Communication devices and methods for enabling SBFD communication

Abstract

Embodiments herein relate to, for example, a method performed by a communication device (110) for handling communication in an access network using SBFD communication. The communication device (110) transmits a first packet; and receives a second packet using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources. At least one out of the first packet and the second packet comprises a preamble portion and a data portion, wherein a first frequency resource utilization for the preamble portion is greater than a second frequency resource utilization for the data portion.

Description

[0001] COMMUNICATION DEVICES AND METHODS PERFORMED THEREIN

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] Embodiments herein relate to a communication device, a third communication device, and methods performed therein for communication. Furthermore, a computer program and a computer readable storage medium are also provided herein. In particular, embodiments herein relate to handling communication in a communication network.

[0004] BACKGROUND

[0005] In a typical communication network, user equipments (UE), also known as communication devices, wireless communication devices, mobile stations, stations (STA) and / or wireless devices, communicate via for example an access network (AN) such as a radio access network (RAN) with one or more core networks (CN). The AN covers a geographical area which is divided into service areas or cell areas, with each service area or cell area being served by a radio network node such as an access point (AP) or access node e.g. a Wi-Fi access point or a radio base station (RBS), which in some networks may also be called, for example, a NodeB, a gNodeB, or an eNodeB. The service area or cell area is a geographical area where radio coverage is provided by the radio network node. The radio network node operates on radio frequencies to communicate over an air interface with the UEs within radio coverage of the radio network node. The radio network node communicates over a downlink (DL) to the UE and the UE communicates over an uplink (UL) to the radio network node.

[0006] The IEEE 802.11 wireless local area network (WLAN) standard has greatly evolved via multiple amendments, and the supported communication capabilities in the standard have grown tremendously to cater to the ever-increasing demands on Wi-Fi performance, see P802.11-REVme / D7.0, Aug 2024 - IEEE Approved Draft Standard for Information Technology -- Telecommunications and Information Exchange Between Systems Local and Metropolitan Area Networks -- Specific Requirements - Part 11 : Wireless Local Area Network (LAN) Medium Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications. For example, based on the latest stable amendment IEEE 802.11 be Extremely High Throughput (EHT), see P802.11be / D7.0, Aug 2024 - IEEE Approved Draft Standard for Information technology-Telecommunications and information exchange between systems Local and metropolitan area networks-Specific requirements - Part 11: Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications Amendment: Enhancements for Extremely High Throughput (EHT), operating channel bandwidths of up to 320 MHz are supported in the standard. Correspondingly, operating channel bandwidths of 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz, and 320 MHz can now be supported by Wi-Fi devices. In practice, it is observed that access point (AP) stations (STA) typically support wider operating bandwidths than non-AP STAs, thereby implying that there is a mismatch between the maximum operating channel bandwidths supported by AP STAs and non-AP STAs.

[0007] The IEEE 802.11 be EHT amendment supports resource units (Rll) comprising of 26, 52, 106, 242, 484, 996, 2x996 or 4x996 tones, also referred to as subcarriers, and multiple Rlls (MRU) comprising two or more RUs in certain combinations. As an example, the small size MRUs defined for DL and UL orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) transmissions are: 52+26-tone MRU and 106+26-tone MRU. Furthermore, the EHT amendment provides support of MRU assigned to a single STA.

[0008] Thus, for example, a 20 MHz non-AP STA may be able to transmit or receive data fields of different bandwidths corresponding to a 26-tone RU (~2 MHz), 52-tone RU (~4 MHz), 52+26 tone MRU (~6 MHz), 106 tone RU (~8 MHz), 106+26 tone RU (~10 MHz), 242 tone RU (~20 MHz).

[0009] A typical data packet in Wi-Fi consists of a preamble portion and a data portion. As a result of the RU concept, there are many more supported data portion bandwidths than supported preamble bandwidths. The preamble bandwidths vary with a resolution of 20 MHz, whereas data portions can be as small as only ~2 MHz wide.

[0010] The latest major IEEE 802.11 WLAN standard amendment under development is IEEE 802.11 bn Ultra High Reliability (UHR). In the corresponding task group bn (TGbn) contributions are being presented to address the mismatch between communication bandwidth capabilities of AP STAs and non-AP STAs, for example, to reduce or avoid the wastage of bandwidth capabilities of AP STAs when they communicate with smaller bandwidth non-AP STAs. Dynamic subband operation (DSO) has been proposed for IEEE 802.11 bn.

[0011] Fig. 1a shows a figure from https: / / mentor.ieee.org / 802.11 / dcn / 23 / 11-23-2141-03- OObn-further-discussion-on-dynamic-subband-operation.pptx, and also US2023239743A1 , illustrating DSO wherein a 320 MHz capable AP communicates with two 160 MHz capable non-AP STAs. In these documents, the authors propose a technique called DSO, wherein wider bandwidth AP STAs communicate with narrower bandwidth non-AP STAs in DL or UL by allocating them frequency resources outside their normal operating bandwidths. Fig. 1a illustrates a DSO operation wherein a 320 MHz capable AP orchestrates DSO to communicate with two 160 MHz capable non-AP STAs. A DSO STA temporarily shifts to the 160 MHz secondary channel, denoted 160S in Fig. 1a, and a non-DSO STA stays on the 160 MHz primary channel, denoted 160P in Fig. 1a, and both STAs communicate with the AP over a cumulative bandwidth of 320 MHz.

[0012] It should be noted that the communications proposed in https: / / mentor.ieee.Org / 802.11 / dcn / 23 / 11-23-2141-03-00bn-further-discussion-on- dynamic-subband-operation.pptx, and also US2023239743A1 , describe the case of either simultaneously transmitting in DL to multiple devices or simultaneously receiving in UL from multiple devices, but not the case of simultaneously transmitting in DL and receiving in UL.

[0013] In Subband full duplex (SBFD) communication, the bandwidth within one radio channel is split into non-overlapping subbands at the same device, with one or more subbands utilized for transmission and one or more subbands utilized for reception. Fig. 1b illustrates an example of time-frequency grid of SBFD operation, wherein two example SBFD subband configurations are shown - a transmit-receive-transmit (TX-RX-TX) configuration with three subbands, and a TX-RX configuration with two subbands.

[0014] SBFD has been recently studied in the 3GPP Release-18 study item ‘Study on Evolution of NR Duplex Operation’, see Technical Report 38.858 v.18.1.0, wherein SBFD operation is assumed at base-stations (network nodes) while user equipments (user devices) operate using conventional half-duplex mode. The corresponding selfinterference (SI) and cross-link interference (CLI) challenges have been identified and studied as well. Fig. 1c illustrates two examples of SBFD operation in the context of an IEEE 802.11 WLAN. In Fig. 1c (A), a SBFD capable AP1 communicates with the two non- AP STAs, such as non-AP STA1 and non-AP STA2. Transmission by AP1 to non-AP STA1 causes SI at AP1, affecting the reception of the desired signal from non-AP STA2. Additionally, transmission by non-AP STA2 to AP1 causes CLI at non-AP STA1 , affecting the reception of the desired signal from AP1. Similarly, Fig. 1c (B) illustrates an SBFD capable AP1 communicating with a SBFD capable non-AP STA1, wherein both devices are affected by SI caused by their respective transmissions. When compared with the in-band full duplex (IBFD) operation, which features complete overlap between frequency resources used for transmission and reception, SBFD is relatively more feasible to realize due to having no overlap between the frequency resources used for transmission and reception. The non-overlapping subbands are protected from each other due to frequency separation, which is not available in IBFD. However, the underlying SI and CLI challenges in SBFD and IBFD are very similar, and either of these interferences can be detrimental to achieving successful communications.

[0015] SUMMARY

[0016] As a part of developing embodiments herein one or more of the following problems were identified. During an SBFD operation, the impact of an interfering signal, such as SI or CLI, on the desired signal’s reception at a respective device depends upon multiple factors, for example, propagation path losses for the two signals, transmit parameters settings such as TX powers, modulation and coding scheme (MCS), guard bandwidths etc. If interference estimation and cancellation techniques are required to address the SI and CLI challenges, the device’s complexity and power consumption increase, making it unattractive to utilize SBFD. In fact, in many situations, CLI cancellation is not even feasible, since the interfering signal is not known at the device affected by the interfering signal.

[0017] Furthermore, in prior art, SBFD is always considered as an operation wherein all communicating devices operate using the same overall operating channel but use different subbands of the channel for transmission and / or reception. This scenario is challenging not only for the device performing SBFD to handle SI, for example, AP1 in Fig. 1c (A), but also for the device affected by CLI, for example, non-AP STA1 in Fig. IcError! Reference source not found. (A), due to having no inherent protection from the CLI. Specifically, the filtering of subbands that needs to take place in SBFD communication is done in the digital domain which implies that the analog-to-digital- converter (ADC) must be able to handle a very large dynamic range.

[0018] An objective herein is to handle SBFD communications in an efficient manner, for example, with much less requirement on the ADC when it comes to dynamic range.

[0019] According to one aspect the objective is achieved by providing a method performed by a communication device for handling communication in an access network using SBFD communication. The communication device transmits a first packet; and receives a second packet using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources. At least one out of the first packet and the second packet comprises a preamble portion and a data portion, wherein a first frequency resource utilization for the preamble portion is greater than a second frequency resource utilization for the data portion.

[0020] According to another aspect the objective is achieved by providing a method performed by a third communication device for handling communication in an access network. The third communication device transmits a second packet to a communication device, which is operating in a SBFD communication mode by transmitting a first packet to a second communication device and receiving the second packet from the third communication device using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources. The transmission of the second packet is using frequency resources that do not overlap with an operating bandwidth of the second communication device.

[0021] It is furthermore provided herein a computer program comprising instructions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out any of the methods herein, as performed by the communication device and the third communication device, respectively. It is additionally provided herein a computer-readable storage medium, having stored thereon a computer program comprising instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the methods herein, as performed by the communication device and the third communication device, respectively.

[0022] According to another aspect a communication device and a third communication device are herein provided to be configured to perform the methods herein.

[0023] Thus, according to one aspect the objective is achieved by providing a communication device for handling communication in an access network using SBFD communication. The communication device is configured to transmit a first packet, and receive a second packet using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources. At least one out of the first packet and the second packet comprises a preamble portion and a data portion, wherein a first frequency resource utilization for the preamble portion is greater than a second frequency resource utilization for the data portion.

[0024] According to another aspect the objective is achieved by providing a third communication device for handling communication in an access network. The third communication device is configured to transmit a second packet to a communication device, which is operating in a SBFD communication mode by transmitting a first packet to a second communication device and receiving the second packet from the third communication device using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources. The third communication device is configured to use frequency resources that do not overlap with an operating bandwidth of the second communication device for the transmission of the second packet.

