Devices and methods for configuring and performing uplink transmission with frequency hopping in a wireless communication system

Abstract

The disclosure relates to a 5G or 6G communication system for supporting a higher data transmission rate. The present invention relates, in general, to wireless communications and, more specifically, to devices and methods for configuring and performing uplink (UL) transmission with frequency hopping (FH).

Description

DEVICES AND METHODS FOR CONFIGURING AND PERFORMING UPLINK TRANSMISSION WITH FREQUENCY HOPPING IN A WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

[0001] The present invention relates, in general, to wireless communications and, more specifically, to devices and methods for configuring and performing uplink (UL) transmission with frequency hopping (FH) in a wireless communication system.

[0002] 5G mobile communication technologies define broad frequency bands such that high transmission rates and new services are possible, and can be implemented not only in "Sub 6GHz" bands such as 3.5GHz, but also in "Above 6GHz" bands referred to as mmWave including 28GHz and 39GHz. In addition, it has been considered to implement 6G mobile communication technologies (referred to as Beyond 5G systems) in terahertz bands (for example, 95GHz to 3THz bands) in order to accomplish transmission rates fifty times faster than 5G mobile communication technologies and ultra-low latencies one-tenth of 5G mobile communication technologies.

[0003] At the beginning of the development of 5G mobile communication technologies, in order to support services and to satisfy performance requirements in connection with enhanced Mobile BroadBand (eMBB), Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communications (URLLC), and massive Machine-Type Communications (mMTC), there has been ongoing standardization regarding beamforming and massive MIMO for mitigating radio-wave path loss and increasing radio-wave transmission distances in mmWave, supporting numerologies (for example, operating multiple subcarrier spacings) for efficiently utilizing mmWave resources and dynamic operation of slot formats, initial access technologies for supporting multi-beam transmission and broadbands, definition and operation of BWP (BandWidth Part), new channel coding methods such as a LDPC (Low Density Parity Check) code for large amount of data transmission and a polar code for highly reliable transmission of control information, L2 pre-processing, and network slicing for providing a dedicated network specialized to a specific service.

[0004] Currently, there are ongoing discussions regarding improvement and performance enhancement of initial 5G mobile communication technologies in view of services to be supported by 5G mobile communication technologies, and there has been physical layer standardization regarding technologies such as V2X (Vehicle-to-everything) for aiding driving determination by autonomous vehicles based on information regarding positions and states of vehicles transmitted by the vehicles and for enhancing user convenience, NR-U (New Radio Unlicensed) aimed at system operations conforming to various regulation-related requirements in unlicensed bands, NR UE Power Saving, Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) which is UE-satellite direct communication for providing coverage in an area in which communication with terrestrial networks is unavailable, and positioning.

[0005] Moreover, there has been ongoing standardization in air interface architecture / protocol regarding technologies such as Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) for supporting new services through interworking and convergence with other industries, IAB (Integrated Access and Backhaul) for providing a node for network service area expansion by supporting a wireless backhaul link and an access link in an integrated manner, mobility enhancement including conditional handover and DAPS (Dual Active Protocol Stack) handover, and two-step random access for simplifying random access procedures (2-step RACH for NR). There also has been ongoing standardization in system architecture / service regarding a 5G baseline architecture (for example, service based architecture or service based interface) for combining Network Functions Virtualization (NFV) and Software-Defined Networking (SDN) technologies, and Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) for receiving services based on UE positions.

[0006] As 5G mobile communication systems are commercialized, connected devices that have been exponentially increasing will be connected to communication networks, and it is accordingly expected that enhanced functions and performances of 5G mobile communication systems and integrated operations of connected devices will be necessary. To this end, new research is scheduled in connection with eXtended Reality (XR) for efficiently supporting AR (Augmented Reality), VR (Virtual Reality), MR (Mixed Reality) and the like, 5G performance improvement and complexity reduction by utilizing Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML), AI service support, metaverse service support, and drone communication.

[0007] Furthermore, such development of 5G mobile communication systems will serve as a basis for developing not only new waveforms for providing coverage in terahertz bands of 6G mobile communication technologies, multi-antenna transmission technologies such as Full Dimensional MIMO (FD-MIMO), array antennas and large-scale antennas, metamaterial-based lenses and antennas for improving coverage of terahertz band signals, high-dimensional space multiplexing technology using OAM (Orbital Angular Momentum), and RIS (Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface), but also full-duplex technology for increasing frequency efficiency of 6G mobile communication technologies and improving system networks, AI-based communication technology for implementing system optimization by utilizing satellites and AI (Artificial Intelligence) from the design stage and internalizing end-to-end AI support functions, and next-generation distributed computing technology for implementing services at levels of complexity exceeding the limit of UE operation capability by utilizing ultra-high-performance communication and computing resources.

[0008] The main object of the present invention is to provide a method for configuring and performing UL transmission with FH that would enable to achieve the target coverage requirements while avoiding the drawbacks of the prior art discussed above.

[0009] In the context of addressing this technical object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a method of UL transmission with frequency hopping (FH) in a wireless communication system is provided. The method comprises: in a base station of the wireless communication system, defining time-frequency FH units (TFUhop`s)for UL transmissions, the defining TFUhop`s comprising: setting a TFUhoptime domain (TD) size.

[0010] Then, the method provided herein comprises steps performed for each of at least some of user equipments in communication with the base station.

[0011] In the base station, one or more TFUhop`s of the defined TFUhop`s are configured for the user equipment. The configuring one or more TFUhop`s comprises, for each TFUhopbeing configured: setting frequency domain (FD) positions of the TFUhopas a function of time, according to the TFUhopTD size, and correspondingly configuring an UL transmission type for which the TFUhopis to be used by the user equipment. The UL transmission type can be SRS transmission, or PUSCH transmission, or PUCCH transmission.

[0012] First control information is transmitted by the base station to the user equipment, the first control information comprising at least the TFUhopTD size, and, for each TFUhopof the one or more TFUhop`s configured for the user equipment, the corresponding UL transmission type and one or more parameters based on which the FD positions of the TFUhopcan be determined.

[0013] Second control information is transmitted by the base station to the user equipment, the second control information at least signaling, to the user equipment, UL transmission scheduling of one or more UL transmission types. The second control information indicates the UL transmission scheduling of each of the scheduled one or more UL transmission types onto a corresponding TFUhopfrom the configured one or more TFUhop`s.

[0014] The user equipment performs, by using the received first control information and the received second control information, UL transmission of at least one UL transmission type from the scheduled one or more UL transmission types to the base station, wherein the UL transmission is performed with FH carried out based on corresponding at least one TFUhopfrom the configured one or more TFUhop`s.

[0015] In accordance with an embodiment, the TFUhopTD size can be determined by dividing an UL transmission time interval (TTI) into a preset number Nhopsof adjacent sub-intervals each OFDM symbols wide, so that the TFUhopTD size is OFDM symbols.

[0016] In this embodiment, an FD position of a TFUhop, where is an index of an UL TTI sub-interval among said UL TTI sub-intervals, can correspond to a starting subcarrier of the TFUhopin ani-th UL TTI sub-interval. In one implementation, the UL TTI can be a slot, wherein the OFDM symbols can form a mini-slot. In another implementation, the UL TTI can represent a bundle of adjacent slots or mini-slots, or an UL part of a frame, wherein the OFDM symbols can form the slot or the mini-slot. A duration of the frame is 10 ms, a size of the slot is 14 OFDM symbols, a size of the mini-slot is 2 or 4 or 7 OFDM symbols.

[0017] In accordance with a preferred embodiment, said one or more parameters comprised in the first control information are a set of frequency offsets , wherein an FD position of a TFUhopis defined by a frequency offset of a starting subcarrier of the TFUhopin ani-th UL TTI sub-interval relative to a reference subcarrier preset in the base station. The frequency offsets can be set in such a way that, in each time instance, different TFUhop`s do not overlap in the frequency domain. Said one or more parameters comprised in the first control information can also be a frequency offset value and a set of integer parameters based on which said set of frequency offsets can be determined. In one implementation, an index of the reference subcarrier can be included in the first control information. In another implementation, the index of the reference subcarrier can be transmitted by the base station to the user equipment separately from the first control information, preferably by DCI.

[0018] According to an embodiment, when an UL transmission type configured for a TFUhopis the SRS transmission, said carrying out FH when performing the UL transmission further comprises: carrying out internal FH for SRSs within said TFUhop(denoted herein for the sake of clarity as ) based on an SRS frequency hopping function. In this case the first control information can further comprise parameters for carrying out the internal FH which are set in the base station. In said embodiment, the internal FH is carried out based on a set of time-frequency resources for the SRS transmission, each SRS transmission resource having a same TD size equal to one or more OFDM symbols and a same FD size equal to one or more SRS frequency sub-bands. The TD size and the FD size relate to said parameters for carrying out the internal FH which can be included in the first control information.

[0019] According to one implementation of the considered embodiment, the FD size of the SRS transmission resource can be set in the base station in such a way that a set of SRS frequency sub-bands in the enables to sound an entire SRS band of the . In this implementation, all the OFDM symbols of the can be utilized for the SRS transmission; moreover, part of the OFDM symbols of the can be also utilized for the SRS transmission.

[0020] According to another implementation of the considered embodiment, the FD size of the SRS transmission resource can be set in the base station in such a way that a set of SRS frequency sub-bands in the enables to sound a part of an SRS band of the . Said UL transmission has been performed by the user equipment in a first UL TTI, and the method further comprises: in a second UL TTI which is subsequent to the first UL TTI, performing, by the user equipment, UL SRS transmission to the base station, wherein said UL SRS transmission is performed with FH carried out based on a TFUhopin the second UL TTI (denoted herein for the sake of clarity as ), the having the same FD positions as the , wherein the carrying out internal FH when performing the UL SRS transmission comprises: carrying out the internal FH for SRSs within the with the same sizes of the SRS transmission resource as the ones used in the , wherein a set of SRS frequency sub-bands in the enables to sound a part of the SRS band of the . Said part of the SRS band of the and said part of the SRS band of the can form, in combination, the entire SRS band being sounded. The SRS frequency sub-bands in the may differ from the SRS frequency sub-bands in the . In the considered another implementation, the first UL TTI and the second UL TTI can be adjacent; moreover, the first UL TTI and the second UL TTI can be also not adjacent.

[0021] In accordance with a possible embodiment, the defining TFUhop`s can further comprise: setting a TFUhopFD size. The TFUhopFD size can be determined by dividing a system bandwidth or part thereof into adjacent sub-bands each subcarriers wide, so that the TFUhopFD size is subcarriers. The subcarriers can form one or more PRBs. The TFUhopFD size can be included into the first control information.

