Allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots

Abstract

A terminal device comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the terminal device at least to: receive information which provides information relating to allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots; determine, using the information which provides information relating to the allocation of resources, the resources allocated across the plurality of time slots; and communicate data using the determined resources.

Description

ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES ACROSS A PLURALITY OF TIME SLOTSCROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application claims the benefit of EP application No. 25153778.3, filed January 24, 2025. The content of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] Various example embodiments of this disclosure relate to methods, apparatus, sand computer programs and in particular but not exclusively relating apparatus, methods and computer program relating to the allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots.BACKGROUND

[0003] A communication network can be seen as a facility that enables communications between two or more communication devices or provides communication devices access to a data network. A mobile or wireless communication network is one example of a communication network. A communication device may be provided with a service by an application server.

[0004] Such communication networks operate in according with standards such as those provided by 3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) or ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute). Examples of standards are the so-called 5G (5th Generation) standards and 6G (6th Generation) standards provided by 3GPP.SUMMARY

[0005] Some example embodiments of this disclosure will be described with respect to certain aspects. These aspects are not intended to indicate key or essential features of the embodiments of this disclosure, nor are they intended to be used to limit the scope of thereof. Other features, aspects, and elements will be readily apparent to a person skilled in the art in view of this disclosure.

[0006] According to a first aspect, there is provided a terminal device comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the terminal device at least to: receive information which provides information relating to allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots; determine, using the information which provides information relating to the allocation of resources, the resources allocated across the plurality of time slots; and communicate data using the determined resources.

[0007] Other embodiments of the first aspect may be seen from the dependent claims.

[0008] The symbols may comprise OFDM symbols.

[0009] The data may be communicated via a physical shared channel.

[0010] The data may be communicated via one of an uplink channel and a downlink channel.

[0011] According to a second aspect, there is provided a method comprising: receiving information which provides information relating to allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots; determining, using the information which provides information relating to the allocation of resources, the resources allocated across the plurality of time slots; and communicating data using the determined resources.

[0012] The resources may comprise a plurality of symbols, said plurality of symbols occurring in said plurality of time slots.

[0013] The plurality of symbols may comprise a number of symbols greater than the number of symbols in one time slot of the plurality of time slots.

[0014] The plurality of time slots may be part of a slot group.

[0015] The method may comprise determining a starting symbol in one of the plurality of time slots.

[0016] Information which provides information relating to the allocation of resources across the plurality of time slots may comprises at least one of:information indicating a starting symbol of the allocated resources;information indicating a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots;information indicating a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots relative to a time slot in which scheduling control information is received;information indicating a slot group comprising the plurality of time slots;information indicating a slot group comprising the plurality of time slots, relative to a slot group in which scheduling control information is received;information indicating one or more of a scaling factor and a number of symbols; information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbols;a start and length indicator vector, SLIV, wherein the start and length vector provide information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbols;information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbol groups; ora start and length indicator vector, SLIV, wherein the start and length vector provide information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbol groups.

[0017] A starting slot of the slot group may be indicated by a slot offset, or the starting slot group may be indicated by a slot group offset.

[0018] The information relating to one or more of starting symbol or the length may be provided by a reference to an entry in a table.

[0019] The method may comprise determining a number of allocated symbols, starting from the starting symbol, using the information relating to one or more of the scaling factor and the length information associated with the allocated number of symbols.

[0020] The method may comprise determining a number of allocated symbol groups, starting from the starting symbol, using the length information associated with an allocated number of symbol groups.

[0021] The method may comprise receiving information associated with a size of a symbol group.

[0022] The information associated with the size of the symbol group may be received via radio resource control, RRC or via a medium access control control element, MAC CE.

[0023] The method may comprise determining the starting symbol based on the information indicating the starting time slot of the plurality of time slots relative to the time slot in which scheduling control information is received or the information indicating the slot group comprising the plurality of time slots, relative to the slot group in which scheduling control information is received.

[0024] The information relating to the allocation of resources may be provided by scheduling control information, and the method may comprise determine the starting symbol in dependence on a time slot in which the scheduling control information is received.

[0025] The information relating to allocation of resources may be provided by scheduling control information, medium access control element, MAC CE or radio resource control, RRC.

[0026] A number of symbols of the allocated resources may be the same as the number of symbols of the slot group.

[0027] The starting symbol may be in a starting slot of the slot group.

[0028] Information which provides information relating to the allocation of resources across the plurality of time slots may comprises at least one of:information indicating a starting symbol of the allocated resources;information indicating a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots;information indicating a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots relative to a time slot in which scheduling control information is received;information indicating a slot group comprising the plurality of time slots;information indicating a slot group comprising the plurality of time slots, relative to a slot group in which scheduling control information is received;information indicating one or more of a scaling factor and a number of symbols; information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbols;a start and length indicator vector, SLIV, wherein the start and length vector provide information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbols;information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbol groups; ora start and length indicator vector, SLIV, wherein the start and length vector provide information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbol groups.

[0029] The method may comprise receiving configuration information indicating a size of information relating to the allocated number of symbols or the start and length indicator vector, and use the configuration information when determining a number of symbols of the allocated resources.

[0030] The method may be performed by an apparatus.

[0031] The apparatus may be provided in or be a terminal device.

[0032] The apparatus may comprise at least one processor, and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus at least to perform any one of the methods of the second aspect.

[0033] According to a third aspect, there is provided a network node comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the network node at least to: provide information to a terminal, which provides information relating to allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots; provide a terminal with downlink control; and communicate with the terminal using the allocated resources.

[0034] Other embodiments of the third aspect can be seen from claims 21 to 25.

