Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

The present application provides a communication method and apparatus for reducing the processing latency of data transmission. In the present application, by defining a symbol-level granularity HARQ process, a single data transmission is constrained in one or more symbols, so that a receiving end can perform decoding more quickly, thereby reducing the processing latency, and improving peak throughput of services. In addition, in the present application, scheduling is performed once for one time unit (for example, a slot), so that a plurality of HARQ processes can be scheduled by means of one piece of control information, thereby reducing control overhead.

Description

A communication method and apparatus

[0001] Cross-reference to related applications

[0002] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202411907055.0, filed on December 20, 2024, entitled "A Communication Method and Apparatus", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0003] This application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and apparatus. Background Technology

[0004] Data transmission reliability is a crucial performance indicator in communication systems. In a communication system, the sending end transmits data to the receiving end, and upon receiving the data, the receiving end sends a Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) feedback message back to the sending end. The sending end determines whether the data transmission was successful based on whether the HARQ feedback message from the receiving end is an acknowledgment (ACK) or a negative acknowledgment (NACK), thereby improving data transmission reliability.

[0005] Network devices can schedule HARQ transmissions and retransmissions using downlink control information (DCI). Although HARQ retransmissions are currently supported at the code block group (CBG) level, retransmitting only erroneous CBGs can save some retransmission resource overhead, but it does not reduce processing latency. Summary of the Invention

[0006] This application provides a communication method and apparatus for reducing data transmission processing latency.

[0007] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a communication method that can be executed by a terminal-side device. Unless otherwise specified, "terminal-side device" in this application can refer to a terminal device, a component within that terminal device (e.g., a processor, chip, or chip system), or a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the terminal device's functions. For example, the method provided in the first aspect includes: receiving first control information, the first control information scheduling N HARQ processes in a time unit, the N HARQ processes occupying one or more symbols in the time unit in the time domain, where N is an integer greater than 0; and performing data transmission based on the N HARQ processes.

[0008] This application defines a symbol-level HARQ process, constraining a single data transmission to one or more symbols. This allows the receiving end to decode faster, reducing processing latency and thus improving peak throughput. Furthermore, this application schedules data once per time unit (e.g., time slot), enabling multiple HARQ processes to be scheduled with a single control message, saving control overhead.

[0009] In one possible design, the N HARQ processes satisfy at least one of the following: the first HARQ process among the N HARQ processes corresponds to a code block; the second HARQ process among the N HARQ processes corresponds to a code block group; and the third HARQ process among the N HARQ processes corresponds to a TB. This design clearly defines the temporal boundaries of CB / CBG / TB (i.e., the temporal boundaries of the HARQ processes), which is beneficial for achieving low latency and high throughput.

[0010] In one possible design, the transport block size corresponding to the first HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the first HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device; alternatively, the transport block size corresponding to the first HARQ process is determined based on the total transport block size of the N HARQ processes and the proportion of time-frequency resources occupied by the first HARQ process in the total time-frequency resources occupied by the N HARQ processes. This design improves the accuracy of data transmission.

[0011] In one possible design, the transport block size corresponding to the second HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the second HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device. This design improves the accuracy of data transmission.

[0012] In one possible design, the transport block size corresponding to the third HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the third HARQ process, the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device, and the length of the cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits. This design improves the accuracy of data transmission.

[0013] In one possible design, the first control information indicates at least one of the following: a new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes, the retransmission count for at least one of the N HARQ processes, and the process number of at least one of the N HARQ processes. This design allows network devices and terminal devices to align data transmission, which helps improve data transmission accuracy.

[0014] In one possible design, the first control information indicates a new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes, including: the first control information includes a first bitmap, which is used to indicate a new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes.

[0015] In one possible design, N HARQ processes each correspond to a code block group, and the first bitmap is a bitmap indicating the new data indication for the code block group. This design can further reduce signaling overhead by multiplexing the new data indication from the CBG.

[0016] In one possible design, N HARQ processes correspond to the same modulation and coding scheme (MCS). This approach can save signaling overhead and make channel fading within the same time unit less noticeable.

[0017] In one possible design, at least two of the N HARQ processes correspond to different MCSs. This design reduces interference between the N HARQ processes.

[0018] In one possible design, the first control information instructs the MCS of N HARQ processes. This design facilitates the alignment of data transmission behaviors between network devices and terminal devices.

[0019] In one possible design, the initial transmissions of N HARQ processes correspond to the same MCS. This approach can save signaling overhead and minimize channel fading within the same time unit.

[0020] In one possible design, data transmission is based on N HARQ processes, including: data transmission across multiple time units based on the N HARQ processes; wherein the N HARQ processes are ordered identically in each of the multiple time units. This approach can reduce implementation complexity.

[0021] In one possible design, the N HARQ processes are ordered identically in each of the multiple time units, including: the N HARQ processes are sorted in ascending order of process number in each of the multiple time units. This approach can reduce implementation complexity.

[0022] In one possible design, data transmission is based on N HARQ processes, including: data transmission is performed on N HARQ processes across multiple time units; wherein the N HARQ processes are not ordered in at least two of the multiple time units.

[0023] In one possible design, the order of the N HARQ processes is different in at least two time units across multiple time units, including: the order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit across multiple time units is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes.

[0024] In one possible design, the order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes, including: in the first time unit, the N HARQ processes are sorted in descending order of the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes, wherein the HARQ processes with the same number of retransmissions are sorted in ascending order of process number.

[0025] The above method reduces the processing latency at the receiving end by prioritizing the HARQ process (i.e., the data being repeated) for retransmission in the earlier time domain resources.

[0026] In one possible design, the order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes. Specifically, in the first time unit, HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold are superimposed on the first time domain resources of the first time unit; HARQ processes with a retransmission count less than or equal to the first threshold occupy time domain resources after the first time domain resources. This method improves resource utilization by superimposing and transmitting retransmitting HARQ processes (i.e., duplicated data).

[0027] In one possible design, HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold are superimposed on a first time-domain resource, including: carrying first data on the first time-domain resource, the first data being obtained by mapping the bit sets of different constellation diagrams of the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold using a layered modulation method.

[0028] In one possible design, HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold are superimposed on a first time-domain resource, including: carrying second data on the first time-domain resource, the second data being obtained by the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold through an XOR operation.

[0029] In one possible design, HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold are superimposed on the first time domain resource, including: HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold occupying the first time domain resource using code division or frequency division.

[0030] In one possible design, among the N HARQ processes, those with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold occupy the first time-domain resources using a frequency-division method. This includes: the N HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold occupying the corresponding frequency-domain resources of the first time-domain resources in an equally distributed manner. This approach can reduce implementation complexity.

[0031] In one possible design, among N HARQ processes, those with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold occupy the first time-domain resources using a frequency-division multiplexing approach. This includes: among the N HARQ processes, those with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold occupying the frequency-domain resources corresponding to the first time-domain resources according to the amount of data transmitted. This method, by allocating more resources to HARQ processes with larger data volumes, can improve the transmission speed of those HARQ processes, thereby helping to reduce the processing latency at the receiving end.

[0032] In one possible design, among the N HARQ processes, those with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold occupy the first time-domain resources using a frequency-division multiplexing approach. This includes: HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold occupying the frequency-domain resources corresponding to the first time-domain resources according to their retransmission count. This approach, by allocating more resources to HARQ processes with more retransmissions, helps reduce the processing latency at the receiver.

[0033] In one possible design, the time unit is a time slot, a subframe, a frame, a half-frame, a symbol group, a time slot group, a subframe group, a frame group, or a half-frame group.

[0034] Secondly, embodiments of this application provide a communication method that can be executed by a network-side device. Unless otherwise specified, "network-side device" in this application can refer to a network device, a component within that network device (e.g., a processor, chip, or chip system), or a logic module or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the network device. For example, the method provided in the second aspect includes: sending first control information, which schedules N HARQ processes in a time unit, where each of the N HARQ processes occupies one or more symbols in the time unit in the time domain, and N is an integer greater than 0; and performing data transmission based on the N HARQ processes.

[0035] This application defines a symbol-level HARQ process, constraining a single data transmission to one or more symbols. This allows the receiving end to decode faster, reducing processing latency and thus improving peak throughput. Furthermore, this application schedules data once per time unit (e.g., time slot), enabling multiple HARQ processes to be scheduled with a single control message, saving control overhead.

[0036] In one possible design, the N HARQ processes satisfy at least one of the following: the first HARQ process among the N HARQ processes corresponds to a code block; the second HARQ process among the N HARQ processes corresponds to a code block group; and the third HARQ process among the N HARQ processes corresponds to a TB. This design clearly defines the temporal boundaries of CB / CBG / TB (i.e., the temporal boundaries of the HARQ processes), which is beneficial for achieving low latency and high throughput.

[0037] In one possible design, the transport block size corresponding to the first HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the first HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device; alternatively, the transport block size corresponding to the first HARQ process is determined based on the total transport block size of the N HARQ processes and the proportion of time-frequency resources occupied by the first HARQ process in the total time-frequency resources occupied by the N HARQ processes. This design improves the accuracy of data transmission.

[0038] In one possible design, the transport block size corresponding to the second HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the second HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device. This design improves the accuracy of data transmission.

[0039] In one possible design, the transport block size corresponding to the third HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the third HARQ process, the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device, and the length of the cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits. This design improves the accuracy of data transmission.

[0040] In one possible design, the first control information indicates at least one of the following: a new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes, the retransmission count for at least one of the N HARQ processes, and the process number of at least one of the N HARQ processes. This design allows network devices and terminal devices to align data transmission, which helps improve data transmission accuracy.

[0041] In one possible design, the first control information indicates a new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes, including: the first control information includes a first bitmap, which is used to indicate a new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes.

[0042] In one possible design, N HARQ processes each correspond to a code block group, and the first bitmap is a bitmap indicating the new data indication for the code block group. This design can further reduce signaling overhead by multiplexing the new data indication from the CBG.

[0043] In one possible design, N HARQ processes correspond to the same modulation and coding scheme (MCS). This approach can save signaling overhead and make channel fading within the same time unit less noticeable.

[0044] In one possible design, at least two of the N HARQ processes correspond to different MCSs. This design reduces interference between the N HARQ processes.

[0045] In one possible design, the first control information instructs the MCS of N HARQ processes. This design facilitates the alignment of data transmission behaviors between network devices and terminal devices.