[0025] The embodiments herein for addressing SI and CLI challenges during SBFD operation are of low complexity when compared to sophisticated interference cancellation techniques discussed in prior art. Moreover, embodiments herein may be implemented by an SBFD device, being an example of the communication device, in a way that the SBFD operation may be transparent for other communication devices, such as non-SBFD capable devices, with which the SBFD device communicates, allowing the SBFD technology to be adopted more easily by the market. Furthermore, the proposed methods allow for performing wideband SBFD operation by involving narrowband devices, which is an aspect not discussed in known prior art. Lastly, the proposed solutions allow for involving even legacy devices in SBFD operation.

[0026] Embodiments herein reduce the degradation caused by interfering signals and, thus, handle SBFD communications in an efficient manner.

[0027] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] Embodiments will now be described in more detail in relation to the enclosed drawings, in which:

[0029] Fig. 1a shows a DSO operation;

[0030] Fig. 1b illustrates an example of time-frequency grid of SBFD operation;

[0031] Fig. 1c illustrates two examples of SBFD operation in the context of an IEEE 802.11 WLAN;

[0032] Fig. 2 shows a schematic overview depicting a communication network according to embodiments herein;

[0033] Fig. 3 shows a combined signaling scheme and flowchart according to some embodiments herein;

[0034] Fig. 4a is a schematic flowchart depicting a method performed by a communication device according to embodiments herein;

[0035] Fig. 4b is a schematic flowchart depicting a method performed by a third communication device according to embodiments herein;

[0036] Figs. 5 show example illustrations of SBFD operations;

[0037] Fig. 6 shows how a guard bandwidth can be adapted according to some embodiments; Fig. 7 illustrates how narrow operating bandwidth devices can address CLI challenges according to some embodiments herein;

[0038] Fig. 8 shows an example of a standardized transmit spectral mask;

[0039] Fig. 9 shows an example illustration of SBFD operation;

[0040] Fig. 10 is a block diagram depicting a communication device according to embodiments herein;

[0041] Fig. 11 is a block diagram depicting a third communication device according to some embodiments herein;

[0042] Fig. 12 shows an example of a communication system QQ100 in accordance with some embodiments;

[0043] Fig. 13 shows a communication system QQ200 in accordance with some embodiments; Fig. 14 shows a UE QQ300 in accordance with some embodiments;

[0044] Fig. 15 is a block diagram of a network node QQ400 in accordance with various aspects described herein; and

[0045] Fig. 16 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment QQ500 in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized.

[0046] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0047] There are herein provided techniques to address the SI and CLI challenges during SBFD operation. Both cases are covered herein - when a SBFD capable device, e.g., a communication device 110, communicates with multiple non-SBFD capable devices, as exemplified in Fig. 1c(A), as well as when a SBFD capable device communicates with another SBFD capable device, as exemplified in Fig. 1c(B).

[0048] Embodiments herein will generally be described when applied to a wireless communication system based on the IEEE 802.11 WLAN standard. This is done only for ease of description, and as is obvious for anyone of ordinary skill in the art, embodiments herein are not limited only to this standard.

[0049] Embodiments herein relate to communication networks in general. Fig. 2 is a schematic overview depicting a communication network 1. The communication network 1 comprises one or more ANs and one or more CNs. The communication network 1 may use a number of different technologies, such as wired or wireless technology, Wi-Fi, 802.11 , Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced, NR, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), Global System for Mobile communications / Enhanced Data rate for GSM Evolution (GSM / EDGE), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), or Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), just to mention a few possible implementations. According to embodiments herein the communication network 1 may comprise a listen before talk access network.

[0050] In the communication network 1, wireless devices e.g. a first STA 10 and a second STA 11 such as a mobile station, a UE, a non-access point (non-AP) STA, a wireless device and / or a wireless terminal, communicate via one or more AN, e.g. a RAN, to one or more CNs. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that “UE” is a nonlimiting term which means any terminal, wireless communication terminal, internet of things (loT) capable device, Machine Type Communication (MTC) device, Device to Device (D2D) terminal, or node e.g. smart phone, laptop, mobile phone, sensor, relay, mobile tablets or even a base station communicating within a cell.

[0051] The communication network 1 comprises a first access point 12 providing radio coverage over a geographical area, e.g. a first service area 13, of a first radio access technology (RAT), such as Wi-Fi, 802.11, NR, 6G or similar. The first access point 12 may be a radio access network node or an access point such as a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point or an Access Point Station (AP STA), an access controller, a base station, e.g. a radio base station such as a NodeB, an evolved Node B (eNB, eNodeB), gNB, a base transceiver station, Access Point Base Station, base station router, a transmission arrangement of a radio base station, a stand-alone access point or any other network unit capable of serving a UE within the service area served by the first access point 12 depending e.g. on the first radio access technology and terminology used.

[0052] The AP may be a standalone server, a cloud-implemented server, a distributed server or processing resources in a server farm or same node. Embodiments herein may be implemented as physical bare metal, virtual or cloud native such as Kubernetes environment in, e.g., hyper-cloud networks.

[0053] According to embodiments herein a communication device 110 such as the first access point 12 or the first STA 10, is provided to perform, in an access network, SBFD communication with one or more other communication devices such as a second communication device 120, for example the first STA 10, and / or a third communication device 130 such as the second STA 11. The communication device 110 may be referred to as the first communication device 110.

[0054] The embodiments herein address the SI and CLI challenges during SBFD operation. The communication device 110 transmits a first packet and receives a second packet using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources. At least one packet out of the first packet and the second packet comprises a preamble portion and a data portion, wherein a first frequency resource utilization for the preamble portion is greater than a second frequency resource utilization for the data portion. This will reduce impact of interfering signals. Thus, it is herein proposed that when SBFD operation is undertaken by a device, such as the communication device 110, to, e.g., simultaneously, transmit and receive packets, at least one packet comprises a preamble portion and a data portion, wherein the first frequency resource utilization for the preamble portion is greater than the second frequency resource utilization for the data portion. As a result, a frequency separation can be increased for the data portions of the packets, thereby helping to reduce the corresponding impact of interference, i.e. , SI and / or CLI, caused to, as well as by, a packet. Alternatively, or additionally, it is proposed that a frequency separation, i.e., a guard band, between the simultaneously communicated packets is larger when the difference between the desired signal power and interfering signal, such as SI or CLI, power is greater. Thus, the guard band may be based on a difference between the desired signal power and interfering signal, such as SI or CLI, power. Increasing the guard band implies that the attenuation obtained from the analog and / or digital filters will be even larger as the distance to passbands of the filters is increased.

[0055] It is also herein proposed that when the communication device 110, such as a first SBFD device, transmits to the second communication device 120 and receives from the third communication device 130, the third communication device 130 may use frequency resources that do not overlap with an operating bandwidth of the second communication device 120. Alternatively, or additionally, the operating bandwidth of the third communication device 130 may not overlap with the operating bandwidth of the second communication device 120. The second communication device 120 and the third communication device 130 may be narrowband devices and have analog filters corresponding to their narrow operating bandwidths, hence, the CLI problem will be simpler to deal with as, e.g., the required dynamic range of the ADC will be substantially reduced. An attenuation of 20-30 dB is not unreasonable for such analog filters.

[0056] Additional embodiments are provided herein to describe aspects regarding, for example, the orchestration and signaling of the SBFD communication. It should be noted SBFD communications may be based on a wireless local area network (WLAN) standard belonging to the IEEE 802.11 family of standards.

[0057] Fig. 3 is a combined signaling scheme and flowchart depicting some embodiments herein for SBFD communications. Action 301. The first communication device 110 and another communication device such as the second or the third communication device 130 may exchange information regarding frequency resource utilizations, configuration or similar.

[0058] Action 302. According to embodiments herein, the first communication device 110 transmits the first packet (to the second communication device); and receives the second packet (from the second or the third communication device) using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources. At least one out of the first packet and the second packet comprises the preamble portion and the data portion, wherein the first frequency resource utilization for the preamble portion is greater than the second frequency resource utilization for the data portion.

[0059] Example embodiments of the method performed by the communication device 110, such as the first access point 12, for handling communication in the access network using SBFD communication will now be described with reference to a flowchart depicted in Fig. 4a. The actions do not have to be taken in the order stated below, but may be taken in any suitable order, or some of them may be performed together. Optional actions are marked with dashed boxes.

[0060] Action 401. The communication device 110 may transmit a control frame. The control frame may indicate one or more of the following:

[0061] • a first packet frequency resource utilization for the first packet;

[0062] • a second packet frequency resource utilization for the second packet;

[0063] • a specific device to be a receiver of the first packet;

[0064] • a specific device to be a transmitter of the second packet; and / or

[0065] • means to align the first and the second packets in time such that OFDM symbol boundaries are aligned for the first and the second packets. For example, the control frame itself may be a means to achieve the time alignment, since the transmissions of the first and second packets could be timed based on the end time of the control frame, e.g., their transmissions could begin after a certain standardized time-gap after the control frame ends.

[0066] Alternatively, or additionally, the control frame may indicate the contents of the preamble fields, e.g., number of short or long training field symbols to be used, and / or other aspects such as a type of cyclic prefix length to be used for the first and / or the second packet, so that the OFDM symbols of the first and second packets would end up being time aligned.

[0067] The first frequency resource utilization for the preamble portion and the second frequency resource utilization for the data portion may be a subset of the first packet frequency resource utilization for the first packet, and / or a subset of the second packet frequency resource utilization for the second packet.

[0068] Action 402. The communication device 110 may signal to, or obtain from, another communication device, such as the second communication device 120 and / or the third communication device 130, an indication of a difference in frequency resource utilization between the preamble portion and the data portion of the at least one packet. Thus, the difference between the frequency resource utilization for the data portion and the preamble portion of a packet being communicated may be signaled by least one out of: a transmitter of a packet by performing the signaling before and / or during the transmission of that packet, and / or a receiver of a packet by performing the signaling before the transmission of that packet.

[0069] Action 403. The communication device 110 may configure a frequency resource utilization for the transmission of the second packet, wherein the configured frequency resource utilization does not overlap with the operating bandwidth of the intended receiver of the first packet, such as the first STA 10.

[0070] Action 404. The communication device 110 may trigger the transmission of the second packet. This is to exemplify a usage of embodiments herein by repurposing the DSO framework. As another example usage, the communication device 110, such as a SBFD capable AP, may perform DL transmissions using a wide subband and leave a small subband free for unscheduled UL transmissions from devices to support potential event-based or non-deterministic traffic.

[0071] Action 405. The communication device 110 transmits the first packet.

[0072] Action 406. The communication device 110 receives the second packet using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources. That is, the communication device 110 transmits the first packet using frequency resources that are non-overlapping with the frequency resources used for receiving the second packet. Furthermore, the communication device 110 transmits the first packet using time resources that are at least partially overlapping with the time resources used for receiving the second packet. In an example, the communication device 110 transmits the first packet and receives the second packet simultaneously. According to embodiments herein, at least one out of the first packet and the second packet comprises the preamble portion and the data portion, wherein the first frequency resource utilization for the preamble portion is greater than the second frequency resource utilization for the data portion.

[0073] A guard band, such as a frequency separation, may be used between frequency resources used for the first packet and the second packet and a bandwidth of the guard band may be based on the difference between the received signal power levels for the first packet and the second packet, at one or both out of the communication device 110 and an intended receiver of the first packet.

