule and / or allocate resources for sidelink communications between UEs 120 in the wireless communication network 100. In some other deployments and configurations, a UE 120 (instead of a network node 110) may perform, or collaborate or negotiate with one or more other UEs to perform, scheduling operations, resource selection operations, and / or other operations for sidelink communications.
[0055] In various examples, some of the network nodes 110 and the UEs 120 of the wireless communication network 100 may be configured for full-duplex operation in addition to half-duplex operation. A network node 110 or a UE 120 operating in a half-duplex mode may perform only one of transmission or reception during particular time resources, such as during particular slots, symbols, or other time periods. Half-duplex operation may involve time-division duplexing (TDD) , in which DL transmissions of the network node 110 and UL transmissions of the UE 120 do not occur in the same time resources (that is, the transmissions do not overlap in time) . In contrast, a network node 110 or a UE 120 operating in a full-duplex mode can transmit and receive communications concurrently (for example, in the same time resources) . By operating in a full-duplex mode, network nodes 110 and / or UEs 120 may generally increase the capacity of the network and the radio access link. In some examples, full-duplex operation may involve frequency-division duplexing (FDD) , in which DL transmissions of the network node 110 are performed in a first frequency band or on a first component carrier and transmissions of the UE 120 are performed in a second frequency band or on a second component carrier different than the first frequency band or the first component carrier, respectively. In some examples, full-duplex operation may be enabled for a UE 120 but not for a network node 110. For example, a UE 120 may simultaneously transmit an UL transmission to a first network node 110 and receive a DL transmission from a second network node 110 in the same time resources. In some other examples, full-duplex operation may be enabled for a network node 110 but not for a UE 120. For example, a network node 110 may simultaneously transmit a DL transmission to a first UE 120 and receive an UL transmission from a second UE 120 in the same time resources. In some other examples, full-duplex operation may be enabled for both a network node 110 and a UE 120.
[0056] In some examples, the UEs 120 and the network nodes 110 may perform MIMO communication. “MIMO” generally refers to transmitting or receiving multiple signals (such as multiple layers or multiple data streams) simultaneously over the same time and frequency resources. MIMO techniques generally exploit multipath propagation. MIMO may be implemented using various spatial processing or spatial multiplexing operations. In some examples, MIMO may support simultaneous transmission to multiple receivers, referred to as multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO) . Some radio access technologies (RATs) may employ advanced MIMO techniques, such as mTRP operation (including redundant transmission or reception on multiple TRPs) , reciprocity in the time domain or the frequency domain, single-frequency-network (SFN) transmission, or non-coherent joint transmission (NC-JT) .
[0057] In some aspects, a wireless communication device, such as the UE 120 or the network node 110 may include a communication manager, such as the communication managers 140 or 150, respectively. As described in more detail elsewhere herein, the communication managers 140 / 150 may transmit, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters; and transmit, to the backscatter device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device. Additionally, or alternatively, the communication managers 140 / 150 may perform one or more other operations described herein.
[0058] In some aspects, the backscatter device 160 may include a communication manager 162. As described in more detail elsewhere herein, the communication manager 162 may receive, from a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters; and receive, from the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device. Additionally, or alternatively, the communication manager 162 may perform one or more other operations described herein.
[0059] As indicated above, Fig. 1 is provided as an example. Other examples may differ from what is described with regard to Fig. 1.
[0060] Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example network node 110 in communication with an example UE 120 (e.g., via a backscatter device 160) in a wireless network in accordance with the present disclosure.
[0061] As shown in Fig. 2, the network node 110 may include a data source 212, a transmit processor 214, a transmit (TX) MIMO processor 216, a set of modems 232 (shown as 232a through 232t, where t ≥ 1) , a set of antennas 234 (shown as 234a through 234v, where v ≥ 1) , a MIMO detector 236, a receive processor 238, a data sink 239, a controller / processor 240, a memory 242, a communication unit 244, a scheduler 246, and / or a communication manager 150, among other examples. In some configurations, one or a combination of the antenna (s) 234, the modem (s) 232, the MIMO detector 236, the receive processor 238, the transmit processor 214, and / or the TX MIMO processor 216 may be included in a transceiver of the network node 110. The transceiver may be under control of and used by one or more processors, such as the controller / processor 240, and in some aspects in conjunction with processor-readable code stored in the memory 242, to perform aspects of the methods, processes, and / or operations described herein. In some aspects, the network node 110 may include one or more interfaces, communication components, and / or other components that facilitate communication with the UE 120 or another network node.
[0062] The terms “processor, ” “controller, ” or “controller / processor” may refer to one or more controllers and / or one or more processors. For example, reference to “a / the processor, ” “a / the controller / processor, ” or the like (in the singular) should be understood to refer to any one or more of the processors described in connection with Fig. 2, such as a single processor or a combination of multiple different processors. Reference to “one or more processors” should be understood to refer to any one or more of the processors described in connection with Fig. 2. For example, one or more processors of the network node 110 may include transmit processor 214, TX MIMO processor 216, MIMO detector 236, receive processor 238, and / or controller / processor 240. Similarly, one or more processors of the UE 120 may include MIMO detector 256, receive processor 258, transmit processor 264, TX MIMO processor 266, and / or controller / processor 280.
[0063] In some aspects, a single processor may perform all of the operations described as being performed by the one or more processors. In some aspects, a first set of (one or more) processors of the one or more processors may perform a first operation described as being performed by the one or more processors, and a second set of (one or more) processors of the one or more processors may perform a second operation described as being performed by the one or more processors. The first set of processors and the second set of processors may be the same set of processors or may be different sets of processors. Reference to “one or more memories” should be understood to refer to any one or more memories of a corresponding device, such as the memory described in connection with Fig. 2. For example, operation described as being performed by one or more memories can be performed by the same subset of the one or more memories or different subsets of the one or more memories.
[0064] For downlink communication from the network node 110 to the UE 120, the transmit processor 214 may receive data ( “downlink data” ) intended for the UE 120 (or a set of UEs that includes the UE 120) from the data source 212 (such as a data pipeline or a data queue) . In some examples, the transmit processor 214 may select one or more MCSs for the UE 120 in accordance with one or more channel quality indicators (CQIs) received from the UE 120. The network node 110 may process the data (for example, including encoding the data) for transmission to the UE 120 on a downlink in accordance with the MCS (s) selected for the UE 120 to generate data symbols. The transmit processor 214 may process system information (for example, semi-static resource partitioning information (SRPI) ) and / or control information (for example, CQI requests, grants, and / or upper layer signaling) and provide overhead symbols and / or control symbols. The transmit processor 214 may generate reference symbols for reference signals (for example, a cell-specific reference signal (CRS) , a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) , or a channel state information (CSI) reference signal (CSI-RS) ) and / or synchronization signals (for example, a primary synchronization signal (PSS) or a secondary synchronization signals (SSS) ) .
[0065] The TX MIMO processor 216 may perform spatial processing (for example, precoding) on the data symbols, the control symbols, the overhead symbols, and / or the reference symbols, if applicable, and may provide a set of output symbol streams (for example, T output symbol streams) to the set of modems 232. For example, each output symbol stream may be provided to a respective modulator component (shown as MOD) of a modem 232. Each modem 232 may use the respective modulator component to process (for example, to modulate) a respective output symbol stream (for example, for orthogonal frequency division multiplexing ( (OFDM) ) to obtain an output sample stream. Each modem 232 may further use the respective modulator component to process (for example, convert to analog, amplify, filter, and / or upconvert) the output sample stream to obtain a time domain downlink signal. The modems 232a through 232t may together transmit a set of downlink signals (for example, T downlink signals) via the corresponding set of antennas 234.
[0066] A downlink signal may include a DCI communication, a MAC control element (MAC-CE) communication, an RRC communication, a downlink reference signal, or another type of downlink communication. Downlink signals may be transmitted on a PDCCH, a PDSCH, and / or on another downlink channel. A downlink signal may carry one or more transport blocks (TBs) of data. A TB may be a unit of data that is transmitted over an air interface in the wireless communication network 100. A data stream (for example, from the data source 212) may be encoded into multiple TBs for transmission over the air interface. The quantity of TBs used to carry the data associated with a particular data stream may be associated with a TB size common to the multiple TBs. The TB size may be based on or otherwise associated with radio channel conditions of the air interface, the MCS used for encoding the data, the downlink resources allocated for transmitting the data, and / or another parameter. In general, the larger the TB size, the greater the amount of data that can be transmitted in a single transmission, which reduces signaling overhead. However, larger TB sizes may be more prone to transmission and / or reception errors than smaller TB sizes, but such errors may be mitigated by more robust error correction techniques.
[0067] For uplink communication from the UE 120 to the network node 110, uplink signals from the UE 120 may be received by an antenna 234, may be processed by a modem 232 (for example, a demodulator component, shown as DEMOD, of a modem 232) , may be detected by the MIMO detector 236 (for example, a receive (Rx) MIMO processor) if applicable, and / or may be further processed by the receive processor 238 to obtain decoded data and / or control information. The receive processor 238 may provide the decoded data to a data sink 239 (which may be a data pipeline, a data queue, and / or another type of data sink) and provide the decoded control information to a processor, such as the controller / processor 240.
[0068] The network node 110 may use the scheduler 246 to schedule one or more UEs 120 for downlink or uplink communications. In some aspects, the scheduler 246 may use DCI to dynamically schedule DL transmissions to the UE 120 and / or UL transmissions from the UE 120. In some examples, the scheduler 246 may allocate recurring time domain resources and / or frequency domain resources that the UE 120 may use to transmit and / or receive communications using an RRC configuration (for example, a semi-static configuration) , for example, to perform semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) or to configure a configured grant (CG) for the UE 120.
[0069] One or more of the transmit processor 214, the TX MIMO processor 216, the modem 232, the antenna 234, the MIMO detector 236, the receive processor 238, and / or the controller / processor 240 may be included in an RF chain of the network node 110. An RF chain may include one or more filters, mixers, oscillators, amplifiers, analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) , and / or other devices that convert between an analog signal (such as for transmission or reception via an air interface) and a digital signal (such as for processing by one or more processors of the network node 110) . In some aspects, the RF chain may be or may be included in a transceiver of the network node 110.
[0070] In some examples, the network node 110 may use the communication unit 244 to communicate with a core network and / or with other network nodes. The communication unit 244 may support wired and / or wireless communication protocols and / or connections, such as Ethernet, optical fiber, common public radio interface (CPRI) , and / or a wired or wireless backhaul, among other examples. The network node 110 may use the communication unit 244 to transmit and / or receive data associated with the UE 120 or to perform network control signaling, among other examples. The communication unit 244 may include a transceiver and / or an interface, such as a network interface.
[0071] The UE 120 may include a set of antennas 252 (shown as antennas 252a through 252r, where r ≥ 1) , a set of modems 254 (shown as modems 254a through 254u, where u ≥ 1) , a MIMO detector 256, a receive processor 258, a data sink 260, a data source 262, a transmit processor 264, a TX MIMO processor 266, a controller / processor 280, a memory 282, and / or a communication manager 140, among other examples. One or more of the components of the UE 120 may be included in a housing 284. In some aspects, one or a combination of the antenna (s) 252, the modem (s) 254, the MIMO detector 256, the receive processor 258, the transmit processor 264, or the TX MIMO processor 266 may be included in a transceiver that is included in the UE 120. The transceiver may be under control of and used by one or more processors, such as the controller / processor 280, and in some aspects in conjunction with processor-readable code stored in the memory 282, to perform aspects of the methods, processes, or operations described herein. In some aspects, the UE 120 may include another interface, another communication component, and / or another component that facilitates communication with the network node 110 and / or another UE 120.
