WO2016029352A1

WO2016029352A1 - Semi-persistent scheduling capacity enhancement by enabling higer mcs allocation

Info

Publication number: WO2016029352A1
Application number: PCT/CN2014/085160
Authority: WO
Inventors: Minghai Feng; Neng Wang; Jilei Hou
Original assignee: Qualcomm Inc
Current assignee: Qualcomm Inc
Priority date: 2014-08-26
Filing date: 2014-08-26
Publication date: 2016-03-03
Anticipated expiration: 2017-02-26

Abstract

In an aspect of the disclosure a method of allocating a portion of the subframe includes an eNodeB (eNB) sending to a user-equipment device (UE) a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) activation grant signal for SPS. The method includes the eNB sending to the UE a dynamic scheduling (DS) grant signal. The DS grant includes a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) Index for configuration of the SPS. In another aspect, a method includes an eNB sending to a UE a SPS activation grant signal for SPS between the eNB and the UE. The SPS activation grant includes a Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI). The RNTI includes an MCS field including a plurality of bits. At least one bit of the plurality of bits is used for SPS validation. The RNTI also includes a field bit. An MCS Index value is composed of the field bit and the remaining MCS field bits.

Description

SEMI-PERSISTENT SCHEDULING CAPACITY ENHANCEMENT BY ENABLING HIGER MCS ALLOCATION

BACKGROUND Field

The present disclosure relates generally to communication systems, and more particularly, to voice communications.

Background

Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various telecommunication services such as telephony, video, data, messaging, and broadcasts. Typical wireless communication systems may employ multiple-access technologies capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e. g. , bandwidth, transmit power) . Examples of such multiple-access technologies include code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, single-carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, and time division synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) systems.

These multiple access technologies have been adopted in various telecommunication standards to provide a common protocol that enables different wireless devices to communicate on a municipal, national, regional, and even global level. An example of an emerging telecommunication standard is Long Term Evolution (LTE) . LTE is a set of enhancements to the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) mobile standard promulgated by Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) . LTE is designed to better support mobile broadband Internet access by improving spectral efficiency, lowering costs, improving services, making use of new spectrum, and better integrating with other open standards using OFDMA on the downlink (DL) , SC-FDMA on the uplink (UL) , and multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna technology. However, as the demand for mobile broadband access continues to increase, there exists a need for further improvements in LTE technology. Preferably, these improvements should be applicable to other multi-access technologies and the telecommunication standards that employ these technologies.

One current improvement regarding Voice-over-IP (VoIP) communications comes in the form of Semi-Persistent Scheduling (SPS) . SPS is discussed at least in LTE specifications 3GPP TS 36.212 (Version 12.1.0) and 3GPP TS 36.213 (Version 12.2.0) , both of which are incorporated by reference in their entirety. SPS allows an evolved Node B (eNB) to use the same control and physical channels to schedule data transmissions with multiple User Equipment devices (UEs) . Unlike the control signals used for dynamic scheduling, SPS involves the use of only one control signal on the control channel when first establishing the signal. Because SPS uses fewer control signals, the overhead for data transmission is greatly lowered.

While SPS lowers overhead when using the control channel, current limitations imposed by the LTE standard limit the types of modulation that can be used when performing SPS. Such limitations also result in larger allocations of resources in order to operate effectively； much of the additional allocations negate the overall utility of using SPS. There exists a need for further improvements in SPS implementation. Preferably, these improvements should be applicable to the existing requirements of the LTE standard to allow interoperability with current hardware and software.

SUMMARY

In an aspect of the disclosure, a method and apparatus are provided. A method of allocating a portion of the subframe includes an eNodeB (eNB) sending to a user-equipment device (UE) a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) activation grant signal for SPS between the eNB and the UE. The method also includes the eNB sending to the UE a dynamic scheduling (DS) grant signal. The DS grant includes a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) Index for configuration of the SPS.

In an aspect of the disclosure, an apparatus for allocating a portion of the subframe is provided. The apparatus includes a memory and a processor. The processor is configured for an eNodeB (eNB) to send to a user-equipment device (UE) a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) activation grant signal for SPS between the eNB and the UE. The processor is also configured for the eNB to send to the UE a dynamic scheduling (UE) a dynamic scheduling (DS) grant signal. The DS grant includes a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) Index for configuration of the SPS.

In an aspect of the disclosure, a method of allocating a portion of the subframe is provided. The method includes an eNodeB (eNB) sending to a user-equipment device (UE) a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) activation grant signal for SPS between the eNB and the UE. The SPS activation grant signal includes a Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI) . The RNTI includes a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) field including a plurality of bits. At least one bit of the plurality of bits is used for SPS validation. The RNTI also includes a field bit. The MCS Index value is composed of the field bit and the remaining bits of the MCS field.

In an aspect of the disclosure, an apparatus of allocating a portion of the subframe is provided. The apparatus includes a memory and a processor. The processor is configured for an eNodeB (eNB) to send to a user-equipment device (UE) a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) activation grant signal for SPS between the eNB and the UE. The SPS activation grant signal includes a Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI) . The RNTI includes a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) field including a plurality of bits. At least one bit of the plurality of bits is used for SPS validation. The RNTI also includes a field bit. The MCS Index value is composed of the field bit and the remaining bits of the MCS field.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a network architecture.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of an access network.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a DL frame structure in LTE.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of an UL frame structure in LTE.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a radio protocol architecture for the user and control planes.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of an evolved Node B (eNB) and user equipment in an access network.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a range expanded cellular region in a heterogeneous network.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating operations and message flows between the eNB and user equipment (UE) in an exemplary system.

FIG. 9A is another conceptual data flow diagram illustrating the data flow between the eNB and UE in an exemplary system.

FIG. 9B is a diagram illustrating example Radio Network Temporary Identifiers (RNTIs) used in an exemplary system.

FIG. 10 is a flow chart of a method of an exemplary eNB allocating a portion of a subframe in a channel with an UE.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart of a method of an exemplary UE receiving an allocation of a portion of a subframe in a channel with an eNB.

FIG. 12 is another flow chart of a method of an exemplary eNB allocating a portion of a subframe in a channel with an UE.

FIG. 13 is another flow chart of a method of an exemplary UE an allocation of a portion of a subframe in a channel with an UE.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The detailed description set forth below in connection with the appended drawings is intended as a description of various configurations and is not intended to represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein may be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of various concepts. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well known structures and components are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring such concepts.

Several aspects of telecommunication systems will now be presented with reference to various apparatus and methods. These apparatus and methods will be described in the following detailed description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, modules, components, circuits, steps, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively referred to as ″elements″ ) . These elements may be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether such elements are implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system.

By way of example, an element, or any portion of an element, or any combination of elements may be implemented with a ″processing system″ that includes one or more processors. Examples of processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors (DSPs) , field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) , programmable logic devices (PLDs) , state machines, gated logic, discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware configured to perform the various functionality described throughout this disclosure. One or more processors in the processing system may execute software. Software shall be construed broadly to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executables, threads of execution, procedures, functions, etc. , whether referred to as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise.