[0074] The transmission of the first packet may be performed to the second communication device 120, such as the first STA 10, and the second packet may be received from the second communication device 120, such as the first STA 10, or from the third communication device 130, such as the second STA 11. Thus, the first packet may be transmitted towards the second communication device 120 and the second packet may be received from the second communication device 120 or from the third communication device 130.

[0075] It should be noted that the frequency resources used by the third communication device, such as the second STA 11 , for transmitting the second packet may not overlap with the operating bandwidth of the second communication device, such as the first STA 10. Moreover, the operating bandwidths of the second and third communication devices may not overlap. The second communication device 120 and the third communication device 130 may use different parts of the channel but within the same analog filter bandwidth.

[0076] Example embodiments of the method performed by the third communication device 130, such as the second STA 11, for handling communication in the access network will now be described with reference to a flowchart depicted in Fig. 4b. The actions do not have to be taken in the order stated below, but may be taken in any suitable order, or some of them may be performed together. Optional actions are marked with dashed boxes.

[0077] Action 411. The third communication device 130 may receive the control frame from the communication device 110, wherein the control frame indicates one or more of the following:

[0078] - the second packet frequency resource utilization for the second packet;

[0079] - the specific device to be a transmitter of the second packet; and / or - the means to align the first and the second packets in time such that OFDM symbol boundaries are aligned for the first and the second packets

[0080] Action 412. The third communication device 130 transmits the second packet to the communication device 110 operating in an SBFD communication mode by transmitting the first packet to the second communication device 120 and receiving the second packet from the third communication device 130 using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources. The transmission of the second packet is using frequency resources that do not overlap with an operating bandwidth of the second communication device 120. The frequency resources used by the third communication device 130 to transmit the second packet may be configured by the communication device 110.

[0081] Thus, it is proposed herein that when SBFD operation is undertaken by the communication device 110 to simultaneously transmit and receive packets, at least one packet comprises the preamble portion and the data portion, wherein the frequency resource utilization for the preamble portion is greater than the frequency resource utilization for the data portion. As a result, the frequency separation can be increased for the data portion of that packet, thereby helping to reduce the corresponding impact of interference (i.e. , SI and / or CLI) caused to that packet as well as by that packet.

[0082] With increasing frequency separation from the edge of a wireless transmission performed over a channel, the adjacent channel leakage typically reduces, which is mainly due to the characteristics of the analog and / or digital filters employed in the TX chain(s) of the transmitter device. This aspect is leveraged of embodiments herein since the occupied bandwidth for the data portion is smaller compared to that for the preamble portion, thereby increasing the frequency separation with respect to an adjacent channel, and thus potentially helping with reception of both simultaneously transmitted packets during SBFD operation. Simultaneously herein meaning at least partially overlapping time resources.

[0083] Fig. 5(A) shows an example illustration of a baseline SBFD operation involving both TX and RX packets featuring same frequency resource utilization for preamble and data portions. Fig. 5(B) shows an example illustration of proposed SBFD operation involving RX packet featuring narrower data portion than preamble portion. Fig. 5(C) shows an example illustration of proposed SBFD operation involving TX packet featuring narrower data portion than preamble portion. Fig. 5(D) shows an example illustration of proposed SBFD operation involving both TX and RX packets featuring narrower data portions than preamble portions.

[0084] Thus, Figs. 5(A)-(D) show four cases for SBFD operation:

[0085] Case A: Baseline SBFD operation involving both TX and RX packets featuring same frequency resource utilization for preamble and data portions. In this case, the resultant frequency separation for both preamble and data portions is the same, and thus the interference, such as SI or CLI, caused by either packet to the other would be similar for both data and preamble portions.

[0086] Case B: Proposed SBFD operation involving RX packet featuring narrower data portion than preamble portion. In this case, the resultant frequency separation for the data portion is greater than for the preamble portion, thereby resulting in lesser interference, such as SI or CLI, caused to the data portions as compared to the preamble portions.

[0087] Case C: Proposed SBFD operation involving TX packet featuring narrower data portion than preamble portion. In this case, similar to Case B, the resultant frequency separation for the data portion is greater than for the preamble portion, thereby resulting in lesser interference, such as SI or CLI, caused to the data portions as compared to the preamble portions.

[0088] Case D: Proposed SBFD operation involving both TX and RX packets featuring narrower data portions than preamble portions. In this case, even further frequency separation is achieved for the data portions than in cases B and C, thereby allowing for even better interference avoidance.

[0089] As stated in embodiments herein, the communication device 110 transmits the first packet using time resources that are at least partially overlapping with the time resources used for receiving the second packet. Note that Figs. 5(A)-(D) illustrate perfect timealignment for the preamble and data portions, as well as start and end times of the TX and RX packets. This is just for illustration purpose, and it is expected that for anyone skilled in the art, usage of the proposed solutions would be straightforward to understand even if there is any form of timing misalignment, for example, unaligned start times or end times of the TX and RX packets. Furthermore, the perfectly time-aligned case can be considered as an example of SBFD operation orchestrated by an AP device by means of scheduled operations. The UL transmission in such a scenario could be trigger-based, see action 404, while the DL transmission could be undertaken in parallel with the triggered UL using non-overlapping frequency resources. Both the cases illustrated in Figure 1c may thus be covered. In the context of IEEE 802.11 WLANs, the concept of RUs can be reused to practice the proposed solutions. For example, the SBFD operation may involve two 20 MHz packets (one TX and the other RX), wherein the preamble portions are over the full 20 MHz bandwidth, whereas the data portion of at least one of the packets corresponds to a narrower bandwidth Rll allocation, such as a 26-tone Rll (~2 MHz), 52-tone Rll (~4 MHz), 52+26 tone MRU (~6 MHz), 106 tone RU (~8 MHz), or 106+26 tone RU (~10 MHz). The selection of the RU size may depend on the desired guard bandwidth between the TX and RX packets corresponding to the data portions.

[0090] To further appreciate embodiments herein, one may note that the preamble portions of Wi-Fi data packets are typically encoded in a robust manner so that they may be detected and decoded in low signal to interference plus noise ratio (SI NR) situations as well. For example, in the most robust case, it may be expected for a preamble to be decodable at 0 dB SINR. On the contrary, for the data portions, SINR as high as 35-40 dB may be required, for example, in a case when the modulation used is 1024-quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) or 4096-QAM. Thus, it is beneficial to utilize the proposed embodiments herein to achieve greater frequency separation for the data portion of a packet, and thereby enhance the probability of its reception. As discussed earlier, an additional accompanying benefit is that such a relatively narrower data portion would cause lesser interference, such as SI or CLI, to a packet being received simultaneously in an adjacent channel as well.

[0091] According to an example above, it is proposed that the frequency separation, i.e. , the guard band, between the simultaneously communicated packets may be relatively larger when the difference between the desired signal power and interfering signal, such as SI or CLI, power is relatively greater. Increasing the guard band implies that the attenuation obtained from the analog and / or digital filters will be even larger as the distance to passbands of the filters is increased. Fig. 6 provides a simplified illustration of how a guard bandwidth can be adapted according to the difference between the desired signal power and the interfering signal power during SBFD operation. Referring to Fig. 6, the right figure illustrates how the effective signal-to-interference ratio can be kept the same or improved (looking at the interfering signal leakage into the desired signal) by adapting the guard bandwidth, although the relative power difference of the interfering signal and the desired signal is much worse. A wider guard band results in that the interference caused due to the spectral leakage into the RX subband is lesser. Moreover, it also allows to utilize analog / digital filters at a relatively lower complexity than having to realize them for a narrow guard band, thereby making it easier to tackle, for example, the dynamic range issues that may arise during the analog to digital conversion in the RX chains of the device participating in SBFD communication. The selection of the size of the guard band can be performed by, for example, the communication device 110 being an SBFD orchestrating device such as an SBFD capable AP based on its assessment of the SI and / or CLI situation during SBFD operation.

[0092] It is furthermore herein proposed that the SBFD communication may be preceded by a control frame transmission by the communication device 110 to perform one or more out of the following: signal the first packet frequency resource utilization for the transmitted packet, signal and orchestrate the second packet frequency resource utilization for the received packet, select a specific device to be a receiver of the transmitted packet, select a specific device to be a transmitter of the received packet, align the transmitted and the received packets in time such that their OFDM symbol boundaries are aligned, this can help to reduce the impact of interference arising from time misalignment.

[0093] Transmission of the control frame may aid the communication device 110 to orchestrate the SBFD operation such the guard bandwidths corresponding to the preamble and / or data portions of communicated packets are suitably selected to control any potential impact of SI and / or CLI in a predictable manner. Such communication device 110 may be an AP device.

[0094] Furthermore, the difference between the frequency resource utilizations for the data portion and the preamble portion of a packet being communicated may be signaled by least one out of: a transmitter of that packet being communicated by performing the signaling before and / or during the transmission of that packet, a receiver of that packet by performing the signaling before the transmission of that packet.

[0095] The communication device 110, such as an SBFD capable AP STA, may trigger an UL transmission to simultaneously occur during a DL transmission, and may signal the frequency resource allocation for the DL as well as UL packets in the control frame, e.g., a suitably modified version of a trigger frame. This may be sent prior to the SBFD communication.

[0096] It should further be noted that a device which supports OFDMA may be capable of supporting a wide operating bandwidth, say 80 MHz, but an actual transmission from this device or a reception by this device may be of a much smaller bandwidth, say 20 MHz. A transmitter may be required to suppress any signals outside of the operating bandwidth and a receiver may be required to handle interference that is outside of the operating bandwidth. Components to achieve this, both at the transmitter side and at the receiver side, are analog filters. However, when it comes to handling interference that is inside the supported operating bandwidth, but adjacent to the bandwidth of the actual transmission, the requirements are less stringent. The reason being that the above-mentioned analog filters will not have any impact as their bandwidth is determined by the operating bandwidth. Some embodiments herein relate to cases wherein devices with a narrower operating bandwidth are communicating with by a wider operating bandwidth device. For example, non-AP STAs may not support as large operating bandwidths as an AP they communicate with, and this may be used as a means to simplify SBFD operation.

[0097] Correspondingly, it is proposed that when the communication device 110, such as a first SBFD device, e.g., AP1 in Figure 1c(A), transmits to the second communication device 120, e.g., non-AP STA1 in Figure 1c(A), and simultaneously receives from the third communication device 130, e.g., non-AP STA2 in Figure 1c(A), the third communication device 130 may use frequency resources that do not overlap with the operating bandwidth of the second device 120. In a related embodiment, it is proposed that the operating bandwidth of the third communication device 130 does not overlap with the operating bandwidth of the second communication device 120. Because the operating bandwidths of second communication device 120 and the third communication device 130 do not overlap, the filtering will be much more effective than if different subband bandwidths, formed by grouping sub-carriers, within the same operating bandwidth would have been used. Since narrowband devices, such as the second communication device 120 and the third communication device 130, may have analog filters corresponding to the bandwidth of a narrowband signal, the CLI problem will be simpler to deal with as, e.g., the required dynamic range of the ADC will be substantially reduced. An attenuation of 20-30 dB is not unreasonable for such analog filters.