[0022] The first control information is preferably transmitted by at least one of RRC signaling, medium access control (MAC) signaling, and DCI; the second control information is preferably transmitted by DCI.

[0023] According to the second aspect of the present invention, a method of configuring UL transmission with FH is provided, the method being performed in a base station of a wireless communication system. The method comprises: defining time-frequency FH units (TFUhop`s) for UL transmissions, the defining TFUhop`s comprising: setting a TFUhopTD size.

[0024] Then, the method provided herein comprises steps performed for each of at least some of user equipments in communication with the base station.

[0025] One or more TFUhop`s of the defined TFUhop`s are configured for the user equipment. The configuring one or more TFUhop`s comprises, for each TFUhopbeing configured: setting FD positions of the TFUhopas a function of time, according to the TFUhopTD size, and correspondingly configuring an UL transmission type for which the TFUhopis to be used by the user equipment. The UL transmission type can be SRS transmission, or PUSCH transmission, or PUCCH transmission.

[0026] First control information is transmitted to the user equipment, the first control information comprising at least the TFUhopTD size, and, for each TFUhopof the one or more TFUhop`s configured for the user equipment, the corresponding UL transmission type and one or more parameters based on which the FD positions of the TFUhopcan be determined.

[0027] Second control information is transmitted to the user equipment, the second control information at least signaling, to the user equipment, UL transmission scheduling of one or more UL transmission types. The second control information indicates the UL transmission scheduling of each of the scheduled one or more UL transmission types onto a corresponding TFUhopfrom the configured one or more TFUhop`s.

[0028] According to an embodiment, the TFUhopTD size can be determined by dividing an UL TTI into a preset number of adjacent sub-intervals each OFDM symbols wide, so that the TFUhopTD size is OFDM symbols. In this embodiment, an FD position of a TFUhop, where is an index of an UL TTI sub-interval among said UL TTI sub-intervals, corresponds to a starting subcarrier of the TFUhopin ani-th UL TTI sub-interval. According to one implementation, the UL TTI can be a slot, wherein the OFDM symbols can form a mini-slot. According to another implementation, the UL TTI can represent a bundle of adjacent slots or mini-slots, or an UL part of a frame, wherein the OFDM symbols can form the slot or the mini-slot.

[0029] In accordance with a preferred embodiment, said one or more parameters comprised in the first control information are a set of frequency offsets , wherein an FD position of a TFUhopis defined by a frequency offset of a starting subcarrier of the TFUhopin ani-th UL TTI sub-interval relative to a reference subcarrier preset in the base station. The frequency offsets can be set in such a way that, in each time instance, different TFUhop`s do not overlap in the frequency domain. Said one or more parameters comprised in the first control information can also be a frequency offset value and a set of integer parameters based on which said set of frequency offsets can be determined. In one implementation, an index of the reference subcarrier can be included in the first control information. In another implementation, the index of the reference subcarrier can be transmitted by the base station to the user equipment separately from the first control information, preferably by DCI.

[0030] In accordance with a possible embodiment, the defining TFUhop`s can further comprise: setting a TFUhopFD size. The TFUhopFD size can be determined by dividing a system bandwidth or part thereof into adjacent sub-bands each subcarriers wide, so that the TFUhopFD size is subcarriers. The subcarriers can form one or more PRBs. The TFUhopFD size can be included into the first control information.

[0031] The first control information is preferably transmitted by at least one of RRC signaling, MAC signaling, and DCI; the second control information is preferably transmitted by DCI.

[0032] According to the third aspect of the present invention, a method of UL transmission with FH in a wireless communication system is provided, the method being performed by a user equipment in communication with a base station in a wireless communication system.

[0033] The method comprises: receiving, from the base station, first control information. The first control information comprises, for each of one or more TFUhop`s configured in the base station for the user equipment, one or more parameters based on which FD positions of the TFUhopas a function of time can be determined, and a corresponding UL transmission type for which the TFUhopis to be used by the user equipment. The first control information further comprises a TFUhopTD size, wherein the FD positions of the TFUhopas a function of time are determined using the TFUhopTD size. The UL transmission type can be SRS transmission, or PUSCH transmission, or PUCCH transmission.

[0034] Then, the method provided herein comprises: receiving, from the base station, second control information, the second control information at least signaling, to the user equipment, UL transmission scheduling of one or more UL transmission types. The second control information indicates the UL transmission scheduling of each of the scheduled one or more UL transmission types onto a corresponding TFUhopfrom the configured one or more TFUhop`s.

[0035] Thereafter, the method comprises: performing, by using the received first control information and the received second control information, UL transmission of at least one UL transmission type from the scheduled one or more UL transmission types to the base station, wherein the UL transmission is performed with FH carried out based on corresponding at least one TFUhopfrom the configured one or more TFUhop`s.

[0036] According to an embodiment, the TFUhopTD size can be defined in the base station by dividing an UL TTI into a preset number of adjacent sub-intervals each OFDM symbols wide, so that the TFUhopTD size is OFDM symbols. In this embodiment, an FD position of a TFUhop, where is an index of an UL TTI sub-interval among said UL TTI sub-intervals, can correspond to a starting subcarrier of the TFUhopin ani-th UL TTI sub-interval. In one implementation, the UL TTI can be a slot, wherein the OFDM symbols can form a mini-slot. In another implementation, the UL TTI can represent a bundle of adjacent slots or mini-slots, or an UL part of a frame, wherein the OFDM symbols can form the slot or the mini-slot.

[0037] In accordance with one embodiment, one TFUhopis configured for the user equipment. In the considered one embodiment, the first control information comprises one or more parameters based on which FD positions of the configured TFUhopas a function of time can be determined, in accordance with the TFUhopTD size, and a corresponding UL transmission type for which the user equipment is to use the configured TFUhop; the second control information at least indicates scheduling, onto the configured TFUhop, of UL transmission of the corresponding UL transmission type. The performing UL transmission comprises performing the UL transmission of the corresponding UL transmission type, wherein the UL transmission is performed with FH carried out based on the configured TFUhop.

[0038] In accordance with another embodiment, two or more TFUhop`s are configured for the user equipment. In the considered another embodiment, the first control information comprises, for each of the configured or more TFUhop`s, one or more parameters based on which FD positions of the TFUhopas a function of time can be determined, in accordance with the TFUhopTD size, and a corresponding UL transmission type for which the TFUhopis to be used by the user equipment; the second control information at least signals UL transmission scheduling of two or more different UL transmission types onto the same OFDM symbols of said UL TTI, wherein the second control information indicates the UL transmission scheduling of each of the scheduled UL transmission types onto a corresponding TFUhopfrom the configured TFUhop`s. According to this embodiment, a prioritization rule of prioritizing UL transmission types is preset in the user equipment and in the base station, and the method further comprises, before the preforming UL transmission: selecting one UL transmission type of the different UL transmission types in accordance with the prioritization rule, wherein the preforming UL transmission comprises preforming UL transmission of the selected UL transmission type with FH carried out based on the corresponding TFUhop.

[0039] According to a preferred embodiment, said one or more parameters comprised in the first control information are a set of frequency offsets , wherein an FD position of a TFUhopis defined by a frequency offset of a starting subcarrier of the TFUhopin ani-th UL TTI sub-interval relative to a reference subcarrier preset in the base station. The frequency offsets can be set in the base station in such a way that, in each time instance, different TFUhop`s do not overlap in the frequency domain. Said one or more parameters comprised in the first control information can also be a frequency offset value and a set of integer parameters based on which said set of frequency offsets can be determined. According to one implementation, an index of the reference subcarrier is included in the first control information. According to another implementation, the index of the reference subcarrier is transmitted by the base station to the user equipment separately from the first control information, preferably by DCI.

[0040] In accordance with an embodiment, when an UL transmission type configured for a TFUhopis the SRS transmission, said carrying out FH when performing the UL transmission further comprises: carrying out internal FH for SRSs within said TFUhop (i.e., )based on a SRS frequency hopping function. In this case, the first control information can further comprise parameters for carrying out the internal FH which are set in the base station. In said embodiment, the internal FH is carried out based on a set of time-frequency resources for the SRS transmission, each SRS transmission resource having a same TD size equal to one or more OFDM symbols and a same FD size equal to one or more SRS frequency sub-bands. The TD size and the FD size can relate to said parameters for carrying out the internal FH.

[0041] According to one implementation of the considered embodiment, the FD size of the SRS transmission resource is set in the base station in such a way that a set of SRS frequency sub-bands in the enables to sound an entire SRS band of the .In this implementation, all the OFDM symbols of the can be utilized for the SRS transmission; furthermore, part of the OFDM symbols of the can be also utilized for the SRS transmission.

[0042] According to another implementation of the considered embodiment, the FD size of the SRS transmission resource is set in the base station in such a way that a set of SRS frequency sub-bands in the enables to sound a part of an SRS band of the .Said UL transmission has been performed by the user equipment in a first UL TTI, and the method further comprises: in a second UL TTI which is subsequent to the first UL TTI, performing UL SRS transmission to the base station, wherein the UL SRS transmission is performed with FH carried out based on a TFUhopin the second UL TTI (i.e. ), the having the same FD positions as the ,wherein the carrying out internal FH when performing the UL SRS transmission comprises: carrying out the internal FH for SRSs within the with the same sizes of the SRS transmission resource as the ones used in the , wherein a set of SRS frequency sub-bands in the enables to sound a part of the SRS band of the .Said part of the SRS band of the and said part of the SRS band of the can form, in combination, the entire SRS band being sounded. The SRS frequency sub-bands in the can differ from the SRS frequency sub-bands in the .In the considered another implementation, the first UL TTI and the second UL TTI may be adjacent; moreover, the first UL TTI and the second UL TTI may also be not adjacent.

[0043] According to a possible embodiment, the first control information can further comprise a TFUhopFD size equal to subcarriers. The TFUhopFD size can be defined in the base station by dividing a system bandwidth or part thereof into adjacent sub-bands each subcarriers wide. The subcarriers can form one or more PRBs.

[0044] The first control information is transmitted preferably by at least one of RRC signaling, MAC signaling, and DCI; the second control information is preferably transmitted by DCI.

[0045] According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, a wireless communication system is provided, the system comprising a base station. The base station comprises, at least: transceiving units; data processing units; and data storage units. The base station is in communication with a user equipment comprising, at least: transceiving units; data processing units; and data storage units. The data storage units of the base station have computer-executable codes stored therein, and the data storage units of the user equipment have computer-executable codes stored therein, wherein the computer-executable codes, when executed by the data processing units of the base station and the user equipment, cause the method according to any one of the embodiments of the first aspect of the present invention to be performed.