Accordingly, in one or more exemplary embodiments, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or encoded as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes computer storage media. Storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media can comprise a random-access memory (RAM) , a read-only memory (ROM) , an electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM) , compact disk ROM (CD-ROM) or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer. Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope of computer-readable media.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an LTE network architecture 100. The LTE network architecture 100 may be referred to as an Evolved Packet System (EPS) 100. The EPS 100 may include one or more user equipment (UE) 102, an Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) 104, an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) 110, and an Operator′s Internet Protocol (IP) Services 122. The EPS can interconnect with other access networks, but for simplicity those entities/interfaces are not shown. As shown, the EPS provides packet-switched services, however, as those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, the various concepts presented throughout this disclosure may be extended to networks providing circuit-switched services.

The E-UTRAN includes the evolved Node B (eNB) 106 and other eNBs 108, and may include a Multicast Coordination Entity (MCE) 128. The eNB 106 provides user and control planes protocol terminations toward the UE 102. The eNB 106 may be connected to the other eNBs 108 via a backhaul (e. g. , an X2 interface) . The MCE 128 allocates time/frequency radio resources for evolved Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS) (eMBMS) , and determines the radio configuration (e. g. , a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) ) for the eMBMS. The MCE 128 may be a separate entity or part of the eNB 106. The eNB 106 may also be referred to as a base station, a Node B, an access point, a base transceiver station, a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a transceiver function, a basic service set (BSS) , an extended service set (ESS) , or some other suitable terminology. The eNB 106 provides an access point to the EPC 110 for a UE 102. Examples of UEs 102 include a cellular phone, a smart phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA) , a satellite radio, a global positioning system, a multimedia device, a video device, a digital audio player (e. g. , MP3 player) , a camera, a game console, a tablet, or any other similar functioning device. The UE 102 may also be referred to by those skilled in the art as a mobile station, a subscriber station, a mobile unit, a subscriber unit, a wireless unit, a remote unit, a mobile device, a wireless device, a wireless communications device, a remote device, a mobile subscriber station, an access terminal, a mobile terminal, a wireless terminal, a remote terminal, a handset, a user agent, a mobile client, a client, or some other suitable terminology.

The eNB 106 is connected to the EPC 110. The EPC 110 may include a Mobility Management Entity (MME) 112, a Home Subscriber Server (HSS) 120, other MMEs 114, a Serving Gateway 116, a Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS) Gateway 124, a Broadcast Multicast Service Center (BM-SC) 126, and a Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway 118. The MME 112 is the control node that processes the signaling between the UE 102 and the EPC 110. Generally, the MME 112 provides bearer and connection management. All user IP packets are transferred through the Serving Gateway 116, which itself is connected to the PDN Gateway 118. The PDN Gateway 118 provides UE IP address allocation as well as other functions. The PDN Gateway 118 and the BM-SC 126 are connected to the IP Services 122. The IP Services 122 may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) , a PS Streaming Service (PSS) , and/or other IP services. The BM-SC 126 may provide functions for MBMS user service provisioning and delivery. The BM-SC 126 may serve as an entry point for content provider MBMS transmission, may be used to authorize and initiate MBMS Bearer Services within a PLMN, and may be used to schedule and deliver MBMS transmissions. The MBMS Gateway 124 may be used to distribute MBMS traffic to the eNBs (e. g. , 106, 108) belonging to a Multicast Broadcast Single Frequency Network (MBSFN) area broadcasting a particular service, and may be responsible for session management (start/stop) and for collecting eMBMS related charging information.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of an access network 200 in an LTE network architecture. In this example, the access network 200 is divided into a number of cellular regions (cells) 202. One or more lower power class eNBs 208 may have cellular regions 210 that overlap with one or more of the cells 202. The lower power class eNB 208 may be a femto cell (e. g. , home eNB (HeNB) ) , pico cell, micro cell, or remote radio head (RRH) . The macro eNBs 204 are each assigned to a respective cell 202 and are configured to provide an access point to the EPC 110 for all the UEs 206 in the cells 202. There is no centralized controller in this example of an access network 200, but a centralized controller may be used in alternative configurations. The eNBs 204 are responsible for all radio related functions including radio bearer control, admission control, mobility control, scheduling, security, and connectivity to the serving gateway 116. An eNB may support one or multiple (e. g. , three) cells (also referred to as a sectors) . The term ″cell″ can refer to the smallest coverage area of an eNB and/or an eNB subsystem serving are particular coverage area. Further, the terms ″eNB, ″ ″base station, ″ and ″cell″ may be used interchangeably herein.

The modulation and multiple access scheme employed by the access network 200 may vary depending on the particular telecommunications standard being deployed. In LTE applications, OFDM is used on the DL and SC-FDMA is used on the UL to support both frequency division duplex (FDD) and time division duplex (TDD) . As those skilled in the art will readily appreciate from the detailed description to follow, the various concepts presented herein are well suited for LTE applications. However, these concepts may be readily extended to other telecommunication standards employing other modulation and multiple access techniques. By way of example, these concepts may be extended to Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO) or Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB) . EV-DO and UMB are air interface standards promulgated by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2) as part of the CDMA2000 family of standards and employs CDMA to provide broadband Internet access to mobile stations. These concepts may also be extended to Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA) employing Wideband-CDMA (W-CDMA) and other variants of CDMA, such as TD-SCDMA； Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) employing TDMA； and Evolved UTRA (E-UTRA) , IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi) , IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX) , IEEE 802.20, and Flash-OFDM employing OFDMA. UTRA, E-UTRA, UMTS, LTE and GSM are described in documents from the 3GPP organization. CDMA2000 and UMB are described in documents from the 3GPP2 organization. The actual wireless communication standard and the multiple access technology employed will depend on the specific application and the overall design constraints imposed on the system.

The eNBs 204 may have multiple antennas supporting MIMO technology.The use of MIMO technology enables the eNBs 204 to exploit the spatial domain to support spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and transmit diversity. Spatial multiplexing may be used to transmit different streams of data simultaneously on the same frequency. The data streams may be transmitted to a single UE 206 to increase the data rate or to multiple UEs 206 to increase the overall system capacity. This is achieved by spatially precoding each data stream (i. e. , applying a scaling of an amplitude and a phase) and then transmitting each spatially precoded stream through multiple transmit antennas on the DL. The spatially precoded data streams arrive at the UE (s) 206 with different spatial signatures, which enables each of the UE (s) 206 to recover the one or more data streams destined for that UE 206. On the UL, each UE 206 transmits a spatially precoded data stream, which enables the eNB 204 to identify the source of each spatially precoded data stream.