[0098] Fig. 7 illustrates how narrow operating bandwidth devices can address CLI challenges by using their inherent analog / digital filters to the benefits of these proposed embodiments. If the frequency resources used by the third communication device 130 lie outside the operating bandwidth of the second communication device 120, the second communication device 120 can protect itself from the resultant CLI by virtue of its inherent analog / digital filters that only cover a corresponding narrow bandwidth, thereby filtering out the CLI. Correspondingly, as illustrated in the figure, the second communication device 120 may feature a narrow operating bandwidth analog / digital filter in it’s receive chain to ably receive the desired signal. Moreover, if the third communication device 130 itself has an operating bandwidth that does not overlap with that of the second communication device 120, its own analog / digital filters would reduce the CLI caused by the spectral leakage outside the frequency resources used for transmission. Correspondingly, as illustrated in the figure, also the third communication device 130 may feature a narrow operating bandwidth analog / digital filter in its transmit chain which would reduce the CLI impact. Thus, if both the second and third communication devices have non-overlapping operating bandwidths, their inherent filters can help to achieve both, cause less CLI as well as protect from CLI.

[0099] This can be further understood using Fig. 8 which is reproduced from P802.11- REVme / D7.0, Aug 2024 - IEEE Approved Draft Standard for Information Technology -- Telecommunications and Information Exchange Between Systems Local and Metropolitan Area Networks -- Specific Requirements - Part 11: Wireless Local Area Network (LAN) Medium Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications, and illustrates an example transmit spectral mask for a punctured 80 MHz PPDU corresponding to the IEEE 802.11ax amendment. In Fig. 8, the highest 20 MHz subchannel in an 80 MHz operating bandwidth is punctured. The spectrum mask shows that the spectral leakage suppression outside the 80 MHz operating bandwidth is better and larger than the spectral leakage suppression in the punctured subchannel. Thus, in the SBFD scenario, if the operating bandwidth of the third communication device 130 does not overlap with that of the second communication device 120, the third communication device’s spectral leakage in the reception bandwidth of the second communication device 120 will be lesser when compared with case where the operating bandwidth of the third communication device 130 would overlap with that of the second communication device 120. This makes it further evident that the CLI caused to the second communication device’s reception would be lesser when the operating bandwidths of the second and third communication devices do not overlap.

[0100] It should be noted that the embodiments herein may allow for involving even legacy devices in SBFD operation. The legacy devices may be devices which do not understand the RU concepts, i.e., devices belonging to pre-IEEE 802.11 ax amendments, or may be devices which do not understand SBFD operation, e.g., devices belonging to any of the existing amendments. For example, a legacy non-AP STA that can communicate only using the same bandwidth for preamble and data portions can be made to transmit or receive one packet whereas another non-AP STA which can communicate data portions over narrower bandwidths than preamble portions can be made to receive or transmit the other packet.

[0101] As another example, narrow bandwidth legacy non-AP STAs can be made to receive or transmit a packet over their operating bandwidths without them having to know about another packet being communicated simultaneously using SBFD operation.

[0102] Fig. 9 shows an example modified version of Fig. 1a to accommodate SBFD operation, wherein the SBFD operation is orchestrated by an AP (AP1) in order to simultaneously communicate in DL and UL with narrow bandwidth non-AP STAs (non-AP STA1 and non-AP STA2). This is an example of scheduled SBFD operation. It is to be noted that this is just one example of how the proposed wideband SBFD operation with narrowband devices can be incorporated in the IEEE 802.11 WLAN standard. Fig. 9 shows an example illustration of SBFD operation orchestrated by an AP in order to simultaneously communicate with narrow bandwidth non-AP STAs in DL and UL. In Figure 1a, the actual data communications are in the same direction with regards to both non-AP STAs. Thus, it is either simultaneous DL to both non-AP STAs, or simultaneous UL from both. On the contrary, in Fig. 9, the actual data communications are in opposite direction with regard to both non-AP STAs. Thus, it is simultaneous DL to non-AP STA1 and UL from non-AP STA2 or vice versa.

[0103] As another example usage, a SBFD capable AP may perform DL transmissions using a wide subband and leave a small subband free for unscheduled UL transmissions from devices to support potential event-based or non-deterministic traffic.

[0104] Fig. 10 is a block diagram depicting the communication device 110 for handling communication in the access network using SBFD communication according to embodiments herein.

[0105] The communication device 110 may comprise processing circuitry 1001 , e.g. one or more processors, configured to perform the methods herein.

[0106] The communication device 110 and / or the processing circuitry 1001 is configured to transmit the first packet; and receive the second packet using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources. At least one out of the first packet and the second packet comprises the preamble portion and the data portion, wherein the first frequency resource utilization for the preamble portion is greater than the second frequency resource utilization for the data portion.

[0107] A guard band may be used between frequency resources used for the first packet and the second packet and the bandwidth of the guard band may be based on the difference between the received signal power levels for the first packet and the second packet, at one or both out of the communication device 110 and an intended receiver of the first packet.

[0108] The communication device 110 and / or the processing circuitry 1001 may be configured to perform the transmission of the control frame, wherein the control frame indicates one or more of the following:

[0109] • the first packet frequency resource utilization for the first packet;

[0110] • the second packet frequency resource utilization for the second packet;

[0111] • the specific device to be a receiver of the first packet;

[0112] • the specific device to be a transmitter of the second packet; and / or

[0113] • the means to align the first and the second packets in time such that OFDM symbol boundaries are aligned for the first and the second packets.

[0114] The communication device 110 and / or the processing circuitry 1001 may be configured to signal to, or obtain from, another communication device, the indication of the difference in resource utilization between the first frequency resource utilization and the second frequency resource utilization.

[0115] The communication device 110 and / or the processing circuitry 1001 may be configured to transmit the first packet towards the second communication device 120 and to receive the second packet from the second communication device 120 or from the third communication device 130. The frequency resources used by the third communication device 130 for transmitting the second packet, or used by the communication device 110 to receive the second packet, do not overlap with the operating bandwidth of the second communication device 120. The operating bandwidth of the third communication device 130 may in some embodiments not overlap with the operating bandwidth of the second communication device 120.

[0116] The communication device 110 may comprise the first access point 12.

[0117] The communication device 110 and / or the processing circuitry 1001 may be configured to trigger the transmission of the second packet.

[0118] The communication device 110 may comprise a memory 1005. The memory 1005 comprises one or more units to be used to store data on, such as data packets, bandwidths, operating bandwidths, frequency utilizations, indications, STA information, events and applications to perform the methods disclosed herein when being executed, and similar. Furthermore, the communication device 110 may comprise a communication interface 1006 such as comprising a transmitter, a receiver, a transceiver and / or one or more antennas.

[0119] The methods according to the embodiments described herein for the communication device 110 are respectively implemented by means of e.g. a computer program product 1007 or a computer program, comprising instructions, i.e. , software code portions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the communication device 110. The computer program product 1007 may be stored on a computer-readable storage medium 1008, e.g., a disc, a universal serial bus (USB) stick or similar. The computer-readable storage medium 1008, having stored thereon the computer program product, may comprise the instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the communication device 110. In some embodiments, the computer-readable storage medium may be a transitory or a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. Thus, embodiments herein may disclose the communication device 110 for handling communication in an access network using SBFD communication, wherein the communication device comprises processing circuitry and a memory, said memory comprising instructions executable by said processing circuitry whereby said communication device is operative to perform any of the methods herein.

[0120] Fig. 11 is a block diagram depicting the third communication device 130 for handling communication in the access network according to embodiments herein.

[0121] The third communication device 130 may comprise processing circuitry 1101 , e.g. one or more processors, configured to perform the methods herein.

[0122] The third communication device 130 and / or the processing circuitry 1101 is configured to transmit the second packet to the communication device 110, wherein communication device 110 is operating in a SBFD communication mode by transmitting the first packet to the second communication device 120 and receiving the second packet from the third communication device 130 using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources. The third communication device 130 and / or the processing circuitry 1101 is configured to use frequency resources that do not overlap with an operating bandwidth of the second communication device for the transmission of the second packet. The frequency resources used by the third communication device 130 to transmit the second packet may be configured by the communication device 110.

[0123] The third communication device 130 and / or the processing circuitry 1101 may be configured to receive the control frame from the communication device 110, wherein the control frame may indicate one or more of the following:

[0124] • the second packet frequency resource utilization for the second packet;

[0125] • the specific device to be a transmitter of the second packet; and / or

[0126] • the means to align the first and the second packets in time such that OFDM symbol boundaries are aligned for the first and the second packets.

[0127] The third communication device 130 may comprise a memory 1105. The memory 1105 comprises one or more units to be used to store data on, such as data packets, bandwidths, operating bandwidths, frequency utilizations, indications, STA information, events and applications to perform the methods disclosed herein when being executed, and similar. Furthermore, the third communication device 130 may comprise a communication interface 1106 such as comprising a transmitter, a receiver, a transceiver and / or one or more antennas.

[0128] The methods according to the embodiments described herein for the third communication device 130 are respectively implemented by means of e.g. a computer program product 1107 or a computer program, comprising instructions, i.e., software code portions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the third communication device 130. The computer program product 1107 may be stored on a computer-readable storage medium 1108, e g., a disc, a universal serial bus (USB) stick or similar. The computer-readable storage medium 1108, having stored thereon the computer program product, may comprise the instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the third communication device 130. In some embodiments, the computer-readable storage medium may be a transitory or a non-transitory computer- readable storage medium. Thus, embodiments herein may disclose the third communication device 130 for handling communication in an access network, wherein the third communication device 130 comprises processing circuitry and a memory, said memory comprising instructions executable by said processing circuitry whereby said third communication device 130 is operative to perform any of the methods herein. As will be readily understood by those familiar with communications design, that functions means or modules may be implemented using digital logic and / or one or more microcontrollers, microprocessors, or other digital hardware. In some embodiments, several or all of the various functions may be implemented together, such as in a single application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or in two or more separate devices with appropriate hardware and / or software interfaces between them. Several of the functions may be implemented on a processor shared with other functional components of a radio network node, for example.

[0129] Alternatively, several of the functional elements of the processing means discussed may be provided through the use of dedicated hardware, while others are provided with hardware for executing software, in association with the appropriate software or firmware. Thus, the term “processor” or “controller” as used herein does not exclusively refer to hardware capable of executing software and may implicitly include, without limitation, digital signal processor (DSP) hardware, read-only memory (ROM) for storing software, random-access memory for storing software and / or program or application data, and non-volatile memory. Other hardware, conventional and / or custom, may also be included. Designers of communications receivers will appreciate the cost, performance, and maintenance trade-offs inherent in these design choices.

[0130] Figure 12 shows an example of a communication system QQ100 in accordance with some embodiments.