[0072] For downlink communication from the network node 110 to the UE 120, the set of antennas 252 may receive the downlink communications or signals from the network node 110 and may provide a set of received downlink signals (for example, R received signals) to the set of modems 254. For example, each received signal may be provided to a respective demodulator component (shown as DEMOD) of a modem 254. Each modem 254 may use the respective demodulator component to condition (for example, filter, amplify, downconvert, and / or digitize) a received signal to obtain input samples. Each modem 254 may use the respective demodulator component to further demodulate or process the input samples (for example, for OFDM) to obtain received symbols. The MIMO detector 256 may obtain received symbols from the set of modems 254, may perform MIMO detection on the received symbols if applicable, and may provide detected symbols. The receive processor 258 may process (for example, decode) the detected symbols, may provide decoded data for the UE 120 to the data sink 260 (which may include a data pipeline, a data queue, and / or an application executed on the UE 120) , and may provide decoded control information and system information to the controller / processor 280.
[0073] For uplink communication from the UE 120 to the network node 110, the transmit processor 264 may receive and process data ( “uplink data” ) from a data source 262 (such as a data pipeline, a data queue, and / or an application executed on the UE 120) and control information from the controller / processor 280. The control information may include one or more parameters, feedback, one or more signal measurements, and / or other types of control information. In some aspects, the receive processor 258 and / or the controller / processor 280 may determine, for a received signal (such as received from the network node 110 or another UE) , one or more parameters relating to transmission of the uplink communication. The one or more parameters may include a reference signal received power (RSRP) parameter, a received signal strength indicator (RSSI) parameter, a reference signal received quality (RSRQ) parameter, a channel quality indicator (CQI) parameter, or a transmit power control (TPC) parameter, among other examples. The control information may include an indication of the RSRP parameter, the RSSI parameter, the RSRQ parameter, the CQI parameter, the TPC parameter, and / or another parameter. The control information may facilitate parameter selection and / or scheduling for the UE 120 by the network node 110.
[0074] The transmit processor 264 may generate reference symbols for one or more reference signals, such as an uplink DMRS, an uplink sounding reference signal (SRS) , and / or another type of reference signal. The symbols from the transmit processor 264 may be precoded by the TX MIMO processor 266, if applicable, and further processed by the set of modems 254 (for example, for DFT-s-OFDM or CP-OFDM) . The TX MIMO processor 266 may perform spatial processing (for example, precoding) on the data symbols, the control symbols, the overhead symbols, and / or the reference symbols, if applicable, and may provide a set of output symbol streams (for example, U output symbol streams) to the set of modems 254. For example, each output symbol stream may be provided to a respective modulator component (shown as MOD) of a modem 254. Each modem 254 may use the respective modulator component to process (for example, to modulate) a respective output symbol stream (for example, for OFDM) to obtain an output sample stream. Each modem 254 may further use the respective modulator component to process (for example, convert to analog, amplify, filter, and / or upconvert) the output sample stream to obtain an uplink signal.
[0075] The modems 254a through 254u may transmit a set of uplink signals (for example, R uplink signals or U uplink symbols) via the corresponding set of antennas 252. An uplink signal may include a UCI communication, a MAC-CE communication, an RRC communication, or another type of uplink communication. Uplink signals may be transmitted on a PUSCH, a PUCCH, and / or another type of uplink channel. An uplink signal may carry one or more TBs of data. Sidelink data and control transmissions (that is, transmissions directly between two or more UEs 120) may generally use similar techniques as were described for uplink data and control transmission, and may use sidelink-specific channels such as a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) , a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) , and / or a physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH) .
[0076] One or more antennas of the set of antennas 252 or the set of antennas 234 may include, or may be included within, one or more antenna panels, one or more antenna groups, one or more sets of antenna elements, or one or more antenna arrays, among other examples. An antenna panel, an antenna group, a set of antenna elements, or an antenna array may include one or more antenna elements (within a single housing or multiple housings) , a set of coplanar antenna elements, a set of non-coplanar antenna elements, or one or more antenna elements coupled with one or more transmission or reception components, such as one or more components of Fig. 2. As used herein, “antenna” can refer to one or more antennas, one or more antenna panels, one or more antenna groups, one or more sets of antenna elements, or one or more antenna arrays. “Antenna panel” can refer to a group of antennas (such as antenna elements) arranged in an array or panel, which may facilitate beamforming by manipulating parameters of the group of antennas. “Antenna module” may refer to circuitry including one or more antennas, which may also include one or more other components (such as filters, amplifiers, or processors) associated with integrating the antenna module into a wireless communication device.
[0077] In some examples, each of the antenna elements of an antenna 234 or an antenna 252 may include one or more sub-elements for radiating or receiving radio frequency signals. For example, a single antenna element may include a first sub-element cross-polarized with a second sub-element that can be used to independently transmit cross-polarized signals. The antenna elements may include patch antennas, dipole antennas, and / or other types of antennas arranged in a linear pattern, a two-dimensional pattern, or another pattern. A spacing between antenna elements may be such that signals with a desired wavelength transmitted separately by the antenna elements may interact or interfere constructively and destructively along various directions (such as to form a desired beam) . For example, given an expected range of wavelengths or frequencies, the spacing may provide a quarter wavelength, a half wavelength, or another fraction of a wavelength of spacing between neighboring antenna elements to allow for the desired constructive and destructive interference patterns of signals transmitted by the separate antenna elements within that expected range.
[0078] The amplitudes and / or phases of signals transmitted via antenna elements and / or sub-elements may be modulated and shifted relative to each other (such as by manipulating phase shift, phase offset, and / or amplitude) to generate one or more beams, which is referred to as beamforming. The term “beam” may refer to a directional transmission of a wireless signal toward a receiving device or otherwise in a desired direction. “Beam” may also generally refer to a direction associated with such a directional signal transmission, a set of directional resources associated with the signal transmission (for example, an angle of arrival, a horizontal direction, and / or a vertical direction) , and / or a set of parameters that indicate one or more aspects of a directional signal, a direction associated with the signal, and / or a set of directional resources associated with the signal. In some implementations, antenna elements may be individually selected or deselected for directional transmission of a signal (or signals) by controlling amplitudes of one or more corresponding amplifiers and / or phases of the signal (s) to form one or more beams. The shape of a beam (such as the amplitude, width, and / or presence of side lobes) and / or the direction of a beam (such as an angle of the beam relative to a surface of an antenna array) can be dynamically controlled by modifying the phase shifts, phase offsets, and / or amplitudes of the multiple signals relative to each other.
[0079] Different UEs 120 or network nodes 110 may include different numbers of antenna elements. For example, a UE 120 may include a single antenna element, two antenna elements, four antenna elements, eight antenna elements, or a different number of antenna elements. As another example, a network node 110 may include eight antenna elements, 24 antenna elements, 64 antenna elements, 128 antenna elements, or a different number of antenna elements. Generally, a larger number of antenna elements may provide increased control over parameters for beam generation relative to a smaller number of antenna elements, whereas a smaller number of antenna elements may be less complex to implement and may use less power than a larger number of antenna elements. Multiple antenna elements may support multiple-layer transmission, in which a first layer of a communication (which may include a first data stream) and a second layer of a communication (which may include a second data stream) are transmitted using the same time and frequency resources with spatial multiplexing.
[0080] Although some components are described herein in terms of a UE 120, it is contemplated that a backscatter device 160 may have one or more of the components described herein, such as one or more antennas, processors, receivers, modulators, demodulators, or other components for receiving a transmission and backscattering the transmission, as described in more detail herein.
[0081] In some aspects, a wireless communication device (e.g., a UE 120 or a network node 110) includes means for transmitting, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters; and / or means for transmitting, to the backscatter device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device. In some aspects, the means for the wireless communication device to perform operations described herein may include, for example, one or more of communication manager 150, transmit processor 220, TX MIMO processor 230, modem 232, antenna 234, MIMO detector 236, receive processor 238, controller / processor 240, memory 242, or scheduler 246. In some aspects, the means for the wireless communication device to perform operations described herein may include, for example, one or more of communication manager 140, antenna 252, modem 254, MIMO detector 256, receive processor 258, transmit processor 264, TX MIMO processor 266, controller / processor 280, or memory 282.
[0082] In some aspects, the backscatter device 160 includes means for receiving, from a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters; and / or means for receiving, from the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device. In some aspects, the means for the backscatter device to perform operations described herein may include, for example, one or more of communication manager 162, antenna 252, modem 254, MIMO detector 256, receive processor 258, transmit processor 264, TX MIMO processor 266, controller / processor 280, or memory 282.
[0083] While blocks in Fig. 2 are illustrated as distinct components, the functions described above with respect to the blocks may be implemented in a single hardware, software, or combination component or in various combinations of components. For example, the functions described with respect to the transmit processor 264, the receive processor 258, and / or the TX MIMO processor 266 may be performed by or under the control of the controller / processor 280.
[0084] As indicated above, Fig. 2 is provided as an example. Other examples may differ from what is described with respect to Fig. 2.
[0085] Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example disaggregated base station architecture 300 in accordance with the present disclosure. One or more components of the example disaggregated base station architecture 300 may be, may include, or may be included in one or more network nodes (such one or more network nodes 110) . The disaggregated base station architecture 300 may include a CU 310 that can communicate directly with a core network 320 via a backhaul link, or that can communicate indirectly with the core network 320 via one or more disaggregated control units, such as a Non-RT RIC 350 associated with a Service Management and Orchestration (SMO) Framework 360 and / or a Near-RT RIC 370 (for example, via an E2 link) . The CU 310 may communicate with one or more DUs 330 via respective midhaul links, such as via F1 interfaces. Each of the DUs 330 may communicate with one or more RUs 340 via respective fronthaul links. Each of the RUs 340 may communicate with one or more UEs 120 via respective RF access links. In some deployments, a UE 120 may be simultaneously served by multiple RUs 340. In some deployments, a UE 120 (or another wireless communication device) may be served by a backscatter device 160, which may backscatter communications between the UE 120 and, for example, an RU 340.
[0086] Each of the components of the disaggregated base station architecture 300, including the CUs 310, the DUs 330, the RUs 340, the Near-RT RICs 370, the Non-RT RICs 350, and the SMO Framework 360, may include one or more interfaces or may be coupled with one or more interfaces for receiving or transmitting signals, such as data or information, via a wired or wireless transmission medium.
[0087] In some aspects, the CU 310 may be logically split into one or more CU-UP units and one or more CU-CP units. A CU-UP unit may communicate bidirectionally with a CU-CP unit via an interface, such as the E1 interface when implemented in an O-RAN configuration. The CU 310 may be deployed to communicate with one or more DUs 330, as necessary, for network control and signaling. Each DU 330 may correspond to a logical unit that includes one or more base station functions to control the operation of one or more RUs 340. For example, a DU 330 may host various layers, such as an RLC layer, a MAC layer, or one or more PHY layers, such as one or more high PHY layers or one or more low PHY layers. Each layer (which also may be referred to as a module) may be implemented with an interface for communicating signals with other layers (and modules) hosted by the DU 330, or for communicating signals with the control functions hosted by the CU 310. Each RU 340 may implement lower layer functionality. In some aspects, real-time and non-real-time aspects of control and user plane communication with the RU (s) 340 may be controlled by the corresponding DU 330.