[0046] In one possible design, the initial transmissions of N HARQ processes correspond to the same MCS. This approach can save signaling overhead and minimize channel fading within the same time unit.

[0047] In one possible design, data transmission is based on N HARQ processes, including: data transmission across multiple time units based on the N HARQ processes; wherein the N HARQ processes are ordered identically in each of the multiple time units. This approach can reduce implementation complexity.

[0048] In one possible design, the N HARQ processes are ordered identically in each of the multiple time units, including: the N HARQ processes are sorted in ascending order of process number in each of the multiple time units. This approach can reduce implementation complexity.

[0049] In one possible design, data transmission is based on N HARQ processes, including: data transmission is performed on N HARQ processes across multiple time units; wherein the N HARQ processes are not ordered in at least two of the multiple time units.

[0050] In one possible design, the order of the N HARQ processes is different in at least two time units across multiple time units, including: the order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit across multiple time units is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes.

[0051] In one possible design, the order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes, including: in the first time unit, the N HARQ processes are sorted in descending order of the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes, wherein the HARQ processes with the same number of retransmissions are sorted in ascending order of process number.

[0052] The above method reduces the processing latency at the receiving end by prioritizing the HARQ process (i.e., the data being repeated) for retransmission in the earlier time domain resources.

[0053] In one possible design, the order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes. Specifically, in the first time unit, HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold are superimposed on the first time domain resources of the first time unit; HARQ processes with a retransmission count less than or equal to the first threshold occupy time domain resources after the first time domain resources. This method improves resource utilization by superimposing and transmitting retransmitting HARQ processes (i.e., duplicated data).

[0054] In one possible design, HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold are superimposed on a first time-domain resource, including: carrying first data on the first time-domain resource, the first data being obtained by mapping the bit sets of different constellation diagrams of the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold using a layered modulation method.

[0055] In one possible design, HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold are superimposed on a first time-domain resource, including: carrying second data on the first time-domain resource, the second data being obtained by the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold through an XOR operation.

[0056] In one possible design, HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold are superimposed on the first time domain resource, including: HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold occupying the first time domain resource using code division or frequency division.

[0057] In one possible design, among the N HARQ processes, those with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold occupy the first time-domain resources using a frequency-division method. This includes: the N HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold occupying the corresponding frequency-domain resources of the first time-domain resources in an equally distributed manner. This approach can reduce implementation complexity.

[0058] In one possible design, among N HARQ processes, the number of retransmissions is greater than or equal to a first threshold value, and the first time domain resources are occupied by frequency division. This includes: the frequency domain resources corresponding to the first time domain resources are occupied by the N HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold value according to the amount of data transmitted.

[0059] The above method, by allocating more resources to the HARQ process with a larger data volume, can improve the transmission speed of the HARQ process, thereby helping to reduce the processing latency at the receiving end.

[0060] In one possible design, among N HARQ processes, the number of retransmissions is greater than or equal to a first threshold value, and the first time domain resources are occupied by frequency division. This includes: among N HARQ processes, the number of retransmissions is greater than or equal to the first threshold value, and the frequency domain resources corresponding to the first time domain resources are occupied according to the number of retransmissions.

[0061] The above approach, by allocating more resources to the HARQ process, which has a higher retransmission frequency, helps reduce the processing latency at the receiving end.

[0062] In one possible design, the time unit is a time slot, a subframe, a frame, a half-frame, a symbol group, a time slot group, a subframe group, a frame group, or a half-frame group.

[0063] Thirdly, this application provides a communication device that performs the functions described in the first aspect. For example, the communication device includes modules, units, or means corresponding to the operations described in the first aspect. These functions, units, or means can be implemented by software, hardware, or by hardware executing corresponding software.

[0064] In one possible design, the communication device includes a processing unit and a communication unit, wherein the communication unit can be used to transmit and receive signals to enable communication between the communication device and other devices; the processing unit can be used to perform some internal operations of the communication device. The functions performed by the processing unit and the communication unit can correspond to the operations involved in the first aspect above.

[0065] In one possible design, the communication device includes a processor that can be coupled to a memory. The memory can store necessary computer programs or instructions for implementing the functions described in the first aspect above. The processor can execute the computer programs or instructions stored in the memory, causing the communication device to implement the methods in any possible design or implementation of the first aspect above, when the computer programs or instructions are executed.

[0066] In one possible design, the communication device includes a processor and a memory, the memory of which can store the necessary computer programs or instructions for implementing the functions described in the first aspect above. The processor can execute the computer programs or instructions stored in the memory, and when the computer programs or instructions are executed, cause the communication device to implement the methods in any possible design or implementation of the first aspect above.

[0067] In one possible design, the communication device includes a processor and an interface circuit, wherein the processor is configured to communicate with other devices via the interface circuit and execute the methods in any possible design or implementation of the first aspect described above.

[0068] Understandably, in the third aspect described above, the processor can be implemented in hardware or software. When implemented in hardware, the processor can be a logic circuit, integrated circuit, etc.; when implemented in software, the processor can be a general-purpose processor that reads software code stored in memory. Furthermore, there can be one or more processors, and one or more memories. The memory can be integrated with the processor or separated from it. In specific implementations, the memory can be integrated with the processor on the same chip or disposed on different chips. This application does not limit the type of memory or the arrangement of the memory and processor.

[0069] Fourthly, this application provides a communication device that performs the functions described in the second aspect above. For example, the communication device includes modules, units, or means for performing the operations described in the second aspect above. These functions, units, or means can be implemented by software, hardware, or hardware executing corresponding software.

[0070] In one possible design, the communication device includes a processing unit and a communication unit, wherein the communication unit can be used to transmit and receive signals to enable communication between the communication device and other devices; the processing unit can be used to perform some internal operations of the communication device. The functions performed by the processing unit and the communication unit can correspond to the operations involved in the second aspect above.

[0071] In one possible design, the communication device includes a processor that can be coupled to a memory. The memory can store computer programs or instructions necessary to implement the functions described in the second aspect above. The processor can execute the computer programs or instructions stored in the memory, causing the communication device to implement the methods in any possible design or implementation of the second aspect above, when the computer programs or instructions are executed.

[0072] In one possible design, the communication device includes a processor and a memory, the memory of which can store the necessary computer programs or instructions for implementing the functions described in the second aspect above. The processor can execute the computer programs or instructions stored in the memory, and when the computer programs or instructions are executed, cause the communication device to implement the methods in any possible design or implementation of the second aspect above.

[0073] In one possible design, the communication device includes a processor and an interface circuit, wherein the processor is configured to communicate with other devices via the interface circuit and execute the methods in any possible design or implementation of the second aspect described above.

[0074] Understandably, in the fourth aspect mentioned above, the processor can be implemented in hardware or software. When implemented in hardware, the processor can be a logic circuit, integrated circuit, etc.; when implemented in software, the processor can be a general-purpose processor that reads software code stored in memory. Furthermore, there can be one or more processors, and one or more memories. The memory can be integrated with the processor, or the memory and processor can be separate. In specific implementations, the memory can be integrated with the processor on the same chip, or it can be set on different chips. This application does not limit the type of memory or the arrangement of the memory and processor.

[0075] Fifthly, this application provides a communication system, which may include a first communication device and a second communication device; wherein the first communication device is used to perform the method described in the first aspect, and the second communication device is used to perform the method described in the second aspect.

[0076] In a sixth aspect, this application provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program (or computer-readable instructions) in which, when a computer reads and executes some or all of the computer-readable instructions, the method in any of the possible designs in the first or second aspect described above is executed.

[0077] For example, a computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access. This includes, but is not limited to, non-transient computer-readable media, random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), CD-ROM or other optical disc storage, magnetic disk storage media, or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium capable of carrying or storing desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and accessible by a computer.

[0078] In a seventh aspect, this application provides a computer program product that, when a computer reads and executes the computer program in the computer program product, causes the method in any of the possible designs in the first or second aspect to be executed.

[0079] Eighthly, this application provides a chip (or chip system) including a processor coupled to a memory storing a computer program; the processor is configured to invoke part or all of the computer program in the memory, such that the method in any of the possible designs in the first or second aspect described above is executed. Attached Figure Description

[0080] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided in this application;

[0081] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a mobile communication chip system provided in this application;

[0082] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of an encoding processing unit chip provided in this application;

[0083] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a decoding processing unit chip provided in this application;

[0084] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of a CBG provided in this application;

[0085] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the transmission of a HARQ process provided in this application;

[0086] Figure 7 is a flowchart illustrating a communication method provided in this application;

[0087] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of HARQ process scheduling provided in this application;

[0088] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of HARQ process scheduling provided in this application;

[0089] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of HARQ process scheduling provided in this application;

[0090] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of HARQ process scheduling provided in this application;

[0091] Figure 12 is a schematic diagram of HARQ process transmission provided in this application;

[0092] Figure 13 is a schematic diagram of HARQ process transmission provided in this application;

[0093] Figure 14 is a schematic diagram of HARQ process transmission provided in this application;

[0094] Figure 15 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in this application;

[0095] Figure 16 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in this application. Detailed Implementation

[0096] The technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. This application will focus on various aspects, embodiments, or features of a system that may include multiple devices, components, modules, etc. It should be understood and appreciated that each system may include additional devices, components, modules, etc., and / or may not include all the devices, components, modules, etc. discussed in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Furthermore, combinations of these solutions may also be used.

[0097] In the embodiments of this application, words such as "exemplarily" and "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations, or descriptions. Any embodiment or design scheme described as an "example" in this application should not be construed as being more preferred or advantageous than other embodiments or design schemes. Specifically, the use of the term "example" is intended to present concepts in a concrete manner. In the embodiments of this application, "of," "corresponding, relevant," and "corresponding" may sometimes be used interchangeably, and it should be noted that their intended meanings are consistent unless their distinction is emphasized.

[0098] The technical solutions of this application can be applied to various wireless communication systems, such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), short-range wireless communication systems (such as sidelink, wireless fidelity, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, etc.), wired networks, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication systems, device-to-device (D2D) communication systems, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication systems, 4th generation (4G) mobile communication systems (such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems), LTE Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) systems, LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD) systems, 5G mobile communication systems (such as New Radio (NR) systems), Future Communications systems, or other similar communication systems, without limitation. This application describes the communication system shown in Figure 1 as an example. When applying the technical solution of this application to other communication systems, the devices, components, modules, etc. in the embodiment can be replaced with corresponding devices, components, modules in other communication systems without limitation.