[0035] According to a fourth aspect, there is provided a method comprising: providing information to a terminal, which provides information relating to allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots; providing a terminal with downlink control; and communicating with the terminal using the allocated resources.

[0036] The resources may comprise a plurality of symbols, said plurality of symbols occurring in said plurality of time slots.

[0037] The plurality of symbols may comprise a number of symbols greater than the number of symbols in one time slot of the plurality of time slots.

[0038] The starting slot of the slot group may be indicated by a slot offset, or the starting slot group is indicated by a slot group offset.

[0039] The method may be performed by an apparatus.

[0040] The apparatus may be provided in or be a network node.

[0041] The apparatus may comprise at least one processor, and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus at least to perform any one of the methods of the fourth aspect.

[0042] According to another aspect, there is provided a computer readable medium comprising program instructions stored thereon for performing at least one of the above methods.

[0043] According to an aspect, there is provided a non-transitory computer readable medium comprising program instructions stored thereon for performing at least one of the above methods.

[0044] According to an aspect, there is provided a non-volatile tangible memory medium comprising program instructions stored thereon for performing at least one of the above methods.

[0045] In the above, many different aspects have been described. It should be appreciated that further aspects may be provided by the combination of any two or more of the aspects described above.

[0046] Various other aspects are also described in the following detailed description and in the attached claims.DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

[0047] Some example embodiments will now be described, by way of non-limiting and illustrative example only, with reference to the accompanying Figures in which:

[0048] Fig. 1 shows an example of a communication network to which examples disclosed herein may be applied;

[0049] Fig. 2 illustrates one example of a time division duplex (TDD) pattern;

[0050] Fig. 3 illustrates of slot grouping in a TDD pattern considering uplink (UL) slots;

[0051] Fig. 4a illustrates a first example allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots;

[0052] Fig. 4b illustrates a second example allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots;

[0053] Fig. 5 shows an example of a first signaling flow diagram;

[0054] Fig. 6 shows an example of a second signaling flow diagram;

[0055] Fig. 7a shows a first example of a method;

[0056] Fig. 7b shows a second example of a method; and

[0057] Fig. 8 shows an example of an apparatus.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0058] The following embodiments are exemplary. Although the specification may refer to "an”, "one”, or "some” embodiment(s) in several locations of the text, this does not necessarily mean that each reference is made to the same embodiment(s), or that a particular feature only applies to a single embodiment. Single features of different embodiments may also be combined to provide other embodiments. Further, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connectionof an embodiment, it is within the knowledge of one skilled in the art to apply such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with other embodiments whether or not explicitly described. It shall be understood that although the terms "first,” "second” and the like may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another.

[0059] For the purposes of the present disclosure, the phrases "at least one of A or B”, "at least one of A and B”, and "A and / or B” means (A), (B), or (A and B). For the purposes of the present disclosure, the phrase "A, B, and / or C” means (A), (B), (C), (A and B), (A and C), (B and C), or (A, B, and C).

[0060] Embodiments described may be implemented in a communication network, such as any of the following radio access technologies (RATs): World-wide Interoperability for Micro-wave Access (WiMAX), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM, 2G), GSM EDGE radio access Network (GERAN), General Packet Radio Service (GRPS), Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS, 3G) based on basic wideband-code division multiple access (W-CDMA), high-speed packet access (HSPA), Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced, and enhanced LTE (eLTE), 5G (also called NR), 5G-Advanced, or any future RAT such as 6G. Moreover, communication within the communication network may utilize any proper wireless communication technology, comprising but not limited to: Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Duplex (FDD), Time Division Duplex (TDD), Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple (OFDM), and / or Discrete Fourier Transform spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM).

[0061] As used herein, the term "network device” or "network node” refers to a node in a communication network via which user equipment may access the network and / or which is capable of controlling radio communication and managing radio resources within a cell. The network node or network device may be referred to as a base station (BS), an access point (AP) or an access node. The network device may be, depending on the applied technology, for example, a node B (NodeB or NB), an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB), an NR NB (also referred to as a gNB), a Remote Radio Unit (RRU), a radio head (RH), a remote radio head (RRH), a relay, an Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) node, a low power node, a nonterrestrial network (NTN) or non-ground network device such as a satellite network device, a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite and a geosynchronous earth orbit (GEO) satellite, or an aircraft network device.

[0062] Moreover, in connection of split radio access network (RAN), the network device may refer to a centralised unit (CU) of a base station and / or a distributed unit (DU) of a base station. An interface between CU and DU may be referred to as an F1 interface in NR. In the split RAN architecture, node operations may be carried out, at least partly, in the central / centralized unit, CU, (e.g. server, host or node) operationally coupled to the DU, (e.g. a radio head / node). One CU may control one or more DUs,acting at least as transmit / receive (Tx / Rx) nodes. In some embodiments, the DUs may comprise e.g. a radio link control (RLC), medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, whereas the CU may comprise the layers above RLC layer, such as a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, a radio resource control (RRC) and an internet protocol (IP) layers. Other functional splits are possible too. In practice, any processing task may be performed in either the CU or the DU and the boundary where the responsibility is shifted between the CU and the DU may depend on the applied implementation.

[0063] The term "terminal device” refers to any end device that may be capable of wireless communication. By way of example, a terminal device may be referred to as a communication device, user equipment (UE), a Subscriber Station (SS), or a Mobile Station (MS). The terminal device may include a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, voice over IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones a tablet, a wearable terminal device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), portable computers, desktop computer, image capture terminal de-vices such as digital cameras, gaming terminal devices, music storage and play-back appliances, vehicle-mounted wireless terminal devices, USB dongles, an Internet of Things (loT) device, a watch or other wearable, a head-mounted dis-play (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, a medical device and applications (e.g., remote surgery), an industrial device and applications (e.g., a robot and / or other wire-less devices operating in an industrial and / or an automated processing chain contexts), a consumer electronics device, a device operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, and the like.