[0088] The SMO Framework 360 may support RAN deployment and provisioning of non-virtualized and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, the SMO Framework 360 may support the deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements, which may be managed via an operations and maintenance interface, such as an O1 interface. For virtualized network elements, the SMO Framework 360 may interact with a cloud computing platform (such as an open cloud (O-Cloud) platform 390) to perform network element life cycle management (such as to instantiate virtualized network elements) via a cloud computing platform interface, such as an O2 interface. A virtualized network element may include, but is not limited to, a CU 310, a DU 330, an RU 340, a non-RT RIC 350, and / or a Near-RT RIC 370. In some aspects, the SMO Framework 360 may communicate with a hardware aspect of a 4G RAN, a 5G NR RAN, and / or a 6G RAN, such as an open eNB (O-eNB) 380, via an O1 interface. Additionally or alternatively, the SMO Framework 360 may communicate directly with each of one or more RUs 340 via a respective O1 interface. In some deployments, this configuration can enable each DU 330 and the CU 310 to be implemented in a cloud-based RAN architecture, such as a vRAN architecture.
[0089] The Non-RT RIC 350 may include or may implement a logical function that enables non-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources, artificial intelligence and / or machine learning (AI / ML) workflows including model training and updates, and / or policy-based guidance of applications and / or features in the Near-RT RIC 370. The Non-RT RIC 350 may be coupled to or may communicate with (such as via an A1 interface) the Near-RT RIC 370. The Near-RT RIC 370 may include or may implement a logical function that enables near-real-time control and optimization of RAN elements and resources via data collection and actions via an interface (such as via an E2 interface) connecting one or more CUs 310, one or more DUs 330, and / or an O-eNB with the Near-RT RIC 370.
[0090] In some aspects, to generate AI / ML models to be deployed in the Near-RT RIC 370, the Non-RT RIC 350 may receive parameters or external enrichment information from external servers. Such information may be utilized by the Near-RT RIC 370 and may be received at the SMO Framework 360 or the Non-RT RIC 350 from non-network data sources or from network functions. In some examples, the Non-RT RIC 350 or the Near-RT RIC 370 may tune RAN behavior or performance. For example, the Non-RT RIC 350 may monitor long-term trends and patterns for performance and may employ AI / ML models to perform corrective actions via the SMO Framework 360 (such as reconfiguration via an O1 interface) or via creation of RAN management policies (such as A1 interface policies) .
[0091] The network node 110, the controller / processor 240 of the network node 110, the UE 120, the controller / processor 280 of the UE 120, the CU 310, the DU 330, the RU 340, or any other component (s) of Figs. 1, 2, or 3 may implement one or more techniques or perform one or more operations associated with retransmission for ambient IoT devices, as described in more detail elsewhere herein. For example, the controller / processor 240 of the network node 110, the controller / processor 280 of the UE 120, any other component (s) of Fig. 2, the CU 310, the DU 330, or the RU 340 may perform or direct operations of, for example, process 600 of Fig. 6, process 700 of Fig. 7, or other processes as described herein (alone or in conjunction with one or more other processors) . In some aspects, the wireless communication device described herein may be a UE 120 or a network node 110, be included in a UE 120 or a network node 110, or may include one or more components of a UE 120 or a network node 110, among other examples. In some aspects, the backscatter device 160 described herein may be a UE 120, may be included in a UE 120, or may include one or more components of a UE 120, among other examples.
[0092] The memory 242 may store data and program codes for the network node 110, the CU 310, the DU 330, or the RU 340. The memory 282 may store data and program codes for the UE 120 or the backscatter device 160. In some examples, the memory 242 or the memory 282 may include a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a set of instructions (for example, code or program code) for wireless communication. The memory 242 may include one or more memories, such as a single memory or multiple different memories (of the same type or of different types) . The memory 282 may include one or more memories, such as a single memory or multiple different memories (of the same type or of different types) . For example, the set of instructions, when executed (for example, directly, or after compiling, converting, or interpreting) by one or more processors of the network node 110, the backscatter device 160, the UE 120, the CU 310, the DU 330, or the RU 340, may cause the one or more processors to perform process 600 of Fig. 6, process 700 of Fig. 7, or other processes as described herein. In some examples, executing instructions may include running the instructions, converting the instructions, compiling the instructions, and / or interpreting the instructions, among other examples.
[0093] As indicated above, Fig. 3 is provided as an example. Other examples may differ from what is described with regard to Fig. 3.
[0094] Fig. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example 400 associated with backscatter communications, in accordance with the present disclosure.
[0095] Some wireless communication devices may be considered IoT devices, such as ambient IoT devices (sometimes referred to as ultra-light IoT devices) , or similar IoT devices. IoT technology may include passive IoT (e.g., NR passive IoT for 5G Advanced) , semi-passive IoT, ultra-light IoT, or ambient IoT, among other examples. In passive IoT, a terminal (e.g., a radio frequency identification (RFID) device, a tag, or a similar device) may not include a battery, and the terminal may accumulate energy from radio signaling. Additionally, the terminal may accumulate solar energy to supplement accumulated energy from radio signaling. In passive IoT, a communication distance may be up to 30 meters (or more) to facilitate feasible network coverage over a large area (e.g., 5000 square meters) , such as in a warehouse. Moreover, the power consumption of a passive IoT terminal (e.g., a UE) may be less than 0.1 milliwatts (mW) to support operation without a battery, and the terminal may be relatively inexpensive to facilitate cost-sensitive uses. A positioning accuracy of a passive IoT terminal may be approximately 3-5 meters in the horizontal and the vertical directions.
[0096] Passive IoT, or ambient IoT, may be useful in connection with industrial sensors, for which battery replacement may be prohibitively difficult or undesirable (e.g., for safety monitoring or fault detection in smart factories, infrastructures, or environments) . Additionally, features of passive IoT devices, such as low cost, small size, maintenance-free, durable, long lifespan, or the like, may facilitate smart logistics / warehousing (e.g., in connection with automated asset management by replacing RFID tags) . Furthermore, passive IoT may be useful in connection with smart home networks for household item management, wearable devices (e.g., wearable devices for medical monitoring for which patients do not need to replace batteries) , and / or environment monitoring. To achieve further cost reduction and zero-power communication, 5G+ / 6G wireless networks may utilize a type of passive IoT device referred to as an “ambient backscatter device” or a “backscatter device. ” This type of device may also be referred to as a “Type-A device” of an ambient IoT type of device.
[0097] As shown in Fig. 4, a backscatter device 405 (e.g., a tag, a sensor, or the like) , which may be one example of a passive IoT device and which may correspond to the backscatter device 160, may employ a simplified hardware design (e.g., including a power splitter, an energy harvester, and a microcontroller) that does not include a battery, such that the backscatter device 405 relies on energy harvesting for power, and that does not include a radio wave generation circuit, such that the backscatter device 405 is capable of transmitting information only by reflecting a radio wave. More particularly, the backscatter device 405 communicates with a reader 408 (e.g., a UE 120, a network node 110, or another network device) by modulating a reflecting radio signal from an RF source 410 (e.g., a network node 110, a UE 120, or another network device) . In some examples, the RF source 410 and the reader 408 may be the same device and / or may be co-located. For example, in some cases, the reader 408 and the RF source 410 may be associated with the same network node 110.
[0098] To facilitate communication of the backscatter device 405, the RF source 410 may transmit an energy harvesting wave to the backscatter device 405. The energy harvesting wave may be transmitted for a sufficient duration in order to enable a communication phase for a target range between the reader 408 and the backscatter device 405. Additionally, or alternatively, in some cases, a range between the RF source 410 and the backscatter device 405 may be limited by a minimum received power for triggering energy harvesting at the backscatter device 405, such as -20 decibel milliwatts (dBm) .
[0099] Once energy is sufficiently accumulated at the backscatter device 405, the backscatter device 405 may begin to reflect the radio wave that is radiated onto the backscatter device 405 via a backscatter link 415. For example, the RF source 410 may initiate a communication session (sometimes referred to as a query-response communication) with a query, which may be a modulating envelope of a continuous wave (CW) . The backscatter device 405 may respond by backscattering of the CW. The communication session may include multiple rounds, such as for purposes of contention resolution when multiple backscatter devices respond to a query. A channel between the RF source 410 and the backscatter device 405 of the backscatter link 415 may be associated with a first backscatter link channel response value (sometimes referred to as a first backscatter link channel coefficient or a first backscatter link gain value) , hBD.
[0100] As described below, the backscatter device 405 may have reflection-on periods and reflection-off periods that follow a pattern that is based at least in part on the transmission of information bits by the backscatter device 405. The reader 408 may detect the reflection pattern of the backscatter device 405 and obtain the backscatter communication information via the backscatter link 415. A channel between the reader 408 and the backscatter device 405 of the backscatter link 415 may be associated with a second backscatter link channel response value (sometimes referred to as a second backscatter link channel coefficient or a second backscatter link channel gain value) , hDU. In addition, the RF source 410 and the reader 408 may communicate (e.g., reference signals and / or data signals) via a direct link 420. A channel between the RF source 410 and the reader 408 of the direct link 420 may be associated with a direct link channel response value (sometimes referred to as a direct link channel coefficient or a direct link channel gain value) , hBU.
[0101] The backscatter device 405 may use an information modulation scheme, such as amplitude shift keying (ASK) modulation or on-off keying (OOK) modulation. For ASK or OOK modulation, the backscatter device 405 may switch on reflection when transmitting an information bit “1” and switch off reflection when transmitting an information bit “0. ” In backscatter communication, the RF source 410 may transmit a particular radio wave (e.g., a reference signal or a data signal, such as a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) ) , which may be denoted as x (n) . The reader 408 may receive this radio wave, x (n) , directly from the RF source 410 via the direct link 420, as well as from the backscatter device 405 modulating and reflecting the radio wave to the reader 408 via the backscatter link 415. The signal received at the reader 408 via the direct link 420, indicated by reference number 425, is the product of the radio wave transmitted by the RF source 410, x (n) , multiplied by the direct link channel response value, hBU, plus any signal noise. The information bits signal of the backscatter device 405 may be denoted as s (n) where s (n) ∈ {0, 1} . Accordingly, the signal received at the reader 408 via the backscatter link 415, indicated by reference number 430, is the product of the signal transmitted by the RF source 410, x (n) , multiplied by the first backscatter link channel response value, hBD, the second backscatter link channel response value, hDU, the information bits signal from the backscatter device 405, s (n) , and a reflection coefficient associated with the backscatter device 405 plus any noise.
[0102] Thus, the resulting signal received at the reader 408, which is the superposition of the signal received via the direct link 420 and the signal received via the backscatter link 415, may be denoted as y (n) . This signal, y (n) , is shown by reference number 435. As shown, when s (n) =0 (indicated by reference number 440 in the plot shown at reference number 430) , the backscatter device 405 may switch off reflection, and thus the reader 408 receives only the direct link 420 signal. When s (n) =1 (indicated by reference number 445 in the plot shown at reference number 430) , the backscatter device 405 may switch on reflection, and thus the reader 408 receives a superposition of both the direct link 420 signal and the backscatter link 415 signal. To receive the information bits transmitted by the backscatter device 405, the reader 408 may first decode x (n) based at least in part on the direct link channel response value of hBU (n) by treating the backscatter link 415 signal as interference. The reader 408 may then detect the existence of the signal component. In some cases, the backscatter device 405 may not maintain a state from communication session to communication session except of what is stored in the backscatter device 405 memory, such as an electronic product code (EPC) associated with backscatter device 405 or similar information.