[0099] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of the communication system applied in the embodiments of this application. As shown in Figure 1, the communication system includes an access network 100. Optionally, the communication system may also include a core network 200 and an Internet 300. The access network 100 may include at least one network device, such as 110a and 110b in Figure 1, and may also include at least one terminal device, such as 120a-120j in Figure 1. Specifically, 110a is a base station, 110b is a micro-station, 120a, 120e, 120f, and 120j are mobile phones, 120b is a car, 120c is a fuel dispenser, 120d is a home access point (HAP) deployed indoors or outdoors, 120g is a laptop computer, 120h is a printer, and 120i is a drone. The same terminal device or network device can provide different functions in different application scenarios. For example, the mobile phones in Figure 1 are 120a, 120e, 120f and 120j. Mobile phone 120a can access base station 110a, connect to car 120b, communicate directly with mobile phone 120e and access HAP. Car 120b can access HAP and communicate directly with mobile phone 120a. Mobile phone 120f can access micro-station 110b, connect to laptop 120g and printer 120h. Mobile phone 120j can control drone 120i.

[0100] A communication system includes communication equipment, which can communicate wirelessly with each other using air interface resources. The communication equipment may include network equipment and terminal equipment. Air interface resources may include at least one of time-domain resources, frequency-domain resources, code resources, and spatial resources.

[0101] (1) Network equipment

[0102] A network device is a network-side device with wireless transceiver capabilities. A network device can be a device in a radio access network (RAN) that provides wireless communication capabilities to terminal devices; this is called RAN equipment. The RAN can be an access network within the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), such as 4G, 5G, or future networks. The RAN can also be an open RAN (O-RAN or ORAN), a cloud radio access network (CRAN), or a communication network combining two or more of these.

[0103] RAN equipment can also be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next-generation NodeB (gNB) in a 5G mobile communication system, a base station in a future mobile communication system, or an access node in a WiFi system, etc.

[0104] RAN equipment can also be modules or units that perform some of the functions of a base station. For example, it can be a central unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), or a radio unit (RU). The CU performs the functions of the radio resource control (RRC) and PDCP protocols of the base station, and can also perform the functions of the service data adaptation protocol (SDAP). The CU can be further divided into a CU control plane (CP) (i.e., CU-CP) and a CU user plane (UP) (i.e., CU-UP). The DU performs the functions of the RLC and MA layers of the base station, and can also perform some or all of the physical layer functions. For specific descriptions of the above protocol layers, please refer to the relevant 3GPP technical specifications. CU and DU can be set up separately, or they can be included in the same network element, such as in a baseband unit (BBU). The RU can be included in radio frequency equipment or radio frequency units, such as in a remote radio unit (RRU), an active antenna unit (AAU), or a remote radio head (RRH). In different systems, CU, DU, or RU may have different names, but those skilled in the art will understand their meaning. For example, in an ORAN system, CU can also be called O-CU (open CU), DU can also be called O-DU, and RU can also be called O-RU. Any of the CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU, and RU units in this application can be implemented through software modules, hardware modules, or a combination of software and hardware modules. The RA device can be a macro base station (as shown in Figure 1, 110a), a micro base station or an indoor station (as shown in Figure 1, 110b), or a relay node or donor node, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology or specific device form used in the network equipment.

[0105] In the embodiments of this application, the functions of the network device can be executed by modules (such as chips) within the network device, or by a control subsystem that includes the functions of the network device. This control subsystem, which includes the functions of the network device, can be a control center in the aforementioned application scenarios such as smart grids, industrial control, intelligent transportation, and smart cities.

[0106] (2) Terminal equipment

[0107] A terminal device is a user-side device with wireless transceiver capabilities. Terminal devices can also be called terminals, user equipment (UE), mobile stations, mobile terminals, etc. Terminal devices can be widely used in various scenarios, such as device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), the Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality, augmented reality, industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grids, smart furniture, smart offices, smart wearables, intelligent transportation, and smart cities. Terminal devices can be mobile phones, tablets, computers with wireless transceiver capabilities, wearable devices, vehicles, drones, helicopters, airplanes, ships, robots, robotic arms, smart home devices, etc. In the embodiments of this application, the device used to implement the functions of the terminal device can be the terminal device itself, or it can be a device that supports the terminal device in implementing that function, such as a chip system or a combination of devices or components that can implement the functions of the terminal device. This device can be installed in the terminal device. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology or specific device form used in the terminal device.

[0108] In this embodiment of the application, the functions of the terminal device can also be performed by modules (such as chips or modems) in the terminal device, or by a device that includes the functions of the terminal device.

[0109] Network devices and terminal devices can be fixed in location or mobile. They can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; they can also be deployed on water; and they can also be deployed in the air on airplanes, balloons, and artificial satellites. The embodiments of this application do not limit the application scenarios of the network devices and terminal devices.

[0110] The roles of network devices and terminal devices can be relative. For example, the helicopter or drone 120i in Figure 1 can be configured as a mobile network device. For terminal devices 120j that access the wireless access network 100 via 120i, terminal device 120i is a network device; however, for network device 110a, 120i is a terminal device. That is, 110a and 120i communicate via a wireless air interface protocol. Of course, 110a and 120i can also communicate via a network device-to-network device interface protocol. In this case, relative to 110a, 120i is also a network device. Therefore, both network devices and terminal devices can be collectively referred to as communication devices. 110a and 110b in Figure 1 can be called communication devices with network device functions, and 120a-120j in Figure 1 can be called communication devices with terminal device functions.

[0111] Network devices and terminal devices, network devices and network devices, and terminal devices can communicate through licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or both simultaneously, without limitation.

[0112] The network architecture and business scenarios described in this application are intended to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of this application. As those skilled in the art will know, with the evolution of network architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of this application are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0113] The technical solutions provided in this application can be applied to channel coding / decoding between communication devices. Channel coding / decoding between communication devices can include: channel coding / decoding between network devices and terminals, channel coding / decoding between network devices, and channel coding / decoding between terminals. In this application, the term "channel coding / decoding" can also be simply referred to as "coding," and the term "coding" can also be described as "channel encoding / decoding," "network coding," "external code," or "source-channel joint encoding / decoding." The term "coding structure" can also be simply referred to as "coding," "code type," or "code design," and the term "coding structure" can also be described as "concatenated code," "layered code," "coupled code," "external code," "sliding window code," "product code," or "ladder code."

[0114] This application relates to a mobile communication chip system, which is divided into downlink processing and uplink processing. For example, as shown in Figure 2, downlink processing encodes, modulates, maps, precodes, frames, and performs inverse fast fourier transform (IFFT) on layer 2 data, and finally processes it into an over-the-air signal through an intermediate frequency / radio frequency (IF / RF) module. Uplink processing obtains baseband data from the received signal through IF processing, and completes physical layer signal processing through fast fourier transform (FFT), deframing, equalization, de-mapping, demodulation, and decoding. This application can be applied to the encoding and decoding modules in a mobile communication chip system architecture and is an important component of the baseband processing system. For example, in downlink transmission, embodiments of this application can be applied to the encoding module of a network device and the decoding module of a terminal device. In uplink transmission, embodiments of this application can be applied to the encoding module of a terminal device and the decoding module of a network device.

[0115] Optionally, the encoding module can be an encoding processing unit chip. For example, as shown in Figure 3, the encoding processing unit chip may include a computing unit, a control unit, and a storage unit. The computing unit can complete the encoding process through the following workflow: transport block (TB) cyclic redundancy check (CRC) calculation, code block segmentation, code block (CB) CRC calculation, encoding, and code block concatenation. Optionally, after the TB CRC check calculation, base graph (BG) selection can be performed.

[0116] Optionally, the decoding module can be a decoding processing unit chip. For example, as shown in Figure 4, the decoding processing unit chip may include a computing unit, a control unit, and a storage unit. The computing unit can complete the decoding process through the following steps: rate matching, HARQ merging, decoding, and CB / TB CRC check.

[0117] For example, the above encoding can be low-density parity check (LDPC) encoding, Polar encoding, etc., and the decoding can be LDPC decoding, Polar decoding, etc. Optionally, since LDPC encoding and decoding have high throughput requirements, they can be implemented in a system-on-chip (SOC) using a hardware accelerator (HAC).

[0118] The following is an explanation of the relevant terms used in the embodiments of this application. Unless otherwise specified, these explanations are provided to support the meaning of the relevant terms and to make the embodiments of this application easier to understand, and should not be regarded as a strict limitation on the relevant terms within the scope of protection claimed by this application.

[0119] (1) CB and code block group (CBG)

[0120] A CB (Code Block Component) is a coding unit that can be determined as follows: It is segmented by comparing the transport block size (TBS) with a specified maximum code block size. If the TBS exceeds the maximum code block size, multiple CBs are determined from the TBS according to the maximum code block size. All CBs except the last one are equal to the maximum code block size, while the last CB is less than or equal to the maximum code block size. If the TBS is less than or equal to the maximum code block size, the TBS is not segmented.

[0121] A CBG consists of one or more CBs. A TB contains C CBs. For a TB containing C CBs, the actual number of CBGs transmitted is M = min(N, C), where N is the preset number of CBGs. The CBs contained in each CBG can satisfy the following: When the number of CBs C is less than or equal to the preset number of CBGs N, then the actual number of CBGs contained in a TB is equal to C, and each CBG contains only one code block. When the number of CBs C is greater than the preset number of CBGs N, then the actual number of CBGs contained in a TB is equal to M, where if C is an integer multiple of M, then each CBG contains C / M CBs. If C is not an integer multiple of M, then each CBG in the first M1 CBGs contains one more code block than each CBG in the remaining M-M1 CBGs, where M1 = C mod M.

[0122] When transmitting data to the receiver, the sender can perform CRC verification on the data block (TB), then divide the CRC-verified TB into multiple data blocks (CBs), and perform CRC verification on each CB block. During data transmission, the sender divides the multiple CB blocks into several CBGs for scheduling and transmission, as shown in Figure 5. After receiving multiple CBGs from a TB, the receiver performs CRC verification on each received CB. The receiver can then provide a positive acknowledgment (ACK) or negative acknowledgment (NACK) message according to the CBG unit. That is, if all CBs in a CBG are decoded correctly, the CBG provides an ACK message; otherwise, it provides a NACK message. ACK indicates that the received data has been received without error and does not need to be retransmitted. NACK indicates that the data has been received but contains errors, and the sender needs to retransmit the CBG. The sender receives ACK / NACK messages and retransmits CBGs that respond with NACK, but does not retransmit CBGs that respond with ACK.

