Scheduling Timeline in New Radio Spectrum Sharing

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current wireless communication systems face challenges in determining scheduling and transmission timelines in shared communication media, particularly when multiple network operating entities contend for transmission opportunities, leading to inefficiencies and potential collisions.

Innovation Solution

The proposed solution involves determining scheduling timelines using relative timing, allowing base stations to contend for and reserve transmission opportunities without needing knowledge of medium occupancy outside the current transmission opportunity, and enabling user equipment to skip over reserved time periods of other operators, thereby optimizing resource allocation and reducing latency.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If listen-before-talk procedure is used to avoid collisions in shared channel, then channel access reliability is improved, but transmission latency increases due to waiting for channel availability

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvechannel access reliabilityVSAvoidtransmission latency
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The base station performs preliminary actions by determining a scheduling timeline during the current TXOP that extends into future time periods, including future TXOPs. This allows the UE to be scheduled in advance for future transmissions, so that when the future TXOP arrives, the UE is already ready to transmit without waiting for additional scheduling decisions, thereby reducing latency while maintaining reliable channel access through LBT

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Adaptability or versatility

If scheduling is based on relative timing, then scheduling flexibility is improved, but transmission timing accuracy deteriorates when transmission time falls outside current TXOP

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvescheduling flexibilityVSAvoidtransmission timing accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extends the scheduling timeline from a single-dimension current-TXOP-based timing to a multi-dimensional timeline that spans multiple TXOPs of the same base station. By determining scheduling information during current TXOP for future TXOPs and using absolute timing references for future transmissions, the system maintains both the flexibility of relative timing within TXOPs and the accuracy of absolute timing across TXOP boundaries

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

3Productivity

If base station reserves transmission opportunity for extended duration, then resource allocation efficiency is improved, but medium access fairness deteriorates by blocking other operators

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveresource allocation efficiencyVSAvoidmedium access fairness
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSObject-generated harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The scheduling timeline is segmented into multiple discrete TXOPs rather than one continuous reservation. The base station determines scheduling information during current TXOP that spans into future TXOPs, allowing other operators to access the medium in between these scheduled TXOPs. This segmentation maintains high resource allocation efficiency for the scheduling base station while preserving medium access fairness for other operators by not blocking them continuously

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentEP3695673B1Scheduling timeline in new radio-spectrum sharing (NR-ss)
Publication Date: 2023.12.27 QUALCOMM INC
  • EP3695673B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3695673B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3695673B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Wireless communications systems and methods related to determining scheduling and transmission timeline for communicating in a shared communication medium are provided. A first wireless communication device communicates, with a second wireless communication device, scheduling information during a first time period of a first transmission opportunity (TXOP) of a first network operating entity in a shared communication medium, the scheduling information indicating an offset time period relative to the first time period. The first wireless communication device communicates, with the second wireless communication device, a communication signal during a second TXOP subsequent to the first TXOP based on the offset time period.