[0064] A term "resource”, as used herein, may refer to radio resources in time domain, in frequency domain, in space domain, and / or in code domain. Some examples of resources include e.g. a physical resource block (PRB), a radio frame, a subframe, a time slot, a sub band, a frequency region, a subcarrier, a beam, etc. The term "transmission” and / or "reception” may refer to wirelessly transmitting and / or receiving via a wireless propagation channel on radio re-sources.

[0065] Fig. 1 illustrates an example of a communication network to which examples disclosed herein may be applied. The communication network or a cellular communication network may comprise a network node 110 providing one or more cells, such as cell 100, and a network node 112 providing one or more other cells, such as cell 102. Each cell may be, e.g., a macro cell, a micro cell, femto, or a pico cell, for example. The cell may define a coverage area or a ser-vice area of the corresponding access node.

[0066] The network node 110 may provide a user equipment (UE) 120 (one or more UEs) with wireless access to the communication network. The wireless access may comprise downlink (DL) communication from the network node to the UE 120 and uplink (UL) communication from the UE 120 to the network node. Examples of uplink channels comprise physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) for transmitting control information and physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) for transmitting data towards thenetwork. Examples of downlink channels comprise physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) for transmitting control information and physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) for trans-mitting data towards the user equipment.

[0067] There may be a plurality of UEs 120, 122 in the system. Each of them may be served by the same or by different network nodes 110, 112. UE may be configured with dual connectivity (DC), wherein the UE, e.g. UE 120, may be connected to multiple network nodes 110, 112. The UEs 120, 122 may communicate with each other, in case device-to-device (D2D) communication interface is established between them via a so-called sidelink (SL). Such D2D communications may be referred to as machine-to-machine, peer-to-peer (P2P) communications, or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), for example.

[0068] In the case of multiple network nodes in the communication network, the network nodes may be connected to each other via an interface. LTE specifications call such an interface as X2 interface. An interface between an LTE node and a 5G node, or between two 5G nodes may be called Xn interface.

[0069] The network nodes 110 and 112 may be further connected via an-other interface to a core network 116 of the communication network. The LTE specifications specify the core network as an evolved packet core (EPC), and the core network may comprise e.g. a mobility management entity (MME) and a gateway node. The MME may handle mobility of terminal devices in a tracking area encompassing a plurality of cells and handle signalling connections between the terminal devices and the core network. The gateway node may handle data routing in the core network and to / from the terminal devices. The 5G specifications specify the core network as a 5G core (5GC). The 5G core may comprise e.g. an access and mobility management function (AMF) and a user plane function / gateway (UPF) and other functions. The AMF may handle termination of non-access stratum (NAS) signalling, NAS ciphering & integrity protection, registration management, connection management, mobility management, access authentication and authorization, security context management. The UPF node may support packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection and quality of service (QoS) handling, for example.

[0070] Reference is made to Figure 2 which shows an example of a time division duplex TDD pattern. A slot is a time slot. In the following, reference to a slot may be regarded as a reference to a time slot. The time slot may be provided in a TDD pattern. A slot may be classified as a downlink (D) slot, an uplink (U) slot, or a special (S) slots. A downlink slots contains only DL symbols, an uplink slots only UL symbols, and a special slot contain a mix of UL and DL symbols.

[0071] The symbols may be OFDM symbols.

[0072] Configuration of slots may occur via configuration of a so called TDD pattern, The pattern may define if a slot is an D slot, an U slot, or a S slot. The pattern may define the OFDM symbols within a slot.

[0073] One example of a TDD pattern is the pattern DDDSU, as shown in the example of Figure 2. In this example, the special slot contains 9 DL symbols 200, 1 flexible symbol 202, and 4 UL symbols 204.

[0074] It should be appreciated that Figure 2 represents one example of a TDD pattern and special slot configuration.

[0075] In this example, the TDD pattern has five slots. However, this is by way of example, and a TDD pattern may comprise more or less than 5 slots.

[0076] The number of symbols in a slot may be 14. This is as currently defined in 5G specifications. However, in other embodiments, the number of symbols may be more or less than 14 in a slot.

[0077] For a special slot, the allocation of symbols may differ from the example shown in Figure 2.

[0078] Reference is made to Figure 3 which shows an example of slot grouping. An OFDM symbol group may be defined as a group of consecutive OFDM symbols. A slot group may be defined as a group of slots or symbols belonging to a plurality of slots.

[0079] An example of slot group 300 is shown in Figure 3. The slot group 300 may be referred to as a virtual slot.

[0080] In this example, the slot group comprises U, D and S slots although only the U and S slots are used for the allocation of UL symbols.

[0081] In other examples, the virtual slot may comprise only UL slots. In other examples, the virtual slot may comprise only DL slots. In other examples, the virtual slot may comprise one or more of: one or more U slot; one or more D slots; and / or one or more S slots.

[0082] In the example of Figure 3, a slot group is composed of 5 slots having UL capacity. The slot group contains 14 OFDM UL symbol groups, each UL OFDM symbol group composed of 4 OFDM symbols. This is by way of example only and in other embodiments, there may be more or less than 5 slots. In other embodiments, there may be more or less than 14 UL OFDM symbol groups. In other embodiments, there may be more or less than 4 OFDM symbols in a UL symbol group.

[0083] Some embodiments may relate to the allocation of resources within a slot group. Slot groups and / or OFDM symbol groups may be used to extend the allocation of a transmission across the slot boundary.