Spatial multiplexing is generally used when channel conditions are good. When channel conditions are less favorable, beamforming may be used to focus the transmission energy in one or more directions. This may be achieved by spatially precoding the data for transmission through multiple antennas. To achieve good coverage at the edges of the cell, a single stream beamforming transmission may be used in combination with transmit diversity.

In the detailed description that follows, various aspects of an access network will be described with reference to a MIMO system supporting OFDM on the DL. OFDM is a spread-spectrum technique that modulates data over a number of subcarriers within an OFDM symbol. The subcarriers are spaced apart at precise frequencies. The spacing provides ″orthogonality″ that enables a receiver to recover the data from the subcarriers. In the time domain, a guard interval (e. g. , cyclic prefix) may be added to each OFDM symbol to combat inter-OFDM-symbol interference. The UL may use SC-FDMA in the form of a DFT-spread OFDM signal to compensate for high peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) .

FIG. 3 is a diagram 300 illustrating an example of a DL frame structure in LTE. A frame (10 ms) may be divided into 10 equally sized subframes. Each subframe may include two consecutive time slots. A resource grid may be used to represent two time slots, each time slot including a resource block. The resource grid is divided into multiple resource elements. In LTE, for a normal cyclic prefix, a resource block contains 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 7 consecutive OFDM symbols in the time domain, for a total of 84 resource elements. For an extended cyclic prefix, a resource block contains 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 6 consecutive OFDM symbols in the time domain, for a total of 72 resource elements. Some of the resource elements, indicated as

R

302, 304, include DL reference signals (DL-RS) . The DL-RS include Cell-specific RS (CRS) (also sometimes called common RS) 302 and UE-specific RS (UE-RS) 304. UE-RS 304 are transmitted only on the resource blocks upon which the corresponding physical DL shared channel (PDSCH) is mapped. The number of bits carried by each resource element depends on the modulation scheme. Thus, the more resource blocks that a UE receives and the higher the modulation scheme, the higher the data rate for the UE.

FIG. 4 is a diagram 400 illustrating an example of an UL frame structure in LTE. The available resource blocks for the UL may be partitioned into a data section and a control section. The control section may be formed at the two edges of the system bandwidth and may have a configurable size. The resource blocks in the control section may be assigned to UEs for transmission of control information. The data section may include all resource blocks not included in the control section. The UL frame structure results in the data section including contiguous subcarriers, which may allow a single UE to be assigned all of the contiguous subcarriers in the data section.

A UE may be assigned

resource blocks

410a, 410b in the control section to transmit control information to an eNB. The UE may also be assigned

resource blocks

420a, 420b in the data section to transmit data to the eNB. The UE may transmit control information in a physical UL control channel (PUCCH) on the assigned resource blocks in the control section. The UE may transmit only data or both data and control information in a physical UL shared channel (PUSCH) on the assigned resource blocks in the data section. A UL transmission may span both slots of a subframe and may hop across frequency.

A set of resource blocks may be used to perform initial system access and achieve UL synchronization in a physical random access channel (PRACH) 430. The PRACH 430 carries a random sequence and cannot carry any UL data/signaling. Each random access preamble occupies a bandwidth corresponding to six consecutive resource blocks. The starting frequency is specified by the network. That is, the transmission of the random access preamble is restricted to certain time and frequency resources. There is no frequency hopping for the PRACH. The PRACH attempt is carried in a single subframe (1 ms) or in a sequence of few contiguous subframes and a UE can make only a single PRACH attempt per frame (10 ms) .

FIG. 5 is a diagram 500 illustrating an example of a radio protocol architecture for the user and control planes in LTE. The radio protocol architecture for the UE and the eNB is shown with three layers： Layer 1, Layer 2, and Layer 3. Layer 1 (L1 layer) is the lowest layer and implements various physical layer signal processing functions. The L1 layer will be referred to herein as the physical layer 506. Layer 2 (L2 layer) 508 is above the physical layer 506 and is responsible for the link between the UE and eNB over the physical layer 506.

In the user plane, the L2 layer 508 includes a media access control (MAC) sublayer 510, a radio link control (RLC) sublayer 512, and a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) 514 sublayer, which are terminated at the eNB on the network side. Although not shown, the UE may have several upper layers above the L2 layer 508 including a network layer (e. g. , IP layer) that is terminated at the PDN gateway 118 on the network side, and an application layer that is terminated at the other end of the connection (e. g. , far end UE, server, etc. ) .

The PDCP sublayer 514 provides multiplexing between different radio bearers and logical channels. The PDCP sublayer 514 also provides header compression for upper layer data packets to reduce radio transmission overhead, security by ciphering the data packets, and handover support for UEs between eNBs. The RLC sublayer 512 provides segmentation and reassembly of upper layer data packets, retransmission of lost data packets, and reordering of data packets to compensate for out-of-order reception due to hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) . The MAC sublayer 510 provides multiplexing between logical and transport channels. The MAC sublayer 510 is also responsible for allocating the various radio resources (e. g. , resource blocks) in one cell among the UEs. The MAC sublayer 510 is also responsible for HARQ operations.

In the control plane, the radio protocol architecture for the UE and eNB is substantially the same for the physical layer 506 and the L2 layer 508 with the exception that there is no header compression function for the control plane. The control plane also includes a radio resource control (RRC) sublayer 516 in Layer 3 (L3 layer) . The RRC sublayer 516 is responsible for obtaining radio resources (e. g. , radio bearers) and for configuring the lower layers using RRC signaling between the eNB and the UE.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of an eNB 610 in communication with a UE 650 in an access network. In the DL, upper layer packets from the core network are provided to a controller/processor 675. The controller/processor 675 implements the functionality of the L2 layer. In the DL, the controller/processor 675 provides header compression, ciphering, packet segmentation and reordering, multiplexing between logical and transport channels, and radio resource allocations to the UE 650 based on various priority metrics. The controller/processor 675 is also responsible for HARQ operations, retransmission of lost packets, and signaling to the UE 650.

The transmit (TX) processor 616 implements various signal processing functions for the L1 layer (i. e. , physical layer) . The signal processing functions include coding and interleaving to facilitate forward error correction (FEC) at the UE 650 and mapping to signal constellations based on various modulation schemes (e. g. , binary phase-shift keying (BPSK) , quadrature phase-shift keying (QPSK) , M-phase-shift keying (M-PSK) , M-quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM) ) . The coded and modulated symbols are then split into parallel streams. Each stream is then mapped to an OFDM subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e. g. , pilot) in the time and/or frequency domain, and then combined together using an Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT) to produce a physical channel carrying a time domain OFDM symbol stream. The OFDM stream is spatially precoded to produce multiple spatial streams. Channel estimates from a channel estimator 674 may be used to determine the coding and modulation scheme, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimate may be derived from a reference signal and/or channel condition feedback transmitted by the UE 650. Each spatial stream may then be provided to a different antenna 620 via a separate transmitter 618TX. Each transmitter 618TX may modulate an RF carrier with a respective spatial stream for transmission.