[0123] (2) Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ)

[0124] In wireless communication systems, HARQ technology has been introduced to improve the reliability of data transmission. Communication devices can transmit data through the HARQ process.

[0125] Taking downstream data transmission as an example, in HARQ technology, after a network device sends data through a HARQ process, it pauses to wait for an acknowledgment (ACK) or a negative acknowledgment (NACK). While one HARQ process is waiting for ACK / NACK information, the network device uses another HARQ process to continue sending data. Multiple HARQ processes can be used to achieve parallel transmission of multiple data streams.

[0126] Specifically, regarding data transmission over a single HARQ process, as shown in Figure 6, the network device sends data through this HARQ process, and the terminal device replies with ACK / NACK information to the network device to confirm the reception status based on the received demodulation result. If the terminal device cannot demodulate and receive data normally, it replies with NACK information to the network device. When the network device receives NACK, it uses the same HARQ process for retransmission in the next transmission cycle. When the terminal device successfully demodulates and receives data, it sends ACK information to the network device. After receiving the ACK information, the network device releases the HARQ process, allowing it to transmit the next data.

[0127] (3) New Data Indicator (NDI)

[0128] The presence or absence of a reversed value in the new data indicator determines whether a data block is a new transfer or a retransmission in the HARQ process. Specifically, if the current value of the new data indicator is reversed (or changed) compared to the previous value, the data block is a new transfer in the HARQ process; if the current value is not reversed (or unchanged) compared to the previous value, the data block is a retransmission in the HARQ process. "Reversal" can mean that the previous value of the new data indicator was 0 and the current value is 1, or vice versa. The new data indicator can also be called a new transfer indicator.

[0129] The technical background of this application is described below.

[0130] As explained in the previous terminology introduction, HARQ retransmission is currently supported at the code block group (CBG) granularity. However, retransmitting a CBG still consumes the time domain resources of one HARQ process. Currently, one HARQ process can be scheduled for each transport block (TB), meaning network devices can schedule TB-level HARQ processes, with the smallest time granularity of each HARQ process being a slot. Therefore, one retransmitted CBG occupies one slot. While retransmitting only erroneous CBGs can save on retransmission resource overhead to some extent, it does not reduce processing latency.

[0131] Based on this, embodiments of this application provide a communication method and apparatus that, by defining a symbol-level HARQ process, constrains a single data transmission to one or more symbols, allowing the receiving end to decode faster and thereby improve the peak throughput of the service.

[0132] Unless otherwise specified, the term "terminal-side device" in this application may refer to a terminal device, a component of the terminal device (e.g., a processor, chip, or chip system), or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the terminal device; the term "network-side device" in this application may refer to a network device, a component of the network device (e.g., a processor, chip, or chip system), or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the network device.

[0133] The methods provided in the embodiments of this application will be described in detail below with reference to specific examples.

[0134] In this application, the initial report can also be referred to as the new report.

[0135] Figure 7 is a flowchart illustrating the method provided in this embodiment. As shown in Figure 7, the method may include the following steps:

[0136] S701, the second communication device sends the first control information. Correspondingly, the first communication device receives the first control information.

[0137] For example, the first control information can be DCI.

[0138] For example, the first communication device can be a terminal-side device, and the second communication device can be a network-side device.

[0139] The first control information schedules N HARQ processes in a time unit. The N HARQ processes occupy one or more symbols in the time unit in the time domain, where N is an integer greater than 0, as shown in Figure 8.

[0140] In one possible implementation, N=1, and the first control information schedules one HARQ process on a time unit, which can occupy part of the time domain resources on the time unit.

[0141] In one possible implementation, N > 1, the first control information schedules multiple HARQ processes on a time unit.

[0142] The aforementioned time units can be time slots, subframes, frames, half-frames, symbols, time slot groups, subframe groups, frame groups, half-frame groups, symbol groups, etc. A time slot group includes one or more time slots, a subframe group includes one or more subframes, a frame group includes one or more frames, a half-frame group includes one or more half-frames, and a symbol group includes one or more symbols. A time slot may include multiple symbols; for example, one time slot may include 14 symbols.

[0143] Optionally, the N HARQ processes can be time-divided, that is, the first control information schedules the N HARQ processes in a time unit.

[0144] In this application, the N HARQ processes may occupy the same amount of time-domain resources, or at least two of the N HARQ processes may occupy different amounts of time-domain resources.

[0145] The following example illustrates this concept, using a time slot comprising 14 symbols as the time unit.

[0146] Example 1: N HARQ processes occupy the same amount of time-domain resources.

[0147] Example 1-1: N HARQ processes each occupy one symbol in the time domain.

[0148] In this example, the first control information can schedule 14 HARQ processes on a time slot, where one HARQ process occupies one symbol, as shown in Figure 9. The HARQ process number can be mapped one-to-one with the symbol index. This example can also be described as defining one HARQ process for each symbol in the time slot.

[0149] Example 1-2: N HARQ processes each occupy a symbol group in the time domain.

[0150] Taking a symbol group consisting of 2 symbols as an example, the first control information can schedule 7 HARQ processes on one time slot, where one HARQ process occupies 2 symbols, as shown in Figure 10. This example can also be described as defining one HARQ process for every 2 symbols in the time slot.

[0151] Example 2: At least two of the N HARQ processes occupy different amounts of time-domain resources.

[0152] For example, the first control information can schedule 5 HARQ processes (HARQ processes 1 to 5) on a time slot. HARQ process 1 and HARQ process 2 each occupy 2 symbols, HARQ process 3 occupies 4 symbols, and HARQ process 4 and HARQ process 5 each occupy 3 symbols, as shown in Figure 11.

[0153] Optionally, in this application, a HARQ process can schedule a CB, or a CBG, or a TB.

[0154] Based on this, N HARQ processes satisfy at least one of the following:

[0155] The first HARQ process in N HARQ processes corresponds to one CB, or it can be understood as the first HARQ process scheduling one CB;

[0156] The second HARQ process in N HARQ processes corresponds to one CBG, or it can be understood as the second HARQ process scheduling one CBG;

[0157] The third HARQ process in N HARQ processes corresponds to one TB, or it can be understood as the third HARQ process scheduling one TB.

[0158] The above describes the scheduling granularity of HARQ processes. The following describes how to determine the TBS corresponding to HARQ processes with different scheduling granularities.

[0159] (1) The scheduling granularity is CB, that is, a HARQ process corresponds to a CB.

[0160] In one implementation, if a HARQ process corresponds to a CB, the TBS corresponding to the HARQ process (e.g., the first HARQ process) can be determined as follows: based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the first communication device.

[0161] For example, taking the first HARQ process as an example, the TBS of the first HARQ process can be determined based on the number of information bits of the first HARQ process. In one exemplary description, as can be seen from the above terminology introduction (1), a TB may be divided into multiple CBs. Currently, if a TB has multiple CBs, then a CB CRC is added to each CB, and a TB CRC is added to the entire TB. However, in this application, since the HARQ process corresponds to one CB, the data transmitted by the HARQ process does not need to be divided for the CB. Therefore, the CB CRC and TB CRC can be implemented through a single CRC. It can also be understood that a CB CRC is added for the CBs transmitted by the HARQ process, and a TB CRC is not needed for the entire TB. That is, the influence of TB CRC can be ignored when calculating the TBS of the first HARQ process.

[0162] The number of information bits in the first HARQ process can be determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the first HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the first communication device. For example, the number of information bits N1 in the first HARQ process... info It can satisfy the following formula, or in other words, it can be determined according to the following formula: N1 info =N1 RE ·R1·Q1 m v1;

[0163] Among them, N1 RER1 represents the number of REs available for the first HARQ process. The number of REs can be determined based on the number of RBs allocated to the first HARQ process in the frequency domain and the number of symbols occupied by the first HARQ process. R1 represents the coding rate of the data transmitted by the first HARQ process. m The modulation order of the data transmitted in the first HARQ process (e.g., Q when MCS is 16QAM) m =4. When MCS is 64QAM, Q m =6), where v1 is the number of MIMO transmission layers.

[0164] The TBS of the first HARQ process can be determined based on the number of information bits in the first HARQ process, and can be determined in the following way:

[0165] The TBS can be determined according to table 5.1.3.2-2 in 3GPP TS 38.214. For details, please refer to the relevant description in 3GPP TS 38.214. It will not be repeated here.

[0166] In another implementation, if a HARQ process corresponds to a CB, the TBS corresponding to that HARQ process (e.g., the first HARQ process) can be determined as follows: based on the total TBS of the N HARQ processes and the proportion of the time-frequency resources occupied by the first HARQ process in the total time-frequency resources occupied by the N HARQ processes. The total TBS of the N HARQ processes can be determined based on the number of REs and the MCS allocated to the N HARQ processes.

[0167] In one example, the TBS corresponding to the first HARQ process can be determined as follows: Assume that the number of REs available for each HARQ process after deducting overhead such as the reference signal (RS), control information, and broadcast information is RE. i Let i = 1, 2, ..., N. Then the TBS of the first HARQ process is... Among them, TBS 总 Let TBS be the total number of N HARQ processes, and RE1 be the number of REs available for the first HARQ process.

[0168] In one exemplary description, a HARQ process corresponds to one CB. When the number of RBs in a HARQ process is large, there may be encoding schemes that exceed the maximum code block size. This situation can be applied to schemes that can jointly encode information bits of arbitrary length, such as joint encoding of outer and inner codes, spatially coupled codes, product codes, convolutional codes, and streaming codes.

[0169] (2) The scheduling granularity is CBG, that is, a HARQ process corresponds to a CBG.

[0170] In one implementation, if a HARQ process corresponds to a CBG, the TBS corresponding to the HARQ process (e.g., a second HARQ process) can be determined as follows: based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the first communication device.

[0171] For example, taking the second HARQ process as an example, the TBS of the second HARQ process can be determined based on the number of information bits in the second HARQ process. Since CBG does not have additional CRC bits, the influence of TB CRC can be ignored when calculating the TBS of the second HARQ process.