[0046] According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, a base station of a wireless communication system is provided, the base station comprising at least transceiving units; data processing units; and data storage units. The data storage units have computer-executable codes stored therein which, when executed by the data processing units, cause the method according to any one of the embodiments of the second aspect of the present invention to be performed.

[0047] According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, a user equipment in a wireless communication system is provided, the user equipment comprising, at least: transceiving units; data processing units; and data storage units. The data storage units have computer-executable codes stored therein which, when executed by the data processing units, cause the method according to any one of the embodiments of the third aspect of the present invention to be performed.

[0048] The technical result achieved by the present invention is in ensuring consistency of FH structures for different UL transmissions, more specifically, for SRS and PUSCH transmissions, along with achievement of better coverage in multiplexed SRS and PUSCH transmission with FH and flexible support of various frame structures, without mandatorily binding to slot boundaries.

[0049] Fig.1a is illustrations of implementations of the FH framework for PUSCH transmission according to 5G NR.

[0050] Fig.1b is illustrations of implementations of the FH framework for PUSCH transmission according to 5G NR.

[0051] Fig.2 is an illustration of an implementation of the FH framework for SRS transmission according to 5G NR.

[0052] Fig.3a is illustrations of various possible approaches to multiplexed UL transmission of PUSCH and SRS according to the prior art.

[0053] Fig.3b is illustrations of various possible approaches to multiplexed UL transmission of PUSCH and SRS according to the prior art.

[0054] Fig.3c is illustrations of various possible approaches to multiplexed UL transmission of PUSCH and SRS according to the prior art.

[0055] Fig.4 is an illustrative scheme of a wireless communication system in which embodiments of the present invention can be implemented.

[0056] Fig.5 is a general illustration of the time-frequency FH configuration according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0057] Fig.6a is illustrations of the time-frequency FH configuration according to embodiments of the present invention where internal FH is employed.

[0058] Fig.6b is illustrations of the time-frequency FH configuration according to embodiments of the present invention where internal FH is employed.Fig.7a is illustrations of the time-frequency FH configuration according to embodiments of the present invention where internal FH is employed.

[0059] Fig.7b is illustrations of the time-frequency FH configuration according to embodiments of the present invention where internal FH is employed.

[0060] Fig.8 is a flowchart of a method of UL transmission with FH according to the present invention.

[0061] Fig 9 illustrates a terminal according to an embodiment.

[0062] FIG. 10 illustrates a base station according to an embodiment.

[0063] Nowadays more and more active deployment of 5th Generation (5G) New Radio (NR) networks takes place, whose advantages and capabilities are broadly known.

[0064] In the 5G NR system, base stations (BSs) use massive MIMO (mMIMO) antenna arrays comprising multiple transceiving antenna elements (AEs) which enable to efficiently implement the MIMO (Multiple Input - Multiple Output) technology, where multiple spatial MIMO layers are used to transmit data (e.g. physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH)) to one or more user equipments (UEs). Similarly, one or more MIMO layers (e.g. of physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH)) are transmitted from each of the user equipments to a receiving device of the base station.

[0065] Generally speaking, a digital signal is transmitted or received by one or more digital ports coupled to antenna elements of a base station via a radio frequency unit which performs the function of digital-to-analog and analog-to-digital signal conversion. In particular, for the frequency range of 3.5 GHz up to 64 digital antenna ports can be employed which allow to use, in base stations, various precoding schemes. For instance, the spatial multiplexing (SM) technology enables to reuse the same time-frequency resources for DL transmission of MIMO layers to one or more user equipments, while the adaptive beamforming technology enables the transmitted signal power to be dynamically focused into one or more predefined directions. Usage of modulation with orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) provides efficient wideband signal transmission in a multipath channel.

[0066] Due to channel reciprocity in DL and UL, in 5G NR the adaptive beamforming in DL can be performed based on reception of UL signals transmitted from user equipments to the base station. For example, for DL beamforming, channel estimation is performed in the base station based on sounding reference signals (SRSs) received from user equipments. Therefore, accurate UL channel estimation is required at the base station side to ensure precise DL beamforming.

[0067] It is worth noting that power available at the user equipment side for UL transmission is typically limited, which leads to significant reduction of UL performance for user equipments located near the edge of a cell served by the base station.

[0068] In order to provide the required UL coverage in the cell, narrowband (NB) UL transmission is used in 5G NR that increases power spectral density of a signal being transmitted. However, implementation of this approach based on simply narrowing the transmission bandwidth may cause noticeable system performance losses due to frequency-selective fading of the channel or narrowband interference from user equipments in neighboring cells.

[0069] Accordingly, in order to provide greater robustness of NB UL transmissions in 5G NR, a frequency hopping (FH) procedure is used when performing the transmissions. This procedure is configured in the base station, and the FH configuration is signaled by the base station to each of respective user equipments.

[0070] The FH framework used according to 5G NR in the case of UL transmission of data (e.g. PUSCH or physical uplink control channel (PUCCH)) and the FH framework used according to 5G NR for UL transmission of SRS are substantially different, and each of these frameworks will be discussed separately below.

[0071] Implementations of the 5G NR FH framework for PUSCH are discussed below with reference to Figs.1a, 1b.

[0072] Fig.1a illustrates an implementation of FH where allocation of time-frequency resources for UL transmission is limited to one slot in the time domain (TD) (intra-slot FH). In this figure, grey blocks correspond to time-frequency resources allocated to a user equipment for PUSCH transmission. Thick black bars illustrate time-frequency resources allocated for UL transmission of demodulation reference signals (DMRSs).

[0073] As seen from Fig.1a, the allocated resources are divided into two successive parts in the time domain (TD) which are symbolically denoted by indicesi=0,1. Each of these two parts respectively occupies a half-slot in the time domain and has the same width in the frequency domain (FD); the part with indexi=0 corresponds to the beginning of the slot, and the part with indexi=1 is shifted relative to the part with indexi=0 in the frequency domain. Hereinafter, throughout the text of the present application, such parts of the respective allocation of time-frequency resources for implementing FH can be referred to as 'hops', without limitation. As a result, transmission in the two frequency-divided channels can be performed in these successive half-slots.

[0074] The slot typically includes 14 OFDM symbols; accordingly, each of the hops in Fig.1a is shown occupying 7 OFDM symbols in the time domain. In the frequency domain, each of the hops occupies the same number of subcarriers (e.g. one physical resource block (PRB) which is 12 subcarriers wide); the hop with indexi=0 is shown in Fig.1a as starting, in the frequency domain, from a position RBstart, which may correspond, for example, to an index of the starting resource block of the frequency band allocated for the considered UL transmission, and the hop with indexi=1 is shown having a frequency offset RBoffsetrelative to the hop with indexi=0. The illustration in Fig.1a of the RBoffsetvalue equal to the frequency domain (FD) size of the hop is purely illustrative.

[0075] Mathematically, the implementation of FH for PUSCH, as illustrated in Fig.1a, can be described by the following equation (1).

[0076] [Equation 1]

[0077]

[0078] where ,i=0, 1, is a starting position of a respective hop in the frequency domain, is the number of resource blocks forming a bandwidth (BWP) allocated for the UL channel. The BWP can correspond to either the entire frequency resource available in the system for UL transmission or part thereof.

[0079] RBstartand RBoffsetare set in the base station and signaled in advance to the user equipment(s); that is, the base station takes a decision regarding the amount by which the hops are to be shifted in the frequency domain relative to each other. RBstartcan be signaled to the user equipment, for example, via downlink control information (DCI), and RBoffsetcan be signaled to the user equipment, for example, via radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

[0080] Fig.1b illustrates an implementation of FH where allocation of time-frequency resources for UL PUSCH transmission is substantially similar to the one discussed with reference to Fig.1a, but is performed between adjacent slots (inter-slot FH) rather than within a slot. As a consequence, the designations in Fig.1b are similar to those in Fig.1a: in particular, the grey blocks also correspond to time-frequency resources allocated to the user equipment for the PUSCH transmission, and the thick black bars illustrate time-frequency resources allocated for UL transmission of DMRSs.

[0081] In the illustrative implementation of FH, as considered with reference to Fig.1b, frequency is hopping from slot to slot: allocation of resources take places without frequency offsets in even slots and with the frequency offset in odd slots. Mathematically, the implementation of FH for PUSCH, as illustrated in Fig.1b, can be described by the following equation (2).

[0082] [Equation 2]

[0083]

[0084] where is a slot index.

[0085] As seen from the above discussion, both implementations support only two hops and are bound to slot boundaries (accordingly, the frame must have a slot-based structure).

[0086] The aspects of direct implementation of FH for UL transmission of a physical data channel, including configuring a user equipment by the base station to perform such transmission, are disclosed in detail in the 5G NR specification TS　38.214 (see, in particular, Section 6.3.1).

[0087] An embodiment of the 5G NR FH framework for UL transmission of SRS is considered below with reference to Fig.2.

[0088] The general motivation in the considered case of UL SRS transmission with FH is the same as for PUSCH - increasing transmission power spectral density by making the transmission more narrowband. At the same time, the main purpose of the SRS transmission is to sound possibly the entire bandwidth (BW), i.e. SRSs should be possibly transmitted at all frequencies of the BW, so that the base station could perform proper channel estimation based on the received SRSs. As a consequence, according to 5G NR, in order to implement FH for UL transmission, hops are carried out in such a way that all available SRS sub-bands of the BW are sounded; accordingly, a time-frequency resource allocated for UL transmission of the SRSs (SRS resource, shown in black in Fig. 2) has the time domain (TD) size equal to one OFDM symbol and the FD size equal to width of the SRS sub-band.

[0089] The aspects of the direct implementation of FH for UL SRS transmission, including configuring a user equipment by the base station to perform such transmission, are disclosed in detail in the 5G NR specification TS　38.211, v18.1.0. According to this specification, multi-step hierarchical FH is implemented for SRS in 5G NR, and the mathematical description of this implementation is rather complex and is not provided herein so that the description of the invention is not overburdened in the present application. In particular, positions of subcarriers used for an antenna port for SRS transmission are given by the following equation (3) according to TS　38.211, v18.1.0.

[0090] [Equation 3]

[0091]

[0092] where, are respective frequency offsets the meaning and expressions of which are given in TS　38.211, v18.1.0. In particular denotes an FH-related offset of the SRS signal in the frequency domain as a function of an OFDM symbol, and is determined based on the frequency hopping function (where is an OFDM symbol index) which is also provided and described in TS　38.211, v18.1.0.