At the UE 650, each receiver 654RX receives a signal through its respective antenna 652. Each receiver 654RX recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to the receive (RX) processor 656. The RX processor 656 implements various signal processing functions of the L1 layer. The RX processor 656 may perform spatial processing on the information to recover any spatial streams destined for the UE 650. If multiple spatial streams are destined for the UE 650, they may be combined by the RX processor 656 into a single OFDM symbol stream. The RX processor 656 then converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time-domain to the frequency domain using a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) . The frequency domain signal comprises a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols on each subcarrier, and the reference signal, are recovered and demodulated by determining the most likely signal constellation points transmitted by the eNB 610. These soft decisions may be based on channel estimates computed by the channel estimator 658. The soft decisions are then decoded and deinterleaved to recover the data and control signals that were originally transmitted by the eNB 610 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to the controller/processor 659.

The controller/processor 659 implements the L2 layer. The controller/processor can be associated with a memory 660 that stores program codes and data. The memory 660 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, the controller/processor 659 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, deciphering, header decompression, control signal processing to recover upper layer packets from the core network. The upper layer packets are then provided to a data sink 662, which represents all the protocol layers above the L2 layer. Various control signals may also be provided to the data sink 662 for L3 processing. The controller/processor 659 is also responsible for error detection using an acknowledgement (ACK) and/or negative acknowledgement (NACK) protocol to support HARQ operations.

In the UL, a data source 667 is used to provide upper layer packets to the controller/processor 659. The data source 667 represents all protocol layers above the L2 layer. Similar to the functionality described in connection with the DL transmission by the eNB 610, the controller/processor 659 implements the L2 layer for the user plane and the control plane by providing header compression, ciphering, packet segmentation and reordering, and multiplexing between logical and transport channels based on radio resource allocations by the eNB 610. The controller/processor 659 is also responsible for HARQ operations, retransmission of lost packets, and signaling to the eNB 610.

Channel estimates derived by a channel estimator 658 from a reference signal or feedback transmitted by the eNB 610 may be used by the TX processor 668 to select the appropriate coding and modulation schemes, and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the TX processor 668 may be provided to different antenna 652 via separate transmitters 654TX. Each transmitter 654TX may modulate an RF carrier with a respective spatial stream for transmission.

The UL transmission is processed at the eNB 610 in a manner similar to that described in connection with the receiver function at the UE 650. Each receiver 618RX receives a signal through its respective antenna 620. Each receiver 618RX recovers information modulated onto an RF carrier and provides the information to a RX processor 670. The RX processor 670 may implement the L1 layer.

The controller/processor 675 implements the L2 layer. The controller/processor 675 can be associated with a memory 676 that stores program codes and data. The memory 676 may be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In the UL, the control/processor 675 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, deciphering, header decompression, control signal processing to recover upper layer packets from the UE 650. Upper layer packets from the controller/processor 675 may be provided to the core network. The controller/processor 675 is also responsible for error detection using an ACK and/or NACK protocol to support HARQ operations.

FIG. 7 is a diagram 700 illustrating a range expanded cellular region in a heterogeneous network. A lower power class eNB such as the RRH 710b may have a range expanded cellular region 703 that is expanded from the cellular region 702 through enhanced inter-cell interference coordination between the RRH 710b and the macro eNB 710a and through interference cancelation performed by the UE 720. In enhanced inter-cell interference coordination, the RRH 710b receives information from the macro eNB 710a regarding an interference condition of the UE 720. The information allows the RRH 710b to serve the UE 720 in the range expanded cellular region 703 and to accept a handoff of the UE 720 from the macro eNB 710a as the UE 720 enters the range expanded cellular region 703.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating operations and message flows between the eNB and user equipment (UE) in an exemplary system. Communications network 800 can include a User Equipment (UE) device 801 and an evolved Node B (eNB) 803. In some embodiments, communications system 800 can include multiple UEs 801 that connect to a common eNB 803. In some embodiments, communications system 800 can be similar to Evolved Packet Core (EPC) 100. In such instances, the operation and message flows can, for example, be between eNB 106 and UE 102 of EPC 100.

As shown in FIG. 8, eNB 803 sends a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) activation grant 811 to the UE 801. In the illustrated embodiment, for example, SPS activation grant 811 is in the form of a Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI) , specifically a SPS-C-RNTI that is used to in the SPS configuration process between UE 801 and eNB 803. SPS Activation Grant 811 can be carried in Downlink Control Information (DCI) . DCI comes in a number of formats, including

Format

0, 1, 1A, 2, 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D. Depending on the data to be transmitted (e. g. , establishing an uplink vs. a downlink channel) , SPS Activation Grant 811 can have a specified DCI format. For example, SPS Activation Grant 811 is carried on a DCI Format 0 when scheduling the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) in an uplink cell.

As will be discussed in relation to FIGS. 9A-9B, SPS Activation Grant 811 can include a field in its structure that specifies a Modulation and Coding Scheme (MCS) and redundancy version (I_MCS) . As discussed in detail in section 7.1.7 of 3GPP TS 36.213, UE 801 determines the modulation order and transport block sizes to use in a physical downlink or uplink channel based on the MCS field in the DCI.

The eNB 803 can also send a dynamic scheduling (DS) grant 813 in addition to the SPS Activation Grant 811. In some embodiments, eNB sends DS grant 813 in conjunction with SPS Activation Grant 811 by sending both signals in the same downlink subframe. As will be discussed in relation to FIG. 11, in such instances where eNB 803 sends coordinated SPS grant 811 and DS grant 813, UE 801 will not commence semi-persistent scheduling until it receives and properly decodes both messages. In the illustrative embodiment, for example, DS grant 813 includes an MCS field that can replace the MCS field included in SPS Activation Grant 811. In such instances, UE 801 can receive both SPS Activation Grant 811 and DS Grant 813 and use the MCS field included in DS Grant 813 to determine the modulation order and transport block size to use the physical uplink or downlink channel.

The eNB 803 can also send an Allocation message 815 in the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) to UE 801. In some embodiments, allocation 815 is sent simultaneously with DS grant message 813. In some embodiments, allocation 815 is scheduled based on information included in SPS Activation Grant message 811. Allocation 815 can include the allocated physical resource blocks (PCBs) that are allocated to UE 801 for the semi-persistent scheduling as specified in the SPS RNTI. In some embodiments, allocation 815 uses the MCS Index included in DS grant 813 to allocate the proper number of PCBs to correspond with the transport block size. As discussed in section 3GPP TS 36.213, §§ 7.1.7.1-7.1.7.2, the MCS Index corresponds with a transport block size (TBS) Index number, I_TBS (illustrated in Table 7.1.7.1-1) , with the TBS Index number corresponding to a transport block size, represented by the number of physical resource blocks to be used (N_PRB, illustrated in Table 7.1.7.2.1-1) .