[0103] As indicated above, Fig. 4 is provided as an example. Other examples may differ from what is described with respect to Fig. 4.
[0104] As described above, different backscatter devices may have different capabilities. In one example, a first class of backscatter device may lack both an energy storage capability and an independent signal generation capability. A second class of backscatter device may have an energy storage capability (e.g., for amplification of reflected signals) , but may lack an independent signal generation capability. A third class of backscatter device may have both an energy storage capability and an independent signal generation capability (e.g., an active radio frequency (RF) component for transmission) . Other types of capabilities may relate to a device function, a maximum power consumption, an amount of energy storage, a maximum transmit power, a quantity of antennas, or a set of available modulation and coding schemes (MCSs) , among other examples. Additional attributes of a backscatter device can include a quantity of backscatter devices in a particular area, a set of sensors included in a backscatter device, a positioning of the backscatter device, or whether the backscatter device is deployed indoors or outdoors, among other examples.
[0105] To ensure reliability for reduced capability devices, such as backscatter devices, retransmission may be configured. When retransmission is configured, a wireless communication device, such as a network node or UE, may transmit a plurality of repetitions of data to an ambient IoT device, such as a backscatter device. The ambient IoT device may receive at least one repetition of the data and may backscatter the at least one repetition of the data. However, a single static retransmission configuration may not be compatible with all types of reduced capability devices that are deployed in a network. For example, some backscatter devices may be capable of receiving on a single frequency or group of frequencies, and other backscatter devices may be capable of frequency hopping between different groups of frequencies. Similarly, different backscatter devices may be capable of tuning between different frequencies at different rates. Accordingly, using a single static time offset between uses of different frequencies may result in slower backscatter devices failing to tune to and receive some transmissions and other, faster backscatter devices waiting an excessive delay period before receiving transmissions.
[0106] Various aspects relate generally to providing a retransmission procedure for ambient IoT devices. Some aspects more specifically relate to retransmission using a configuration that is associated with a backscatter device that is a target of the retransmission. In some aspects, a wireless communication device may transmit, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication using a first set of communication parameters and a second repetition of the communication using a second set of communication parameters. In this case, the second set of communication parameters may be associated with a device capability of the backscatter device. For example, a time offset between transmission of the first repetition on a first frequency and transmission of the second repetition on a second frequency may be associated with a tuning delay of the backscatter device. Additionally, or alternatively, use of frequency hopping, helper tones, dual tones, or a particular power level, among other examples, may be associated with a capability of the backscatter device.
[0107] Particular aspects of the subject matter described in this disclosure can be implemented to realize one or more of the following potential advantages. In some examples, by configuring transmission to an ambient IoT device in connection with a capability of the ambient IoT device, the described techniques can be used to reduce a likelihood of dropped communications and / or improve a throughput of communications. Additionally, or alternatively, by enabling use of backscatter devices with different capabilities, some implementations described herein increase a deployment flexibility for wireless communications systems.
[0108] Figs. 5A-5K are diagrams illustrating an example 500 associated with retransmission for ambient IoT devices, in accordance with the present disclosure. As shown in Fig. 5A, example 500 includes communication between a transmit (TX) wireless communication device 502, a backscatter device 160, and a receive (RX) wireless communication device 504. In some aspects, the backscatter device 160 may be an ambient IoT device or another type of device.
[0109] As further shown in Fig. 5A, and by reference number 510, the TX wireless communication device 502, the backscatter device 160, and / or the RX wireless communication device 504 may set a communication configuration. For example, the TX wireless communication device 502 may configure a first set of communication parameters for a first transmission and a second set of communication parameters for a second transmission. Similarly, the backscatter device 160 may configure a first set of communication parameters for a first transmission and a second set of communication parameters for a second transmission. For example, the backscatter device 160 may indicate a type of the backscatter device 160 (e.g., Type-A, Type-B, or Type-C) , a clock stability of the backscatter device 160, a switching time of the backscatter device 160, a chase combining support capability of the backscatter device 160, or another parameter as described in more detail below. Additional details regarding types of backscatter devices 160 (e.g., ambient-IoT device types) are described in 3GPP Technical Report (TR) 38.848 version 18.0.0, Release 18. In some aspects, the TX wireless communication device 502 or the RX wireless communication device 504 may configure the backscatter device 160. For example, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit signaling identifying a configuration for receiving at least one transmission and / or for retransmitting the at least one transmission as a backscatter transmission.
[0110] As further shown in Fig. 5A, and by reference number 520, the TX wireless communication device 502 may communicate with the RX wireless communication device 504 via one or more transmissions to and one or more backscatter transmissions from the backscatter device 160. For example, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit a first transmission 522 to the backscatter device 160, which may backscatter the first transmission 522 as a first backscatter transmission 524. In this case, the backscatter device 160 may use a first set of communication parameters for receiving the first transmission 522 and / or for transmitting the first backscatter transmission 524. Additionally, or alternatively, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit a second transmission 526 to the backscatter device 160, which may backscatter the second transmission 526 as a second backscatter transmission 528. In this case, the backscatter device 160 may use a second set of communication parameters for receiving the second transmission 526 and / or for transmitting the second backscatter transmission 528. In some aspects, the second set of communication parameters may be associated with a device capability of, for example, the backscatter device 160. For example, a frequency difference (or lack thereof) , a power difference (or lack thereof) , or a time gap, among other examples, between the first transmission 522 and the second transmission 526 may be based at least in part on one or more capabilities of the backscatter device 160, as described herein.
[0111] In some aspects, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit data to the backscatter device 160 in a scenario in which the backscatter device 160 does not support chase combining. For example, the TX wireless communication device 502 may determine a type of the backscatter device 160 (e.g., based on received signaling or a configuration) and may determine that the backscatter device 160 does not support chase combining. In this case, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit a plurality of repetitions of the data at the same frequency. Additionally, or alternatively, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit a plurality of repetitions of the data at different frequencies (e.g., the first transmission 522 may occur at a first frequency and the second transmission 526 may occur at a second frequency) . In the case of transmission at different frequencies without support for chase combining, and when the backscatter device 160 supports a capability of wideband reception with RF envelope detection, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit the plurality of repetitions at the different frequencies without using the capability of the backscatter device 160 to control which frequencies the TX wireless communication device 502 selects.
[0112] Alternatively, in the case of transmission at different frequencies without support for chase combining, and when the backscatter device 160 is configured with a passive filter for RF envelope detection, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit using single tone transmission, helper tone transmission, or dual-tone transmission. For single tone transmission, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit a plurality of repetitions with frequency hopping within a reception band of the backscatter device 160. For example, as shown in Fig. 5B, the TX wireless communication device 502 transmits at powers P, where each power P is for a single repetition, for a total of N repetitions, within a reception band of the backscatter device 160. In this case, the backscatter device 160 may use a passive RF bandpass filter (BPF) to tune to different frequencies. For example, the backscatter device 160 may be a Type-C ambient-IoT device.
[0113] In contrast, for helper tone transmission, and when the helper tone and signal transmission are from the same node of the TX wireless communication device 502, the TX wireless communication device 502 may configure a frequency difference between the helper tone and a tone for signal transmission to be within a reception band of a passive baseband BPF of the backscatter device 160. In this case, different types of backscatter devices 160 may have different filtering capabilities. For example, a Type-A ambient-IoT device may not support filtering, a Type-B ambient-IoT device may support a passive filter operated at a fixed frequency and a fixed bandwidth, and a Type-C ambient-IoT device may support a passive filter with a tunable frequency and a tunable bandwidth. Accordingly, the backscatter device 160 may be configured to use a filter, if supported, to receive repetitions from the TX wireless communication device 502.
[0114] For helper tone transmission, when the helper tone and signal transmission are from different nodes of the TX wireless communication device 502 (e.g., different DUs of a common CU) or different devices (e.g., a gNB and a UE) , and when a passive filter of the backscatter device 160 operates at a fixed frequency (e.g., for Type-A and Type-B) , the TX wireless communication device 502 may configure a frequency difference between a helper tone and a signal transmission to be within a reception band of a passive baseband BPF of the backscatter device 160. In this case, the TX wireless communication device 502 may configure a frequency hopping pattern for the helper tone and signal transmission, as shown in Fig. 5C. For example, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit a first helper tone and a first repetition at frequencies f0 and f0 + Δf, respectively (where Δf is within a reception band of the passive baseband BPF) , and a second helper tone and a second repetition at frequencies f1 and f1 + Δf. In this case, a difference between f0 and f1 (and between f1 and f2 and between f2 and f3, as shown in Fig. 5C) may be a configured frequency hopping pattern. In some aspects, the configured frequency hopping pattern may be a pre-configured frequency hopping pattern. For example, as described above, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit configuration information to a helper tone transmitter to identify the frequency hopping pattern. Additionally, or alternatively, the backscatter device 160 may store information identifying a frequency hopping pattern, such as a fixed frequency hopping pattern or a parameter for identifying a frequency hopping pattern, which may be specified in a specification. Additionally, or alternatively, the TX wireless communication device 502 may dynamically configure the frequency hopping pattern by causing a signal transmission node to signal an indication of a frequency of a helper tone to a helper tone transmitting node before each repetition of helper tone and signal tone.
[0115] For helper tone transmission, when the helper tone and signal transmission are from different nodes of the TX wireless communication device 502 (e.g., different DUs of a common CU or different devices, such as a gNB and a UE) , and when a passive filter of the backscatter device 160 is configurable to different frequencies (e.g., for Type-C) , the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit signal transmissions at different frequencies and transmit helper tones at a fixed frequency. For example, as shown in Fig. 5D, the TX wireless communication device 502 transmits helper tones at frequency f0 and transmits signal tones at frequencies f0 + Δf0, f0 + Δf1, f0 + Δf2, and f0 + Δf3. In this case, to enable the backscatter device 160 to tune to frequencies for the signal tones, the TX wireless communication device 502 may pre-configure a frequency hopping pattern for the backscatter device 160. In some aspects, the backscatter device 160 may indicate a device capability associated with frequency switching. For example, the backscatter device 160 may indicate a frequency switching capability or energy constraint associated with a switching time for switching between frequencies. In this case, the TX wireless communication device 502 may cause a time gap (e.g., at a signal transmission node and helper tone transmission node) between transmissions of the signal tone and helper tone to satisfy the switching time of the backscatter device 160. In some aspects, the backscatter device 160 may indicate a relation between an energy status and tunability of a passive baseband BPF. In this case, the backscatter device 160 may turn off tunability of the passive baseband BPF when energy resources of the backscatter device 160 are below a configured level. Accordingly, the TX wireless communication device 502 may determine whether to treat the backscatter device 160 as having a tunable or non-tunable passive baseband BPF based at least in part on an indication of an energy resource of the backscatter device 160.