[0093] Both specifications TS　38.211, v18.1.0 and TS　38.214 are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

[0094] As clearly follows from the above discussion of Figs.1a, 1b, 2 with reference to equations (1)-(3), the frameworks used in 5G NR to implement FH for PUSCH and SRS are inconsistent with each other. This inconsistency may have negative effects in combined UL transmission of PUSCH and SRS, and more detailed discussion of those effects will be given below.

[0095] Next, with reference to Figs.3a-3c, various approaches of multiplexed UL transmission of PUSCH and SRS are shown, inter alia - from different user equipments.

[0096] Fig.3a shows the combined UL transmission of PUSCH and SRS in a slot based on time division multiplexing (TDM), where one part of the slot is allocated for PUSCH transmission and the other part is allocated for SRS transmission. This TDM-based approach is substantially the standard method of multiplexing PUSCH and SRS in 5G NR, which is used in commercial systems. In this case, a very limited number of OFDM symbols are available for SRS in the slot; as a consequence, in the context of SRS, while providing sounding of the entire bandwidth, a problem with coverage may arise, since said limitation on the number of OFDM symbols also imposes a limitation on the FD size of each of the SRS resources, resulting in that the UL SRS transmission may not be made narrowband to a sufficient extent, and, accordingly, the required value of transmission power spectral density may not be achieved. For instance, the SRS resource is illustrated in Fig.3a as having the FD size equal to quarter of the bandwidth, and, as follows from the aforesaid, this is its minimum value in the considered case.

[0097] It should be noted herein that, though the PUSCH hops are depicted in Fig.3a as having different TD sizes, they may also have approximately the same TD size which in such a case can be determined as for one of the hops (for example, for the hop withi=0 in the notation of Fig.1a) and respectively as for the other hop (for example, for the hop withi=1 in the notation of Fig.1a), where is the total number of adjacent OFDM symbols allocated in the slot for the TDM transmission of PUSCH (to the left of the dashed line in Fig. 3a), and denotes rounding down to the nearest integer.

[0098] Fig.3b shows another possible approach to implementing the combined UL transmission of PUSCH and SRS in a slot based on frequency division multiplexing (FDM), where one part of the bandwidth is allocated for PUSCH transmission and the other part is allocated for SRS transmission. Although in this approach all OFDM symbols of the slot may be available for the UL SRS transmission and, accordingly, high power spectral density of transmission can be provided, its main drawback is obvious: only part of the available bandwidth can be sounded by SRSs (below the dotted line in Fig.3b), which may not allow the base station to perform channel estimation in the entire available frequency channel.

[0099] Fig.3c shows yet another possible approach to the multiplexed UL transmission of PUSCH and SRS in a slot, according to which there is direct division of resources between PUSCH and SRS neither in the time domain, nor in the frequency domain, but an attempt is made to transmit them simultaneously on shared time-frequency resources. The advantage of this approach in the context of SRS is obvious: on one hand, all OFDM symbols of the slot are formally available for SRS, which, according to the aforesaid, allows to flexibly configure the SRS resource FD size and, respectively, achieve the required value of transmission power spectral density (i.e. the limitation typical to the approach of Fig.3a is avoided); on the other hand, sounding of the entire bandwidth is provided (i.e. the limitation typical to the approach of Fig.3b is avoided). At the same time, the main problem associated with the approach under consideration is caused by the significant inconsistency of the 5G NR FH frameworks for an UL physical data channel and for SRS, as discussed above. While scheduling, in the base station, the simultaneous transmission of both data and SRS, collisions may occur between the respective signals (as illustrated by white crosses in Fig.3c). As a result of such a collision, either the base station will be unable to correctly decode the data carried in PUSCH, or the sounding may be distorted by data channel transmission from another user equipment. Thus, the system performance may degrade.

[0100] Though deployment of 5G NR systems in the world is only spinning up, nevertheless active research is being already carried out now in different directions for standardization of next generation wireless communication systems, so called 6G, which will have characteristics superior to 5G NR.

[0101] In particular, for the 6G operating range of 7-13 GHz (UPPER MID BAND), it is planned to support, at base stations, extremely large antenna arrays (for instance, comprised of 3072 antenna elements), with hybrid analog and digital beamforming with a large number of antenna ports (≤256). Therefore, by supporting, in particular, up to 64 simultaneously transmitted spatial MIMO layers in UPPER MID BAND communication systems, the concept of radio interface with extremely large antenna array (xMIMO) will be rendered to a principally new level. Moreover, support of a set of reference signals similar to the one used in 5G NR, such as DMRS, CSI-RS, SRS, PT-RS, PSS / SSS, is planned in 6G.

[0102] At the same time, approaches used in 5G NR may not be always directly extended to next generation communication systems. In particular, the problems existing in implementing FH, as discussed above with reference to Figs.1-3 and associated with the limited hop options and anchoring to slot boundaries for FH during UL transmission of a data channel and with the difficulty of combined UL transmission of the data channel and SRS in one slot on the same OFDM symbols from different user equipments due to the inconsistency of the respective FH frameworks, do not have a significant impact on operation of 5G NR systems; however, they can become critical for 6G wireless communication systems operating in the UPPER MID BAND range, where the needs for providing the required UL transmission power spectral density and, hence, for more narrowband transmission are higher.

[0103] Hereinafter reference is made to exemplary embodiments of the present invention which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings where the same reference numerals denote similar elements. It should be appreciated that the embodiments of the invention can have various forms and should not be considered to be limited by the descriptions given herein. Therefore, the exemplary embodiments are described hereinbelow with reference to the drawings to elucidate the essence of the aspects of the present invention.

[0104] Fig.4 shows a general view of a wireless communication system, in which various aspects of the present invention can be implemented. As shown in Fig.4, user equipments (UE) 401 communicate with base station (BS) 402 in a radio access network (RAN) 400. UE 401 (e.g., UE 401-1, 401-2, 401-3, ...) are distributed over the RAN 400, and each of the UEs 401 can be fixed or mobile. Broadly known examples of UEs are smartphones, tablets, modems, etc.

[0105] The base stations 402 (for example, the BSs 402-A, 402-B, 402-C) can provide coverage for a specific geographic area commonly referred to as 'cell'. The base stations 402 basically have fixed structure, but they can have mobile implementation as well. In general, the base stations can represent macro-BSs (as illustrated by the BSs 402-A, 402-B, 402-C in Fig.4), as well as pico-BSs for pico-cells or femto-BSs for femto-cells. Cells in turn can be divided into sectors.

[0106] Coordination and management of operating the base stations 402 can be provided by a network controller which is in communication therewith (for instance, via a backhaul connection). The RAN 400 may communicate with a core network (CN) (for example, via the network controller) which provides various network functions, such as e.g. access and mobility management, session management, authentication server function, application function, etc. Moreover, the base stations 402 in the RAN 400 can also connect to each other, for instance, via a direct physical connection, which is preferably a high-speed connection.

[0107] When a user equipment is moving within the RAN 400, handover of the user equipment from one BS to another BS can be performed. For example, the UE 401-3 can be handed over from the BS 402-B to the BS 402-A. While performing this, respective communication systems parameters are reconfigured in the UE for operation with the new base station. The user equipment can be also handed over between sectors of one base station.

[0108] It should be noticed that the description according to Fig.4 and the figure itself have exclusively illustrative, non-limiting nature with the aim of outlining the general operation environment of the present invention. Though only known basic components of the communication system are illustrated in Fig.4, it should be appreciated that the communication system can further include plural other elements.

[0109] Each of the BSs 402 shown in Fig.4 includes hardware and logical means to implement respective functions in the base station. The hardware means refer to, in particular, an antenna array comprised of transceiving antenna elements which have been discussed above, various specially configured processors, controllers, data storage devices, other circuit elements, as well as buses connecting them. The logical means refer to software which is stored in respective memory devices and configures respective circuit elements. Firmware directly hardwired in processors and controllers also refers to the software. The abovementioned hardware means are configured inter alia to perform various processing with respect to transmitted and received signals, including (de)modulation, (de)multiplexing, (de)coding, amplifying, filtering, digitizing, (de)interleaving, resource allocation, reception / transmission scheduling.

[0110] In a similar way, each of the UEs 401 shown in Fig.4 includes hardware and logical means to implement respective functions in the user equipment. The hardware means refer to, in particular, transceiving devices with respective antenna elements, various specially configured processor(s), controllers, data storage devices, other circuit elements, as well as buses connecting them. The logical means refer to software which is stored in respective memory devices and configures respective circuit elements. Firmware directly hardwired in controllers also refers to the software. The indicated hardware means are configuredinter aliato perform various processing with respect to transmitted and received signals, including (de)modulation, (de)multiplexing, (de)coding, amplifying, filtering, digitizing, (de)interleaving. Moreover, the user equipment comprises means to interact with a user, including a touch screen, speakers / microphone, buttons, as well as user applications which are stored in the memory of the user equipment and executed by the processor of the user equipment in a respective operating system.

[0111] Examples of the abovementioned processors / controllers include microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), discrete hardware integrated circuits, etc. Firmware / software executed by the processors / controllers should be understood broadly, as referring to computer-executable instructions, instruction sets, program code, code segments, subroutines, program modules, objects, procedures, etc. The software is stored in respective computer-readable media which can be implemented e.g. in the form of random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable (EEPROM), solid state storage devices, magnetic storage devices, optical storage devices, etc. which can be recorded with respective program codes and data structures that can be accessed by respective processors / controllers.

[0112] The hardware and software elements of base stations and user equipments, as listed above, are configured to enable performing, in the base stations and user equipments, the methods according to the present application which are described hereinbelow. Implementation itself of the component hardware means of the base stations and user equipments and specific configuring thereof, including by respective logical means, is known in the technical field which the present application relates to. Moreover, various functions according to the methods of the present application can be performed in plural separate elements or in one or more integral elements, as defined by design structural characteristics.

[0113] In order to solve the technical problem addressed by the present invention, as outlined above, the present application provides an approach which, in general, aims at ensuring consistency between FH frameworks used in transmission of a physical channel (PUSCH or PUCCH) and in transmission of SRS. According to this approach, a time-frequency FH unit for UL transmission is introduced, as a unit of FH, which can be referred to as TFUhopthroughout the specification and in the figures, without limitation. Generally speaking, the base station configures, for each of at least some user equipments in communication with the base station, among available TFUhop`s, one or more TFUhop`s for future UL transmission being scheduled which is to be performed by the user equipment using FH; an FD position of each TFUhopchanges as a function of time in a predetermined manner, and each TFUhopis assigned, by the base station, with an UL transmission type (i.e. the base station defines whether the TFUhopis to be used for UL transmission of a physical channel or for UL transmission of SRS). The configuring of TFUhop`s, as briefly outlined above, is performed in the base station, and the TFUhopconfiguration is accordingly signaled by the base station to user equipments. Subsequently, the user equipment performs the scheduled UL transmission using FH in accordance with the TFUhop(s) configured for it, in particular, according to an UL transmission type corresponding to the configured TFUhop.