Once UE 801 receives the allocation in the PDCCH, UE 801 can send an ACK/NACK message 817 back to eNB 803 in response to the reception or non-reception of SPS Grant 811, DS Grant 813, and/or Allocation 815. In some embodiments, the acknowledgement 817 is only sent when UE 801 receives each of messages 811-815. In some embodiments, UE 801 will not be in a state to proceed with semi-persistent scheduling until it properly receives each of messages 811-815 from eNB 803. When eNB 803 determines that UE 801 is not performing SPS or not in a state to perform SPS, eNB 803 can resend one or more of messages 811-815 until eNB 803 determines that UE 801 is in a state to perform SPS.

In some embodiments, such as when the channel being established is for uplink data transmissions, eNB 803 can determine that UE 801 is performing SPS when eNB 803 receives a PUSCH transmission as an uplink message from UE 801. In some embodiments, eNB 803 can determine that UE 801 is performing SPS when eNB 803 receives another ACK/NACK 820 feedback message from UE 801 in response to eNB sending Data message 819.

After eNB 803 sends grant messages 811-813 and allocation 815, eNB 803 can send or receive

data

819, 821 at periodic intervals as specified in SPS Allocation Grant 811. SPS Allocation Grant 811 includes a Transmission Time Interval (TTI) that corresponds to the period (s) where data is sent between UE 801 and eNB 803. In the illustrative embodiment, for example, SPS Allocation Grant 811 can include the TTI where eNB 803 can send data to UE 801 via the allocated Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) ； UE 801 will only expect to receive data from eNB 803 at those times specified by the TTI and may attempt to only receive and decode data sent by eNB 803 at those periods. In some embodiments, for example, eNB 803 can use SPS to schedule transmission of data to multiple UEs using the same PDSCH by specifying different TTIs. In some embodiments, the TTI is used to schedule PUSCH transmissions of data from UE 801 to eNB 803； eNB 803 can similarly specify different TTIs for multiple UEs to receive transmissions using a common PUSCH at specified times that are included in the initial SPS Activation Grant 811. In some embodiments, the receiving component can send ACK/

NACK messages

820, 822 in response to the successful or unsuccessful reception of the scheduled

data transmission

819, 821.

In some embodiments, the component in system 800 can receive scheduled

data transmissions

819, 821 until an event occurs that stops the scheduling. In some embodiments, the end of SPS transmissions can be based on an explicit SPS deactivation message sent from eNB 803 to UE 801. In some embodiments, the original SPS Activation grant 811 can include an expiration time that would require eNB 803 to renew SPS with UE 801 with a new SPS Activation Grant message 811. In some embodiments, an event, such as multiple NACK messages sent in response to

unsuccessful data transmissions

819, 821 can trigger SPS between UE 801 and eNB 803 to cease. In some embodiments, UE 801 can send ACK/NACK feedback messages for downlink reception for each SPS period (as defined by the TTI) before SPS deactivation. In the illustrative embodiment, for example, UE 801 can send ACK/

NACK messages

820, 822 at each SPS period in response to receiving the

periodic data transmissions

819, 821 from eNB 803. UE 801 may continually send ACK/NACK messages until the SPS is deactivated.

FIG. 9A is another conceptual data flow diagram illustrating the data flow between the eNB and UE in an exemplary system. System 900 is similar to system 800 and can include UE 901 and eNB 903. In some embodiments, system 900 can be similar to EPC 100. In such instances, UE 102 and eNB 106 can send messages in a similar manner to those components in system 900.

The eNB 903 can send an SPS Activation Grant message 911 to UE 901 to set up semi-persistent scheduling between UE 901 and eNB 903. In the illustrative embodiment, for example, eNB 903 sends UE 901 an SPS Activation Grant in a DCI that includes the applicable RNTI (here, SPS-C-RNTI) , and TTI for the semi-persistent downlink transmissions from eNB 903 to UE 901. In the illustrative embodiment, for example, SPS activation grant message 911 includes an MCS Index value, which UE 901 uses to determine the modulation order and transport block size to be allocated for the uplink or downlink physical channel. As will be discussed in relation to FIG. 9B, the MCS Index value can be composed of bits from different fields included in the SPS Activation Grant message 911. For example, the MCS Index can include four bits from the MCS field and a fifth bit from a New Data Indicator bit, a field that is not processed by UE 901 when determining that the messages is an SPS Activation Grant message.

The eNB 903 can also send an Allocation message over the PDCCH. In some embodiments, Allocation 915 is sent by eNB 903 simultaneously with SPS Activation Grant 911. In some embodiments, UE 901 expects to receive Allocation 915 at a specified time (e. g. , TTI) as disclosed in SPS Activation Grant 915. Allocation 915 can be sent via the allocated physical resource blocks as determined based on the MCS Index set in SPS Activation Grant 911.

For example, SPS Activation Grant 911 can include an MCS Index (I_MCS) of 17. This corresponds to a TBS Index (I_TBS) of 15. The TBS Index of 15 corresponds to various block sizes based on the number of physical resource blocks used. For example, if the data to be transported only needs a maximum block size of 328 bits, then only one PRB is allocated within the physical channel. Similarly, if the maximum block size is between 329 and 632 bits, two PRBs are allocated within the physical channel.

Once the allocation message 915 is sent,

data transmissions

919, 921 can be sent between UE 901 and eNB 903. Depending on the link (i. e. , uplink or downlink) , data is sent between UE 901 and eNB 903 through either the PUSCH or PDSCH. In the illustrative embodiment, for example, after sending Allocation 915, eNB 903 sends periodic data transmissions to UE 901 via the PDSCH. In some embodiments, the scheduled times for

data transmissions

919, 921 are specified by the TTI included in SPS Activation grant message 911. In some embodiments, periodic data transmissions are sent using the configured SPS parameters until an event stops the SPS data transmissions.

FIG. 9B is a diagram illustrating example Radio Network Temporary Identifiers (RNTIs) used in an exemplary system. An

eNB

803, 903 can send an SPS

Activation grant message

811, 911 that is carried in a DCI that carries different fields depending on the format. DCI 940 illustrates a DCI Format 0 that includes SPS validation information, DCI 960 illustrates a DCI Format 1/1A that includes SPS validation information, and DCI 980 includes a DCI Format 2/2A/2B/2C/2D that includes SPS information.

DCI 940 is a variable-bit DCI formed using Format 0 as specified in 3GPP TS 36.212, § 5.3.3.1.1 and includes multiple fields, including MCS field 941-942, New Data Indicator 943, Channel State Information (CSI) Request 944, and Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) Request 945. DCI 940 can include other fields, such as Carrier Indicator bits, Format 0/1A differentiation flag, and Downlink Assignment Index (DAI) .

UE

801, 901 can use information included in DCI 940 to determine parameters for configuring SPS with

eNB

803, 903 via a physical channel.