[0172] The number of information bits in the second HARQ process can be determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the second HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the first communication device. For example, the number of information bits N2 in the second HARQ process... info It can satisfy the following formula, or in other words, it can be determined according to the following formula: N2 info =N2 RE ·R2·Q2 m v2;

[0173] Where, N 2RE R1 represents the number of REs available for the second HARQ process. The number of REs can be determined based on the number of RBs allocated to the second HARQ process in the frequency domain and the number of symbols occupied by the second HARQ process. R2 represents the coding rate of the data transmitted by the second HARQ process. Q2 m The modulation order of the data transmitted in the second HARQ process (e.g., Q when MCS is 16QAM) m =4. When MCS is 64QAM, Q m =6), where v2 is the number of MIMO transmission layers.

[0174] The TBS of the second HARQ process can be determined based on the number of information bits in the second HARQ process, as follows:

[0175] If the number of information bits in the second HARQ process is less than or equal to the first preset value, the TBS can be determined according to table 5.1.3.2-2 in 3GPP TS 38.214. For details, please refer to the relevant description in 3GPP TS 38.214; it will not be repeated here. For example, the first preset value is an integer greater than 0, such as 3824.

[0176] If the number of information bits in the second HARQ process is greater than the first preset value, then according to N2′ info Determine the TBS of the second HARQ process, where,

[0177] For example, the second HARQ process in, Where b is an integer greater than 0, such as 8424.

[0178] As an alternative, after determining the TBS of the second HARQ process, it can be divided into one or more CBs according to the TB of the second HARQ process. For example, the CB division method described in the terminology description (1) above can be used, which will not be repeated here.

[0179] (3) The scheduling granularity is TB, that is, a HARQ process corresponds to one TB.

[0180] In one implementation, if a HARQ process corresponds to a TB, the TBS corresponding to the HARQ process (e.g., a third HARQ process) can be determined as follows: based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the HARQ process, the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the first communication device, and the length / number of CRC bits.

[0181] For example, taking the third HARQ process as an example, the TBS of the third HARQ process can be determined based on the number of information bits and the length / number of CRC bits in the third HARQ process. The number of information bits in the third HARQ process can be determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the third HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the first communication device. For example, the number of information bits N3 in the third HARQ process... info It can satisfy the following formula, or in other words, it can be determined according to the following formula: N3 info =N3 RE ·R3·Q3 m v3;

[0182] Among them, N3 RE R3 represents the number of REs available for the third HARQ process. The number of REs can be determined based on the number of RBs allocated to the third HARQ process in the frequency domain and the number of symbols occupied by the third HARQ process. R3 represents the coding rate of the data transmitted by the third HARQ process. m The modulation order of the data transmitted in the third HARQ process (e.g., Q when MCS is 16QAM) m =4. When MCS is 64QAM, Q m =6), where v3 is the number of MIMO transmission layers.

[0183] The TBS of the third HARQ process is determined based on the number of information bits and the length / number of CRC bits in the third HARQ process. This can be done in the following way:

[0184] If the number of information bits in the third HARQ process is less than or equal to the first preset value, the TBS can be determined according to table 5.1.3.2-2 in 3GPP TS 38.214. For details, please refer to the relevant description in 3GPP TS 38.214; it will not be repeated here. For example, the first preset value is an integer greater than 0, such as 3824.

[0185] If the number of information bits in the third HARQ process is greater than the first preset value, it can be determined according to N3′. info Determine the TBS of the third HARQ process, where, Where a is the number of TB CRC bits, for example, a can be 24.

[0186] For example, the third HARQ process in, Where b is an integer greater than 0, such as 8424.

[0187] Optionally, the first control information indicates at least one of the following: a new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes, the number of retransmissions for at least one of the N HARQ processes, and the process number of at least one of the N HARQ processes.

[0188] One implementation is that the first control information can indicate new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes through a first bitmap.

[0189] In one example, if N HARQ processes each correspond to a CBG, the first bitmap can indicate the new data indication of the CBGs corresponding to the N HARQ processes. Alternatively, it can be understood that the first control information can reuse the bitmap of the new data indication of the CBG to indicate the new data indication of the N HARQ processes. For example, combining the method of determining CBG in the previous terminology introduction (1), assuming the preset number of CBGs N is 8, then a TB includes C CBs, which can be divided into 8 CBGs, i.e., the actual number of CBGs M is 8. The first control information can schedule 8 HARQ processes on a time slot, where these 8 HARQ processes correspond one-to-one with 8 CBGs. In this example, the new data indication of these 8 HARQ processes can reuse the new data indication of the 8 CBGs.

[0190] The bitmap of the new data indication of CBG can also be described as CBG transmission indication information, CBG transmission information, etc.

[0191] In one possible implementation, N HARQ processes can correspond to the same modulation and coding scheme (MCS). This approach can save signaling overhead and make channel fading in the same time unit less noticeable.

[0192] In one possible implementation, at least two of the N HARQ processes correspond to different MCSs.

[0193] Furthermore, the first control information can also instruct the MCS of N HARQ processes.

[0194] In one possible implementation, the initial transmissions of N HARQ processes correspond to the same MCS. In this method, the MCS of a HARQ process during retransmission is the same as the MCS of that HARQ process during its initial transmission.

[0195] S702, the second communication device and the first communication device transmit data based on N HARQ processes.

[0196] The data transmission can be downlink transmission, meaning the second communication device can send downlink data to the first communication device based on N HARQ processes. Alternatively, the data transmission can be uplink transmission, meaning the first communication device can send uplink data to the second communication device based on N HARQ processes.

[0197] Optionally, for data transmission on a single HARQ process, the sending end transmits data through that HARQ process, and the receiving end replies with ACK / NACK information to the sending end to confirm the reception status based on the received demodulation result. If the receiving end cannot demodulate and receive data normally, it replies with NACK information to the second communication device. When the sending end receives NACK, it uses the same HARQ process for retransmission. When the receiving end successfully demodulates and receives data, it sends ACK information to the sending end. After receiving ACK information, the sending end releases the HARQ process, allowing it to transmit the next data. In downlink transmission, the sending end is the second communication device, and the receiving end is the first communication device. In uplink transmission, the sending end is the first communication device, and the receiving end is the second communication device.

[0198] For example, taking downlink transmission as an example, the second communication device sends downlink data 1 based on HARQ process 1, downlink data 2 based on HARQ process 2, and so on, up to downlink data N based on HARQ process N in time unit 1. Assuming downlink data 1 transmission fails, but downlink data 2 through N are successfully transmitted, the second communication device retransmits downlink data 1 based on HARQ process 1 in time unit 2, sends downlink data N+1 based on HARQ process 2, and so on, up to downlink data N+N-1 based on HARQ process N. Time unit 2 follows time unit 1, for example, it could be the next time unit after time unit 1.

[0199] For example, taking uplink transmission as an example, the first communication device sends uplink data 1 based on HARQ process 1, uplink data 2 based on HARQ process 2, and so on, uplink data N based on HARQ process N in time unit 1. Assuming uplink data 3 fails to transmit, but uplink data 1, 2, 4...N are successfully transmitted, the first communication device sends uplink data N+1 based on HARQ process 1, uplink data N+2 based on HARQ process 2 in time unit 2, retransmits uplink data 3 based on HARQ process 3, sends uplink data N+3 based on HARQ process 4, and so on, uplink data N+N-1 based on HARQ process N.

[0200] As one implementation, the N HARQ processes scheduled by the first control information can independently perform initial transmission or retransmission within a time unit. Therefore, within a time unit, there can be HARQ processes performing initial transmission and HARQ processes performing retransmission. That is, within a time unit, some of the N HARQ processes perform initial transmission, while others perform retransmission, such as the transmission of the N HARQ processes in time unit 2 in the example above.

[0201] As can be seen from the above examples, the second communication device and the first communication device can transmit data based on the above N HARQ processes in multiple time units.

[0202] In one implementation, when transmitting data based on the aforementioned N HARQ processes across multiple time units, the order of the N HARQ processes in each time unit can be the same. For example, the N HARQ processes can be sorted in each time unit according to a preset order of process numbers (e.g., ascending process number, descending process number, etc.).

[0203] For example, take the HARQ process shown in Figure 11 as an example, as shown in Figure 12.

[0204] In time slot 1, HARQ process 1 occupies symbols 0 to 1 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 1.

[0205] HARQ process 2 occupies symbols 2-3 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 2.

[0206] HARQ process 3 occupies symbols 4-7 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 3.

[0207] HARQ process 4 occupies symbols 8-10 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 4.

[0208] HARQ process 5 occupies symbols 11-13 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 5.

[0209] Assuming that data 3 fails to be transmitted in time slot 1, HARQ process 1 occupies symbols 0 to 1 in time slot 2 to perform the initial transmission of data 6.

[0210] HARQ process 2 occupies symbols 2-3 of time slot 2 to perform the initial transmission of data 7.

[0211] HARQ process 3 occupies symbols 4-7 of time slot 2 to retransmit data 3.

[0212] HARQ process 4 occupies symbols 8-10 of time slot 2 to perform the initial transmission of data 8.

[0213] HARQ process 5 occupies symbols 11-13 of time slot 2 to perform the initial transmission of data 9.

[0214] Assuming that data 3 and data 8 fail to be transmitted in time slot 2, HARQ process 1 occupies symbols 0 to 1 in time slot 3 to perform the initial transmission of data 10.

[0215] HARQ process 2 occupies symbols 2-3 of time slot 3 to perform the initial transmission of data 11.

[0216] HARQ process 3 occupies symbols 4 to 7 of time slot 3 to retransmit data 3.

[0217] HARQ process 4 occupies symbols 8-10 of time slot 3 to retransmit data 8.

[0218] HARQ process 5 occupies symbols 11-13 of time slot 3 to perform the initial transmission of data 12.

[0219] The above method can reduce the implementation complexity.

[0220] In another implementation, the N HARQ processes are ordered differently in at least two time units across multiple time units. For example, the order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit across multiple time units is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes. Optionally, in this method, the receiving end can carry the process number of the corresponding HARQ process when sending back ACK / NACK information.

[0221] In one example, in the first time unit, N HARQ processes are sorted in descending order of the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes. Among them, HARQ processes with the same number of retransmissions are sorted according to a preset order of process ID (e.g., process ID ascending order, process ID descending order, etc.).

[0222] For example, take the HARQ process shown in Figure 11 as an example, as shown in Figure 13.

[0223] In time slot 1, HARQ process 1 occupies symbols 0 to 1 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 1.