[0116] In further contrast, for dual tone transmission, and when an operating frequency of the backscatter device 160 is fixed at a single frequency, the TX wireless communication device 502 may configure a frequency difference between dual tones to be within a reception band of the passive baseband BPF. Additionally, or alternatively, for dual tone transmission, and when the operating frequency of the backscatter device 160 is tunable, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit a first tone at a fixed frequency and a second tone at a varied frequency (e.g., where different repetitions are at different frequencies) . For example, as shown in Fig. 5E, tone 1 is transmitted at a fixed frequency f0 and tone 2 is transmitted at a variable frequency that is offset from f0 by different offset amounts Δf0, Δf1, Δf2, and Δf3. In contrast, as shown in Fig. 5F, the TX wireless communication device 502 may vary a frequency of tone 1, a size gap between tone 1 and tone 2, and a frequency of tone 2, such that tone 1 occurs at f0, f1, f2, and f3 and tone 2 occurs at f0 + Δf0, f1 + Δf1, f2 + Δf2, and f3 + Δf3. In this case, the TX wireless communication device 502 may indicate a pattern of the frequency differences between the first tone and the second tone to the backscatter device 160 and may select the pattern to satisfy a capability of the backscatter device 160 (e.g., a switching time capability, as described above) .
[0117] In some aspects, the backscatter device 160 may have a local oscillator with envelope detection. For example, the backscatter device 160 may have a receiver with a heterodyne architecture with intermediate frequency (IF) envelope detection or a homodyne / zero-IF architecture with baseband envelope detection. In this case, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit using frequency hopping associated with a capability of a local oscillator and reception band of a passive baseband BPF of the backscatter device 160. For example, as shown in Fig. 5G, a local oscillator may generate a set of discrete frequencies fc, 1 through fc, N and transmit (and retransmit) with respect to a center frequency of a baseband fB, such that transmissions occur at fc, 1 + fB, fc, 2 + fB, fc, 3 + fB, and fc, 4 + fB. In another example, when the frequency of the local oscillator can be tuned over a range of frequencies, the backscatter device 160 may indicate a tuning step size Δf1 through ΔfN, such that transmissions occur at fc, 1 + fB + fΔ1, fc, 2 + fB + fΔ2, fc, 3 + fB + fΔ3, and fc, 4 + fB + fΔ4. In some aspects, a time gap between transmissions may be based at least in part on a capability of the backscatter device 160. For example, the backscatter device 160 may indicate the time gap to the TX wireless communication device 502, and the TX wireless communication device 502 may offset each transmission by at least the time gap to ensure that the backscatter device 160 has sufficient time to tune to the different frequencies of the transmissions, as further shown in Fig. 5G.
[0118] In some aspects, the TX wireless communication device 502 may vary one or more other transmission parameters when transmitting to the backscatter device 160. For example, the TX wireless communication device 502 may vary a power level of transmissions, such that the first transmission 522 has a first power level and the second transmission 526 has a second power level. In this case, the TX wireless communication device 502 may configure an initial power level of an initial transmission (e.g., the first transmission 522) to satisfy a minimum coverage parameter. Additionally, or alternatively, the TX wireless communication device 502 may configure the initial power level based at least in part on a previous transmission power associated with the backscatter device 160 (e.g., a previous transmit power level used for a previous set of repetitions of a transmission prior to a current set of repetitions of a transmission that includes the first transmission 522 and the second transmission 526) .
[0119] In some aspects, the TX wireless communication device 502 may vary a plurality of transmission parameters. For example, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit a plurality of transmissions at each frequency, of a frequency hopping pattern, with the same transmit power or with different transmit powers (e.g., increasing transmit powers in accordance with a transmit power pattern) . For example, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit a plurality of transmissions using increasing power levels at a first frequency, determine whether the backscatter device 160 has successfully received any of the plurality of transmissions (e.g., by receiving a response or observing a change by the backscatter device 160 that is a response to a transmission) , and, if the backscatter device 160 has not successfully received any of the plurality of transmissions, re-transmit the plurality of transmissions at a second frequency (e.g., with increasing power levels) . In this example, as shown in Fig. 5H, the TX wireless communication device 502 transmits first repetitions at f0 with power levels P, P + ΔP1, …, and P + ΔPK-1 and, if the first repetitions at f0 are unsuccessful, transmits second repetitions at f1 with the power levels P, P + ΔP1, …, and P + ΔPK-1.
[0120] Additionally, or alternatively, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit different quantities of retransmissions at each frequency of a frequency hopping pattern (e.g., with the same or different transmit power levels) . For example, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit a first K1 transmissions at a first frequency with a first one or more power levels and, if the first K1 transmissions are unsuccessful, may transmit a second K2 transmissions at a second frequency with a second one or more power levels (e.g., where K1 ≠ K2) . In this example, as shown in Fig. 5I, the TX wireless communication device 502 transmits K1 repetitions at f0 with power levels P, P + ΔP1, …, and P + ΔPK1-1 and, if the first repetitions at f0 are unsuccessful, transmits K2 repetitions at f1 with the power levels P, P + ΔP1, …, and P + ΔPK2-1.
[0121] In some aspects, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit in a scenario in which the backscatter device 160 supports chase combining. For example, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit a set of transmissions (e.g., the first transmission 522 and the second transmission 526) to the backscatter device 160, which will convert a received signal to a baseband and perform envelope detection. In this case, if the backscatter device 160 supports wideband reception, the TX wireless communication device 502 may repeat transmissions at the same frequency, repeat transmissions at different frequencies, repeat transmissions with different power levels, or a combination thereof, as described above. Similarly, if the backscatter device 160 supports narrow-band reception, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit repetitions at the same frequency and / or with the same or different power levels, as described above. In another example, the backscatter device 160 may be configured to perform envelope detection without converting a received signal to a baseband. In this case, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit single tone transmission at the same frequency and / or with the same or different power levels. Alternatively, the TX wireless communication device 502 may perform helper tone or dual tone transmission without frequency hopping and with the same or different power levels or with frequency hopping (e.g., with a fixed frequency difference between pairs of tones) at the same or different power levels.
[0122] In some aspects, the backscatter device 160 may backscatter one or more received repetitions to the RX wireless communication device 504 (e.g., the first backscatter transmission 524 or the second backscatter transmission 528) in connection with a CW. For example, when the backscatter device 160 does not support frequency shifting (e.g., Type-A or Type-B ambient-IoT devices) , the backscatter device 160 may backscatter transmissions at a common frequency. In some aspects, when the TX wireless communication device 502 transmits CWs using an assisting node or is a UE type of device transmitting at different frequencies, the assisting node, the UE, or the backscatter device 160 may determine a frequency hopping pattern of transmissions of the CWs. Additionally, or alternatively, the backscatter device 160, the assisting node, or the UE may receive an indication (e.g., from a network node or base station) of a resource for the CWs. Additionally, or alternatively, the backscatter device 160, the assisting node, or the UE may autonomously determine a frequency hopping pattern. In some aspects, when the backscatter device 160 does support frequency shifting, the backscatter device 160 may receive or store a static configuration of a frequency pattern for retransmission and / or backscattering. Additionally, or alternatively, the backscatter device 160 may receive a dynamic indication of a frequency shift for retransmissions. For example, as shown in Fig. 5J, and by diagram 550, the backscatter device 160 may receive a CW at a first frequency and signal tones at different second frequencies f0, f1, f2, and / or f3. In contrast, as shown by diagram 552, when the backscatter device 160 does not support frequency shifting, the backscatter device 160 receives the CW at different frequencies to maintain a common offset Δf between signal tone frequencies and the CW.
[0123] In some aspects, the TX wireless communication device 502 transmits and the backscatter device 160 receives transmission using a time gap associated with a clock stability of the backscatter device 160. For example, the TX wireless communication device 502 may transmit a preamble transmission (e.g., for clock synchronization and to avoid frequency drift) and a signal transmission with a fixed gap, where a length of the gap is based at least in part on a clock stability of the backscatter device 160. In this case, as shown in Fig. 5K, the TX wireless communication device 502 transmits a preamble for each signal transmission when transmitting to a Type-A backscatter device 160. In contrast, the TX wireless communication device 502 transmits a preamble for each M signal transmission when transmitting to a Type-B backscatter device 160 (e.g., where M = 2 as an example) . In further contrast, the TX wireless communication device 502 transmits a preamble for each N signal transmissions when transmitting to a Type-C backscatter device 160 (e.g., where M < N) . In some aspects, the backscatter device 160 performs retransmission (e.g., transmits data to RX wireless communication device 510) and is configured to manage a frequency drift of that may result from relatively poor clock reliability. In this case, the network node 110 may transmit a preamble before the retransmission of the backscatter device 160 to enable the backscatter device 160 to perform the retransmission at a correct frequency
[0124] As indicated above, Figs. 5A-5K are provided as examples. Other examples may differ from what is described with respect to Figs. 5A-5K.
[0125] Fig. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example process 600 performed, for example, at a wireless communication device or an apparatus of a wireless communication device, in accordance with the present disclosure. Example process 600 is an example where the apparatus or the wireless communication device (e.g., TX wireless communication device 502, RX wireless communication device 504, the apparatus 800, UE 120, or network node 110) performs operations associated with retransmission for ambient IoT devices.
[0126] As shown in Fig. 6, in some aspects, process 600 may include transmitting, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters (block 610) . For example, the wireless communication device (e.g., using transmission component 804 and / or communication manager 806, depicted in Fig. 8) may transmit, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters, as described above.
[0127] As further shown in Fig. 6, in some aspects, process 600 may include transmitting, to the backscatter device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device (block 620) . For example, the wireless communication device (e.g., using transmission component 804 and / or communication manager 806, depicted in Fig. 8) may transmit, to the backscatter device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device, as described above.
[0128] Process 600 may include additional aspects, such as any single aspect or any combination of aspects described below and / or in connection with one or more other processes described elsewhere herein.
[0129] In a first aspect, the device capability does not include support for chase combining, and the second repetition of the communication is on a same frequency as the first repetition of the communication.
[0130] In a second aspect, alone or in combination with the first aspect, the device capability does not include support for chase combining, and the second repetition of the communication is on a different frequency than the first repetition of the communication.
[0131] In a third aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first and second aspects, the device capability includes a wideband reception with radio frequency envelope detection capability, and the second repetition is a single-tone frequency hopping repetition within a reception band of the backscatter device.
[0132] In a fourth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through third aspects, the device capability includes a wideband reception with radio frequency envelope detection capability, and the second repetition is a helper-tone frequency hopping repetition with a frequency difference between the first repetition and the second repetition being within a reception band of the backscatter device.
[0133] In a fifth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fourth aspects, the device capability includes a filtering capability, and the second repetition is in accordance with the filtering capability.
[0134] In a sixth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fifth aspects, a first tone is transmitted from a first network node of the wireless communication device and a second tone is transmitted from a second network node of the wireless communication device, wherein the device capability is a fixed frequency capability, and wherein the first repetition and the second repetition are transmitted using a statically configured or dynamically configured frequency hopping pattern.
[0135] In a seventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through sixth aspects, the first repetition is transmitted from a first network node of the wireless communication device and the second repetition is transmitted from a second network node of the wireless communication device, wherein the device capability is a tunable frequency capability, and wherein the first repetition is transmitted using frequency hopping and the second repetition is transmitted at a fixed frequency.
[0136] In an eighth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through seventh aspects, a configuration of the frequency hopping is associated with the device capability, and the device capability relates to an energy constraint, a switching time, an energy status, or a baseband tunability configuration.
[0137] In a ninth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eighth aspects, the device capability includes a capability for dual-tone transmission, operating at a fixed frequency, and a tunable passive baseband filter, and the first repetition is a first tone associated with the fixed frequency and the second repetition is a second tone at a variable frequency.