[0084] 5G specifications define resource allocation. Resource allocation in 5G NR (new radio) for transmission of an uplink or downlink shared channel (PUSCH / PDSCH) is divided into two parts: allocation in time domain (TDRA -Time Domain Resource Allocation) and allocation in frequency domain (FDRA - Frequency Domain Resource Allocation).

[0085] The allocation in time domain is described in Section 6.1.2.1 of 3GPP TS 38.214 for the case of a PUSCH scheduled by a DCI (downlink control information) as:

[0086] When the UE is scheduled to transmit a transport block and no CSI (channel state information) report by a DCI or by a RAR (random access response) UL grant or fallback RAR UL grant, or the UE is scheduled to transmit a transport block and a CSI report(s) on PUSCH by a DCI, the 'Time domainresource assignment' field value m for the scheduled PUSCH on the serving cell of the DCI or the PUSCH time resource allocation field value m of the RAR UL grant or of the fallback AR UL grant provides a row index m + 1 to a resource allocation table. The determination of the used resource allocation table is defined in Clause 6.1.2.1.1. of 3GPP TS 38.214 The indexed row defines the slot offset K2, the start and length indicator SLIV, or directly the start symbol S and the allocation length L, the PUSCH mapping type, the number of slots used for TBS (transport block size) determination (if number Of Slots TBoMS (transport block over multiple slots) is present in the resource allocation table), and the number of repetitions (if number Of Repetitions is present in the resource allocation table) to be applied in the PUSCH transmission.

[0087] In other words, in 5G NR, the allocation in the time domain is based on a so-called time domain resource assignment (TDRA) table, whose rows define (among others) the starting OFDM symbol and the allocation length of the PUSCH within one slot in terms of OFDM symbols. The OFDM symbol therefore represents the granularity and minimum scheduling unit in the time domain for 5G NR operation. The starting OFDM symbol and allocation length are either separately indicated via dedicated entries of the table or jointly via a start and length indicator vector (SLIV).

[0088] The SLIV is defined in TS 38.214 as follows:

[0089] For PUSCH repetition Type A and TB processing over multiple slots, the starting symbol S relative to the start of the slot, and the number of consecutive symbols L counting from the symbol S allocated for the PUSCH are determined from the start and length indicator SLIV of the indexed row:if (i-i) < 7 thenSLIV = 14 • (L - 1) + selseSLIV = 14 • (14 -£ + 1) + (14 - 1 - S)

[0090] where 0<Z<14-S,

[0091] This SLIV provides a compressed version of the start (S) and length (L) fields, by excluding combinations of S and L that are not possible within one slot. L is limited to 14-S, since S+L cannot be larger than 14. It is to be noted that the SLIV is determined based on the factor 14, representing the 14 OFDM symbols in a slot, and based on an assumption that S can take values from 0 to 13.

[0092] The slot offset K2 defining the slot where UE transmits the PUSCH is indicated in 5G NR by the rows of the TDRA table. More specifically the slot for transmission is determined from the slot where the scheduling DCI is received, based on the indicated slot offset K2.

[0093] In 5G NR, the TDRA table might provide information on the number of slots used for Transport Block Size (TBS) determination (in the case of Transport Block over Multiple Slots (TBoMS)) and a number of repetitions, in the case of PUSCH repetitions. The row of the TDRA table is referred to via afield in the DCI scheduling the PUSCH. In the case of multi-PUSCH scheduling, there may be multiple SLIVs / TDRA allocations for a single TDRA entry.

[0094] It is to be noted that similar procedures apply for the allocation of a PDSCH transmission.

[0095] In 5G NR, the slot where a transmission occurs (be it DG (dynamic grant) or CG (configured grant) / SPS (semi persistent scheduling) transmission) is indicated by the network via DCI for DG-PUSCH or DG-PDSCH as a slot offset from the scheduling DCI and via semi-static configuration / activation of a periodicity for the case of CG-PUSCH or SPS PDSCH. In addition, the symbol allocation is limited within the slot.

[0096] Some embodiments relate to the time domain resource allocation where OFDM symbol grouping and / or slot grouping transmission is across a slot boundary. As discussed, in 5G NR, the slot and symbol within the slot indication for PUSCH or PDSCH transmission only are for symbol allocation which is limited to within a slot.

[0097] In some embodiments, there is a determination of time domain resource allocation for data transmission across multiple physical slots.

[0098] The time domain resource allocation for data transmission across two or more physical slots may be based on an indication of a starting OFDM symbol within a starting slot or within a slot group.

[0099] The examples discussed are in relation to UL time domain resource allocation. However, it should be noted that the same techniques can be used to determine time domain resource allocation for the DL.

[0100] In some embodiments, a UE determines time domain resource allocation for UL data transmission (or DL data reception) across a plurality of time slots.

[0101] The determining of time domain resource allocation may be based on an indication of a starting OFDM symbol within a slot. The slot may be a starting slot.

[0102] The determining of time domain resource allocation may be based on an indication of a starting OFDM symbol within a slot group.

[0103] In some embodiments, the UE is indicated a starting slot of the time domain resource allocation. For example, the starting slot may be determined based on a slot offset from the slot in which the scheduling DCI was received.

[0104] In some embodiments, the UE is indicated a slot group or a slot group offset from the slot group in which the scheduling DCI was received for scheduling a transmission (or reception in case of DL) within the slot group.

[0105] In some embodiments, the UE is indicated a number of symbol groups and a starting symbol of the time domain resource allocation.

[0106] In some embodiments, the UE is indicated a time domain extension / scaling factor (E) and a number of OFDM symbols (L).

[0107] The UE may determine the resource allocation in time domain of OFDM symbols as a number of E*L OFDM symbols, starting from the indicated starting OFDM symbol. In other words, UE may convert an indicated number of symbols, i.e., what is nominally indicated by the network (e.g. via SLIV or L parameter), into an allocated number of symbols, i.e., what is actually allocated by the NW for the UL or DL transmission.