[0224] HARQ process 2 occupies symbols 2-3 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 2.

[0225] HARQ process 3 occupies symbols 4-7 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 3.

[0226] HARQ process 4 occupies symbols 8-10 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 4.

[0227] HARQ process 5 occupies symbols 11-13 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 5.

[0228] If data 3 fails to be transmitted in time slot 1, HARQ process 3 will occupy symbols 0 to 3 in time slot 2 to retransmit data 3.

[0229] HARQ process 1 occupies symbols 4-5 of time slot 2 to perform the initial transmission of data 6.

[0230] HARQ process 2 occupies symbols 6-7 of time slot 2 to perform the initial transmission of data 7.

[0231] HARQ process 4 occupies symbols 8-10 of time slot 2 to perform the initial transmission of data 8.

[0232] HARQ process 5 occupies symbols 11-13 of time slot 2 to perform the initial transmission of data 9.

[0233] Assuming that data 3 and data 8 fail to be transmitted in time slot 2, HARQ process 3 occupies symbols 0 to 3 in time slot 3 to retransmit data 3.

[0234] HARQ process 4 occupies symbols 4-6 of time slot 3 to retransmit data 8.

[0235] HARQ process 1 occupies symbols 7-8 of time slot 3 to perform the initial transmission of data 10.

[0236] HARQ process 2 occupies symbols 9-10 of time slot 3 to perform the initial transmission of data 11.

[0237] HARQ process 5 occupies symbols 11-13 of time slot 3 to perform the initial transmission of data 12.

[0238] The above method reduces the processing latency at the receiving end by prioritizing the HARQ process (i.e., the data being repeated) for retransmission in the earlier time domain resources.

[0239] In another example, within the first time unit, HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold are superimposed on the first time domain resource of the first time unit, while the time domain resources occupied by HARQ processes with a retransmission count less than or equal to the first threshold are located after the first time domain resource. Optionally, the HARQ processes with a retransmission count less than or equal to the first threshold can be sorted according to a preset process number order (e.g., ascending process number, descending process number, etc.).

[0240] Furthermore, if the time-domain resources occupied by the aforementioned N HARQ processes are less than the total time-domain resources of the first time unit, then the second communication device can schedule H HARQ processes on the time-domain resources not occupied by the aforementioned N HARQ processes in the first time unit, where H is an integer greater than 0. That is, a total of N+H HARQ processes are scheduled in the first time unit.

[0241] Optionally, in this method, the receiving end can indicate the superimposed process when sending back ACK / NACK information.

[0242] For example, suppose the first time-domain resource includes 3 symbols, taking the HARQ process shown in Figure 11 as an example, as shown in Figure 14.

[0243] In time slot 1, HARQ process 1 occupies symbols 0 to 1 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 1.

[0244] HARQ process 2 occupies symbols 2-3 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 2.

[0245] HARQ process 3 occupies symbols 4-7 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 3.

[0246] HARQ process 4 occupies symbols 8-10 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 4.

[0247] HARQ process 5 occupies symbols 11-13 of time slot 1 to perform the initial transmission of data 5.

[0248] If data 3 fails to be transmitted in time slot 1, HARQ process 3 will occupy symbols 0 to 3 in time slot 2 to retransmit data 3.

[0249] HARQ process 1 occupies symbols 4-5 of time slot 2 to perform the initial transmission of data 6.

[0250] HARQ process 2 occupies symbols 6-7 of time slot 2 to perform the initial transmission of data 7.

[0251] HARQ process 4 occupies symbols 8-10 of time slot 2 to perform the initial transmission of data 8.

[0252] HARQ process 5 occupies symbols 11-13 of time slot 2 to perform the initial transmission of data 9.

[0253] Assuming that data 3 and data 8 fail to be transmitted in time slot 2, HARQ process 3 and HARQ process 4 occupy symbols 0 to 3 in time slot 3 to retransmit data 3 and data 8.

[0254] HARQ process 1 occupies symbols 4-5 of time slot 3 to perform the initial transmission of data 10.

[0255] HARQ process 2 occupies symbols 6-7 of time slot 3 to perform the initial transmission of data 11.

[0256] HARQ process 5 occupies symbols 8-10 of time slot 3 to perform the initial transmission of data 12.

[0257] HARQ process 6 occupies symbols 11-13 in time slot 3 to perform the initial transmission of data 13.

[0258] Optionally, in the above method, the HARQ processes that are retransmitting can be superimposed on the same time domain resource. For example, in the example above, HARQ process 3 and HARQ process 4 are superimposed on the first time domain resource in time slot 3.

[0259] Alternatively, the HARQ processes of retransmission and initial transmission can be superimposed on the same time domain resource. For example, in the aforementioned time slot 3, HARQ process 3, HARQ process 4 and HARQ process 1 can be superimposed on the same time domain resource. The superposition method is similar to the superposition method of HARQ process 3 and HARQ process 4 mentioned above, and will not be explained further here.

[0260] One possible overlay method is to use layered modulation to map bits from different processes onto different bit sets in the constellation diagram. Based on this method, first data can be carried on the first time-domain resource. This first data is obtained by mapping bits from different constellation diagrams using layered modulation from N HARQ processes whose retransmission count is greater than or equal to a first threshold. Taking Figure 14 as an example, the first data can be carried on symbols 0-3 of time slot 3. This first data can be obtained by mapping data 3 and data 8 to different bit sets in the constellation diagram using layered modulation.

[0261] Another possible superposition method is to perform an XOR operation on the bit sequence and then modulate and map the resulting bit sequence. Based on this method, second data can be carried on the first time domain resource. The second data is obtained by XORing the data from N HARQ processes where the number of retransmissions is greater than or equal to a first threshold. Taking Figure 14 as an example, the second data can be carried on symbols 0 to 3 of time slot 3, where the second data can be obtained by XORing the bit sequence of data 3 and the bit sequence of data 8.

[0262] Another possible approach is to use code division or frequency division to occupy the first time domain resources among the N HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold. Taking Figure 14 as an example, HARQ process 3 and HARQ process 4 can occupy symbols 0 to 3 of time slot 3 using code division or frequency division.

[0263] For example, when N HARQ processes have a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold and use frequency division to occupy the first time domain resources, they can occupy the corresponding frequency domain resources in a way that is equally divided among the first time domain resources. For instance, if there are 2 HARQ processes superimposed on 4 symbols, then each HARQ process can occupy 2 symbols.

[0264] Alternatively, when N HARQ processes have a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold, and they occupy the first time domain resources using frequency division, they can occupy the corresponding frequency domain resources according to the amount of data transmitted. For example, taking Figure 14 as an example, if the amount of data 3 is greater than the amount of data 8, then the number of symbols occupied by HARQ process 3 is greater than the number of symbols occupied by HARQ process 4. For illustration, assume that the number of information bits in each retransmitted HARQ process is K. i Then the number of RBs occupied by HARQ process i performing retransmission is: Among them, RB total This represents the total number of RBs in the first time domain.

[0265] Alternatively, when N HARQ processes have a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold, and they occupy the first time domain resources using frequency division, they can occupy the corresponding frequency domain resources according to the retransmission count. For example, taking Figure 14 as an example, if the retransmission count of data 3 is greater than that of data 8, then the number of symbols occupied by HARQ process 3 is greater than the number of symbols occupied by HARQ process 4. For illustration, let the retransmission count of each retransmitting HARQ process be t, then the number of RBs occupied by HARQ process i performing the retransmission is: Among them, RB totalThis represents the total number of RBs in the first time domain.

[0266] The above method can improve resource utilization by superimposing the retransmission of HARQ processes (that is, repeated data) during transmission.

[0267] This application defines a symbol-level HARQ process, constraining a single data transmission to one or more symbols. This allows the receiver to decode faster, thereby improving peak throughput. Furthermore, this application performs DCI scheduling once per time unit (e.g., time slot), enabling multiple HARQ processes to be scheduled with a single DCI, thus saving control overhead.

[0268] Furthermore, current CB / CBG methods do not consider the relationship with time-frequency resources. When there are few RBs or the code rate is low, a single CB / CBG may occupy multiple symbols. In scenarios with higher peak throughput, this can lead to significant decoding latency, meaning the receiver needs to wait for multiple symbols to be received before it can begin decoding, which is detrimental to achieving low latency and high throughput. This application clarifies the time-domain boundaries of the CB / CBG (i.e., the time-domain boundaries of the HARQ process), which is beneficial for achieving low latency and high throughput.

[0269] Regarding the above embodiments, it is understood that:

[0270] (1) In the embodiments of this application, unless otherwise specified or logically conflicting, the terms and / or descriptions between different examples are consistent and can be referenced by each other. The technical features of different examples can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationships. In addition, different implementations or different examples can also be referenced or referenced by each other.

[0271] (2) The various numerical designations used in this application are merely for descriptive convenience and are not intended to limit the scope of this application. The step numbers in the above flowcharts are only examples of the execution process and do not constitute a restriction on the order of execution of the steps. That is, the size of each step number does not imply the order of execution; the execution order of each step should be determined by its function and internal logic. Furthermore, not all steps shown in the flowcharts are mandatory steps; some steps may be added or deleted based on actual needs.

[0272] The above primarily describes the solutions provided in the embodiments of this application from the perspective of interaction between terminal devices and network devices. It is understood that, to achieve the above functions, the terminal devices and network devices may include corresponding hardware structures and / or software modules for performing each function. Those skilled in the art should readily recognize that, in conjunction with the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in the embodiments disclosed herein, the embodiments of this application can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in hardware or by computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0273] This application embodiment can divide the terminal device and network device into functional units according to the above method example. For example, each function can be divided into a separate functional unit, or two or more functions can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional unit.

[0274] In the case of using integrated units, FIG15 shows a possible exemplary block diagram of the device involved in the embodiments of this application. As shown in FIG15, the device 800 may include a processing unit 802 and a communication unit 803. The processing unit 802 is used to control and manage the operation of the device 800. The communication unit 803 is used to support communication between the device 800 and other devices. Optionally, the communication unit 803 is also called a transceiver unit, and may include a receiving unit and / or a sending unit, respectively used to perform receiving and sending operations. The device 800 may also include a storage unit 801 for storing the program code and / or data of the device 800.

[0275] (1) The device 800 can be the terminal-side device in the above embodiments. The processing unit 802 can support the device 800 in performing the actions of the terminal device in the above method embodiments. Alternatively, the processing unit 802 mainly performs the internal actions of the terminal device in the method embodiments, and the communication unit 803 can support communication between the device 800 and other devices.