[0114] A general illustration of the TFUhop-based time-frequency FH configuration according to an embodiment of the present invention is given below with reference to Fig.5.

[0115] In accordance with the described exemplary embodiment, the base station configures, for user equipments, four TFUhop`s for a transmission time interval (TTI) for future UL transmission being scheduled.

[0116] Thus, the base station configures, for some user equipment UE1, the fourth TFUhop(the light-grey block in the lower left corner of Fig.5). As can be seen from Fig. 5, the fourth TFUhophas the TD size equal to OFDM symbols and the FD size equal to subcarriers. The FD position of the fourth TFUhopwithin the system bandwidth (or part thereof) allocated for UL is set by the base station varying over time during the considered UL TTI. This bandwidth or part thereof is denoted in Fig.5 without limitation as UL BWP.

[0117] The base station also assigns, for the fourth TFUhop, an UL transmission type for which UE1is to use the fourth TFUhopwhen performing the scheduled UL transmission with FH during this UL TTI. As noted earlier, the UL transmission type can be physical channel transmission or SRS transmission. Hereinafter, throughout the text and in figures, PUSCH transmission may be referred to, without limitation, as the UL transmission type corresponding to physical channel transmission. Accordingly, if the base station assigns the SRS transmission as a transmission type for the fourth TFUhop, then UE1will have to perform transmission of SRSs using FH performed based on the fourth TFUhop, more precisely, in accordance with the FD positions of the fourth TFUhopchanging over time in the predetermined manner.

[0118] For another user equipment, UE2, the base station configures the third TFUhop(the dark-grey block in Fig.5) with the same TD size and FD size and with FD positions varying in time (shown by white arrows in Fig.5). The base station also assigns an UL transmission type for the third TFUhop. For example, the UL transmission type assigned for the third TFUhopcan be the PUSCH transmission.

[0119] Similarly, for user equipment UE3and user equipment UE4, the base station can respectively configure the second TFUhop(the black block in Fig.5) and the first TFUhop(the hatched block in Fig.5).

[0120] The specificity of setting FD positions of TFUhop`s being configured in the base station will be discussed below.

[0121] As follows from the above discussion of the particular embodiment under consideration, TFUhop`s are configured by the base station on a per-UE basis, while the dimensions of all the TFUhop`s are the same and respectively equal to OFDM symbols in the time domain and subcarriers in the frequency domain. At the same time, it should be appreciated that, in the general case, one TFUhopcan be configured for more than one user equipment, and, within such a TFUhop, the user equipments will share resources according to the decision of the base station scheduler - for example, one TFUhopcan be used by several user equipments for SRS transmission. It should also be appreciated that, though in the embodiment of Fig.5 the FD size of all TFUhop`s is the same, in the general case FD sizes of TFUhop`s in a plurality of TFUhop`s being configured can be different. In other words, the embodiment discussed with reference to Fig.5 does not impose limitations in the sense of the aspects indicated herein.

[0122] As seen from Fig.5, in the described embodiment, the TD size of the TFUhop, equal to OFDM symbols, forms a sub-interval of the considered UL TTI (or frequency hopping repetition period); more specifically, quarter of the UL TTI in this case. It should be emphasized herein that, according to one implementation, the UL TTI may be a slot, as in the case of 5G NR discussed above with reference to Figs.1-3; in this case, an UL TTI sub-interval may correspond to a mini-slot. According to another implementation, the UL TTI may be a set of OFDM symbols, a bundle of adjacent or consecutive slots or mini-slots, or the entire UL part of the frame; in this case, an UL TTI sub-interval may correspond to a slot or mini-slot. As known, the slot size is typically 14 OFDM symbols; the mini-slot size can be 2, 4, or 7 OFDM symbols; the frame duration is 10 ms. It should be noted herein that the aspects of aggregated resource allocation in the time domain, at the level of bundles of slots or mini-slots, are disclosed, in particular, in RU　2801697 and in RU　2818161 which are both incorporated into the specification of the present application by reference.

[0123] As follows from the aforesaid, the TFUhop-based FH configuration, as provided in accordance with the present invention, is not strictly tied to slot boundaries, as in the case of 5G NR. For instance, the UL TTI according to the said second implementation can represent a mini-slot bundle whose boundaries may not match the slot boundaries. Thus, the present invention eliminates the respective limitation of the prior art discussed above.

[0124] According to the considered embodiment, the TFUhopTD size can be set in the base station by dividing the UL TTI into a predetermined number of adjacent (or consecutive) sub-intervals each OFDM symbols wide. In the case illustrated in Fig.5, = 4.

[0125] According to the non-limiting illustration shown in Fig.5, the TFUhopFD size can be set in the base station by respectively dividing the UL BWP into sub-bands each subcarriers wide. Moreover, the TFUhopFD size equal to subcarriers can form one or more physical resource blocks (PRBs). As known, the PRB size is 12 subcarriers.

[0126] The base station must accordingly signal, to each of UE1-UE4, the configured TFUhopconfiguration, so that each of UE1-UE4can perform the scheduled UL transmission with FH in the considered UL TTI according to said configuration. To this end, according to the discussed embodiment, the base station performs DL transmission of control information to each user equipment of UE1-UE4, the control information including at least the TFUhopTD size, as well as one or more parameters based on which the FD positions of the TFUhopconfigured for this user equipment (e.g. offsets in the frequency domain) can be determined, and the UL transmission type corresponding to the configured TFUhop. Optionally, the TFUhopFD size can be also included in the control information. The DL transmission itself of the control information can be performed in a way known to the skilled artisan, by using one or more of RRC signaling, MAC signaling, and DCI. According to one of the possible implementations, the control information can be transmitted from the base station not as a single whole - for example, one part of the control information can be transmitted in DCI, and another part thereof can be transmitted via RRC signaling; accordingly, in this implementation, the transmissions of said parts may be spaced in time. The transmission of the control information considered herein can be generally referred to, throughout the text of the application and in figures, as transmission of FH configuration information, without limitation.

[0127] Since the considered time-frequency FH configuration according to the present invention is structurally similar to the 5G NR FH framework for PUSCH transmission described above with reference to Fig.1a, then, according to an embodiment of the present invention, an FD position of any TFUhopis in general defined by a starting subcarrier of said TFUhop, and, more specifically, FD positions of the TFUhopduring the UL TTI (see Fig.5) are defined by a set of frequency offsets relative to a certain reference subcarrier, the offsets defining positions of the starting subcarrier of the TFUhopin different time instances. In particular, Fig.5 shows, by arrows, FD positions of the third TFUhop(i.e. positions of the starting subcarrier of the third TFUhop) in different UL TTI sub-intervals; here, is an UL TTI sub-interval index (the indexing of the sub-intervals within the UL TTI is implied from left to right). Accordingly, in thei-th UL TTI sub-interval, the FD position of the third TFUhopis defined by the frequency offset of its starting subcarrier relative to the reference subcarrier which, according to a preferred embodiment, can be represented by a starting subcarrier of the UL BWP (see the upper part of Fig.5).

[0128] The contents of the preceding paragraph equally applies to any of the first, second, and fourth TFUhop`s shown in Fig.5. The reference subcarrier can be a common reference subcarrier for all of the considered TFUhop`s.

[0129] In accordance with the aforesaid, both information about the reference subcarrier (e.g. its index) and frequency offsets for each of the configured TFUhop`s are set in the base station. In this case, the offsets can be set in such a way that, in each time instance, different TFUhop`s do not overlap in the frequency domain.

[0130] According to one implementation, the FH configuration information can directly include, as said parameters based on which FD positions of a particular TFUhopcan be determined, the set of frequency offsets , , set for this TFUhop.

[0131] According to another implementation, the set of frequency offsets , , for a TFUhopcan be parameterized by using a single frequency offset value and a set , , of integer multipliers (i.e. each UL TTI sub-interval indexihas a corresponding multiplier ), such that . For example, in the embodiment illustrated in Fig.5, any frequency offset is a multiple of the TFUhopFD size; therefore, can be accordingly set equal to . In the considered implementation, the single frequency offset value and the set of multipliers can be used as said parameters based on which FD positions of the TFUhopcan be determined. In this case, only the respective set of multipliers can be included into the FH configuration information for the TFUhop, while can be signaled to UE1-UE4in advance, for example, via RRC signaling.

[0132] It should be noted that the abovementioned approach to setting the varying TFUhopFD positions configured for user equipments, which is based on a set of frequency offsets, is common to PUSCH / PUCCH and SRS.

[0133] It is important to emphasize again that the embodiment discussed with reference to Fig.5 is non-limiting. In particular, it should be obvious to a skilled artisan that a different number of UL TTI sub-intervals can be used for the FH configuration in the time domain, and the FH configuration in the time domain may not occupy the entire UL TTI (in general, it does not necessarily have to start at the beginning of the UL TTI and end at the end of the UL TTI); accordingly, the TFUhopTD size can be defined by the base station in a different way in this case. Flexibility with respect to granularity of FH in the time domain, in terms of the number of sub-intervals and the number of OFDM symbols that form the TFUhopTD size, is provided thereby.

[0134] Next, although Fig.5 shows that, in any time instance, the configured first to fourth TFUhop`s occupy the entire UL BWP in the frequency domain, it should be obvious to a skilled artisan that the FH configuration can be such that the configured TFUhop`s will not occupy the entire UL BWP, and, accordingly, the TFUhopFD size can be defined in the base station in a different way as compared to respectively dividing the entire UL BWP into equal parts, as discussed above with reference to Fig.5.

[0135] Furthermore, though the disclosure of Fig.5 has used the configuring of only one TFUhopfor each of UE1-UE4, it should be clear to a skilled artisan that more than one TFUhopcan be configured for a single user equipment. In particular, as an illustration, it can be assumed in the example of Fig.5 that UL transmission in the UL TTI is scheduled only for UE1and UE2(UE3and UE4are fully excluded from consideration), whereas the base station again configures only the fourth TFUhopfor UE1, and the base station configures the second and first TFUhop`s for UE2; moreover, as recited earlier, the TFUhopTD size and the TFUhopFD size can be defined in a different way as compared to Fig.5. The TFUhopFD size may not be included in the FH configuration information transmitted from the base station to the user equipments and may, for example, be signaled from the base station to the user equipments in advance (e.g. using RRC signaling) or may be determined in the user equipments based on contents of the FH configuration information. This aspect does not impose any limitations on the present invention.