[0108] The indicated number of OFDM symbols be provided by the parameter L. The parameter L may be derived from the SLIV or from the length parameter provided by the indicated / configured TDRA table row.

[0109] In some embodiments, the UE is indicated an enhanced SLIV which is based on the starting OFDM symbol and a number of OFDM symbols.

[0110] In some embodiments, the number of OFDM symbols is equal to a size of a slot group.

[0111] In some embodiments, the starting OFDM symbol is within a starting slot.

[0112] In some embodiments, the starting OFDM symbol is within a slot group.

[0113] In some embodiments, the SLIV indicates an allocation length in units of OFDM symbols, the allocation length with values larger than 14, and a starting OFDM symbol.

[0114] In some embodiments, the SLIV indicates an allocation length in units of OFDM symbol groups and a starting OFDM symbol.

[0115] In some embodiments, the SLIV interpretation and size may be dynamically determined at the UE and based on the number of OFDM symbols. For example, the SLIV may be calculated based on the number of OFDM symbols (N) as SLIV = N*(L-1)+S if (L-1)<=floor(N / 2) or SLIV = N*(N-L+1)+(N-1-S) else. L and S represent the allocation length and the starting OFDM symbol, respectively, S e [0, 1, .... N-1] and 0<L<=N-S. In another example, the SLIV may be calculated based on the number of OFDM symbols (N) as SLIV = 14*(L-1)+S if (L-1)<=(N-7) or SLIV = 14*(N-L+(N-14)+1 )+(14-1-S) else. L and S represent the allocation length and the starting OFDM symbol, respectively, S e [0, 1, .... 13] and 0<L<=N-S. The first example for determining the SLIV may be specific to the case that the starting OFDM symbol is within a slot group and the second example may for determining the SLIV may be specific to the case the starting OFDM symbol is within a starting slot.

[0116] In some embodiments, the SLIV may indicate a starting OFDM symbol within a slot (S e [0, 1 , .... 13]) and an allocation length (L), in units of symbol groups, i.e. a number of allocated symbol groups, based on a number of OFDM symbols and a size / length of a symbol group. For example, the SLIV may be calculated based on the number of OFDM symbols (N) and the size of a symbol group (M). Lmax=j where Lmax is the maximum allocation length (in number of symbol groups) that can be allocated for the values of N and M, and Laa= the largest allocation length for which all values of S are valid,e.g. it satisfies < < The SLIV can be then calculated as SUV = min N — M +< else as SUV =- S.

[0117] In contrast to current 5G specifications, the SLIV may indicate the starting symbol and allocation length (in symbols) within a number of OFDM symbols larger than a 5G slot (i.e. 14 OFDM symbols). The number of OFDM symbols can be determined at UE based on configuration of the UE, and can be in some examples equal to a multiple of 14 OFDM symbols such as 28, 42 or 56. The SLIV size and calculation may depend on the configured numbers of OFDM symbols. This allows allocations across multiple slots.

[0118] In some embodiments, the SLIV is separately indicated from the TDRA table in the DCI and the size of the SLIV field depends on the number of OFDM symbols

[0119] In some embodiments, the number of OFDM symbols (e.g. the slot group size) can be RRC configured, so UE determine the size of the field based on the configuration.

[0120] Reference is made to Figure 4a which shows an example where the UE is indicated a starting OFDM symbol (S) within a starting slot and an allocation length indicating a number L of allocated OFDM symbol groups.

[0121] In the example of Figure 4a, the UE is configured with a DDDSU TDD time slot pattern. However, this is by way of example only and the UE may be configured with a different TDD pattern. Optionally, the TDD pattern may comprise more or less than 5 slots.

[0122] In the example shown in Figure 4a, the S slot contains 9 DL symbols at the start, followed by 1 flexible symbol, and with 4 UL symbols at the end of the slot. However, this is by way of example only and the UE may be configured with a different pattern. Optionally, the number of symbols may comprise more or less than 14 symbols.

[0123] One example procedure, shown in Figure 5, is associated with UE determination of the time domain resource allocation via indication of a starting OFDM symbol within a slot and a number of OFDM symbol groups will be described with reference to Figure 4a:

[0124] As referenced 1, the UE receives from a network information indicating a size of an OFDM symbol group. The information may be received via higher layer signalling, for example RRC (Radio Resource Control) or MAC-CE (medium access control control element).

[0125] As referenced 2, the UE determines, using the information, the size N of an OFDM symbol group. In this example, the size of an OFDM symbol group is 4 OFDM symbols. The number of symbols N in a group may comprise more or less than 4 symbols.

[0126] As referenced 3, the UE received from the network node, a PDCCH. The PDCCH provides a DCI scheduling PUSCH (denoted here as UL DCI). The UL DCI may indicate to the UE that the starting slot for determining the time domain resource allocation for the scheduled PUSCH is offset by K2 slots from the slot n in which the UL DCI is received. In this example, K2 is 3. However, K2 may be more or less than three slots. In this example the UE is provided with the slot offset K2 by the UL DCI. It should be noted that in other embodiments, the UE may have this information other than via the UL DCI.

[0127] As referenced 4, the UE determines from the received UL DCI, the starting slot as being the slot offset by three slots from the slot in which the UL DCI is received. The starting slot is used for determining the time domain resource allocation for the scheduled PUSCH.

[0128] In this example, slot S is offset by 3 slots from the slot where the DCI is received. This is by way of example only and the starting slot may be a U slot in some embodiments.