[0138] In a tenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through ninth aspects, the device capability includes a capability for dual-tone transmission, operating at a fixed frequency, and a tunable passive baseband filter, and the first repetition is a first tone associated with a first variable frequency and the second repetition is a second tone associated with a second variable frequency.
[0139] In an eleventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through tenth aspects, the wireless communication device is configured to indicate a pattern of a frequency difference between the first variable frequency and the second variable frequency, and the pattern is associated with the device capability.
[0140] In a twelfth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eleventh aspects, the device capability includes a local oscillator with envelope detection, and a frequency hopping configuration of the first repetition and the second repetition is associated with a capability of the local oscillator and a reception band of a passive baseband filter.
[0141] In a thirteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twelfth aspects, process 600 includes receiving an indication to alter the frequency hopping configuration, and transmitting one or more subsequent repetitions using an altered frequency hopping configuration associated with a frequency change, wherein a time gap associated with altering the frequency hopping configuration is associated with the capability of the local oscillator.
[0142] In a fourteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through thirteenth aspects, respective power levels of the first repetition and the second repetition are associated with the device capability.
[0143] In a fifteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fourteenth aspects, the device capability includes support for chase combining, and the second repetition of the communication is on a different frequency than the first repetition of the communication.
[0144] In a sixteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fifteenth aspects, the first repetition and the second repetition are backscattered at a common frequency.
[0145] In a seventeenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through sixteenth aspects, process 600 includes transmitting a backscatter configuration identifying a resource or frequency for backscatter of the first repetition or the second repetition, wherein the backscatter configuration is associated with the device capability.
[0146] In an eighteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through seventeenth aspects, the backscatter configuration includes a frequency pattern or frequency shift.
[0147] In a nineteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eighteenth aspects, a configuration of a preamble of a clock synchronization signal transmitted to the backscatter device is associated with the device capability.
[0148] Although Fig. 6 shows example blocks of process 600, in some aspects, process 600 may include additional blocks, fewer blocks, different blocks, or differently arranged blocks than those depicted in Fig. 6. Additionally, or alternatively, two or more of the blocks of process 600 may be performed in parallel.
[0149] Fig. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example process 700 performed, for example, at a backscatter device or an apparatus of a backscatter device, in accordance with the present disclosure. Example process 700 is an example where the apparatus or the backscatter device (e.g., backscatter device 160 or the apparatus 900) performs operations associated with retransmission for ambient IoT devices.
[0150] As shown in Fig. 7, in some aspects, process 700 may include receiving, from a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters (block 710) . For example, the backscatter device (e.g., using reception component 902 and / or communication manager 906, depicted in Fig. 9) may receive, from a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters, as described above.
[0151] As further shown in Fig. 7, in some aspects, process 700 may include receiving, from the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device (block 720) . For example, the backscatter device (e.g., using reception component 902 and / or communication manager 906, depicted in Fig. 9) may receive, from the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device, as described above.
[0152] Process 700 may include additional aspects, such as any single aspect or any combination of aspects described below and / or in connection with one or more other processes described elsewhere herein.
[0153] In a first aspect, process 700 includes backscattering at least one of the first repetition or the second repetition in accordance with at least one of the first set of communication parameters or the second set of communication parameters.
[0154] In a second aspect, alone or in combination with the first aspect, the device capability does not include support for chase combining, and the second repetition of the communication is on a same frequency as the first repetition of the communication.
[0155] In a third aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first and second aspects, the device capability does not include support for chase combining, and the second repetition of the communication is on a different frequency than the first repetition of the communication.
[0156] In a fourth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through third aspects, the device capability includes a wideband reception with radio frequency envelope detection capability, and the second repetition is a single-tone frequency hopping repetition within a reception band of the backscatter device.
[0157] In a fifth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fourth aspects, the device capability includes a wideband reception with radio frequency envelope detection capability, and the second repetition is a helper-tone frequency hopping repetition with a frequency difference between the first repetition and the second repetition being within a reception band of the backscatter device.
[0158] In a sixth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fifth aspects, the device capability includes a filtering capability, and the second repetition is in accordance with the filtering capability.
[0159] In a seventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through sixth aspects, a first tone is received from a first network node of the wireless communication device and a second tone is received from a second network node of the wireless communication device, wherein the device capability is a fixed frequency capability, and wherein the first repetition and the second repetition are received using a statically configured or dynamically configured frequency hopping pattern.
[0160] In an eighth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through seventh aspects, the first repetition is received from a first network node of the wireless communication device and the second repetition is received from a second network node of the wireless communication device, wherein the device capability is a tunable frequency capability, and wherein the first repetition is received using frequency hopping and the second repetition is received at a fixed frequency.
[0161] In a ninth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eighth aspects, a configuration of the frequency hopping is associated with the device capability, and the device capability relates to an energy constraint, a switching time, an energy status, or a baseband tunability configuration.
[0162] In a tenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through ninth aspects, the device capability includes a capability for dual-tone transmission, operating at a fixed frequency, and a tunable passive baseband filter, and the first repetition is a first tone associated with the fixed frequency and the second repetition is a second tone at a variable frequency.
[0163] In an eleventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through tenth aspects, the device capability includes a capability for dual-tone transmission, operating at a fixed frequency, and a tunable passive baseband filter, and the first repetition is a first tone associated with a first variable frequency and the second repetition is a second tone associated with a second variable frequency.
[0164] In a twelfth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eleventh aspects, the backscatter device is configured to receive a pattern of a frequency difference between the first variable frequency and the second variable frequency, and the pattern is associated with the device capability.
[0165] In a thirteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twelfth aspects, the device capability includes a local oscillator with envelope detection, and a frequency hopping configuration of the first repetition and the second repetition is associated with a capability of the local oscillator and a reception band of a passive baseband filter.
[0166] In a fourteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through thirteenth aspects, process 700 includes transmitting an indication to alter the frequency hopping configuration, and receiving one or more subsequent repetitions using an altered frequency hopping configuration associated with a frequency change, wherein a time gap associated with altering the frequency hopping configuration is associated with the capability of the local oscillator.
[0167] In a fifteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fourteenth aspects, respective power levels of the first repetition and the second repetition are associated with the device capability.
[0168] In a sixteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fifteenth aspects, the device capability includes support for chase combining, and the second repetition of the communication is on a different frequency than the first repetition of the communication.
[0169] In a seventeenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through sixteenth aspects, the first repetition and the second repetition are backscattered at a common frequency.
[0170] In an eighteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through seventeenth aspects, process 700 includes receiving a backscatter configuration identifying a resource or frequency for backscatter of the first repetition or the second repetition, wherein the backscatter configuration is associated with the device capability.
[0171] In a nineteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eighteenth aspects, the backscatter configuration includes a frequency pattern or frequency shift.
[0172] In a twentieth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through nineteenth aspects, a configuration of a preamble of a clock synchronization signal transmitted to the backscatter device is associated with the device capability.
[0173] Although Fig. 7 shows example blocks of process 700, in some aspects, process 700 may include additional blocks, fewer blocks, different blocks, or differently arranged blocks than those depicted in Fig. 7. Additionally, or alternatively, two or more of the blocks of process 700 may be performed in parallel.
[0174] Fig. 8 is a diagram of an example apparatus 800 for wireless communication, in accordance with the present disclosure. The apparatus 800 may be a wireless communication device, or a wireless communication device may include the apparatus 800. In some aspects, the apparatus 800 includes a reception component 802, a transmission component 804, and / or a communication manager 806, which may be in communication with one another (for example, via one or more buses and / or one or more other components) . In some aspects, the communication manager 806 is the communication manager 140 or 150 described in connection with Fig. 1. As shown, the apparatus 800 may communicate with another apparatus 808, such as a UE or a network node (such as a CU, a DU, an RU, or a base station) , using the reception component 802 and the transmission component 804.
[0175] In some aspects, the apparatus 800 may be configured to perform one or more operations described herein in connection with Figs. 5A-5K. Additionally, or alternatively, the apparatus 800 may be configured to perform one or more processes described herein, such as process 600 of Fig. 6. In some aspects, the apparatus 800 and / or one or more components shown in Fig. 8 may include one or more components of the wireless communication device described in connection with Fig. 2. Additionally, or alternatively, one or more components shown in Fig. 8 may be implemented within one or more components described in connection with Fig. 2. Additionally, or alternatively, one or more components of the set of components may be implemented at least in part as software stored in one or more memories. For example, a component (or a portion of a component) may be implemented as instructions or code stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium and executable by one or more controllers or one or more processors to perform the functions or operations of the component.
[0176] The reception component 802 may receive communications, such as reference signals, control information, data communications, or a combination thereof, from the apparatus 808. The reception component 802 may provide received communications to one or more other components of the apparatus 800. In some aspects, the reception component 802 may perform signal processing on the received communications (such as filtering, amplification, demodulation, analog-to-digital conversion, demultiplexing, deinterleaving, de-mapping, equalization, interference cancellation, or decoding, among other examples) , and may provide the processed signals to the one or more other components of the apparatus 800. In some aspects, the reception component 802 may include one or more antennas, one or more modems, one or more demodulators, one or more MIMO detectors, one or more receive processors, one or more controllers / processors, one or more memories, or a combination thereof, of the wireless communication device described in connection with Fig. 2.
[0177] The transmission component 804 may transmit communications, such as reference signals, control information, data communications, or a combination thereof, to the apparatus 808. In some aspects, one or more other components of the apparatus 800 may generate communications and may provide the generated communications to the transmission component 804 for transmission to the apparatus 808. In some aspects, the transmission component 804 may perform signal processing on the generated communications (such as filtering, amplification, modulation, digital-to-analog conversion, multiplexing, interleaving, mapping, or encoding, among other examples) , and may transmit the processed signals to the apparatus 808. In some aspects, the transmission component 804 may include one or more antennas, one or more modems, one or more modulators, one or more transmit MIMO processors, one or more transmit processors, one or more controllers / processors, one or more memories, or a combination thereof, of the wireless communication device described in connection with Fig. 2. In some aspects, the transmission component 804 may be co-located with the reception component 802 in one or more transceivers.
[0178] The communication manager 806 may support operations of the reception component 802 and / or the transmission component 804. For example, the communication manager 806 may receive information associated with configuring reception of communications by the reception component 802 and / or transmission of communications by the transmission component 804. Additionally, or alternatively, the communication manager 806 may generate and / or provide control information to the reception component 802 and / or the transmission component 804 to control reception and / or transmission of communications.
[0179] The transmission component 804 may transmit, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters. The transmission component 804 may transmit, to the backscatter device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.
[0180] The reception component 802 may receive an indication to alter the frequency hopping configuration. The transmission component 804 may transmit one or more subsequent repetitions using an altered frequency hopping configuration associated with a frequency change, wherein a time gap associated with altering the frequency hopping configuration is associated with the capability of the local oscillator. The transmission component 804 may transmit a backscatter configuration identifying a resource or frequency for backscatter of the first repetition or the second repetition, wherein the backscatter configuration is associated with the device capability.
[0181] The number and arrangement of components shown in Fig. 8 are provided as an example. In practice, there may be additional components, fewer components, different components, or differently arranged components than those shown in Fig. 8. Furthermore, two or more components shown in Fig. 8 may be implemented within a single component, or a single component shown in Fig. 8 may be implemented as multiple, distributed components. Additionally, or alternatively, a set of (one or more) components shown in Fig. 8 may perform one or more functions described as being performed by another set of components shown in Fig. 8.