[0136] Talking about UL transmission types assigned to TFUhop`s configured for user equipments for UL transmission with FH, the following should be noticed. As discussed earlier, in order to ensure the required channel estimation quality at the base station, it is desirable that sounding of possibly the entire UL BWP is provided by SRSs transmitted from a user equipment. Accordingly, referring to the illustration in Fig.5, it is not practical to use the first and third TFUhop`s for SRS transmission; however, these TFUhop`s can be used for PUSCH transmission. The second and fourth TFUhop`s, which encompass the entire UL BWP over all UL TTI sub-intervals, can be used for SRS transmission; at the same time, PUSCH transmission can also be assigned to these TFUhop`s.

[0137] The FH framework proposed according to the present invention enables to allocate resources for UL transmission of different types of signals with FH, while avoiding, on one hand, the limitations due to the respective division of the allocated resources in time (see Fig.3a) or frequency (see Fig.3b) and, on the other hand, collisions (see Fig.3c). In other words, the proposed FH framework provides consistency between possible FH patterns for SRS and PUSCH (i.e. it is common to both SRS and PUSCH), while, at the base station side, high flexibility is provided to such patterns, in the sense of controlling, in frequency and time, each TFUhopwhich substantially defines granularity of the proposed FH framework. The more flexible multiplexing of PUSCH and SRS in UL transmission with FH, in turn, improves UL coverage. Moreover, as noted earlier, the FH configuration of the present invention supports various frame structures, without being tied to slot boundaries.

[0138] In a way similar to equation (1), an FD position of a TFUhop, to which PUSCH transmission has been assigned by the base station (substantially, a hop for PUSCH), can be determined as a function of time in an embodiment of the present invention according to the following equation (4).

[0139] [Equation 4]

[0140]

[0141] where is an index of the frequency domain resource allocation (FDRA) starting block of the user equipment, which can be dynamically reported along with the number of allocated resource blocks in the FDRA field in DCI;lis an OFDM symbol index; is the number of hops for PUSCH; is a respective frequency offset value measured in resource blocks. In this embodiment, the possible values of are 2, 4, 7, 14 OFDM symbols, assuming alignment with mini-slot or slot boundaries.

[0142] It should be noted herein that, in equation (4), various options for indexing OFDM symbols can be provided for in the considered embodiment in a manner clear to a skilled artisan, including, but not limited to:

[0143] - indexing of OFDM symbols in the UL part of the frame (cell-specific);

[0144] - cell-specific indexing of OFDM symbols in a slot (cell-specific);

[0145] - indexing of OFDM symbols in the FDRA (UE-specific).

[0146] Furthermore, some OFDM symbols allocated for other purposes may be excluded from the indexing.

[0147] In the case of a TFUhopto which SRS transmission has been assigned by the base station, in accordance with an embodiment an additional offset , which is caused by using the FH configuration according to the present invention, is added to equation (3) given above when considering the 5G NR FH framework for SRS, in particular the following equation (5).

[0148] [Equation 5]

[0149]

[0150] where

[0151] [Equation 6]

[0152]

[0153] In equation (6), which is structurally similar to equation (4), is the number of subcarriers in the PRB;lis an OFDM symbol index; is the number of hops for SRS; is a respective frequency offset value. In this embodiment, the possible values of are 2, 4, 7, 14 OFDM symbols, again assuming alignment with mini slot or slot boundaries.

[0154] The preferred embodiment of the present invention implies the capability of reusing the 5G NR frequency hopping function , which has been discussed above with reference to TS 38.211, v18.1.0 and based on which in equation (3) is determined; moreover, according to this preferred embodiment, said FH function is used within the TFUhopassigned for SRS. To this end, instead of the OFDM symbol index according to 5G NR, an internal OFDM symbol index is used in the function , said internal index being determined as follows Equation (7).

[0155] [Equation 7]

[0156]

[0157] where, as in equation (6),lis an OFDM symbol index, is the number of hops for SRS, and the possible values of are 2, 4, 7, 14 OFDM symbols. That is, according to the considered embodiment, the function is used, where the index sequentially indexes the OFDM symbols within the respective at least one TFUhopto which SRS transmission has been assigned by the base station. Throughout the text of this application, such a TFUhop, to which SRS transmission is assigned as an UL transmission type, can be referred to as , without limitation.

[0158] The advantages of reusing the 5G NR frequency hopping function with the internal indexing of OFDM symbols according to equation (7), in accordance with the considered preferred embodiment, will be described below.

[0159] Illustrative examples of configuring, by the base station, of TFUhop`s for user equipments for UL transmission with FH and assigning, by the base station, corresponding UL transmission types to these TFUhop`s according to embodiments of the present invention are described below with reference to Figs.6-7.

[0160] Fig.6a, similarly to Fig.5, shows an illustration of a time-frequency FH configuration in which four TFUhop`s are defined by the base station. The upper part of Fig.6a schematically shows allocation of resources in the time domain for DL transmission (letter D in a respective block) and for UL transmission (letter U in a respective block). Letter S in this figure denotes a special slot containing DL symbols, UL symbols, and guard interval symbols. Accordingly, the FH configuration is defined for a UL TTI which, as discussed earlier, can be a slot, a bundle of slots or mini-slots, or the entire UL part of the frame. Further in the text of the specification and in Figs.6-7, without limitation, the TD size of any of the TFUhop`s is assumed to be equal to four OFDM symbols.

[0161] Two user equipments - UEaand UEb- are considered in the illustration of Fig.6a. It is assumed that the base station has configured the second TFUhop(the dark-grey block in Fig.6a) for UEbfor performing, by this user equipment, PUSCH transmission with FH based on the configured second TFUhop. It is then assumed that the base station has configured the fourth TFUhop(the light-grey block in Fig.6a) for UEafor performing, by this user equipment, SRS transmission with FH based on the fourth TFUhop.

[0162] For each of the configured TFUhop`s, the base station sets a set of frequency offsets that defines the change in the FD position of said TFUhopover time (in other words, hops), and the offsets are set in such a way that there are no collisions in the frequency domain between configured TFUhop`s relating to transmission of different types of signals.

[0163] The black blocks within the fourth TFUhopassigned for SRS, i.e. within the , illustrate the reuse of the 5G NR FH procedure for SRS, as described above. Such execution of FH with respect to SRSs within the may be referred to herein as internal FH for SRS, without limitation. Respective parameters, which are required at the user equipment side to implement the reuse of this internal FH, can be at least partially included by the base station into the FH configuration information transmitted to user equipments or can be transmitted fully separately therefrom. It should be clear to a skilled artisan that this aspect does not impose limitations on the present invention.

[0164] As in the case of 5G NR, internal FH is carried out according to the considered embodiment based on a set of time-frequency resources for SRS transmission (the black blocks within the fourth TFUhop, i.e. the in Fig.6a), where each resource has the same TD size generally equal to one or more OFDM symbols, and the same FD size equal to one or more SRS frequency sub-bands. Thereafter, in the text of the specification and in Figs.6-7, without limitation, the TD size of a time-frequency resource for SRS transmission is assumed to be one OFDM symbol. The TD size and FD size of the resource relate to said parameters for carrying out internal FH which can may be included in the FH configuration information.

[0165] As seen from Fig.6a, the FD size of the SRS transmission resource is defined in the base station in such a way that the set of SRS frequency sub-bands in the enables to sound the entire SRS band of the over two OFDM symbols. It can be also seen that, due to configuring, in the base station, of FD positions (the set of frequency offsets { }, ) of the considered , sounding of the entire UL BWP by SRSs is provided over hops.

[0166] The usage in the illustrative implementation of Fig.6a of only two OFDM symbols, of the four available OFDM symbols of the , for internal FH for SRSs does not necessarily mean that the remaining two OFDM symbols of the are not used. For instance, according to a possible embodiment, these two OFDM symbols of the considered can be allocated by the base station to another user equipment (e.g. UEc) for similarly carrying out thereby internal FH for SRSs.

[0167] The illustrative implementation considered in Fig.6b is basically similar to the one considered above with reference to Fig.6a, except that, in the case of Fig.6b, the base station has decided to make UL SRS transmission more narrowband, and, as a consequence, the FD size of the SRS transmission resource is defined in the base station in such a way that the set of SRS frequency sub-bands in the considered enables to sound the entire SRS band of the over all the four OFDM symbols, i.e. in this case the entire TD size of the is utilized for the sensing.

[0168] As follows from the illustrative implementations discussed above with reference to Figs.6a, 6b, the present invention provides flexibility in terms of resource allocation. In particular, as seen from Fig.6b, due to the FH configuration according to the considered embodiment of the present invention, UEbcan use all the available OFDM symbols for UL transmission of SRSs, so that, on one hand, the transmission is more narrowband and provides the proper sounding, and, on the other hand, collisions with UL transmissions from other user equipments (e.g. PUSCH transmission from UEa) are avoided. As seen from Fig.6a, due to the FH configuration according to the considered embodiment of the present invention, UEbcan use, for UL transmission of SRSs, some of the available OFDM symbols for sounding, and, though the SRS transmission becomes less narrowband, another user equipment(s) is enabled to use the unused OFDM symbols for its own SRS transmission; again, collisions with UL transmissions from other user equipments in the frequency domain are avoided. From the PUSCH point of view, the present invention eliminates the abovementioned limitation of 5G NR FH in the form of only two hops within a slot or between two neighboring slots (see Figs.1a, 1b).

[0169] It is important to emphasize herein that, though the exemplary FH configuration is shown in Figs.6a, 6b as occupying the entire UL TTI in the time domain, this does not impose a limitation onto the present invention - as noted earlier, said configuration can start after the start of the UL TTI and end before the end of the UL TTI.

[0170] It should also be appreciated that, although the embodiment with internal FH for SRSs, as discussed above with reference to Figs.6a, 6b, is preferred, nevertheless, it is not mandatory. For instance, internal FH may not be used, and FH for SRS transmission may be implemented only by TFUhophops; in this case, the FD size of the resource for SRS transmission within the TFUhopis defined in the base station equal to the FD size of the TFUhop, thereby enabling to sound the SRS band of the TFUhopin one OFDM symbol.

[0171] Figs.7a, 7b depict illustrative implementations that are substantially the continuation and development of the discussion of the preferred embodiment of the present invention with the internal FH for SRS transmission according to Figs.6a, 6b. In particular, unlike the implementations of Figs.6a, 6b, in the exemplary implementations described with reference to Figs.7a, 7b the FD size of the SRS transmission resource is defined in the base station in such a way that the set of SRS frequency sub-bands in a respective enables to sound part of the SRS band of the , and, accordingly, the SRS sounding of only part of the UL BWP is provided over hops by said in one UL TTI. More specifically, in the case of the implementations considered in Figs.7a, 7b, the base station has decided to make UL SRS transmission highly narrowband, thereby providing very high power spectral density of this transmission and, accordingly, high quality of channel estimation at the base station side. According to the considered preferred embodiment, the approach of the present invention enables to seamlessly perform SRS sounding of the remaining part of the UL BWP in a subsequent UL TTI(s).