[0276] For example, in one embodiment, the processing unit 802 is configured to: receive first control information through the communication unit 803, wherein the first control information schedules N HARQ processes in a time unit, wherein the N HARQ processes occupy one or more symbols in the time unit in the time domain, and N is an integer greater than 0; and transmit data through the communication unit 803 based on the N HARQ processes.

[0277] For example, the N HARQ processes satisfy at least one of the following: the first HARQ process in the N HARQ processes corresponds to a code block; the second HARQ process in the N HARQ processes corresponds to a code block group; and the third HARQ process in the N HARQ processes corresponds to a TB.

[0278] For example, the transport block size corresponding to the first HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the first HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device; or, the transport block size corresponding to the first HARQ process is determined based on the total transport block size of N HARQ processes and the proportion of time-frequency resources occupied by the first HARQ process in the total time-frequency resources occupied by the N HARQ processes.

[0279] For example, the transport block size corresponding to the second HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the second HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device.

[0280] For example, the transport block size corresponding to the third HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the third HARQ process, the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device, and the length of the cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits.

[0281] For example, the first control information indicates at least one of the following: a new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes, the number of retransmissions for at least one of the N HARQ processes, and the process number of at least one of the N HARQ processes.

[0282] For example, the first control information indicating new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes includes: the first control information includes a first bitmap, which is used to indicate new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes.

[0283] For example, N HARQ processes each correspond to a code block group, and the first bit map is a bit map indicating the new data indication of the code block group.

[0284] For example, N HARQ processes correspond to the same MCS; or, at least two of the N HARQ processes correspond to different MCS; or, the initial transmissions of the N HARQ processes correspond to the same MCS.

[0285] For example, the first control information indicates the MCS of N HARQ processes.

[0286] Optionally, when processing unit 802 transmits data based on N HARQ processes through communication unit 803, it can be specifically used to: transmit data based on N HARQ processes over multiple time units; wherein the N HARQ processes are ordered in the same order in each of the multiple time units; or, the N HARQ processes are ordered differently in at least two of the multiple time units.

[0287] For example, the order of N HARQ processes is different in at least two time units across multiple time units, including: the order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit across multiple time units is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes.

[0288] For example, the order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes, including: in the first time unit, the N HARQ processes are sorted in descending order of the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes, wherein the HARQ processes with the same number of retransmissions are sorted in ascending order of process number; or, in the first time unit, the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold value among the N HARQ processes are superimposed on the first time domain resources in the first time unit, and the time domain resources occupied by the HARQ processes with a retransmission count less than or equal to the first threshold value are after the first time domain resources.

[0289] For example, HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold among N HARQ processes are superimposed on a first time-domain resource, including: carrying first data on the first time-domain resource, the first data being obtained by mapping the bit sets of different constellation diagrams of the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold among N HARQ processes using a layered modulation method; or, carrying second data on the first time-domain resource, the second data being obtained by processing the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold among N HARQ processes using an XOR operation; or, the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold among N HARQ processes occupying the first time-domain resource using code division or frequency division.

[0290] For example, among N HARQ processes, the number of retransmissions greater than or equal to a first threshold value occupies the first time domain resources in a frequency-division manner, including: the N HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold value occupying the frequency domain resources corresponding to the first time domain resources in an equally divided manner; or, the N HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold value occupying the frequency domain resources corresponding to the first time domain resources according to the amount of data transmitted; or, the N HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold value occupying the frequency domain resources corresponding to the first time domain resources according to the number of retransmissions.

[0291] For example, the time unit is a time slot, a subframe, a frame, a half-frame, a symbol group, a time slot group, a subframe group, a frame group, or a half-frame group.

[0292] (2) The device 800 can be a network-side device in the above embodiments. The processing unit 802 can support the device 800 in performing the operations of the network device in the above method embodiments. Alternatively, the processing unit 802 mainly performs the internal operations of the network device in the method embodiments, and the communication unit 803 can support communication between the device 800 and other devices.

[0293] For example, in one embodiment, the processing unit 802 is configured to: send first control information through the communication unit 803, the first control information scheduling N HARQ processes in a time unit, the N HARQ processes occupying one or more symbols in the time unit in the time domain, where N is an integer greater than 0; and transmit data through the communication unit 803 based on the N HARQ processes.

[0294] For example, the N HARQ processes satisfy at least one of the following: the first HARQ process in the N HARQ processes corresponds to a code block; the second HARQ process in the N HARQ processes corresponds to a code block group; and the third HARQ process in the N HARQ processes corresponds to a TB.

[0295] For example, the transport block size corresponding to the first HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the first HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device; or, the transport block size corresponding to the first HARQ process is determined based on the total transport block size of N HARQ processes and the proportion of time-frequency resources occupied by the first HARQ process in the total time-frequency resources occupied by the N HARQ processes.

[0296] For example, the transport block size corresponding to the second HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the second HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device.

[0297] For example, the transport block size corresponding to the third HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the third HARQ process, the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device, and the length of the cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits.

[0298] For example, the first control information indicates at least one of the following: a new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes, the number of retransmissions for at least one of the N HARQ processes, and the process number of at least one of the N HARQ processes.

[0299] For example, the first control information indicating new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes includes: the first control information includes a first bitmap, which is used to indicate new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes.

[0300] For example, N HARQ processes each correspond to a code block group, and the first bit map is a bit map indicating the new data indication of the code block group.

[0301] For example, N HARQ processes correspond to the same MCS; or, at least two of the N HARQ processes correspond to different MCS; or, the initial transmissions of the N HARQ processes correspond to the same MCS.

[0302] For example, the first control information indicates the MCS of N HARQ processes.

[0303] Optionally, when processing unit 802 transmits data based on N HARQ processes through communication unit 803, it can be specifically used to: transmit data based on N HARQ processes over multiple time units; wherein the N HARQ processes are ordered in the same order in each of the multiple time units; or, the N HARQ processes are ordered differently in at least two of the multiple time units.

[0304] For example, the order of N HARQ processes is different in at least two time units across multiple time units, including: the order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit across multiple time units is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes.

[0305] For example, the order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes, including: in the first time unit, the N HARQ processes are sorted in descending order of the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes, wherein the HARQ processes with the same number of retransmissions are sorted in ascending order of process number; or, in the first time unit, the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold value among the N HARQ processes are superimposed on the first time domain resources in the first time unit, and the time domain resources occupied by the HARQ processes with a retransmission count less than or equal to the first threshold value are after the first time domain resources.

[0306] For example, HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to a first threshold among N HARQ processes are superimposed on a first time-domain resource, including: carrying first data on the first time-domain resource, the first data being obtained by mapping the bit sets of different constellation diagrams of the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold among N HARQ processes using a layered modulation method; or, carrying second data on the first time-domain resource, the second data being obtained by processing the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold among N HARQ processes using an XOR operation; or, the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold among N HARQ processes occupying the first time-domain resource using code division or frequency division.

[0307] For example, among N HARQ processes, the number of retransmissions greater than or equal to a first threshold value occupies the first time domain resources in a frequency-division manner, including: the N HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold value occupying the frequency domain resources corresponding to the first time domain resources in an equally divided manner; or, the N HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold value occupying the frequency domain resources corresponding to the first time domain resources according to the amount of data transmitted; or, the N HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold value occupying the frequency domain resources corresponding to the first time domain resources according to the number of retransmissions.

[0308] For example, the time unit is a time slot, a subframe, a frame, a half-frame, a symbol group, a time slot group, a subframe group, a frame group, or a half-frame group.

[0309] It should be understood that the division of units in the above device is merely a logical functional division. In actual implementation, they can be fully or partially integrated into a single physical entity, or they can be physically separated. Furthermore, all units in the device can be implemented entirely through software calls from processing elements; all units can be implemented entirely in hardware; or some units can be implemented through software calls from processing elements, and some units can be implemented in hardware. For example, each unit can be a separate processing element, or it can be integrated into a chip within the device. Alternatively, it can be stored as a program in memory, called and executed by a processing element of the device. Moreover, these units can be fully or partially integrated together, or implemented independently. The processing element mentioned here can also be called a processor, which can be an integrated circuit with signal processing capabilities. In the implementation process, the operations of the above methods or the various units mentioned above can be implemented through integrated logic circuits in the processor element or through software calls from processing elements.

[0310] In one example, a unit in any of the above devices can be one or more integrated circuits configured to implement the methods described above, such as: one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or one or more digital signal processors (DSPs), or one or more field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or a combination of at least two of these forms of integrated circuits. As another example, when a unit in the device can be implemented in the form of a processing element scheduler, the processing element can be a processor, such as a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), or other processor capable of calling programs. Furthermore, these units can be integrated together and implemented as a System-on-a-Chip (SoC).

[0311] The receiving unit described above is an interface circuit of the device, used to receive signals from other devices. For example, when the device is implemented as a chip, the receiving unit is an interface circuit for the chip to receive signals from other chips or devices. The transmitting unit described above is an interface circuit of the device, used to transmit signals to other devices. For example, when the device is implemented as a chip, the transmitting unit is an interface circuit for the chip to transmit signals to other chips or devices.

[0312] Based on the same technical concept, this application also provides a communication device for implementing the functions of the terminal device or network device described above. As shown in FIG16, the device may be a communication device or a component within a communication device (e.g., a processor, chip, or chip system). The device includes a processor 901 and a communication interface 902, and optionally, a memory 903. The memory 903 may be independent of the processor 901 or integrated into the processor 901; no specific limitation is made. It is understood that FIG16 only shows the main components of the communication device. Furthermore, the communication device may further include input / output devices (not shown in the figure).

[0313] The processor 901 is used to execute the program code stored in the memory 903, specifically to perform the actions of the processing unit 802 described above, which will not be described in detail here. The communication interface 902 is specifically used to perform the actions of the communication unit 803 described above, which will not be described in detail here.