[0131] In the example, the communication system QQ100 includes a telecommunications network QQ102 that includes an access network QQ104, such as a radio access network (RAN), and a core network QQ106, which includes one or more core network nodes QQ108. The access network QQ104 includes one or more access network nodes or base stations of various types, access network nodes QQ110A and QQ110B are depicted (which may be collectively referred to as network nodes QQ110), or any other similar 3rdGeneration Partnership Project (3GPP) access nodes or non-3GPP access points (APs). Some embodiments of the access network QQ104 may include more than one access network technology. The network nodes QQ110 of access network QQ104 facilitate direct or indirect connection of wireless devices, also referred to as user equipments (UEs), such as by connecting UEs QQ112A, QQ112B, QQ112C, and QQ112D (one or more of which may be generally referred to as UEs QQ112) to the core network QQ106 over one or more wireless connections.

[0132] Moreover, a network node is not necessarily limited to an implementation in which a radio portion and a baseband portion are supplied and integrated by a single vendor. Thus, it will be understood that network nodes include disaggregated implementations or portions thereof. For example, in some embodiments, the telecommunications network QQ102 includes one or more Open-RAN (ORAN) network nodes. An ORAN network node is a network node in the telecommunications network QQ102 that supports an ORAN specification (e.g., a specification published by the O-RAN Alliance, or any similar organization) and may operate alone or together with other network nodes to implement one or more functionalities of any network node in the telecommunications network QQ102, including one or more access network nodes QQ110 and / or core network nodes QQ108.

[0133] Examples of an ORAN network node include an open radio unit (0-Rll), an open distributed unit (0-Dll), an open central unit (O-CU), including an O-CU control plane (O- CLI-CP) or an O-CU user plane (O-CU-UP), a RAN intelligent controller (near-real time or non-real time) hosting software or software plug-ins, such as a near-real time control application (e.g., xApp) or a non-real time control application (e.g., rApp), or any combination thereof (the adjective “open” designating support of an ORAN specification). An ORAN network node may support a specification by, for example, supporting an interface defined by the ORAN specification, such as an A1, F1, W1, E1, E2, X2, Xn interface, an open fronthaul user plane interface, or an open fronthaul management plane interface. Moreover, an ORAN network node may be a logical node in a physical node. Furthermore, an ORAN network node may be implemented in a virtualization environment (described further below) in which one or more network functions are virtualized. For example, the virtualization environment may include an O-Cloud computing platform orchestrated by a Service Management and Orchestration Framework via an 0-2 interface defined by the O-RAN Alliance or comparable technologies.

[0134] The network nodes QQ110 facilitate direct or indirect connection of one or more UEs QQ112 to the core network QQ106 over one or more wireless connections. Example wireless communications over a wireless connection include transmitting and / or receiving wireless signals using electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves, and / or other types of signals suitable for conveying information without the use of wires, cables, or other material conductors. Moreover, in different embodiments, the communication system QQ100 may include any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, UEs, and / or any other components or systems that may facilitate or participate in the communication of data and / or signals whether via wired or wireless connections. The communication system QQ100 may include and / or interface with any type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular, radio network, and / or other similar type of system.

[0135] The UEs QQ112 may be any of a wide variety of communication devices, including wireless devices arranged, configured, and / or operable to communicate wirelessly with the network nodes QQ110 and other communication devices. Similarly, the network nodes QQ108, QQ110 are arranged, capable, configured, and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly (e.g., via other devices of telecommunications network QQ102) with the UEs QQ112 and / or with other network nodes or equipment in the telecommunications network QQ102 to enable and / or provide network access, such as wireless network access, and / or to perform other functions, such as administration in the telecommunications network QQ102. More specifically, UEs QQ112 may send messages, data, and / or other signals to network nodes QQ108, QQ110 or other elements of the telecommunications network QQ102 by transmitting such signals to the relevant device directly without the signals passing through any intervening devices or by transmitting such signals to the relevant device indirectly through an intervening device (or multiple intervening devices) that then transmit the signal to the relevant device. Similarly, network nodes QQ108, QQ110 may send messages, data, and other signals to UEs QQ1122, other network nodes QQ108, QQ110, and other devices in telecommunications network QQ102 directly or indirectly. As one specific example, a core network node 108 may transmit a particular message to a UE QQ112 by transmitting the message to an access network node QQ110 that will then transmit the message to the intended UE QQ112. Similarly, a core network node 108 may receive a particular message from a UE QQ112 by receiving the message from an access network node QQ110 that itself received the message from the UE QQ112.

[0136] In the depicted example, the core network QQ106 connects elements of the access network QQ104 (e.g., one or more of the network nodes QQ110) to one or more host computing systems, such as host QQ116. These connections may be direct or indirect via one or more intermediary networks or devices. In other examples, network nodes may be directly coupled to hosts. The core network QQ106 includes one or more core network nodes (e.g., core network node QQ108) of various types, one or more of which may be generally referred to as network nodes QQ108. Network nodes QQ108 are structured with hardware and software components. Features of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the UEs, access network nodes, and / or hosts, such that the descriptions thereof are generally applicable to the corresponding components of the core network node QQ108. Example core network nodes provide functions of one or more of a Mobile Switching Center (MSC), Mobility Management Entity (MME), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), Authentication Server Function (ALISF), Subscription Identifier De-concealing function (SIDF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Security Edge Protection Proxy (SEPP), Network Exposure Function (NEF), and / or a User Plane Function (UPF).

[0137] The host QQ116 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider other than an operator or provider of the access network QQ104 and / or the telecommunications network QQ102. The host QQ116 may be operated by the service provider or on behalf of the service provider. The host QQ116 may host a variety of applications to provide one or more service. Examples of such applications include live and pre-recorded audio / video content, data collection services such as retrieving and compiling data on various ambient conditions detected by a plurality of UEs, analytics functionality, social media, functions for controlling or otherwise interacting with remote devices, functions for an alarm and surveillance center, or any other such function performed by a server.

[0138] As a whole, the communication system QQ100 of Figure 12 enables connectivity between the UEs, network nodes, and hosts. In that sense, the communication system QQ100 may be configured to operate according to predefined rules or procedures, such as specific standards that include, but are not limited to: Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM); Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS); Long Term Evolution (LTE), and / or other suitable 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G standards, or any applicable future generation standard (e.g., 6G); wireless local area network (WLAN) standards, such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards (WiFi); and / or any other appropriate wireless communication standard, such as the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (Wi-Max), Bluetooth, Z-Wave, Near Field Communication (NFC) ZigBee, Li-Fi, and / or any low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) standards such as LoRa and Sigfox. Moreover, the communication system QQ100 may be configured to support multiple different standards, protocols, or other rule sets, with individual components supporting all of the relevant rule sets or with different components or sub-systems within the communication system QQ100 supporting different standards, protocols, or rule sets.

[0139] As one example, in certain embodiments, access network QQ104 may contain some access network nodes QQ110 that support 3GPP radio access technologies (RAT), such as LTE or NR, while other access network nodes QQ110 support (or the same access network nodes QQ110 additionally support) non-3GPP RATs, such as Wi-Fi or a proprietary RAT. As another example, telecommunications network QQ102 may support multiple generations of related communication standards (e.g., 4G and 5G 3GPP communication standards) and, as a result, may include an access network 104 and / or a core network 106 that supports multiple different standard generations or may include multiple access networks 104 and / or multiple core networks 106 with individual networks 104, 106 supporting different standard generations.

[0140] Telecommunications network QQ102 may support network slicing to provide different logical networks to different devices that are connected to the telecommunications network QQ102. For example, the telecommunications network QQ102 may provide Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) services to some UEs, while providing Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) services to other UEs, and / or Massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC) / Massive loT services to yet further UEs.

[0141] In some examples, one or more of the UEs QQ112 are configured to transmit and / or receive information without direct human interaction. For instance, a UE may be designed to transmit information to the access network QQ104 on a predetermined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to requests from the access network QQ104. Additionally, a UE may be configured for operating in single- or multi-RAT or multi-standard mode. For example, a UE may operate with any one or combination of Wi-Fi, NR (New Radio) and LTE, i.e. being configured for multi-radio dual connectivity (MR-DC), such as E-UTRAN (Evolved-UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network) New Radio - Dual Connectivity (EN-DC).

[0142] In the example, the hub QQ114 communicates with the access network QQ104 to facilitate indirect communication between one or more UEs (e.g., UE QQ112C and / or QQ112D) and network nodes (e.g., network node QQ110B). In some examples, the hub QQ114 may be a controller, router, content source and analytics, or any of the other communication devices described herein regarding UEs. For example, the hub QQ114 may be a broadband router enabling access to the core network QQ106 for the UEs. As another example, the hub QQ114 may be a controller that sends commands or instructions to one or more actuators in the UEs. Commands or instructions may be received from the UEs, network nodes QQ110, or by executable code, script, process, or other instructions in the hub QQ114.

[0143] As another example, the hub QQ114 may be a data collector that acts as temporary storage for UE data and, in some embodiments, may perform analysis or other processing of the data. As another example, the hub QQ114 may be a content source. For example, for a UE that is a VR headset, display, loudspeaker or other media delivery device, the hub QQ114 may retrieve VR assets, video, audio, or other media or data related to sensory information via a network node, which the hub QQ114 then provides to the UE either directly, after performing local processing, and / or after adding additional local content. In still another example, the hub QQ114 acts as a proxy server or orchestrator for the UEs, in particular if one or more of the UEs are low energy loT devices.

[0144] The hub QQ114 may have a constant / persistent or intermittent connection to the network node QQ110B. The hub QQ114 may also allow for a different communication scheme and / or schedule between the hub QQ114 and UEs (e.g., UE QQ112C and / or QQ112D), and between the hub QQ114 and the core network QQ106. In other examples, the hub QQ114 is connected to the core network QQ106 and / or one or more UEs via a wired connection. Moreover, the hub QQ114 may be configured to connect to an M2M service provider over the access network QQ104 and / or to another UE over a direct connection. In some scenarios, UEs may establish a wireless connection with the network nodes QQ110 while still connected via the hub QQ114 via a wired or wireless connection. In some embodiments, the hub QQ114 may be a dedicated hub - that is, a hub whose primary function is to route communications to / from the UEs from / to the network node QQ110B. In other embodiments, the hub QQ114 may be a non-dedicated hub - that is, a device which is capable of operating to route communications between the UEs and network node QQ110B, but which is additionally capable of operating as a communication start and / or end point for certain data channels.

[0145] Figure 13 is another example of a communication system QQ200 according to some embodiments. As used herein, the communication system QQ200 includes multiple access points (APs) QQ210 (with four exemplary APs QQ210A, QQ210B, QQ210C, and QQ210D being depicted) and multiple wireless devices, referred to in the context of communication system QQ200 as stations (STAs) QQ212 (referred to individually as STA QQ212A, STA QQ212B, STA QQ212C, STA QQ212D, and STA QQ212E). STA QQ212A is served by AP QQ210A in a first basic service set (BSS) QQ220A. STA QQ210B and STA QQ210C are served by AP QQ210B in a second BSS, BSS QQ220B. STA QQ212D is served by AP QQ210C in a third BSS, BSS QQ220C. STA QQ212E is served by AP QQ210D in a fourth BSS, BSS QQ220D. Stations QQ212 may be non-AP STAs and correspond to various kinds of wireless devices, for example, user terminals, such as mobile or stationary computing devices like smartphones, laptop computers, desktop computers, tablet computers, gaming devices, head-mounted displays (HMDs) for Augmented Reality (AR) or Virtual Reality (VR), or the like. Further, stations QQ212 could, for example, correspond to other kinds of equipment like smart home devices, printers, multimedia devices, data storage devices, or the like.