[0172] Fig.7a illustrates the usage of two adjacent UL TTIs. In the first (left) UL TTI, sounding of part of the SRS band, namely its half, of the considered is provided by using an FH configuration similar to the one of Fig.6b. In the second (right) UL TTI, the FH configuration as such is repeated, i.e. the same configured TFUhop`s with the same dimensions and frequency offsets as in the first UL TTI are involved, and internal FH for SRSs is implemented in a respective of the second UL TTI based on the same FH function (see equations (5)-(7)) and with the same TD and FD sizes of the SRS transmission resource as in the first UL TTI. Said respective in the second UL TTI can be referred to hereinafter in the text of the present application, without limitation, as , solely for the sake of distinguishing it from the in the first UL TTI. In general, the set of SRS frequency sub-bands in the also enables to sound part of the SRS band of the , but these SRS frequency sub-bands themselves are defined in the to be at least partially different from those in the of the first UL TTI. As seen from the illustration in Fig.7a, the SRS frequency sub-bands in the are defined to be fully different from the SRS frequency sub-bands in the , and, accordingly, said half of the SRS band of the and the half of the SRS band of the together form the entire SRS band being sounded, i.e. the FH configuration according to the considered implementation achieves SRS sounding of the entire UL BWP in the two adjacent UL TTIs.

[0173] It should be emphasized herein that the abovementioned seamlessness is implementedinter aliaby the continuous, end-to-end indexing of OFDM symbols within a TFUhop, as provided by equation (7), in the considered repetition of the FH configuration. In particular, returning to equation (7), its term provides slow incremental increase of the index every hops (in the implementation illustrated with reference to Fig.7a, ), while the term provides independent incremental increase in the index within a single TFUhop(in the implementation of Fig.7a, ).

[0174] The implementation of Fig.7b differs from the implementation illustrated above with reference to Fig.7a only in that the involved UL TTIs are not adjacent (or consecutive) in the time domain.

[0175] As in the case of Figs.6a, 6b, it is important to emphasize that, although in Figs.7a, 7b the illustrative FH configuration is shown occupying the entire UL TTI in the time domain, this does not impose a limitation onto the present invention: as reported earlier, said configuration can start after the start of the UL TTI and end before the end of the UL TTI - for instance, in this case, in the illustration of Fig.7a the FH configuration in the first UL TTI will not be adjacent, in the time domain, to the repetition of the FH configuration in the second UL TTI adjacent to the first UL TTI.

[0176] It should also be appreciated that, unlike the illustrations of Figs.7a, 7b, each of the SRS band part, the sounding of which is provided by the set of SRS frequency sub-bands in the in the first UL TTI, and the SRS band part, the sounding of which is provided by the set of SRS frequency sub-bands in the in the second UL TTI, can be less than half of the SRS band; therefore, the implementation of the approach according to the preferred embodiment, as described with reference to Figs.7a, 7b, in such a case similarly extends to a greater number of UL TTIs, irrespective of whether they are adjacent or not, in order to achieve SRS sounding of the entire UL BWP over this greater number of UL TTIs. The fact that in Figs.7a, 7b the sets of SRS frequency sub-bands in the respective of the adjacent UL TTIs are shown to be fully different in the frequency domain should not be interpreted as a limitation either.

[0177] In addition, it should be noted that the order of numbering of TFUhop`s, as used in Figs.5-7, does not impose a limitation onto the present invention.

[0178] The description of the method of UL transmission with FH in a wireless communication system according to the present invention is provided below with reference to the flowchart of Fig.8.

[0179] In steps 810-830, TFUhop`s for UL transmission are configured for user equipments.

[0180] In step 810, TFUhop`s are defined in the base station, for example, such as BS 402-A, 402-B, or 402-C in Fig. 4, wherein at least a TFUhopTD size is set. According to the illustrative embodiment disclosed with reference to Fig.5, the TFUhopTD size can be determined by the base station by dividing an UL TTI of future transmission being scheduled into a predetermined number of adjacent sub-intervals each OFDM symbols wide; as a result, the TFUhopTD size will be equal to OFDM symbols.

[0181] Subsequent steps 820-850 are performed for each of at least some of user equipments in communication with the base station, for example, such as UE 401-1, 401-2, ... in Fig. 4. A reference in the present application to 'at least some' of the user equipments implies, in particular, the following. A scenario is possible where some user equipments (for example, those with high UL channel quality) do not require an FH configuration, i.e. such user equipments can be served without using FH. Other exclusion scenarios are also possible where user equipments served by the base station do not require an FH configuration. Accordingly, in the context of the present application, 'at least some user equipments' in the consideration context is understood as referring to those of user equipments served by the base station that require an FH configuration to perform UL transmission.

[0182] In step 820, the base station configures for the user equipment one or more TFUhop`s from the TFUhopdefined in step 810. In this case, for each TFUhopbeing configured, in step 820 FD positions (more specifically, frequency offsets) of this TFUhopare set as a function of time, in accordance with the TFUhopTD size set in step 810, and an UL transmission type is assigned (i.e. either PUSCH, or PUCCH, or SRS) for which the user equipment is to use said TFUhop. Thereafter, throughout the text of the present application and in figures, without limitation, an UL transmission type assigned in such a way to a TFUhopcan be referred to as the 'corresponding UL transmission type' with respect to the TFUhop, and, conversely, a TFUhopto which an UL transmission type is assigned in such a way can be referred to as the 'corresponding TFUhop' with respect to the UL transmission type.

[0183] The embodiments of configuring TFUhop`s for user equipments are discussed in detail above with reference to Figs.5-7. In particular, an FD position of some TFUhop, where = , is an UL TTI sub-interval index, can correspond to a starting subcarrier of the TFUhopin thei-th UL TTI sub-interval. In this case, the set of FD positions of the TFUhopis preferably parameterized in the base station by a set of respective frequency offsets , , - as a result, the FD position of the TFUhopis defined by the frequency offset of the starting subcarrier of said TFUhopin thei-th UL TTI sub-interval relative to the reference subcarrier defined in the base station.

[0184] In one optional implementation of the method 800, the TFUhopFD size can be also set in step 810. As discussed earlier, the TFUhopFD size of can be determined by the base station by dividing the UL BWP into adjacent sub-bands each subcarriers wide; as a result, the TFUhopFD size will be equal to subcarriers. In another alternative, optional implementation of the method 800, the TFUhopFD size can be set by the base station in step 820; in this case, as noted earlier, in this alternative implementation, the TFUhopFD size can be set differently for different user equipments.

[0185] In step 830, the base station transmits FH configuration information to the user equipment. The base station includes into the FH configuration information at least the TFUhopTD size and, for each TFUhopof the one or more TFUhop`s configured for the user equipment in step 820, one or more parameters based on which the FD positions of said TFUhopas a function of time can be determined, as well as a corresponding UL transmission type assigned to said TFUhopin step 810.

[0186] The aspects of generating the FH configuration information have been discussed above with reference to Figs.5-7. In particular, the TFUhopFD size and an index of the reference subcarrier can be optionally included into the FH configuration information. In accordance with this discussion, the one or more parameters which are included in the FH configuration information and based on which the user equipment can determine the FD positions of the TFUhopas a function of an OFDM symbol are preferable the respective set of frequency offsets , . As noted in said discussion, DL transmission of the FH configuration information can be performed by the base station via at least one of RRC signaling, MAC signaling, and DCI.

[0187] In step 840, the base station performs DL transmission of control information to the user equipment, the control information indicating scheduling of UL transmission for the user equipment. The UL transmission being scheduled can be generally of one or more of the abovementioned UL transmission types. Therefore, in the considered case, the control information transmitted in step 840 to the user equipment will signal the UL transmission scheduling of each of the scheduled UL transmission types onto a corresponding TFUhopfrom the one or more TFUhop`s configured for the user equipment in steps 810-830; more specifically, this control information can be indicative of resources allocated within the corresponding TFUhopfor performing, by the user equipment, UL transmission of the scheduled type.

[0188] As an example, according to one possible implementation, for some user equipment (e.g. UEbin Fig.6a), the base station has configured one TFUhopin steps 810-830, along with having assigned to this TFUhopa corresponding UL transmission type (PUSCH) for which UEbis to use the TFUhopconfigured for it. In this case, the control information transmitted by the base station to UEbin step 840 will indicate for UEbscheduling, onto the configured TFUhop, of UL transmission of the corresponding UL transmission type, i.e. PUSCH in this example, or, in other words, the control information for UEbwill indicate allocation of resources in the configured TFUhopfor performing, by this this user equipment, the PUSCH transmission along with respectively carrying out FH.

[0189] According to another possible implementation, for some user equipment the base station has configured two or more TFUhop`s in steps 810-830, along with having assigned to each of the configured TFUhop`s a corresponding UL transmission type for which the user equipment is to use said TFUhop`s. In particular, the option has been considered when discussing of Fig.5 where two TFUhop`s are configured for UE2by the base station, namely the second and first TFUhop`s in the notation of Fig.5. In this case, the control information transmitted by the base station to the user equipment in step 840 can indicate for the user equipment scheduling of UL transmission of two or more different UL transmission types; more specifically, the control information will signal the UL transmission scheduling of each of the scheduled UL transmission types onto a corresponding TFUhopfrom the configured TFUhop`s, i.e. an indication of resources allocated within the corresponding TFUhop. In said option of Fig.5 considered herein as an example, the control information transmitted to UE2in step 840 can indicate for UE2the scheduling of PUSCH transmission onto the first TFUhopand the scheduling of SRS transmission onto the second TFUhop.

[0190] In order to elucidate the aspect of resource allocation provided by the present invention, an explanatory example is considered below where, in steps 810-830, the same TFUhopin the UL TTI has been configured by the base station for two user equipments, and SRS transmission has been assigned as an UL transmission type for the configured TFUhopfor both user equipments. In this case, the control information according to step 840 can indicate, for one of the user equipments, allocation of OFDM symbols (i.e. resources in the time domain) within the configured TFUhop, as shown in Fig.6a, and for the other user equipment, allocation of the remaining OFDM symbols of this TFUhopcan be indicated.

[0191] The DL transmission itself of the control information in step 840 can be performed from the base station in a manner known to a skilled artisan. Preferably, this DL transmission is performed via DCI. At the same time, as in the case of the FH configuration information, according to one of possible implementations the control information according to step 840 can be transmitted from the base station not as a single whole, with possible spacing of respective DL transmissions in time. The considered transmission of the control information according to step 840 may be generally referred to throughout the text of the application and in figures, without limitation, as transmission of UL transmission indication information.