[0314] The processor 901 can be a CPU, a digital processing unit, or something similar. The processor 901 can be used to process communication protocols and communication data, control the entire communication device, execute software programs, and process data from those programs, such as, but not limited to, baseband-related processing. The communication interface 902 can be used to transmit and receive signals, such as, but not limited to, radio frequency (RF) transceivers. These devices can be disposed on separate chips, or at least partially or entirely on the same chip. For example, the processor 901 can be further divided into an analog baseband processor and a digital baseband processor. The analog baseband processor can be integrated with the transceiver on the same chip, while the digital baseband processor can be disposed on a separate chip. With the continuous development of integrated circuit technology, more and more devices can be integrated on the same chip. For example, a digital baseband processor can be integrated with multiple application processors (such as, but not limited to, graphics processors, multimedia processors, etc.) on the same chip. Such a chip can be called a system-on-a-chip (SoC). Whether to dispose of the devices independently on different chips or integrate them on one or more chips often depends on the specific needs of the product design. This application does not limit the specific implementation of the above-mentioned devices.

[0315] The communication interface 902 can be a transceiver, an interface circuit such as a transceiver circuit, or a transceiver chip, etc. Optionally, the communication interface 902 may include radio frequency (RF) circuitry and an antenna. The RF circuitry is mainly used for converting baseband signals to RF signals and processing RF signals. The antenna is mainly used for transmitting and receiving RF signals in the form of electromagnetic waves. Input / output devices, such as touchscreens, displays, and keyboards, are mainly used for receiving user input data and outputting data to the user.

[0316] Memory 903 is used to store programs executed by processor 901. Memory 903 can be non-volatile memory, such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or solid-state drive (SSD), or it can be volatile memory, such as random-access memory (RAM). Memory 903 can be any other medium capable of carrying or storing desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures that can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited to this.

[0317] When the communication device is powered on, the processor 901 can read the software program in the memory 903, interpret and execute the instructions of the software program, and process the data of the software program. When data needs to be transmitted wirelessly, the processor 901 performs baseband processing on the data to be transmitted and outputs the baseband signal to the radio frequency (RF) circuit. The RF circuit processes the baseband signal and transmits the RF signal outward in the form of electromagnetic waves through the antenna. When data is sent to the communication device, the RF circuit receives the RF signal through the antenna, converts the RF signal into a baseband signal, and outputs the baseband signal to the processor 901. The processor 901 converts the baseband signal into data and processes the data.

[0318] In another implementation, the radio frequency circuitry and antenna can be set up independently of the processor performing baseband processing. For example, in a distributed scenario, the radio frequency circuitry and antenna can be arranged remotely, independent of the communication device.

[0319] This application embodiment does not limit the specific connection medium between the communication interface 902, processor 901, and memory 903. In this application embodiment, the memory 903, processor 901, and communication interface 902 are connected via a bus 904 in Figure 16. The bus is represented by a thick line in Figure 16. The connection methods between other components are only for illustrative purposes and are not intended to be limiting. Buses can be divided into address buses, data buses, control buses, etc. For ease of illustration, only one thick line is used in Figure 16, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0320] Optionally, the communication device described above can be a standalone device or part of a larger device. For example, the communication device can be:

[0321] (1) An independent integrated circuit (IC), or chip, or chip system or subsystem;

[0322] (2) A collection of one or more ICs, optionally including a storage component for storing data and instructions;

[0323] (3) Application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), such as modem;

[0324] (4) Modules that can be embedded in other devices;

[0325] (5) Receivers, smart terminals, wireless devices, handheld devices, mobile units, vehicle-mounted devices, cloud devices, artificial intelligence devices, etc.;

[0326] (6) Others, etc.

[0327] In this application embodiment, "multiple" can refer to two or more. Therefore, in this application embodiment, "multiple" can also be understood as "at least two". "At least one" can be understood as one or more, such as one, two, or more. For example, "including at least one" means including one, two, or more. For example, including at least one of A, B, and C, then it could include A, B, C, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A, B, and C. "And / or" describes the association relationship between related objects. Specifically, there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can represent: A existing alone, A and B existing simultaneously, or B existing alone. Additionally, the character " / ", unless otherwise specified, generally indicates that the preceding and following related objects have an "or" relationship.

[0328] Furthermore, the terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of this application can be used interchangeably, as can "according to" and "based on". The ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" mentioned in the embodiments of this application are generally used to distinguish different objects and are not used to limit the order, sequence, priority, or importance of multiple objects.

[0329] Those skilled in the art will understand that embodiments of this application can be provided as methods, systems, or computer program products. Therefore, this application can take the form of a completely hardware embodiment, a completely software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects. Furthermore, this application can take the form of a computer program product embodied on one or more computer-usable storage media (including but not limited to disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0330] This application is described with reference to flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to this application. It should be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, embedded processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions specified in one or more blocks of the flowchart illustrations and / or one or more blocks of the block diagrams.

[0331] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing device to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable storage medium produce an article of manufacture including instruction means that implement the functions specified in one or more flowcharts and / or one or more block diagrams.

[0332] These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer-implemented process, such that the instructions, which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus, provide steps for implementing the functions specified in one or more flowcharts and / or one or more block diagrams.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, include: Receive first control information, the first control information schedules N Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) processes in a time unit, the N HARQ processes occupy one or more symbols in the time unit in the time domain, and N is an integer greater than 0; Data transmission is performed based on the N HARQ processes.

2. A communication method, characterized in that, include: Send first control information, which schedules N Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) processes in a time unit, wherein the N HARQ processes occupy one or more symbols in the time unit in the time domain, and N is an integer greater than 0; Data transmission is performed based on the N HARQ processes.

3. The method as described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The N HARQ processes satisfy at least one of the following: The first HARQ process among the N HARQ processes corresponds to one code block; The second HARQ process among the N HARQ processes corresponds to a code block group; The third HARQ process among the N HARQ processes corresponds to one TB.

4. The method as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The transport block size corresponding to the first HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the first HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device. Alternatively, the transport block size corresponding to the first HARQ process is determined based on the total transport block size of the N HARQ processes and the proportion of the time-frequency resources occupied by the first HARQ process in the total time-frequency resources occupied by the N HARQ processes.

5. The method as described in claim 3 or 4, characterized in that, The transport block size corresponding to the second HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the second HARQ process and the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device.

6. The method according to any one of claims 3-5, characterized in that, The transport block size corresponding to the third HARQ process is determined based on the number of resource elements available for data transmission in the third HARQ process, the maximum number of resource elements allowed to be allocated to the terminal device, and the length of the cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The first control information indicates at least one of the following: a new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes, the number of retransmissions for at least one of the N HARQ processes, and the process number of at least one of the N HARQ processes.

8. The method as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The first control information indicates new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes, including: The first control information includes a first bitmap, which is used to indicate new data indication for at least one of the N HARQ processes.

9. The method as described in claim 8, characterized in that, The N HARQ processes each correspond to a code block group, and the first bit map is a bit map indicating the new data indication of the code block group.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1-9, characterized in that, The N HARQ processes correspond to the same modulation and coding scheme (MCS); Alternatively, at least two of the N HARQ processes correspond to different MCSs; Alternatively, the initial transmissions of the N HARQ processes may correspond to the same MCS.

11. The method as described in claim 10, characterized in that, The first control information indicates the MCS of the N HARQ processes.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1-11, characterized in that, The data transmission based on the N HARQ processes includes: Data transmission is performed based on the N HARQ processes across multiple time units; Wherein, the N HARQ processes are ordered in the same order in each of the plurality of time units; Alternatively, the N HARQ processes may be ordered differently in at least two of the plurality of time units.

13. The method as described in claim 12, characterized in that, The N HARQ processes are ordered differently in at least two of the multiple time units, including: The order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit among the multiple time units is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes.

14. The method as described in claim 13, characterized in that, The order of the N HARQ processes in the first time unit is related to the number of retransmissions of the N HARQ processes, including: In the first time unit, the N HARQ processes are sorted in descending order of the number of retransmissions, wherein the HARQ processes with the same number of retransmissions are sorted in ascending order of process number. Alternatively, in the first time unit, the HARQ processes among the N HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold are superimposed on the first time domain resources in the first time unit, and the time domain resources occupied by the HARQ processes among the N HARQ processes with a retransmission count less than or equal to the first threshold are after the first time domain resources.

15. The method as described in claim 14, characterized in that, The HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold among the N HARQ processes are superimposed on the first time-domain resource, including: The first data is carried on the first time domain resource. The first data is obtained by mapping the bit set of different constellation diagrams to the HARQ process with a retransmission number greater than or equal to the first threshold value in the N HARQ processes using a layered modulation method. Alternatively, the second data can be carried on the first time domain resource, and the second data is obtained by XOR operation on the HARQ process among the N HARQ processes whose retransmission count is greater than or equal to the first threshold value. Alternatively, among the N HARQ processes, the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold value may occupy the first time domain resources using code division or frequency division.

16. The method as described in claim 15, characterized in that, Among the N HARQ processes, the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold value occupy the first time-domain resources using a frequency-division multiplexing method, including: Among the N HARQ processes, the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold value occupy the frequency domain resources corresponding to the first time domain resources in a way that the frequency domain resources are equally divided. Alternatively, among the N HARQ processes, the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold value shall occupy the frequency domain resources corresponding to the first time domain resources according to the amount of data transmitted. Alternatively, among the N HARQ processes, the HARQ processes with a retransmission count greater than or equal to the first threshold value shall occupy the frequency domain resources corresponding to the first time domain resources according to the retransmission count.

17. The method according to any one of claims 1-16, characterized in that, The time unit is a time slot, a subframe, a frame, a half-frame, a symbol group, a time slot group, a subframe group, a frame group, or a half-frame group.

18. A communication device, characterized in that, Includes modules or units for implementing the method of any one of claims 1, 3 to 17.

19. A communication device, characterized in that, Includes modules or units for implementing the method of any one of claims 2 to 17.

20. A communication device, characterized in that, The device includes a processor coupled to a memory in which a computer program is stored; the processor is configured to invoke part or all of the computer program in the memory such that the method as described in any one of claims 1, 3 to 17 is executed.

21. A communication device, characterized in that, The device includes a processor coupled to a memory in which a computer program is stored; the processor is configured to invoke part or all of the computer program in the memory such that the method as described in any one of claims 2 to 17 is executed.

22. A communication system, characterized in that, The communication system includes a first communication device and a second communication device; wherein the first communication device is used to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1, 3 to 17, and the second communication device is used to perform the method as described in any one of claims 2 to 17.

23. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The storage medium stores a computer program that, when some or all of the computer program is executed by a computer, causes the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 17 to be performed.

24. A computer program product, characterized in that, When a computer reads and executes the computer program in the computer program product, the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 17 is performed.

Images