[0129] As referenced 5, the UE determines from the TDRA indication in the UL DCI the starting symbol. In this example, the starting symbol is within the starting slot. In other embodiments, the starting symbol may be in a subsequent slot of the starting slot.

[0130] In this example, the starting OFDM symbol within the starting slot is the 10th OFDM symbol of the slot. The starting slot may be determined by the parameter S. The parameter S will be 10 in this example. The parameter S may be derived from the SLIV provided by the indicated / configured TDRA table row.

[0131] The length may be 5 in this example. The length may be determined from the parameter L. The parameter L may be derived from the SLIV, provided by the indicated / configured TDRA table row. The length L may represent the number of OFDM symbol groups scheduled for the transmission. The length of 5 symbol groups is by way of example only and the number of symbol groups L may be more or less than 5 in other examples.

[0132] Based on UE determination of the OFDM symbol group size equal to 4 and the length L being 5, the UE determines that the allocation spans 20 (5*4) OFDM symbols. The UE may determine the allocated symbols. The OFDM symbol groups are referenced OS in Figure 1.

[0133] As shown in Figure 4a, the first four symbols are provided in the UL symbols of the first, S, slot, the next 14 symbols are provided in the second uplink slot, and the final two symbols are provided in the next available UL opportunity which is the 10thand 11thsymbols of the next S slot. The last symbol group has two symbols in the U slot and two symbols in the next S slot.

[0134] As can be seen from Figure 4a, the 20 OFDM symbols are allocated across a plurality of time slots. It should be noted that the time slots containing the allocated OFDM symbols are not contiguous in this example. In other embodiments, the time slots containing the allocated OFDM symbols may be contiguous.

[0135] The UE may optionally determine a slot group 400 shown by the dashed box in Figure 4a. The slot group comprises a minimum number of slots containing at least the number of UL symbols necessary for the allocated transmission. The slot group may be defined as containing as an example 6 slots if D slots are included or 3 slots with UL symbols if only S and U slots are included.

[0136] As referenced 6, the UE transmits the PUSCH in the allocated resources.

[0137] Reference is made to Figure 4b. In an example, such as illustrated by Figure 4b, the UE receives configuration of an extension or scaling factor E. In the example of Figure 4b, E=2 but the value of E may be different in different embodiments. UE is further indicated the starting symbol S within the slot, The UE is indicated a number of symbols L, which in this example is equal to 10. The UE determines the allocated number of symbols as the product of E and L, which in this example is equal to 20. The allocated symbols are continuous UL symbols starting from the starting symbol S. (The UL symbols may be separated by DL symbols.)

[0138] Reference is made to Figure 6 which shows an example procedure which will be described with reference to Figure 4b.

[0139] As referenced 1, the UE receives from a network node information indicating an extension factor E. The information may be received via higher layer signalling, for example RRC or MAC-CE (medium access control control element). Alternatively, the extension factor may be received via the DCI, for example as part of the TDRA table.

[0140] As referenced 2, the UE determines using the information, the extension factor.

[0141] As referenced 3, the UE received from the network node, a PDCCH. The PDCCH provides a DCI scheduling PUSCH (denoted here as UL DCI). The UL DCI may indicate to the UE that the starting slot for determining the time domain resource allocation for the scheduled PUSCH is offset by K2 slots from the slot n in which the UL DCI is received. In this example, K2 is 3. However, K2 may be more or less than three slots. In this example the UE is provided with the slot offset K2 by the UL DCI. It should be noted that in other embodiments, the UE may have this information other than via the UL DCI.

[0142] As referenced 4, the UE determines from the received UL DCI, the starting slot as being the slot offset by three slots from the slot in which the UL DCI is received. The starting slot is used for determining the time domain resource allocation for the scheduled PUSCH.

[0143] In this example, slot S is offset by 3 slots from the slot where the DCI is received. This is by way of example only and the starting slot may be a U slot in some embodiments.

[0144] As referenced 5, the UE determines from the TDRA indication in the UL DCI the starting symbol. In this example, the starting symbol is within the starting slot. In other embodiments, the starting symbol may be in a subsequent slot of the starting slot. . In this example S = 10 but may be different in different embodiments. The UE is also indicated a number of symbols L. In this example L= 10 but may be different in different embodiments. The number of symbols is determined as the product of E and L, which in this example is equal to 20.

[0145] As referenced 6, the UE transmits the PUSCH in the allocated resources

[0146] The example has been described in relation to determining of allocated resources for an UL channel. It should be noted that the determining of allocated time domain resources for an DL channel may be carried out in a similar way by considering DL slots instead of UL slots for the PDSCH operation.

[0147] Some embodiments may align understanding between a network node and the UE on the resources for a PUSCH transmission or PDSCH reception within a slot group or at least across a plurality of time slots. The UE may be configured such that the UE will know that resources for a PUSCH transmission or PDSCH reception is within a slot group or at least across a plurality of time slots. Some embodiments may provide of slot-less operation. Some embodiments may be integrated into the 5G framework and / or or used with a 6G framework.

[0148] Reference is made to Fig. 7a and 7b which shows some methods of some example embodiments. The method may be performed by an apparatus.

[0149] The apparatus may comprise suitable means, such as circuitry for providing the respective method.

[0150] Alternatively or additionally, the apparatus may comprise at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor cause the apparatus at least to provide the respective method.

[0151] Alternatively or additionally, the apparatus may be such as discussed in relation to Fig 8.

[0152] The respective methods may be provided by computer program code or computer executable instructions.

[0153] Reference is made to Fig. 7a. The method may be performed by an apparatus. The apparatus may be or provided in a user equipment or terminal device.

[0154] The method comprises as referenced A1, receiving information which provides information relating to allocation of resources across a plurality of time slot.