[0182] Fig. 9 is a diagram of an example apparatus 900 for wireless communication, in accordance with the present disclosure. The apparatus 900 may be a backscatter device, or a backscatter device may include the apparatus 900. In some aspects, the apparatus 900 includes a reception component 902, a transmission component 904, and / or a communication manager 906, which may be in communication with one another (for example, via one or more buses and / or one or more other components) . In some aspects, the communication manager 906 is the communication manager 162 described in connection with Fig. 1. As shown, the apparatus 900 may communicate with another apparatus 908, such as a UE or a network node (such as a CU, a DU, an RU, or a base station) , using the reception component 902 and the transmission component 904.
[0183] In some aspects, the apparatus 900 may be configured to perform one or more operations described herein in connection with Figs. 5A-5K. Additionally, or alternatively, the apparatus 900 may be configured to perform one or more processes described herein, such as process 700 of Fig. 7. In some aspects, the apparatus 900 and / or one or more components shown in Fig. 9 may include one or more components of the backscatter device described in connection with Fig. 2. Additionally, or alternatively, one or more components shown in Fig. 9 may be implemented within one or more components described in connection with Fig. 2. Additionally, or alternatively, one or more components of the set of components may be implemented at least in part as software stored in one or more memories. For example, a component (or a portion of a component) may be implemented as instructions or code stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium and executable by one or more controllers or one or more processors to perform the functions or operations of the component.
[0184] The reception component 902 may receive communications, such as reference signals, control information, data communications, or a combination thereof, from the apparatus 908. The reception component 902 may provide received communications to one or more other components of the apparatus 900. In some aspects, the reception component 902 may perform signal processing on the received communications (such as filtering, amplification, demodulation, analog-to-digital conversion, demultiplexing, deinterleaving, de-mapping, equalization, interference cancellation, or decoding, among other examples) , and may provide the processed signals to the one or more other components of the apparatus 900. In some aspects, the reception component 902 may include one or more antennas, one or more modems, one or more demodulators, one or more MIMO detectors, one or more receive processors, one or more controllers / processors, one or more memories, or a combination thereof, of the backscatter device described in connection with Fig. 2.
[0185] The transmission component 904 may transmit communications, such as reference signals, control information, data communications, or a combination thereof, to the apparatus 908. In some aspects, one or more other components of the apparatus 900 may generate communications and may provide the generated communications to the transmission component 904 for transmission to the apparatus 908. In some aspects, the transmission component 904 may perform signal processing on the generated communications (such as filtering, amplification, modulation, digital-to-analog conversion, multiplexing, interleaving, mapping, or encoding, among other examples) , and may transmit the processed signals to the apparatus 908. In some aspects, the transmission component 904 may include one or more antennas, one or more modems, one or more modulators, one or more transmit MIMO processors, one or more transmit processors, one or more controllers / processors, one or more memories, or a combination thereof, of the backscatter device described in connection with Fig. 2. In some aspects, the transmission component 904 may be co-located with the reception component 902 in one or more transceivers.
[0186] The communication manager 906 may support operations of the reception component 902 and / or the transmission component 904. For example, the communication manager 906 may receive information associated with configuring reception of communications by the reception component 902 and / or transmission of communications by the transmission component 904. Additionally, or alternatively, the communication manager 906 may generate and / or provide control information to the reception component 902 and / or the transmission component 904 to control reception and / or transmission of communications.
[0187] The reception component 902 may receive, from a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters. The reception component 902 may receive, from the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.
[0188] The reception component 902 and the transmission component 904 may backscatter at least one of the first repetition or the second repetition in accordance with at least one of the first set of communication parameters or the second set of communication parameters. The transmission component 904 may transmit an indication to alter the frequency hopping configuration. The reception component 902 may receive one or more subsequent repetitions using an altered frequency hopping configuration associated with a frequency change, wherein a time gap associated with altering the frequency hopping configuration is associated with the capability of the local oscillator. The reception component 902 may receive a backscatter configuration identifying a resource or frequency for backscatter of the first repetition or the second repetition, wherein the backscatter configuration is associated with the device capability.
[0189] The number and arrangement of components shown in Fig. 9 are provided as an example. In practice, there may be additional components, fewer components, different components, or differently arranged components than those shown in Fig. 9. Furthermore, two or more components shown in Fig. 9 may be implemented within a single component, or a single component shown in Fig. 9 may be implemented as multiple, distributed components. Additionally, or alternatively, a set of (one or more) components shown in Fig. 9 may perform one or more functions described as being performed by another set of components shown in Fig. 9.
[0190] The following provides an overview of some Aspects of the present disclosure:
[0191] Aspect 1: A method of wireless communication performed by a wireless communication device, comprising: transmitting, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters; and transmitting, to the backscatter device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.
[0192] Aspect 2: The method of Aspect 1, wherein the device capability does not include support for chase combining, and wherein the second repetition of the communication is on a same frequency as the first repetition of the communication.
[0193] Aspect 3: The method of any of Aspects 1-2, wherein the device capability does not include support for chase combining, and wherein the second repetition of the communication is on a different frequency than the first repetition of the communication.
[0194] Aspect 4: The method of any of Aspects 1-3, wherein the device capability includes a wideband reception with radio frequency envelope detection capability, and wherein the second repetition is a single-tone frequency hopping repetition within a reception band of the backscatter device.
[0195] Aspect 5: The method of any of Aspects 1-4, wherein the device capability includes a wideband reception with radio frequency envelope detection capability, and wherein the second repetition is a helper-tone frequency hopping repetition with a frequency difference between the first repetition and the second repetition being within a reception band of the backscatter device.
[0196] Aspect 6: The method of Aspect 5, wherein the device capability includes a filtering capability, and wherein the second repetition is in accordance with the filtering capability.
[0197] Aspect 7: The method of any of Aspects 1-6, wherein a first tone is transmitted from a first network node of the wireless communication device and a second tone is transmitted from a second network node of the wireless communication device, wherein the device capability is a fixed frequency capability, and wherein the first repetition and the second repetition are transmitted using a statically configured or dynamically configured frequency hopping pattern.
[0198] Aspect 8: The method of any of Aspects 1-7, wherein the first repetition is transmitted from a first network node of the wireless communication device and the second repetition is transmitted from a second network node of the wireless communication device, wherein the device capability is a tunable frequency capability, and wherein the first repetition is transmitted using frequency hopping and the second repetition is transmitted at a fixed frequency.
[0199] Aspect 9: The method of Aspect 8, wherein a configuration of the frequency hopping is associated with the device capability, and wherein the device capability relates to an energy constraint, a switching time, an energy status, or a baseband tunability configuration.
[0200] Aspect 10: The method of any of Aspects 1-9, wherein the device capability includes a capability for dual-tone transmission, operating at a fixed frequency, and a tunable passive baseband filter, and wherein the first repetition is a first tone associated with the fixed frequency and the second repetition is a second tone at a variable frequency.
[0201] Aspect 11: The method of any of Aspects 1-10, wherein the device capability includes a capability for dual-tone transmission, operating at a fixed frequency, and a tunable passive baseband filter, and wherein the first repetition is a first tone associated with a first variable frequency and the second repetition is a second tone associated with a second variable frequency.
[0202] Aspect 12: The method of Aspect 11, wherein the wireless communication device is configured to indicate a pattern of a frequency difference between the first variable frequency and the second variable frequency, and wherein the pattern is associated with the device capability.
[0203] Aspect 13: The method of any of Aspects 1-12, wherein the device capability includes a local oscillator with envelope detection, and wherein a frequency hopping configuration of the first repetition and the second repetition is associated with a capability of the local oscillator and a reception band of a passive baseband filter.
[0204] Aspect 14: The method of Aspect 13, further comprising: receiving an indication to alter the frequency hopping configuration; and transmitting one or more subsequent repetitions using an altered frequency hopping configuration associated with a frequency change, wherein a time gap associated with altering the frequency hopping configuration is associated with the capability of the local oscillator.
[0205] Aspect 15: The method of any of Aspects 1-14, wherein respective power levels of the first repetition and the second repetition are associated with the device capability.
[0206] Aspect 16: The method of any of Aspects 1-15, wherein the device capability includes support for chase combining, and wherein the second repetition of the communication is on a different frequency than the first repetition of the communication.
[0207] Aspect 17: The method of any of Aspects 1-16, wherein the first repetition and the second repetition are backscattered at a common frequency.
[0208] Aspect 18: The method of any of Aspects 1-17, further comprising: transmitting a backscatter configuration identifying a resource or frequency for backscatter of the first repetition or the second repetition, wherein the backscatter configuration is associated with the device capability.
[0209] Aspect 19: The method of Aspect 18, wherein the backscatter configuration includes a frequency pattern or frequency shift.
[0210] Aspect 20: The method of any of Aspects 1-19, wherein a configuration of a preamble of a clock synchronization signal transmitted to the backscatter device is associated with the device capability.
[0211] Aspect 21: A method of wireless communication performed by an Internet-of-Things (IoT) device, comprising: receiving, from a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters; and receiving, from the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.
[0212] Aspect 22: The method of Aspect 21, further comprising: backscattering at least one of the first repetition or the second repetition in accordance with at least one of the first set of communication parameters or the second set of communication parameters.
[0213] Aspect 23: The method of any of Aspects 21-22, wherein the device capability does not include support for chase combining, and wherein the second repetition of the communication is on a same frequency as the first repetition of the communication.
[0214] Aspect 24: The method of any of Aspects 21-23, wherein the device capability does not include support for chase combining, and wherein the second repetition of the communication is on a different frequency than the first repetition of the communication.
[0215] Aspect 25: The method of any of Aspects 21-24, wherein the device capability includes a wideband reception with radio frequency envelope detection capability, and wherein the second repetition is a single-tone frequency hopping repetition within a reception band of the backscatter device.
[0216] Aspect 26: The method of any of Aspects 21-25, wherein the device capability includes a wideband reception with radio frequency envelope detection capability, and wherein the second repetition is a helper-tone frequency hopping repetition with a frequency difference between the first repetition and the second repetition being within a reception band of the backscatter device.
[0217] Aspect 27: The method of Aspect 26, wherein the device capability includes a filtering capability, and wherein the second repetition is in accordance with the filtering capability.
[0218] Aspect 28: The method of any of Aspects 21-27, wherein a first tone is received from a first network node of the wireless communication device and a second tone is received from a second network node of the wireless communication device, wherein the device capability is a fixed frequency capability, and wherein the first repetition and the second repetition are received using a statically configured or dynamically configured frequency hopping pattern.
[0219] Aspect 29: The method of any of Aspects 21-28, wherein the first repetition is received from a first network node of the wireless communication device and the second repetition is received from a second network node of the wireless communication device, wherein the device capability is a tunable frequency capability, and wherein the first repetition is received using frequency hopping and the second repetition is received at a fixed frequency.
[0220] Aspect 30: The method of Aspect 29, wherein a configuration of the frequency hopping is associated with the device capability, and wherein the device capability relates to an energy constraint, a switching time, an energy status, or a baseband tunability configuration.
[0221] Aspect 31: The method of any of Aspects 21-30, wherein the device capability includes a capability for dual-tone transmission, operating at a fixed frequency, and a tunable passive baseband filter, and wherein the first repetition is a first tone associated with the fixed frequency and the second repetition is a second tone at a variable frequency.