[0146] Each of STAs QQ212 may connect through a radio link to one of APs QQ210. For example, depending on location or channel conditions experienced by a given STA QQ212, the STA may select an appropriate AP and BSS for establishing the radio link. The radio link may be based on one or more orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) carriers from a frequency spectrum that is shared on the basis of a contentionbased mechanism, e.g., an unlicensed or license exempt band like 2.4 GHz Industrial, Scientific, and Medical (ISM) band, the 5 GHz band, the 6 GHz band, or the 60 GHz band.

[0147] Each AP QQ210 may provide data connectivity to STAs QQ212 connected to a particular AP QQ210. As illustrated, APs QQ210 may be connected to a data network QQ230. In this way, APs QQ210 may also provide data connectivity between STAs QQ212 and other entities, e.g., to one or more servers, service providers, data sources, data sinks, user terminals, or the like. Accordingly, the radio link established between a given STA QQ212 and its serving AP QQ210 may be used for providing various kinds of services to STA QQ212, e.g., a voice service, a multimedia service, or other data service. Such services may be based on applications that are executed on STA QQ212 and / or on a device linked to STA QQ212. By way of example, Figure 13 illustrates an application service platform QQ232 provided in data network QQ230. The application(s) executed on STA QQ212 and / or on one or more other devices linked to STA QQ212 may use the radio link for data communication with one or more other STA QQ212 and / or the application service platform QQ232, thereby enabling utilization of the corresponding service(s) at STA QQ212.

[0148] Figure 14 shows a wireless device QQ300, which may be configured to operate in communication system QQ100 of Figure 12 or in communication system QQ200 of Figure 13. The wireless device QQ300 may be alternatively referred to as a UE QQ300, like a UE QQ112 within the context of communication system QQ100, or as a station (STA) QQ300 or as a non-access-point station (non-AP STA) QQ300, like a STA QQ212 within the context of the communication system QQ200, in accordance with respective embodiments. As used herein, a wireless device refers to a device capable, configured, arranged and / or operable to communicate wirelessly with network nodes and / or other wireless devices. Examples of a wireless device include, but are not limited to, a smart phone, mobile phone, cell phone, voice over IP (VoIP) phone, wireless local loop phone, desktop computer, personal digital assistant (PDA), wireless cameras, gaming console or device, music storage device, playback appliance, wearable terminal device, wireless endpoint, mobile station, tablet, laptop, laptop-embedded equipment (LEE), laptopmounted equipment (LME), smart device, wireless customer-premise equipment (CPE), vehicle, vehicle-mounted or vehicle embedded / integrated wireless device, and wireless terminal. Other examples include any type of UE identified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), including a narrow band internet of things (NB-loT) UE, a machine type communication (MTC) UE, and / or an enhanced MTC (eMTC) UE.

[0149] A wireless device QQ300 may support device-to-device (D2D) communication, for example by implementing a 3GPP standard for sidelink communication, Dedicated Short- Range Communication (DSRC), vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), or vehicle-to-everything (V2X). In other examples, wireless device QQ300 may not necessarily have a user in the sense of a human user who owns and / or operates the relevant device. Instead, wireless device QQ300 may represent a device that is intended for sale to, or operation by, a human user but which may not, or which may not initially, be associated with a specific human user (e.g., a smart sprinkler controller). Alternatively, wireless device QQ300 may represent a device that is not intended for sale to, or operation by, an end user but which may be associated with or operated for the benefit of a user (e.g., a smart power meter).

[0150] In particular embodiments, wireless device QQ300 includes processing circuitry QQ302 that is operatively coupled via a bus QQ304 to an input / output interface QQ306, a power source QQ308, a memory QQ310, a communication interface QQ312, and / or any other component, or any combination thereof. Certain embodiments of wireless device QQ300 may include all or a subset of the components shown in Figure 14. The level of integration between the components may vary from one embodiment of wireless device QQ300 to another. In general, in a particular embodiment of wireless device QQ300, processing circuitry QQ302, input / output interface QQ306, power source QQ308, memory QQ310, and communication interface QQ312 may, in whole or in part, represent or include physical components common to or shared by one or more of the other elements of wireless device QQ300. Further, certain embodiments of wireless devices QQ300 may contain multiple instances of a component, such as multiple processors, memories, transceivers, transmitters, receivers, etc.

[0151] The processing circuitry QQ302 is configured to process instructions and data and may be configured to implement any sequential state machine operative to execute instructions stored as machine-readable computer programs in the memory QQ310. The processing circuitry QQ302 may be implemented as one or more hardware-implemented state machines (e.g., in discrete logic, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), etc.); programmable logic together with appropriate firmware; one or more stored computer programs, general-purpose processors, such as a microprocessor or digital signal processor (DSP), together with appropriate software; or any combination of the above. For example, the processing circuitry QQ302 may include multiple central processing units (CPUs).

[0152] In the example, the input / output interface QQ306 may be configured to provide an interface or interfaces to an input device, output device, or one or more input and / or output devices. Examples of an output device include a speaker, a sound card, a video card, a display, a monitor, a printer, an actuator, an emitter, a smartcard, another output device, or any combination thereof. An input device may allow a user to capture information into wireless device QQ300. Examples of an input device include a touch- sensitive or presence-sensitive display, a camera (e.g., a digital camera, a digital video camera, a web camera, etc.), a microphone, a sensor, a mouse, a trackball, a directional pad, a trackpad, a scroll wheel, a smartcard, and the like. The presence-sensitive display may include a capacitive or resistive touch sensor to sense input from a user. A sensor may be, for instance, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a tilt sensor, a force sensor, a magnetometer, an optical sensor, a proximity sensor, a biometric sensor, etc., or any combination thereof. An output device may use the same type of interface port as an input device. For example, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port may be used to provide an input device and an output device.

[0153] In some embodiments, the power source QQ308 is structured as a battery or battery pack. Other types of power sources, such as an external power source (e.g., an electricity outlet), photovoltaic device, or power cell, may be used to supply power to circuitry or to charge an associated battery. The power source QQ308 may further include power circuitry for delivering power from the power source QQ308 itself, and / or an external power source, to the various parts of wireless device QQ300 via input circuitry or an interface such as an electrical power cable. Power source QQ308 may perform any formatting, converting, or other modification to make accessible power suitable for the respective components of the wireless device QQ300 to which power is supplied.

[0154] The memory QQ310 may be or be configured to include memory such as random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), magnetic disks, optical disks, hard disks, removable cartridges, flash drives, and so forth. In one example, the memory QQ310 includes one or more programs QQ314, such as an operating system, web browser application, a widget, gadget engine, or other application, and corresponding data QQ316. The memory QQ310 may store, for use by wireless device QQ300, any of a variety of various operating systems or combinations of operating systems.

[0155] The memory QQ310 may be configured to include a number of physical drive units, such as redundant array of independent disks (RAID), flash memory, USB flash drive, external hard disk drive, thumb drive, pen drive, key drive, high-density digital versatile disc (HD-DVD) optical disc drive, internal hard disk drive, Blu-Ray optical disc drive, holographic digital data storage (HDDS) optical disc drive, external mini-dual in-line memory module (DIMM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), external micro-DIMM SDRAM, smartcard memory such as tamper resistant module in the form of a universal integrated circuit card (UICC) including one or more subscriber identity modules (SIMs), such as a USIM and / or ISIM, other memory, or any combination thereof. The UICC may for example be an embedded UICC (eUlCC), integrated UICC (iUICC) or a removable UICC commonly known as ‘SIM card.’ The memory QQ310 may allow wireless device QQ300 to access instructions, programs and the like, stored on transitory or non-transitory memory media, to off-load data, or to upload data. An article of manufacture, such as one utilizing a communication system may be tangibly embodied as or in the memory QQ310, which may be or comprise a device-readable storage medium.

[0156] The processing circuitry QQ302 may be configured to communicate with an access network or other network via or using the communication interface QQ312. The communication interface QQ312 may comprise one or more communication subsystems and may include or be communicatively coupled to an antenna QQ322. The communication interface QQ312 may include one or more transceivers used to communicate, such as by communicating with one or more remote transceivers of another device capable of wireless communication (e.g., another wireless device or a network node in an access network). Each transceiver may include a transmitter QQ318 and / or a receiver QQ320 appropriate to provide network communications (e.g., optical, electrical, frequency allocations, and so forth). Moreover, the transmitter QQ318 and receiver QQ320 may be coupled to one or more antennas (e.g., antenna QQ322) and may share circuit components, software or firmware, or alternatively be implemented separately.

[0157] In the illustrated embodiment, communication functions of the communication interface QQ312 may include cellular communication, Wi-Fi communication (e.g., according to an IEEE 802.11 family standard), LPWAN communication, data communication, voice communication, multimedia communication, short-range communications such as Bluetooth, near-field communication, location-based communication such as the use of the global positioning system (GPS) to determine a location, another like communication function, or any combination thereof.

[0158] Communications may be implemented according to one or more communication protocols and / or standards, such as IEEE 802.11 , Code Division Multiplexing Access (CDMA), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), GSM, LTE, New Radio (NR), UMTS, WiMax, Ethernet, transmission control protocol / internet protocol (TCP / IP), synchronous optical networking (SONET), Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), QUIC, Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), and so forth.

[0159] In particular embodiments, wireless device QQ300 may provide an output of data captured via a sensor, through its communication interface QQ312, via a wireless connection to a network node, and / or in any appropriate manner. Data captured by sensors of a wireless device QQ300 can be communicated through a wireless connection to a network node via another wireless device QQ300. In particular embodiments, such output may be periodic (e.g., once every 15 minutes if it reports the sensed temperature), random (e.g., to even out the load from reporting from several sensors), in response to a triggering event (e.g., when moisture is detected an alert is sent), in response to a request (e.g., a user initiated request), or a continuous stream (e.g., a live video feed of a patient).

[0160] As another example, wireless device QQ300 comprises an actuator, a motor, or a switch, related to a communication interface configured to receive wireless input from a network node via a wireless connection. In response to the received wireless input the states of the actuator, the motor, or the switch may change. For example, wireless device QQ300 may comprise a motor that adjusts the control surfaces or rotors of a drone in flight according to the received input or to a robotic arm performing a medical procedure according to the received input.