[0155] The method comprises as referenced A2, determining, using the information which provides information relating to the allocation of resources, the resources allocated across the plurality of time slots.

[0156] The method comprises as referenced A3, communicating data using the determined resources.

[0157] Reference is made to Fig. 7b The method may be performed by an apparatus. The apparatus may be or provided in a network node.

[0158] The method comprises as referenced B1, providing information to a terminal, which provides information relating to allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots.

[0159] The method comprises as referenced B2, providing a terminal with downlink control.

[0160] The method comprises as referenced B3, communicating with the terminal using the allocated resources.

[0161] It should be appreciated that the method described in relation to Fig. 7a or 7b may be modified to include one or more of the features discussed in relation to the previous examples.

[0162] Although the apparatuses have been described as one entity, different modules and memory may be implemented in one or more physical or logical entities.

[0163] It is noted that whilst some embodiments have been described in relation to 5G networks and beyond, similar principles can be applied in relation to other networks and communication systems. Therefore, although certain embodiments were described above by way of example with reference to certain example architectures for wireless networks, technologies and standards, embodiments may be applied to any other suitable forms of communication systems than those illustrated and described herein.

[0164] It is also noted herein that while the above describes example embodiments, there are several variations and modifications which may be made to the disclosed solution without departing from the scope of the present invention.

[0165] Fig.8 shows, by way of example, a block diagram of an apparatus 10. The apparatus 10 comprises, for example, at least one processor 12 and at least one memory 14 storing instructions 15 that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the apparatus 10 at least to perform the method or methods (or portion(s) there-of) as disclosed herein, and any of the embodiments (or respective portion(s) thereof). In an example, the at least one memory and the instructions (e.g. a computer program code, software), are configured, with the at least one processor, to cause the apparatus 10 to perform the method or methods (or portion(s) thereof) as disclosed herein, and any of the embodiments (or respective portion(s) thereof).

[0166] A processor 12 may comprise circuitry, or be constituted as circuitry or circuitries, the circuitry or circuitries being configured to perform phases of methods in accordance with embodiments described herein.

[0167] As used herein, the term "circuitry” may refer to one or more or all of the following: (a) hardware-only circuit implementations, such as implementations in only analog and / or digital circuitry, and (b) combinations of hardware circuits and software, such as, as applicable: (I) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuit(s) with software / firmware and (ii) any portions of hardware processor(s) withsoftware (including digital signal processor(s)), software, and memory(ies) that work together to cause an apparatus, such as a user equipment, to perform various functions) and (c) hardware circuit(s) and or processor(s), such as a microprocessor(s) or a portion of a microprocessor(s), that requires software (e.g., firmware) for operation, but the soft-ware may not be present when it is not needed for operation. This definition of circuitry applies to all uses of this term herein, including in any claims. As a further example, as used herein, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of merely a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware. The term circuitry also covers, for example, and if applicable to the particular claim element, a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device or a similar integrated circuit in server, a cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

[0168] The memory 14 may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology. The memory may comprise a database for storing data. The memory 14 may, for example, be at least in part external to apparatus 10 but accessible to apparatus 10.

[0169] The instructions 15 may be comprised in a computer readable medium or a non-transitory computer readable medium. A term non-transitory, as used herein, is a limitation of the medium itself (i.e. tangible, not a signal) as opposed to a limitation on data storage persistency (e.g. random-access memory, RAM, vs. read only memory, ROM).

[0170] For example, the apparatus 10 may be a UE or provided in a UE. The apparatus may comprise a chipset, The apparatus 10 may be caused or configured to perform at least the method of Fig. 7 and / or any one or more of the embodiments described herein.

[0171] The apparatus may comprise one or more entities of any protocol layers, such as a MAC entity, an RRC entity, an RLC entity, a PDCP entity or a PHY entity.

[0172] The apparatus 10 optionally comprises a radio interface 16. The radio interface 16 may provide apparatus 10 with communication capabilities. The radio interface 16 may comprise a receiver configured to receive information in accordance with at least one cellular or non-cell ul ar standard. The radio interface 16 may comprise a transmitter configured to transmit information in accordance with at least one cellular or non-cellular standard. The receiver may comprise more than one receiver. The transmitter may comprise more than one transmitter. The radio interface 16 may comprise a transceiver configured to receive and transmit information in accordance with at least one cellular or non-cellular standard. The transceiver may comprise more than one transceiver.

[0173] The apparatus 10 may optionally comprise a user interface 18 comprising, for example, at least one of a keypad, a microphone, a touch display, a display, a speaker, etc. The user interface 18 may be used to control the apparatus by the user. The user interface 18 may be external to the apparatus 10.For example, the apparatus 10 may be connected to another device, such as a computer, either via wireless or wired connection, and the apparatus 10 is controlled by the user via the computer.

[0174] In an embodiment, at least some of the processes described herein may be carried out by an apparatus comprising means for carrying out at least some of the described processes. Means for performing method steps as disclosed herein may include software and / or hardware components of the apparatus 10. For example, the at least one processor 12, the memory 14, and the computer program code form means for carrying out the method or methods (or portion(s) thereof) as disclosed herein, and any of the embodiments (or respective portion(s) thereof).

[0175] As used herein the term "means” is to be construed in singular form, i.e. referring to a single element, or in plural form, i.e. referring to a combination of single elements. Therefore, terminology "means for [performing A, B, C]”, is to be interpreted to cover an apparatus in which there is only one means for performing A, B and C, or where there are separate means for performing A, B and C, or partially or fully overlapping means for performing A, B, C. Further, terminology "means for performing A, means for performing B, means for performing C” is to be interpreted to cover an apparatus in which there is only one means for performing A, B and C, or where there are separate means for performing A, B and C, or partially or fully overlapping means for performing A, B, C.