[0222] Aspect 32: The method of any of Aspects 21-31, wherein the device capability includes a capability for dual-tone transmission, operating at a fixed frequency, and a tunable passive baseband filter, and wherein the first repetition is a first tone associated with a first variable frequency and the second repetition is a second tone associated with a second variable frequency.
[0223] Aspect 33: The method of Aspect 32, wherein the wireless communication device is configured to indicate a pattern of a frequency difference between the first variable frequency and the second variable frequency, and wherein the pattern is associated with the device capability.
[0224] Aspect 34: The method of any of Aspects 21-33, wherein the device capability includes a local oscillator with envelope detection, and wherein a frequency hopping configuration of the first repetition and the second repetition is associated with a capability of the local oscillator and a reception band of a passive baseband filter.
[0225] Aspect 35: The method of Aspect 34, further comprising: transmitting an indication to alter the frequency hopping configuration; and receiving one or more subsequent repetitions using an altered frequency hopping configuration associated with a frequency change, wherein a time gap associated with altering the frequency hopping configuration is associated with the capability of the local oscillator.
[0226] Aspect 36: The method of any of Aspects 21-35, wherein respective power levels of the first repetition and the second repetition are associated with the device capability.
[0227] Aspect 37: The method of any of Aspects 21-36, wherein the device capability includes support for chase combining, and wherein the second repetition of the communication is on a different frequency than the first repetition of the communication.
[0228] Aspect 38: The method of any of Aspects 21-37, wherein the first repetition and the second repetition are backscattered at a common frequency.
[0229] Aspect 39: The method of any of Aspects 21-38, further comprising: receiving a backscatter configuration identifying a resource or frequency for backscatter of the first repetition or the second repetition, wherein the backscatter configuration is associated with the device capability.
[0230] Aspect 40: The method of Aspect 39, wherein the backscatter configuration includes a frequency pattern or frequency shift.
[0231] Aspect 41: The method of any of Aspects 21-40, wherein a configuration of a preamble of a clock synchronization signal transmitted to the backscatter device is associated with the device capability.
[0232] Aspect 42: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising one or more processors; one or more memories coupled with the one or more processors; and instructions stored in the one or more memories and executable by the one or more processors to cause the apparatus to perform the method of one or more of Aspects 1-41.
[0233] Aspect 43: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors configured to cause the device to perform the method of one or more of Aspects 1-41.
[0234] Aspect 44: An apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus comprising at least one means for performing the method of one or more of Aspects 1-41.
[0235] Aspect 45: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication, the code comprising instructions executable by one or more processors to perform the method of one or more of Aspects 1-41.
[0236] Aspect 46: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a set of instructions for wireless communication, the set of instructions comprising one or more instructions that, when executed by one or more processors of a device, cause the device to perform the method of one or more of Aspects 1-41.
[0237] Aspect 47: A device for wireless communication, the device comprising a processing system that includes one or more processors and one or more memories coupled with the one or more processors, the processing system configured to cause the device to perform the method of one or more of Aspects 1-41.
[0238] Aspect 48: An apparatus for wireless communication at a device, the apparatus comprising one or more memories and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more processors individually or collectively configured to cause the device to perform the method of one or more of Aspects 1-41.
[0239] The foregoing disclosure provides illustration and description but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the aspects to the precise forms disclosed. Modifications and variations may be made in light of the above disclosure or may be acquired from practice of the aspects.
[0240] As used herein, the term “component” is intended to be broadly construed as hardware or a combination of hardware and at least one of software or firmware. “Software” shall be construed broadly to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executables, threads of execution, procedures, or functions, among other examples, whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise. As used herein, a “processor” is implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and software. It will be apparent that systems or methods described herein may be implemented in different forms of hardware or a combination of hardware and software. The actual specialized control hardware or software code used to implement these systems or methods is not limiting of the aspects. Thus, the operation and behavior of the systems or methods are described herein without reference to specific software code, because those skilled in the art will understand that software and hardware can be designed to implement the systems or methods based, at least in part, on the description herein. A component being configured to perform a function means that the component has a capability to perform the function, and does not require the function to be actually performed by the component, unless noted otherwise.
[0241] As used herein, “satisfying a threshold” may, depending on the context, refer to a value being greater than the threshold, greater than or equal to the threshold, less than the threshold, less than or equal to the threshold, equal to the threshold, or not equal to the threshold, among other examples.
[0242] As used herein, a phrase referring to “at least one of” a list of items refers to any combination of those items, including single members. As an example, “at least one of: a, b, or c” is intended to cover a, b, c, a + b, a + c, b + c, and a + b + c, as well as any combination with multiples of the same element (for example, a + a, a + a + a, a + a + b, a + a + c, a + b + b, a + c + c, b + b, b + b + b, b + b + c, c + c, and c + c + c, or any other ordering of a, b, and c) .
[0243] No element, act, or instruction used herein should be construed as critical or essential unless explicitly described as such. Also, as used herein, the articles “a” and “an” are intended to include one or more items and may be used interchangeably with “one or more. ” Further, as used herein, the article “the” is intended to include one or more items referenced in connection with the article “the” and may be used interchangeably with “the one or more. ” Furthermore, as used herein, the terms “set” and “group” are intended to include one or more items and may be used interchangeably with “one or more. ” Where only one item is intended, the phrase “only one” or similar language is used. Also, as used herein, the terms “has, ” “have, ” “having, ” and similar terms are intended to be open-ended terms that do not limit an element that they modify (for example, an element “having” A may also have B) . Further, the phrase “based on” is intended to mean “based on or otherwise in association with” unless explicitly stated otherwise. Also, as used herein, the term “or” is intended to be inclusive when used in a series and may be used interchangeably with “and / or, ” unless explicitly stated otherwise (for example, if used in combination with “either” or “only one of” ) . It should be understood that “one or more” is equivalent to “at least one. ”
[0244] Even though particular combinations of features are recited in the claims or disclosed in the specification, these combinations are not intended to limit the disclosure of various aspects. Many of these features may be combined in ways not specifically recited in the claims or disclosed in the specification. The disclosure of various aspects includes each dependent claim in combination with every other claim in the claim set.
Claims
1.A wireless communication device for wireless communication, comprising:one or more memories; andone or more processors, coupled to the one or more memories, configured to cause the wireless communication device to:transmit, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters; andtransmit, to the backscatter device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.2.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the device capability does not include support for chase combining, and wherein the second repetition of the communication is on a same frequency as the first repetition of the communication.3.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the device capability does not include support for chase combining, and wherein the second repetition of the communication is on a different frequency than the first repetition of the communication.4.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the device capability includes a wideband reception with radio frequency envelope detection capability, and wherein the second repetition is a single-tone frequency hopping repetition within a reception band of the backscatter device.5.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the device capability includes a wideband reception with radio frequency envelope detection capability, and wherein the second repetition is a helper-tone frequency hopping repetition with a frequency difference between the first repetition and the second repetition being within a reception band of the backscatter device.6.The wireless communication device of claim 5, wherein the device capability includes a filtering capability, and wherein the second repetition is in accordance with the filtering capability.7.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein a first tone is transmitted from a first network node of the wireless communication device and a second tone is transmitted from a second network node of the wireless communication device, wherein the device capability is a fixed frequency capability, andwherein the first repetition and the second repetition are transmitted using a statically configured or dynamically configured frequency hopping pattern.8.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the first repetition is transmitted from a first network node of the wireless communication device and the second repetition is transmitted from a second network node of the wireless communication device, wherein the device capability is a tunable frequency capability, and wherein the first repetition is transmitted using frequency hopping and the second repetition is transmitted at a fixed frequency.9.The wireless communication device of claim 8, wherein a configuration of the frequency hopping is associated with the device capability, and wherein the device capability relates to an energy constraint, a switching time, an energy status, or a baseband tunability configuration.10.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the device capability includes a capability for dual-tone transmission, operating at a fixed frequency, and a tunable passive baseband filter, and wherein the first repetition is a first tone associated with the fixed frequency and the second repetition is a second tone at a variable frequency.11.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the device capability includes a capability for dual-tone transmission, operating at a fixed frequency, and a tunable passive baseband filter, and wherein the first repetition is a first tone associated with a first variable frequency and the second repetition is a second tone associated with a second variable frequency.12.The wireless communication device of claim 11, wherein the wireless communication device is configured to indicate a pattern of a frequency difference between the first variable frequency and the second variable frequency, and wherein the pattern is associated with the device capability.13.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the device capability includes a local oscillator with envelope detection, and wherein a frequency hopping configuration of the first repetition and the second repetition is associated with a capability of the local oscillator and a reception band of a passive baseband filter.14.The wireless communication device of claim 13, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to cause the wireless communication device to:receive an indication to alter the frequency hopping configuration; andtransmit one or more subsequent repetitions using an altered frequency hopping configuration associated with a frequency change, wherein a time gap associated with altering the frequency hopping configuration is associated with the capability of the local oscillator.15.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein respective power levels of the first repetition and the second repetition are associated with the device capability.16.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the device capability includes support for chase combining, and wherein the second repetition of the communication is on a different frequency than the first repetition of the communication.17.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the first repetition and the second repetition are backscattered at a common frequency.18.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to cause the wireless communication device to:transmit a backscatter configuration identifying a resource or frequency for backscatter of the first repetition or the second repetition, wherein the backscatter configuration is associated with the device capability.19.The wireless communication device of claim 18, wherein the backscatter configuration includes a frequency pattern or frequency shift.20.The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein a configuration of a preamble of a clock synchronization signal transmitted to the backscatter device is associated with the device capability.21.A backscatter device for wireless communication, comprising:one or more memories; andone or more processors, coupled to the one or more memories, configured to cause the backscatter device to:receive, from a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters; andreceive, from the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.22.The backscatter device of claim 21, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to cause the backscatter device to:backscatter at least one of the first repetition or the second repetition in accordance with at least one of the first set of communication parameters or the second set of communication parameters.23.The backscatter device of claim 21, wherein the device capability does not include support for chase combining, and wherein the second repetition of the communication is on a same frequency as the first repetition of the communication.24.The backscatter device of claim 21, wherein the device capability does not include support for chase combining, and wherein the second repetition of the communication is on a different frequency than the first repetition of the communication.25.The backscatter device of claim 21, wherein the device capability includes a wideband reception with radio frequency envelope detection capability, and wherein the second repetition is a single-tone frequency hopping repetition within a reception band of the backscatter device.26.The backscatter device of claim 21, wherein the device capability includes a wideband reception with radio frequency envelope detection capability, and wherein the second repetition is a helper-tone frequency hopping repetition with a frequency difference between the first repetition and the second repetition being within a reception band of the backscatter device.27.The backscatter device of claim 26, wherein the device capability includes a filtering capability, and wherein the second repetition is in accordance with the filtering capability.28.The backscatter device of claim 21, wherein a first tone is received from a first network node of the wireless communication device and a second tone is received from a second network node of the wireless communication device, wherein the device capability is a fixed frequency capability, andwherein the first repetition and the second repetition are received using a statically configured or dynamically configured frequency hopping pattern.29.A method of wireless communication performed by a wireless communication device, comprising:transmitting, to a backscatter device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters; andtransmitting, to the backscatter device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.30.A method of wireless communication performed by a backscatter device, comprising:receiving, from a wireless communication device, a first repetition of a communication in accordance with a first set of communication parameters; andreceiving, from the wireless communication device, a second repetition of the communication in accordance with a second set of communication parameters, wherein the second set of communication parameters is associated with a device capability of the backscatter device.
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