[0161] Wireless device QQ300, when in the form of an Internet of Things (loT) device, may be a device for use in one or more application domains, these domains comprising, but not limited to, wearable technology, extended industrial application and healthcare. Non-limiting examples of such an loT device are a device which is or which is embedded in: a connected refrigerator or freezer, a TV, a connected lighting device, an electricity meter, a robot vacuum cleaner, a voice controlled smart speaker, a home security camera, a motion detector, a thermostat, a smoke detector, a door / window sensor, a flood / moisture sensor, an electrical door lock, a connected doorbell, an air conditioning system like a heat pump, an autonomous vehicle, a surveillance system, a weather monitoring device, a vehicle parking monitoring device, an electric vehicle charging station, a smart watch, a fitness tracker, a wearable for tactile augmentation or sensory enhancement, a water sprinkler, an animal- or item-tracking device, a sensor for monitoring a plant or animal, an industrial robot, an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), and any kind of medical device, like a heart rate monitor or a remote controlled surgical robot. In particular embodiments, wireless device QQ300 represents an loT device that comprises circuitry and / or software in dependence of the intended application of the loT device in addition to other components as described in relation to the example embodiment of wireless device QQ300 shown in Figure 14.

[0162] As yet another specific example, in an loT scenario, wireless device QQ300 may represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and / or measurements, and transmits the results of such monitoring and / or measurements to another wireless device and / or a network node. Wireless device QQ300 may in this case be an M2M device, which may in a 3GPP context be referred to as an MTC device. As one particular example, wireless device QQ300 may implement the 3GPP NB-loT standard. In other scenarios, wireless device QQ300 may represent a vehicle, such as a car, a bus, a truck, a ship and an airplane, or other equipment that is capable of monitoring and / or reporting on its operational status or other functions associated with its operation.

[0163] In practice, any number of wireless devices QQ300 may be used together with respect to a single use case. For example, a first wireless device QQ300 might be or be integrated in a drone and provide the drone’s speed information (obtained through a speed sensor) to a second wireless device QQ300 that is a remote controller operating the drone. When a user makes changes from the remote controller, the first wireless device QQ300 may adjust the throttle on the drone (e.g. by controlling an actuator) to increase or decrease the drone’s speed. The first and / or the second wireless device QQ300 can also include more than one of the functionalities described above. For example, wireless device QQ300 might comprise the sensor and the actuator, and handle communication of data for both the speed sensor and the actuators.

[0164] Figure 15 shows a network node QQ400 in accordance with some embodiments. As used herein, network node refers to equipment capable, configured, arranged and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with a UE and / or with other network nodes or equipment, in a telecommunications network. In accordance with respective embodiments, network node QQ400 may be configured to operate in communication system QQ100 of Figure 12, like network nodes QQ108 or QQ110, or in communication system QQ200 of Figure 13, like an AP QQ210 or a station QQ212. Examples of network nodes include, but are not limited to, access points (APs) (e.g., radio access points), base stations (BSs) (e.g., radio base stations, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs) and NR NodeBs (gNBs)), O-RAN nodes or components of an O-RAN node (e.g., 0-Rll, 0-Dll, O- CU).

[0165] Network nodes QQ400 may be categorized based on the amount of coverage they provide (or, stated differently, their transmit power level) and so, depending on the provided amount of coverage, may be referred to as femto base stations, pico base stations, micro base stations, or macro base stations. Network node QQ400 may be a relay node or a relay donor node controlling a relay. Network nodes QQ400 may also include one or more (or all) parts of a distributed radio base station such as centralized digital units, distributed units (e.g., in an O-RAN access node) and / or remote radio units (RRUs), sometimes referred to as Remote Radio Heads (RRHs). Such remote radio units may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an antenna integrated radio. Parts of a distributed radio base station may also be referred to as nodes in a distributed antenna system (DAS).

[0166] Other examples of network nodes QQ400 include multiple transmission point (multi-TRP) 5G access nodes, multi-standard radio (MSR) equipment such as MSR BSs, network controllers such as radio network controllers (RNCs) or base station controllers (BSCs), base transceiver stations (BTSs), transmission points, transmission nodes, multi- cell / multicast coordination entities (MCEs), Operation and Maintenance (O&M) nodes, Operations Support System (OSS) nodes, Self-Organizing Network (SON) nodes, positioning nodes (e.g., Evolved Serving Mobile Location Centers (E-SMLCs)), and / or Minimization of Drive Tests (MDTs).

[0167] In particular embodiments, network node QQ400 includes a processing circuitry QQ402, a memory QQ404, a communication interface QQ406, and a power source QQ408. In general, in a particular embodiment of network node QQ400, processing circuitry QQ402, memory QQ404, communication interface QQ406, and power source QQ408 may, in whole or in part, represent or include physical components common to or shared by one or more of the other elements of network node QQ400.

[0168] The network node QQ400 may be composed of multiple distinct network entities (e.g., a NodeB entity and a RNC entity, or a BTS entity and a BSC entity, etc.), which may each have or utilize their own respective physical components. In certain scenarios in which the network node QQ400 comprises multiple such entities (e.g., BTS and BSC), one or more of the separate entities may be shared among several network nodes. For example, a single RNC may control multiple NodeBs. In such a scenario, each unique NodeB and RNC pair, may in some instances be considered a single separate network node. In some embodiments, the network node QQ400 may be configured to support multiple radio access technologies (RATs). In such embodiments, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate memories QQ404 or portions of memory QQ404 for different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., a same antenna QQ410 may be shared by different RATs). The network node QQ400 may also include multiple sets of the various illustrated components for different wireless technologies integrated into network node QQ400, for example GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, Wi-Fi (e.g., according to an IEEE 802.11 family standard), Zigbee, Z-wave, LoRaWAN, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) or Bluetooth wireless technologies. These wireless technologies may be integrated into the same or different chip or set of chips and other components within network node QQ400.

[0169] The processing circuitry QQ402 may comprise a combination of one or more of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central processing unit, digital signal processor, application-specific integrated circuit, field programmable gate array, or any other suitable computing device, resource, or combination of hardware, software and / or encoded logic operable to provide, either alone or in conjunction with other components, such as the memory QQ404, to provide network node QQ400 functionality.

[0170] In some embodiments, the processing circuitry QQ402 includes a system on a chip (SOC). In some embodiments, the processing circuitry QQ402 includes one or more of radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry QQ412 and baseband processing circuitry QQ414. In some embodiments, the RF transceiver circuitry QQ412 and the baseband processing circuitry QQ414 may be on separate chips (or sets of chips), boards, or units, such as radio units and digital units. In alternative embodiments, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry QQ412 and baseband processing circuitry QQ414 may be on the same chip or set of chips, boards, or units.

[0171] The memory QQ404 may comprise any form of volatile or non-volatile computer- readable memory including, without limitation, persistent storage, solid-state memory, remotely mounted memory, magnetic media, optical media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), mass storage media (for example, a hard disk), removable storage media (for example, a flash drive, a Compact Disk (CD) or a Digital Video Disk (DVD)), and / or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device- readable and / or computer-executable memory devices that store information, data, and / or instructions that may be used by the processing circuitry QQ402. The memory QQ404 may store any suitable instructions, data, or information, including a computer program, software, an application including one or more of logic, rules, code, tables, and / or other instructions capable of being executed by the processing circuitry QQ402 and utilized by the network node QQ400. The memory QQ404 may be used to store any calculations made by the processing circuitry QQ402 and / or any data received via the communication interface QQ406. In some embodiments, the processing circuitry QQ402 and memory QQ404 is integrated.

[0172] The communication interface QQ406 is used in wired or wireless communication of signaling and / or data with UEs, other network nodes, and / or any other network equipment. In the illustrated embodiment, communication interface QQ406 comprises port(s) / terminal(s) QQ416 to send and receive data, for example to and from a network over a wired connection. In particular embodiments, network node QQ300 may be capable of wireless communication and communication interface QQ406 may also include radio front-end circuitry QQ418 that may be coupled to, or in certain embodiments a part of, an antenna QQ410. Particular embodiments of radio front-end circuitry QQ418 include filter(s) QQ420 and amplifier(s) QQ422. The radio front-end circuitry QQ418 may be connected to an antenna QQ410 and processing circuitry QQ402. The radio front-end circuitry may be configured to condition signals communicated between antenna QQ410 and processing circuitry QQ402. The radio front-end circuitry QQ418 may receive digital data that is to be sent out to other network nodes or UEs via a wireless connection. The radio front-end circuitry QQ418 may convert the digital data into a radio signal(s) having the appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters using a combination of filters QQ420 and / or amplifiers QQ422. The radio signal(s) may then be transmitted via the antenna QQ410. Similarly, when receiving data, the antenna QQ410 may collect radio signals which are then converted into digital data by the radio front-end circuitry QQ418. The digital data may be passed to the processing circuitry QQ402. In other embodiments, the communication interface may comprise different components and / or different combinations of components.

[0173] In certain alternative embodiments, network node QQ400 may be capable of wireless communication but does not include separate radio front-end circuitry QQ418, instead, the processing circuitry QQ402 includes radio front-end circuitry and is connected to the antenna QQ410. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or some of the RF transceiver circuitry QQ412 is part of the communication interface QQ406. In still other embodiments, the communication interface QQ406 includes one or more ports or terminals QQ416, the radio front-end circuitry QQ418, and the RF transceiver circuitry QQ412, as part of a radio unit (not shown), and the communication interface QQ406 communicates with the baseband processing circuitry QQ414, which is part of a digital unit (not shown). The antenna QQ410 may include one or more antennas, or antenna arrays, configured to send and / or receive wireless signals. The antenna QQ410 may be coupled to the radio front-end circuitry QQ418 and may be any type of antenna capable of transmitting and receiving data and / or signals wirelessly. In certain embodiments, the antenna QQ410 is separate from the network node QQ400 and connectable to the network node QQ400 through one or more interfaces or ports.

[0174] The antenna QQ410, communication interface QQ406, and / or the processing circuitry QQ402 may be configured to perform some or all of the receiving operations and / or obtaining operations described herein as being performed by the network node QQ400. Any information, data and / or signals may be received from a UE, another network node and / or any other network equipment. Similarly, the antenna QQ410, the communication interface QQ406, and / or the processing circuitry QQ402 may be configured to perform some or all of the transmitting or sending operations described herein as being performed by the network node QQ400. Any information, data and / or signals may be transmitted to a UE, another network node and / or any other network equipment.

[0175] The power source QQ408 provides power to the various components of network node QQ400 in a form suitable for the respective components (e.g., at a voltage and current level needed for each respective component). The power source QQ408 may further comprise, or be coupled to, power management circuitry to supply the components of the network node QQ400 with power for performing the functionality described herein. For example, the network node QQ400 may be connectable to an external power source (e.g., the power grid, an electricity outlet) via an input circuitry or interface such as an electrical cable, whereby the external power source supplies power to power circuitry of the power source QQ408. As a further example, the power source QQ408 may comprise a source of power in the form of a battery or battery pack which is connected to, or integrated in, power circuitry. The battery may provide backup power should the external power source fail.

[0176] Embodiments of the network node QQ400 may include additional components beyond those shown in Figure 15 for providing certain aspects of the network node’s functionality, including any of the functionality described herein and / or any functionality necessary to support the subject matter described herein. For example, the network node QQ400 may include user interface equipment to allow input of information into the network node QQ400 and to allow output of information from the network node QQ400. This may allow a user to perform diagnostic, maintenance, repair, and other administrative functions for the network node QQ400.