In some embodiments, the MCS field 941-942 (I_MCS) may not be large enough to hold the value of the MCS Index. For example, while MCS field 941-942 may be five bits to include MCS Index value of 0-31, UE 901 may, upon receipt of SPS Activation Grant 911 in the form of DCI 940, use the most significant bit (MSB) 941 of the MCS field 941-942 to validate the SPS assignment. In such instances, the MCS field can only include MCS Index values of 0-15.

UE 801 can compensate for the lost of MSB 941 to determine the MCS Index by receiving a second message (DS Grant 813) that includes the full MCS Index in a five-bit MCS field. In such instances, UE 801 uses the MSB 941 in SPS Activation Grant 811 to validate SPS, while ignoring the remaining bits 942 in the MCS field. UE 801 waits to receive the second message that includes the full, five-bit MCS field to determine the MCS Index to be used when allocating the physical channel.

UE 901 can compensate for the loss of MSB 941 in the MCS field 941-942 of SPS Activation Grant message 940 by using a field bit from another portion of DCI 940 message to act as the MSB for the MCS Index value. In such instances, the remaining bits in the MCS field 942 correspond to the four least significant bits (LSB) in the MCS Index, while the field bit can correspond to the MSB in the MCS Index. The field bit can be appended to the four remaining bits of the MCS field to produce a five-bit value that allows SPS activation Grant messages 940 to include a five-bit MCS Index value. This enables SPS Activation Grant message 940 to include MCS Index values of 16-31 without having to revise SPS validation requirements as outlined in 3GPP TS 36.213, § 9.2.

In some embodiments, the field bit can be one bit that is not processed by UE 901 when validating that the message is an SPS assignment. For example, eNB 903 can use one of the bits in the New Data Indicator 943, CSI Request 944, or SRS Request in DCI Format 0 to act as the field bit to store the MCS Index value. In some embodiments, eNB 903 can detect the field bit in use.

DCI 960 is similar to DCI 940. DCI 960 has the format of DCI Format 1 or 1A includes an MCS field composed of MSB 961 and LSBs 962, New Data Indicator 963, Transmit Power Control (TPC) Command for Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) bits 964, and SRS Request 965. The eNB 903 can generate an SPS Activation Grant message 911 in the form of DCI 960, using MSB 961 for SPS validation, while using a bit from one of bits 963-965 to act as a field bit for MCS Index. The field bit can be used as the MSB in the MCS Index, using the remaining bits 962 to store an MCS Index value of 0-31 (though only 0-28 are currently-used values) .

DCI 980 is similar to

DCI

940, 960. DCI 980 has the format of DCI Format 2, 2A, 2B, 2C, or 2D includes an MCS field composed of MSB 981 and LSBs 982, New Data Indicator 983, and Transmit Power Control (TPC) Command for Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) bits 984. The eNB 903 can generate an SPS Activation Grant message 911 in the form of DCI 980, using MSB 981 for SPS validation, while using a bit from one of bits 963-964 to act as a field bit for MCS Index. The field bit can be used as the MSB in the MCS Index, using the remaining bits 982 to store an MCS Index value of 0-31 (though only 0-28 are currently-used values) .

FIG. 10 is a flow chart of a method of an exemplary eNB allocating a portion of a subframe in a channel with an UE. An eNB like

eNB

106, 803 can perform method 1000 when setting up semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) for data transmission between the eNB and a user-equipment device (UE) 102, 801 over a shared physical channel.

Method 1000 can start at step 1001 and proceed to step 1003, where eNB 803 sends a SPS Activation Grant message 811 to UE 801. In some embodiments, the SPS Activation Grant message is carried over a DCI and can have the format of

Format

0, 1, 1A, 2, 2A, 2B, 2C, or 2D, depending on the type of SPS being configured. In some embodiments, SPS Activation grant 811 can include a Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI) in the form of a SPS-C-RNTI and a Transmission Time Interval (TTI) that specifies what times data is to be transmitted between UE 801 and eNB 803.

In step 1005, eNB 803 sends a Dynamic Scheduling (DS) Grant message 813 to UE 801. In some embodiments, DS Grant 813 is sent simultaneously with SPS Grant 811. In some embodiments, DS Grant 813 carries the MCS Index to be used when setting up the physical channel to be used to transmit data between UE 801 and eNB 803.

In step 1007, eNB 803 can determine whether UE 801 is in a state for semi-persistent scheduling. UE 801 is in a state for SPS when it successfully receives both SPS Grant 811 and DS Grant 813. When eNB 803 determines that UE 801 is not in a state for SPS, eNB 803 returns to step 1003, where it resends SPS Grant 811 and/or DS Grant 813 until UE 801 successfully receives both messages. When eNB 803 determines that UE 801 is in a state for SPS, eNB 803 can proceed to step 1009, where it sends an allocation message 815 over the PDCCH to establish the physical channel using the SPS configuration parameters included in SPS Grant 811 and DS Grant 813. Allocation 815 includes the number of physical resource blocks (PRB) that is based on the value of the MCS Index included in DS Grant 813 and the maximum block size expected for the data to be sent.

In some embodiments, eNB 803 can perform step 1007 after step 1009. In such instances, eNB 803 can determine that UE 801 is in a state for SPS by checking messages received from UE 801. For example, eNB 803 can determine that UE 801 is in a state for SPS when eNB 803 receives an ACK message 817 in response to Allocation message 815 or an ACK feedback message for downlink reception； alternatively eNB 803 can determine a positive SPS state from UE 801 when eNB 803 receives a PUSCH transmission for uplink.

In step 1011, data transmissions are sent through the allocated PRBs through the physical channel. When the established channel is a PDSCH, eNB 803 can send

data transmissions

819, 821 through the PDSCH to UE 801 at the times established by the TTI in SPS Grant 811. When the established channel is a PUSCH, eNB 803 can receive data transmissions from UE 801 through the PUSCH at the times established by the TTI in SPS Grant 811. Step 1011 can be repeated periodically until an event stops the scheduled data transmissions between UE 801 and eNB 803. Once the data transmissions are sent, method 1000 can end at step 1013.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart of a method of an exemplary UE receiving an allocation of a portion of a subframe in a channel with an eNB. A UE like

UE

102, 801 can perform method 1100 when semi-persistent scheduling for data transmission over a shared physical channel is being established by

eNB

106, 803.

Method 1100 can start at step 1101 and proceed to step 1103, where UE 801 receives a SPS Activation Grant message 811 from eNB 803. In some embodiments, the SPS Activation Grant message is carried over a DCI and can have the format of

Format

In step 1105, UE 801 receives a Dynamic Scheduling (DS) Grant message 813 from eNB 803. In some embodiments, DS Grant 813 is received simultaneously with SPS Grant 811. In some embodiments, DS Grant 813 carries the MCS Index to be used when setting up the physical channel to be used to transmit data between UE 801 and eNB 803.

In step 1107, UE determines whether it successfully receives both SPS Grant 811 and DS Grant 813. If not, UE 801 proceeds to step 1109, where UE 801 is not in a state for SPS and returns to step 1003, where UE 801 waits to receive a re-sent SPS Grant 811 and/or DS Grant 813. This loop may be repeated until UE 801 in step 1107 determines that it has successfully received both messages.