[0192] In step 850, the user equipment, using the received FH configuration information and the received UL transmission indication information, performs UL transmission with FH to the base station. According to one embodiment, the user equipment can perform UL transmission of the scheduled UL transmission types, as signaled by the UL transmission indication information, along with carrying out FH based on the corresponding TFUhop`s configured for the user equipment.

[0193] At the same time, as noted above with reference to Fig.5, UL transmission of two or more different UL transmission types with FH can be scheduled by the base station for one user equipment onto the same OFDM symbols of the UL TTI, along with correspondingly configuring, by the base station, two or more TFUhop`s for this user equipment. In particular, returning to the consideration of the illustrative example of Fig.5, it can be assumed that two UL transmissions are scheduled for UE2onto the same OFDM symbols: for example, periodic SRS transmission could be preconfigured semi-statically via RRC signaling, and PUSCH transmission has been scheduled dynamically, by using DCI. Accordingly, the base station configures for UE2the second TFUhopfor SRS transmission and the first TFUhopfor PUSCH transmission (see Fig.5).

[0194] However, from the point of view of implementation for a user equipment (UE2in the considered example), the simultaneous execution of such UL transmissions may be difficult, even though these transmissions do not overlap in frequency in accordance with the FH framework provided herein. Therefore, for such a case, according to another embodiment of the present invention a mechanism is provided that enables the user equipment to select and perform only one of the scheduled UL transmissions in a manner consistent with the base station.

[0195] In accordance with the considered another embodiment, this mechanism is implemented by presetting, in the base station and in the user equipment, a prioritization rule for prioritizing UL transmission types. For example, such a rule can be set in the base station and signaled to the user equipment in advance, for instance, via RRC signaling, or defined in the communication system specification. According to the prioritization rule, each of e.g. PUSCH transmission, PUCCH transmission, and SRS transmission is assigned with a different priority, which can be illustrated in descending order of the priority as PUSCH→PUCCH→SRS, PUCCH→PUSCH→SRS, SRS→PUCCH→PUSCH, or the like.

[0196] Thus, according to the considered another embodiment, step 850, where the user equipment directly performs the UL transmission with FH, will be preceded by step 845 of selecting, in the user equipment, one of the scheduled UL transmissions according to the preconfigured prioritization rule for UL transmission types; as a result, in step 850 the user equipment will perform only UL transmission of the selected type with FH carried out based on the TFUhopcorresponding to the selected UL transmission type.

[0197] In step 850, in any of the two considered embodiments, the internal FH, as discussed above with reference to Figs.6-7, can be applied in SRS transmission.

[0198] It should also be understood that the illustrated exemplary embodiments are only preferred, but not the only possible implementations of the invention. Specifically, the scope of the present invention is defined by the claims and equivalents thereof.

[0199] FIG. 9 illustrates a terminal according to an embodiment.

[0200] Referring to FIG. 9, the terminal includes a transceiver 910, a controller 920, and a storage 930. The controller 920 may include a circuit, an ASIC, or at least one processor.

[0201] The transceiver 910 may transmit and receive signals to and from other network entities. The transceiver 910 may transmit and receive signals to and from a base station or the AMF through, e.g., the base station.

[0202] The controller 920 may control the overall operation of the terminal according to the above-described embodiments.

[0203] The storage 930 may store at least one of information transmitted and received through the transceiver 910 or information generated through the controller 920.

[0204] FIG. 10 illustrates a base station according to an embodiment. For example, the base station of FIG. 10 may be a gNB, etc.

[0205] Referring to FIG. 10, the base station includes a transceiver 1010, a controller 1020, and a storage 1030. The controller 1020 may include a circuit, an ASIC, or at least one processor.

[0206] The transceiver 1010 may transmit and receive signals to and from other network entities. For example, in the case of the AMF, the transceiver 1010 may transmit an event subscription request message for energy resources to other network entities such as the NWDAF or the SMF.

[0207] The controller 1020 may control the overall operation of the base station according to the above-described embodiments. For example, the controller 1020 may control the signal flow between each block so as to perform the operation according to the signal flow diagram described above.

[0208] The storage 1030 may store at least one of information transmitted and received through the transceiver 1010 or information generated through the controller 1020.

[0209] In the embodiments of the disclosure described above, components are expressed in the singular or plural according to the presented specific embodiments. However, the singular or plural expression is appropriately selected for a situation presented for convenience of description, and the disclosure is not limited to the singular or plural component, and even if a component is represented in the plural, it may be composed of a singular component, or even if a component is represented in the singular, it may be composed of plural components.

[0210] Embodiments of the disclosure disclosed in this specification and drawings merely present specific examples in order to easily describe the technical contents of the disclosure and help the understanding of the disclosure, and they are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure. That is, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art to which the disclosure pertains that other modifications based on the technical spirit of the disclosure may be implemented. Further, each of the above embodiments may be operated in combination with each other, as needed. For example, the base station and the UE may be operated by combining parts of an embodiment and another embodiment of the disclosure with each other. Further, other modifications based on the technical idea of the embodiment may be implemented in various systems such as a frequency division duplexing (FDD) LTE system, a time division duplexing (TDD) LTE system, a 5G system, or an NR system.

[0211] While the disclosure has been described with reference to various embodiments, various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and the scope of the present disclosure, which is defined, not by the detailed description and embodiments, but by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

A method performed by a base station for an uplink (UL) transmission with frequency hopping (FH) in a wireless communication system, the method comprising:defining time-frequency FH units (TFUhop`s) for UL transmissions by setting a TFUhoptime domain (TD) size;configuring, for a terminal, one or more TFUhop`s of the TFUhop`s, by setting frequency domain (FD) positions of the TFUhopas a function of time, based on the TFUhopTD size, and correspondingly configuring an UL transmission type for which the TFUhopis to be used by the terminal;transmitting, to the terminal, first control information comprising at least the TFUhopTD size, and, for each TFUhopof the one or more TFUhop`s configured for the terminal, the corresponding UL transmission type and one or more parameters based on which the FD positions of the TFUhopcan be determined;transmitting, to the terminal, second control information, the second control information at least signaling, to the terminal, UL transmission scheduling of one or more UL transmission types, wherein the second control information indicates the UL transmission scheduling of each of the scheduled one or more UL transmission types onto a corresponding TFUhopfrom the configured one or more TFUhop`s; andreceiving, based on the first control information and the second control information, UL transmission of at least one UL transmission type from the scheduled one or more UL transmission types, wherein the UL transmission is performed with FH carried out based on corresponding at least one TFUhopfrom the configured one or more TFUhop`s.The method of claim　1, wherein the TFUhopTD size is determined by dividing an UL transmission time interval (TTI) into a preset numberof adjacent sub-intervals eachOFDM symbols wide, so that the TFUhopTD size isOFDM symbols.The method of claim　2, whereinthe UL TTI is a slot, wherein theOFDM symbols form a mini-slot, orthe UL TTI is a bundle of adjacent slots or mini-slots, or an UL part of a frame, wherein theOFDM symbols form the slot or the mini-slot.The method of claim　1, wherein an UL transmission type is transmission of sounding reference signals (SRSs), or transmission of a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), or transmission of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).The method of claim　2, wherein an UL transmission type is SRS transmission, or PUSCH transmission, or PUCCH transmission.The method of claim　5, wherein, when an UL transmission type configured for a TFUhopis the SRS transmission, said carrying out FH when performing the UL transmission further comprises: carrying out internal FH for SRSs within said TFUhop() based on a SRS frequency hopping function, wherein the first control information further comprises parameters for carrying out the internal FH which are set in the base station.The method of claim　6, wherein the internal FH is carried out based on a set of time-frequency resources for the SRS transmission, each SRS transmission resource having a same TD size equal to one or more OFDM symbols and a same FD size equal to one or more SRS frequency sub-bands, where the TD size and the FD size relate to said parameters for carrying out the internal FH.A base station for an uplink (UL) transmission with frequency hopping (FH) in a wireless communication system, the base station comprising:a transceiver; andat least one processor configured to:define time-frequency FH units (TFUhop`s) for UL transmissions by setting a TFUhoptime domain (TD) size,configure, for a terminal, one or more TFUhop`s of the TFUhop`s, by setting frequency domain (FD) positions of the TFUhopas a function of time, based on the TFUhopTD size, and correspondingly configuring an UL transmission type for which the TFUhopis to be used by the terminal,transmit, to the terminal via the transceiver, first control information comprising at least the TFUhopTD size, and, for each TFUhopof the one or more TFUhop`s configured for the terminal, the corresponding UL transmission type and one or more parameters based on which the FD positions of the TFUhopcan be determined,transmit, to the terminal, second control information, the second control information at least signaling, to the terminal, UL transmission scheduling of one or more UL transmission types, wherein the second control information indicates the UL transmission scheduling of each of the scheduled one or more UL transmission types onto a corresponding TFUhopfrom the configured one or more TFUhop`s, andreceive, based on the first control information and the second control information, UL transmission of at least one UL transmission type from the scheduled one or more UL transmission types, wherein the UL transmission is performed with FH carried out based on corresponding at least one TFUhopfrom the configured one or more TFUhop`s.The base station of claim　8, wherein the TFUhopTD size is determined by dividing an UL transmission time interval (TTI) into a preset numberof adjacent sub-intervals eachOFDM symbols wide, so that the TFUhopTD size isOFDM symbols.The base station of claim　9, whereinthe UL TTI is a slot, wherein theOFDM symbols form a mini-slot, orthe UL TTI is a bundle of adjacent slots or mini-slots, or an UL part of a frame, wherein theOFDM symbols form the slot or the mini-slot.The base station of claim　8, wherein an UL transmission type is transmission of sounding reference signals (SRSs), or transmission of a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH), or transmission of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH).The base station of claim　9, wherein an UL transmission type is SRS transmission, or PUSCH transmission, or PUCCH transmission.The base station of claim　12, wherein, when an UL transmission type configured for a TFUhopis the SRS transmission, said carrying out FH when performing the UL transmission further comprises: carrying out internal FH for SRSs within said TFUhop() based on a SRS frequency hopping function, wherein the first control information further comprises parameters for carrying out the internal FH which are set in the base station.The base station of claim　13, wherein the internal FH is carried out based on a set of time-frequency resources for the SRS transmission, each SRS transmission resource having a same TD size equal to one or more OFDM symbols and a same FD size equal to one or more SRS frequency sub-bands, where the TD size and the FD size relate to said parameters for carrying out the internal FH.

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