[0177] Figure 16 is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment QQ500 in which functions implemented by some embodiments may be virtualized. In the present context, virtualizing means creating virtual versions of apparatuses or devices which may include virtualizing hardware platforms, storage devices and networking resources. As used herein, virtualization can be applied to any device described herein, or components thereof, and relates to an implementation in which at least a portion of the functionality is implemented as one or more virtual components. Some or all of the functions described herein may be implemented as virtual components executed by one or more virtual machines (VMs) implemented in one or more virtual environments QQ500 hosted by one or more of hardware nodes, such as a hardware computing device that operates as an access network node, UE, core network node, or host. Further, in embodiments in which a virtual node does not require radio connectivity (e.g., a core network node or host), then the node may be entirely virtualized. In some embodiments, the virtualization environment QQ500 includes components defined by the O-RAN Alliance, such as an O-Cloud environment orchestrated by a Service Management and Orchestration Framework via an 0-2 interface.

[0178] Applications QQ502 (which may alternatively be called software instances, virtual appliances, network functions, virtual nodes, virtual network functions, etc.) are run in the virtualization environment Q400 to implement some of the features, functions, and / or benefits of some of the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0179] Hardware QQ504 includes processing circuitry, memory that stores software and / or instructions executable by hardware processing circuitry, and / or other hardware devices as described herein, such as a network interface, input / output interface, and so forth. Software may be executed by the processing circuitry to instantiate one or more virtualization layers QQ506 (also referred to as hypervisors or virtual machine monitors (VMMs)), provide VM QQ508A and VM QQ508B (which may be collectively referred to as VMs QQ508), and / or perform any of the functions, features and / or benefits described in relation with some embodiments described herein. The virtualization layer QQ506 may present a virtual operating platform that appears like networking hardware to one or more of the VMs QQ508.

[0180] The VMs QQ508 comprise virtual processing, virtual memory, virtual networking or interface and virtual storage, and may be run by virtualization layer QQ506. Different embodiments of the instance of a virtual appliance QQ502 may be implemented on one or more of VMs QQ508, and the implementations may be made in different ways. Virtualization of the hardware is in some contexts referred to as network function virtualization (NFV). NFV may be used to consolidate many network equipment types onto industry standard high volume server hardware, physical switches, and physical storage, which can be located in data centers, and customer premise equipment.

[0181] In the context of NFV, each of the VMs QQ508 may be a software implementation of a physical machine that runs programs as if they were executing on a physical, nonvirtualized machine. Each of the VMs QQ508, and that part of hardware QQ504 that executes that VM, be it hardware dedicated to that VM and / or hardware shared by that VM with others of the VMs, forms separate virtual network elements. Still in the context of NFV, a virtual network function is responsible for handling specific network functions that run in one or more of the VMs QQ508 on top of the hardware QQ504 and corresponds to an application QQ502.

[0182] Hardware QQ504 may be implemented in a standalone network node with generic or specific components. Hardware QQ504 may implement some functions via virtualization. Alternatively, hardware QQ504 may be part of a larger cluster of hardware (e.g. such as in a data center or CPE) where many hardware nodes work together and are managed via management and orchestration QQ510, which, among others, oversees lifecycle management of applications QQ502. In some embodiments, hardware QQ504 is coupled to one or more radio units that each include one or more transmitters and one or more receivers that may be coupled to one or more antennas. Radio units may communicate directly with other hardware nodes via one or more appropriate network interfaces and may be used in combination with the virtual components to provide a virtual node with radio capabilities, such as a radio access node or a base station. In some embodiments, some signaling can be provided with the use of a control system QQ512 which may alternatively be used for communication between hardware nodes and radio units.

[0183] Although the computing devices described herein (e.g., UEs, network nodes, hosts) may include the illustrated combination of hardware components, other embodiments may comprise computing devices with different combinations of components. It is to be understood that these computing devices may comprise any suitable combination of hardware and / or software needed to perform the tasks, features, functions and methods disclosed herein. Determining, calculating, obtaining or similar operations described herein may be performed by processing circuitry, which may process information by, for example, converting the obtained information into other information, comparing the obtained information or converted information to information stored in the network node, and / or performing one or more operations based on the obtained information or converted information, and as a result of said processing making a determination. Moreover, while components are depicted as single boxes located within a larger box, or nested within multiple boxes, in practice, computing devices may comprise multiple different physical components that make up a single illustrated component, and functionality may be partitioned between separate components. For example, a communication interface may be configured to include any of the components described herein, and / or the functionality of the components may be partitioned between the processing circuitry and the communication interface. In another example, non- computationally intensive functions of any of such components may be implemented in software or firmware and computationally intensive functions may be implemented in hardware.

[0184] In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein may be provided by processing circuitry executing instructions stored on in memory, which in certain embodiments may be a computer program product in the form of a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuitry without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device-readable storage medium, such as in a hard-wired manner. In any of those particular embodiments, whether executing instructions stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium or not, the processing circuitry can be configured to perform the described functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to the processing circuitry alone or to other components of the computing device, but are enjoyed by the computing device as a whole, and / or by end users and a wireless network generally.

[0185] It will be appreciated that the foregoing description and the accompanying drawings represent non-limiting examples of the methods and apparatus taught herein. As such, the apparatus and techniques taught herein are not limited by the foregoing description and accompanying drawings. Instead, the embodiments herein are limited only by the following claims and their legal equivalents.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A method performed by a communication device (110) for handling communication in an access network using subband full duplex, SBFD, communication; the method comprising: transmitting (405) a first packet; and receiving (406) a second packet using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources; wherein at least one out of the first packet and the second packet comprises a preamble portion and a data portion, wherein a first frequency resource utilization for the preamble portion is greater than a second frequency resource utilization for the data portion.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein a guard band is used between frequency resources used for the first packet and the second packet and a bandwidth of the guard band is based on the difference between the received signal power levels for the first packet and the second packet, at one or both out of the communication device (110) and an intended receiver of the first packet.

3. The method according to any of the claims 1-2, comprising transmitting (401) a control frame, wherein the control frame indicates one or more of the following:• a first packet frequency resource utilization for the first packet;• a second packet frequency resource utilization for the second packet;• a specific device to be a receiver of the first packet;• a specific device to be a transmitter of the second packet; and / or• means to align the first and the second packets in time such that OFDM symbol boundaries are aligned for the first and the second packets.

4. The method according to any of the claims 1-3, comprising signaling to, or obtaining from, (402) another communication device, an indication of a difference in resource utilization between the first frequency resource utilization and the second frequency resource utilization.

5. The method according to any of the claims 1-4, wherein the first packet is transmitted towards a second communication device (120) and the second packet is received from the second communication device (120) or from a third communication device (130).

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein frequency resources used by the third communication device for transmitting the second packet do not overlap with an operating bandwidth of the second communication device.

7. The method according to any of the claims 5-6, wherein an operating bandwidth of the third communication device does not overlap with the operating bandwidth of the second communication device.

8. The method according to any of the claims 1-7, wherein the communication device (110) comprises an access point (12).

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising triggering (404) the transmission of the second packet.

10. A method performed by a third communication device (130) for handling communication in an access network; the method comprising transmitting (412) a second packet to a communication device (110), which is operating in a subband full duplex, SBFD, communication mode by transmitting a first packet to a second communication device (120) and receiving the second packet from the third communication device using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources, wherein the transmission of the second packet is using frequency resources that do not overlap with an operating bandwidth of the second communication device.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the frequency resources used by the third communication device (130) to transmit the second packet are configured by the communication device (110).

12. The method according to claim 11, further comprisingreceiving (411) a control frame from the communication device (110), wherein the control frame indicates one or more of the following:• a second packet frequency resource utilization for the second packet;• a specific device to be a transmitter of the second packet; and / or• means to align the first and the second packets in time such that OFDM symbol boundaries are aligned for the first and the second packets13. A computer program comprising instructions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the method according to any of the claims 1-12, as performed by the communication device and the third communication device, respectively.

14. A computer-readable storage medium, having stored thereon a computer program comprising instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the method according to any of the claims 1-12, as performed by the communication device and the third communication device, respectively.

15. A communication device (110) for handling communication in an access network using subband full duplex, SBFD, communication, wherein the communication device is configured to: transmit a first packet; and receive a second packet using non-overlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources; wherein at least one out of the first packet and the second packet comprises a preamble portion and a data portion, wherein a first frequency resource utilization for the preamble portion is greater than a second frequency resource utilization for the data portion.

16. The communication device (110) according to claim 15, wherein a guard band is used between frequency resources used for the first packet and the second packet and a bandwidth of the guard band is based on the difference between the received signal power levels for the first packet and the second packet, at one or both out of the communication device (110) and an intended receiver of the first packet.

17. The communication device (110) according to any of the claims 15-16, wherein the communication device (110) is configured to: perform a transmission of a control frame, wherein the control frame indicates one or more of the following:• a first packet frequency resource utilization for the first packet;• a second packet frequency resource utilization for the second packet;• a specific device to be a receiver of the first packet;• a specific device to be a transmitter of the second packet; and / or• means to align the first and the second packets in time such that OFDM symbol boundaries are aligned for the first and the second packets.

18. The communication device (110) according to any of the claims 15-17, wherein the communication device (110) is configured to signal to, or obtain from, another communication device, an indication of a difference in resource utilization between the first frequency resource utilization and the second frequency resource utilization.

19. The communication device (110) according to any of the claims 15-18, wherein the communication device (110) is configured to transmit the first packet towards a second communication device and to receive the second packet from the second communication device or from a third communication device.

20. The communication device (110) according to claim 19, wherein frequency resources used by the third communication device for transmitting the second packet do not overlap with an operating bandwidth of the second communication device.

21. The communication device (110) according to any of the claims 19-20, wherein an operating bandwidth of the third communication device does not overlap with the operating bandwidth of the second communication device.

22. The communication device (110) according to any of the claims 15-21, wherein the communication device (110) comprises an access point (12).

23. The communication device (110) according to claim 22, wherein the communication device (110) is configured to trigger the transmission of the second packet.

24. A third communication device (130) for handling communication in an access network; wherein the third communication device is configured to: transmit a second packet to a communication device (110), which is operating in a subband full duplex, SBFD, communication mode by transmitting a first packet to a second communication device (120) and receiving the second packet from the third communication device using nonoverlapping frequency resources and at least partially overlapping time resources, wherein the third communication device (130) is configured to use frequency resources that do not overlap with an operating bandwidth of the second communication device for the transmission of the second packet.

25. The third communication device (130) according to claim 24, wherein the frequency resources used by the third communication device to transmit the second packet are configured by the communication device (110).

26. The third communication device (130) according to claim 25, wherein the third communication device is configured to: receive a control frame from the communication device (110), wherein the control frame indicates one or more of the following:• a second packet frequency resource utilization for the second packet;• a specific device to be a transmitter of the second packet; and / or• means to align the first and the second packets in time such that OFDM symbol boundaries are aligned for the first and the second packets.

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