When UE 801 determines it has received both SPS Grant 811 and DS Grant 813, UE 801 can proceed to step 1111, where it receives an allocation message 815 over the PDCCH that establishes the physical channel using the SPS configuration parameters included in SPS Grant 811 and DS Grant 813. Allocation 815 includes the number of physical resource blocks (PRB) that is based on the value of the MCS Index included in DS Grant 813 and the maximum block size expected for the data to be sent.

In some embodiments, UE can perform step 1107 after step 1111. In such instances, UE 801 can confirm that it is in a state for SPS by sending a confirmation to eNB 803. For example, UE 801 can send an ACK message 817 in response to Allocation message 815 or an ACK feedback message for downlink reception； alternatively UE 801 can send a PUSCH transmission for uplink.

In step 1113, data transmissions are sent through the allocated PRBs through the physical channel. When the established channel is a PDSCH, UE 801 can receive

data transmissions

819, 821 through the PDSCH from eNB 803 at the times established by the TTI in SPS Grant 811. When the established channel is a PUSCH, UE 801 can send data transmissions to eNB 803 through the PUSCH at the times established by the TTI in SPS Grant 811. Step 1113 can be repeated periodically until an event stops the scheduled data transmissions between UE 801 and eNB 803. Once the data transmissions are sent, method 1100 can end at step 1115.

FIG. 12 is another flow chart of a method of an exemplary eNB allocating a portion of a subframe in a channel with an UE. An eNB like

eNB

106, 903 can perform method 1200 when setting up semi-present scheduling for data transmission between the eNB and a

UE

102, 901 over a shared physical channel.

Method 1200 can start at step 1201 and proceed to step 1203, where eNB 903 formats a SPS Activation Grant message 911. In some embodiments, SPS Activation Grant 911 can include a Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI) in the form of a SPS-C-RNTI and a Transmission Time Interval (TTI) that specifies what times data is to be transmitted between UE 901 and eNB 903.

SPS Grant 911 can include the MCS Index that is to be used when setting up the physical channel to be used to transmit data between UE 901 and eNB 903. The eNB 901 can populate a field bit from a section of the SPS Grant 911 such that the field bit can be concatenated to the four least-

significant bits

942, 962, 982 of the MCS field to produce a bit value for the MCS Index. In some embodiments, the field bit can be a bit from an unused field. Depending on the format of the DCI, the field bit can be from one of a New Data Indicator, a CSI Request, an SRS Request, or a TPC Command for PUCCH.

Once the SPS Grant message 911 is formatted, eNB 903 can proceed to step 1205, where eNB 903 sends SPS Grant 911 to UE 901. In some embodiments, SPS Grant 911 is carried over a DCI and can have the format of

Format

0, 1, 1A, 2, 2A, 2B, 2C, or 2D, depending on the type of SPS being configured.

In step 1207, eNB 903 can determine whether UE 901 is in a state for semi-persistent scheduling. UE 901 is in a state for SPS when it successfully receives SPS Grant 911. When eNB 903 determines that UE 901 is not in a state for SPS, eNB 903 returns to step 1205, where it resends SPS Grant 911 until UE 901 successfully receives SPS Grant 911. When eNB 903 determines that UE 901 is in a state for SPS, eNB 903 can proceed to step 1209, where eNB 903 sends an Allocation message 915 over the PDCCH to establish the physical channel using the SPS configuration parameters included in SPS Grant 911. Allocation 915 includes the number of physical resource blocks (PRBs) that is based on the value of the MCS Index and the maximum block size expected for the data to be sent.

In some embodiments, eNB 903 can perform step 1207 after step 1209. In such instances, eNB 903 can determine that UE 901 is in a state for SPS by checking messages received from UE 901. For example, eNB 903 can determine that UE 901 is in a state for SPS when eNB 903 receives an ACK message in response to Allocation message 915 or an ACK feedback message for downlink reception； alternatively eNB 903 can determine a positive SPS state for UE 901 when eNB 903 receives a PUSCH transmission for uplink.

In step 1211, data transmissions are sent through the allocated PRBs through the physical channel. When the established channel is a PDSCH, eNB 903 can send

data transmissions

919, 921 through the PDSCH to UE 901 at the times established by the TTI in SPS Grant 911. When the established channel is a PUSCH, eNB 903 can receive data transmissions from UE 901 through the PUSCH at the times established by the TTI in SPS Grant 911. Step 1211 can be repeated periodically until an event stops the scheduled data transmissions between UE 901 and eNB 903. Once the data transmissions are sent, method 1200 can end at step 1213.

FIG. 13 is another flow chart of a method of an exemplary UE an allocation of a portion of a subframe in a channel with an UE. A UE like

UE

102, 901 can perform method 1300 when semi-persistent scheduling for data transmission over a shared channel is being established by

eNB

106, 903.

Method 1300 can start at step 1301 and proceed to step 1303, where UE 901 receives SPS Grant 911 from eNB 903. In some embodiments, SPS Grant 911 is carried over a DCI and can have the format of

Format

0, 1, 1A, 2, 2A, 2B, 2C, or 2D, depending on the type of SPS being configured. In some embodiments, SPS Activation Grant 911 can include a Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI) in the form of a SPS-C-RNTI and a Transmission Time Interval (TTI) that specifies what times data is to be transmitted between UE 901 and eNB 903.

significant bits

In step 1305, UE can determine whether it successfully received SPS Grant 911 from eNB 903. When it is determined that UE 901 is not in a state for SPS, UE 901 returns to step 1303, where it waits to receive a re-sent SPS Grant 911 from eNB 903. When UE 901 determines that it is in a state for SPS, UE 901 can proceed to step 1307, where UE 901 receives an Allocation message 915 over the PDCCH to establish the physical channel using the SPS configuration parameters included in SPS Grant 911. Allocation 915 includes the number of physical resource blocks (PRBs) that is based on the value of the MCS Index and the maximum block size expected for the data to be sent.

In some embodiments, eNB 903 can perform step 1305 after step 1307. In such instances, UE 901 can confirm that it is in a state for SPS by sending a confirmation to eNB 903. For example, UE 901 can send an ACK message in response to Allocation message 915 or an ACK feedback message for downlink reception； alternatively UE 901 can send a PUSCH transmission for uplink.

In step 1309, data transmissions are sent through the allocated PRBs through the physical channel. When the established channel is a PDSCH, UE 901 can receive

data transmissions

919, 921 through the PDSCH from eNB 903 at the times established by the TTI in SPS Grant 911. When the established channel is a PUSCH, UE 901 can send data transmissions to eNB 903 through the PUSCH at the times established by the TTI in SPS Grant 911. Step 1309 can be repeated periodically until an event stops the scheduled data transmissions between UE 901 and eNB 903. Once the data transmissions are sent, method 1300 can end at step 1311.