[0176] Even though this disclosure has been described above with reference to non-limiting and illustrative examples according to the accompanying figures, it is clear that the scope of this disclosure is not restricted thereto - but can be modified in many different ways. As technology advances, it will become apparent to a person skilled in art as to how the disclosure can be further implemented and / or modified in various ways. Further, it is clear to a person skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein may, but are not required to, be combined in various ways with other embodiments described herein.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A terminal device comprising:at least one processor; andat least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the terminal device at least to:receive information which provides information relating to allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots;determine, using the information which provides information relating to the allocation of resources, the resources allocated across the plurality of time slots; andcommunicate data using the determined resources.

2. The terminal device as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the resources comprise a plurality of symbols, said plurality of symbols occurring in said plurality of time slots.

3. The terminal device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the plurality of symbols comprise a number of symbols greater than the number of symbols in one time slot of the plurality of time slots.

4. The terminal device as claimed in claim 2 or 3, wherein the plurality of time slots are part of a slot group.

5. The terminal device as claimed in claim 2, 3 or 4, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to determine a starting symbol in one of the plurality of time slots.

6. The terminal device as claimed in any of claims 2 to 5, wherein information which provides information relating to the allocation of resources across the plurality of time slots comprises at least one of:information indicating a starting symbol of the allocated resources;information indicating a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots;information indicating a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots relative to a time slot in which scheduling control information is received;information indicating a slot group comprising the plurality of time slots;information indicating a slot group comprising the plurality of time slots, relative to a slot group in which scheduling control information is received;information indicating one or more of a scaling factor and a number of symbols;information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbols;a start and length indicator vector, SLIV, wherein the start and length vector provide information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbols;information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbol groups; ora start and length indicator vector, SLIV, wherein the start and length vector provide information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbol groups.

7. The terminal device as claimed in 4 or any claim appended thereto, wherein a starting slot of the slot group is indicated by a slot offset, or the starting slot group is indicated by a slot group offset.

8. The terminal device as claimed in claim 6, wherein the information relating to one or more of starting symbol or the length is provided by a reference to an entry in a table.

9. The terminal device as claimed in claim 6 or 8, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to determine a number of allocated symbols, starting from the starting symbol, using the information relating to one or more of the scaling factor and the length information associated with the allocated number of symbols.

10. The terminal device as claimed in claim 6 or 9, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to determine a number of allocated symbol groups, starting from the starting symbol, using the length information associated with an allocated number of symbol groups.

11. The terminal device as claimed in claim 6, 8, 9 or 10, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to receive information associated with a size of a symbol group.

12. The terminal device as claimed in claim 10, wherein the information associated with the size of the symbol group is received via radio resource control, RRC or via a medium access control control element, MAC CE.

13. The terminal device as claimed in claim 6, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to determine the starting symbol based on the information indicating the starting time slot of the plurality of time slots relative to the time slot in which scheduling control information is received or the information indicating the slot group comprising the plurality of time slots, relative to the slot group in which scheduling control information is received.

14. The terminal device as claimed in any of claims 2 to 5, or any claim appended thereto, wherein the information relating to the allocation of resources is provided by scheduling control information, and the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to determine the starting symbol in dependence on a time slot in which the scheduling control information is received.

15. The terminal device as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the information relating to allocation of resources is provided by scheduling control information, medium access control element, MAC CE or radio resource control, RRC.

16. The terminal device as claimed in claim 4 or any claim appended thereto wherein a number of symbols of the allocated resources is the same as the number of symbols of the slot group.

17. The terminal device as claimed in claim 5 or any claim appended thereto wherein the starting symbol is in a starting slot of the slot group.

18. The terminal device as claimed in claim 6 or any claim appended thereto, wherein the instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the terminal device to receive configuration information indicating a size of information relating to the allocated number of symbols or the start and length indicator vector, and use the configuration information when determining a number of symbols of the allocated resources.

19. A method comprising:receiving information which provides information relating to allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots;determining, using the information which provides information relating to the allocation of resources, the resources allocated across the plurality of time slots; andcommunicating data using the determined resources.

20. A terminal device comprising:means for receiving information which provides information relating to allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots;means for determining, using the information which provides information relating to the allocation of resources, the resources allocated across the plurality of time slots; andmeans for communicating data using the determined resources.

21. A network node comprising:at least one processor; andat least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the network node at least to:provide information to a terminal, which provides information relating to allocation of resources across a plurality of time slots;provide a terminal with downlink control; andcommunicate with the terminal using the allocated resources.

22. The network node as claimed in claim 21 , wherein the resources comprise a plurality of symbols, said plurality of symbols occurring in said plurality of time slots.

23. The network node as claimed in claim 22, wherein the plurality of symbols comprise a number of symbols greater than the number of symbols in one time slot of the plurality of time slots.

24. The network node as claimed in claim 22 or 23, wherein information which provides information relating to the allocation of resources across the plurality of time slots comprises at least one of:information indicating a starting symbol of the allocated resources;information indicating a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots;information indicating a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots relative to a time slot in which scheduling control information is received;information indicating a slot group comprising the plurality of time slots;information indicating a slot group comprising the plurality of time slots, relative to a slot group in which scheduling control information is received;information indicating one or more of a scaling factor and a number of symbols;information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbols;a start and length indicator vector, SLIV, wherein the start and length vector provide information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbols;information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbol groups; ora start and length indicator vector, SLIV, wherein the start and length vector provide information indicating a starting symbol within a starting time slot of the plurality of time slots and length information associated with an allocated number of symbol groups.

25. The network node as claimed in claim 24, wherein a starting slot of the slot group is indicated by a slot offset, or the starting slot group is indicated by a slot group offset.

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