It is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of steps in the processes /flow charts disclosed is an illustration of exemplary approaches. Based upon design preferences, it is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of steps in the processes/flow charts may be rearranged. Further, some steps may be combined or omitted. The accompanying method claims present elements of the various steps in a sample order, and are not meant to be limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

The previous description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but is to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language claims, wherein reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean ″one and only one″ unless specifically so stated, but rather ″one or more. ″ The word ″exemplary″ is used herein to mean ″serving as an example, instance, or illustration. ″ Any aspect described herein as ″exemplary″ is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects. Unless specifically stated otherwise, the term ″some″ refers to one or more. Combinations such as ″at least one of A, B, or C, ″ ″at least one of A, B, and C, ″ and ″A, B, C, or any combination thereof″ include any combination of A, B, and/or C, and may include multiples of A, multiples of B, or multiples of C. Specifically, combinations such as ″at least one of A, B, or C, ″ ″at least one of A, B, and C, ″ and ″A, B, C, or any combination thereof″ may be A only, B only, C only, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A and B and C, where any such combinations may contain one or more member or members of A, B, or C. All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the various aspects described throughout this disclosure that are known or later come to be known to those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the claims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public regardless of whether such disclosure is explicitly recited in the claims. No claim element is to be construed as a means plus function unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase ″means for. ″

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS：

Claims

A method of allocating a portion of a subframe, the method comprising：

sending, from an eNodeB (eNB) to a user-equipment device (UE) , a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) activation grant signal for SPS between the eNB and the UE； and

sending, from the eNB to the UE, a dynamic scheduling (DS) grant signal, the DS grant comprising a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) Index for configuration of the SPS.
The method of claim 1, further comprising：

sending, from the eNB to the UE, an allocation signal based on the SPS activation grant and the MCS Index included in the DS grant.
The method of claim 1, further comprising：

sending, from the eNB to the UE, the SPS activation grant signal and the DS grant signal in the same downlink (DL) subframe.
The method of claim 2, wherein a physical resource block (PRB) allocation included in the allocation signal within the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) comprises an allocation of one PRB.
The method of claim 4, further comprising：

receiving, by the eNB from the UE, a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) transmission through the PRB set up based on information included in the allocation signal.
The method of claim 4, further comprising：

sending, by the eNB to the UE, a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) transmission through the PRB set up based on information included in the allocation signal.
The method of claim 1, further comprising：

detecting, by the eNB, whether the UE is in a state for SPS.
The method of claim 7, wherein the UE remains out of a state for SPS until the UE receives the SPS activation grant signal and the DS grant signal simultaneously in one subframe.
The method of claim 7, wherein the eNB determines the UE is in a state for uplink (UL) SPS when the eNB receives a PUSCH transmission on the allocated PRB from the UE.
The method of claim 7, wherein the eNB determines the UE is in a state for downlink (DL) SPS when the eNB receives an ACK/NACK feedback message from the UE for downlink reception for each SPS period before SPS deactivation.
A method of allocating a portion of a subframe, the method comprising：

sending, from an eNodeB (eNB) to a user-equipment device (UE) , a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) activation grant signal for SPS between the eNB and the UE, the SPS activation grant signal comprising：

a Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI) comprising：

a Modulation and Coding Scheme (MCS) Field comprising a plurality of bits, wherein at least one bit of the plurality of bits is used for SPS validation； and

a field bit, wherein an MCS Index value is composed of the field bit and the remaining bits of the MCS Field.
The method of claim 11, wherein the field bit is the most significant bit of the MCS Index and the remaining bits of the MCS Field are the least significant bits of the MCS Index.
The method of claim 11, wherein the RNTI comprises an SRS-C-RNTI that uses Downlink Control Information (DCI) Format 0.
The method of claim 11, wherein the RNTI comprises an SRS-C-RNI that uses one of DCI Format 1 or 1A.
The method of claim 11, wherein the RNTI comprises an SRS-C-RNI that uses one of DCI Format 2, 2A, 2B, 2C, or 2D.
The method of claim 11, wherein the field bit is included in one of the following fields of the RNTI：

a New Data Indicator；

a Channel State Information (CSI) Request；

a Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) Request； or

a Transmit Power Control (TPC) Command for Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) .
The method of claim 11, wherein the MCS Index comprises a value greater than or equal to 16.
The method of claim 11, further comprising：

sending, from the eNB to the UE, an allocation signal, wherein a physical resource block (PRB) allocation included in the allocation signal within the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) comprises an allocation of one PRB.
An apparatus for allocating a portion of a subframe, the apparatus comprising：

a memory； and

at least one processor coupled to the memory and configured to：

send, from an eNodeB (eNB) to a user-equipment device (UE) a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) activation grant signal for SPS between the eNB and the UE； and

send, from the eNB to the UE, a dynamic scheduling (DS) grant signal, the DS grant comprising a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) Index for configuration of the SPS.
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the processor is further configured to：

send, from the eNB to the UE, the SPS activation grant signal and the DS grant signal in the same downlink (DL) subframe.
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the processor is further configured to：

send, from the eNB to the UE, an allocation signal based on the SPS activation grant and the MCS Index included in the DS grant, wherein a physical resource block (PRB) allocation included in the allocation signal within the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) comprises an allocation of one PRB.
The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the processor is further configured to：

receive, by the eNB from the UE, a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) transmission through the allocated PRB.
The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the processor is further configured to：

send, by the eNB to the UE, a Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH) transmission through the allocated PRB.
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the processor is further configured to：

detect, by the eNB, whether the UE is in a state for SPS.
An apparatus for allocating a portion of the subframe, the apparatus comprising：

a memory； and

at least one processor coupled to the memory and configured to：

send, from an eNodeB (eNB) to a user-equipment device (UE) , a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) activation grant signal for SPS between the eNB and the UE, the SPS activation grant signal comprising：

a Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI) comprising：

a Modulation and Coding Scheme (MCS) Field comprising a plurality of bits, wherein at least one bit of the plurality of bits is used for SPS validation； and

a field bit, wherein an MCS Index value is composed of the field bit and the remaining bits of the MCS Field.
The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the field bit is the most significant bit of the MCS Index and the remaining bits of the MCS Field are the least significant bits of the MCS Index.
The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the field bit is included in one of the following fields of the RNTI：

a New Data Indicator；

a Channel State Information (CSI) Request；

a Sounding Reference Signal (SRS) Request； or

a Transmit Power Control (TPC) Command for Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) .
The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the MCS Index comprises a value greater than or equal to 16.
The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the processor is further configured to：

send, from the eNB to the UE, an allocation signal, wherein a physical resource block (PRB) allocation included in the allocation signal within the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) comprises an allocation of one PRB.
The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the RNTI comprises an SRS-C-RNTI that uses DCI Format 0, 1, 1A, 2, 2A, 2B, 2C, or 2D.