WO2018170916A1

WO2018170916A1 - Pucch format indication and resource allocation

Info

Publication number: WO2018170916A1
Application number: PCT/CN2017/078163
Authority: WO
Inventors: Hongchao Li
Original assignee: Motorola Mobility LLC
Current assignee: Motorola Mobility LLC
Priority date: 2017-03-24
Filing date: 2017-03-24
Publication date: 2018-09-27
Anticipated expiration: 2019-09-24

Abstract

Apparatuses, methods, and systems are disclosed for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator. One apparatus (700) includes a receiver (735) and a controller (705). The receiver (735) receives (905) a DL control signal (215) from a base unit (110). Here, the DL control signal (215) includes DCI on a DL control channel resource monitoring set. The controller (705) identifies (910) characteristics of the DL control channel (220). From the identified characteristics, the controller (705) determines (915) a PUCCH format and/or a PUCCH resource set. Here, the characteristics of the DL control channel (220) implicitly indicate the PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association.

Description

PUCCH FORMAT INDICATION AND RESOURCE ALLOCATION

FIELD

The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to wireless communications and more particularly relates to providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator.

BACKGROUND

The following abbreviations are herewith defined， at least some of which are referred to within the following description.

Third Generation Partnership Project ( “3GPP” ) ， Positive-Acknowledgment ( “ACK” ) ， Access and Mobility Management Function ( “AMF” ) ， Binary Phase Shift Keying ( “BPSK” ) ， Carrier Aggregation ( “CA” ) ， Clear Channel Assessment ( “CCA” ) ， Control Channel Element ( “CCE” ) ， Cyclic Prefix ( “CP” ) ， Channel State Information ( “CSI” ) ， Common Search Space ( “CSS” ) ， Discrete Fourier Transform Spread ( “DFT-S” ) ， Downlink Control Information ( “DCI” ) ， Discrete Fourier Transform Spread OFDM ( “DFT-S-OFDM” ) ， Downlink ( “DL” ) ， Downlink Pilot Time Slot ( “DwPTS” ) ， Enhanced Clear Channel Assessment ( “eCCA” ) ， Enhanced Mobile Broadband ( “eMBB” ) ， Evolved Node B ( “eNB” ) ， European Telecommunications Standards Institute ( “ETSI” ) ， Frame Based Equipment ( “FBE” ) ， Frequency Division Duplex ( “FDD” ) ， Frequency Division Multiple Access ( “FDMA” ) ， Guard Period ( “GP” ) ， Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request ( “HARQ” ) ， Internet-of-Things ( “IoT” ) ， Key Performance Indicators ( “KPI” ) ， Licensed Assisted Access ( “LAA” ) ， Load Based Equipment ( “LBE” ) ， Listen-Before-Talk ( “LBT” ) ， Long Term Evolution ( “LTE” ) ， LTA Advanced ( “LTE-A” ) ， Medium Access Control ( “MAC” ) ， Multiple Access ( “MA” ) ， Modulation Coding Scheme ( “MCS” ) ， Machine Type Communication ( “MTC” ) ， Massive MTC ( “mMTC” ) ， Multiple Input Multiple Output ( “MIMO” ) ， Multi User Shared Access ( “MUSA” ) ， Narrowband ( “NB” ) ， Negative-Acknowledgment ( “NACK” ) or ( “NAK” ) ， Network Function ( “NF” ) ， Next Generation Node B ( “gNB” ) ， Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access ( “NOMA” ) ， Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing ( “OFDM” ) ， Primary Cell ( “PCell” ) ， Physical Broadcast Channel ( “PBCH” ) ， Physical Downlink Control Channel ( “PDCCH” ) ， Physical Downlink Shared Channel ( “PDSCH” ) ， Pattern Division Multiple Access ( “PDMA” ) ， Physical Hybrid ARQ Indicator Channel ( “PHICH” ) ， Physical Random Access Channel ( “PRACH” ) ， Physical Resource Block ( “PRB” ) ， Physical Uplink Control Channel ( “PUCCH” ) ， Physical Uplink Shared Channel ( “PUSCH” ) ， Quality of Service ( “QoS” ) ， Quadrature Phase Shift Keying ( “QPSK” ) ， Radio Resource Control ( “RRC” ) ， Random Access Procedure ( “RACH” ) ， Random Access Response ( “RAR” ) ， Reference Signal ( “RS” ) ， Resource Spread Multiple Access ( “RSMA” ) ， Round Trip Time ( “RTT” ) ， Receive ( “RX” ) ， Sparse Code Multiple Access ( “SCMA” ) ， Scheduling Request ( “SR” ) ， Session Management Function ( “SMF” ) ， Sounding Reference Signal ( “SRS” ) ， Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access ( “SC-FDMA” ) ， Secondary Cell ( “SCell” ) ， Shared Channel ( “SCH” ) ， Signal-to-Interference-Plus-Noise Ratio ( “SINR” ) ， System Information Block ( “SIB” ) ， Transport Block ( “TB” ) ， Transport Block Size ( “TBS” ) ， Time-Division Duplex ( “TDD” ) ， Time Division Multiplex ( “TDM” ) ， Transmission and Reception Point ( “TRP” ) ， Transmission Time Interval ( “TTI” ) ， Transmit ( “TX” ) ， Uplink Control Information ( “UCI” ) ， User Entity/Equipment (Mobile Terminal) ( “UE” ) ， Uplink ( “UL” ) ， User Plane Function ( “UPF” ) ， Universal Mobile Telecommunications System ( “UMTS” ) ， Uplink Pilot Time Slot ( “UpPTS” ) ， Ultra-reliability and Low-latency Communications ( “URLLC” ) ， and Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access ( “WiMAX” ) . As used herein， “HARQ-ACK” may represent collectively the Positive Acknowledge ( “ACK” ) and the Negative Acknowledge ( “NAK” ) . ACK means that a TB is correctly received while NAK means a TB is erroneously received.

In 5G networks， a radio interface may support at least two types of PUCCH in terms of duration are supported， referred to herein as short PUCCH and long PUCCH， respectively. For each PUCCH duration type， multiple of lengths and payloads are possibly supported. As an example， for short PUCCH， 1 or 2OFDM symbols may be employed to carry between one and a few tens of bits. In contrast， for long PUCCH， more than 4 symbols are used to carry between one and a few hundreds of bits. However， a UE needs to know which type of PUCCH format to use when sending UCI.

The 5G (e.g.， New Radio) radio interface support greater diversity of performance requirement and slot length than conventional LTE. For certain DL scheduled packet or service， the UCI feedback (ACK/NACK/CSI) needs to be sent swiftly with short duration PUCCH to fulfil low latency requirement. For， certain other cases， the UCI feedback may use long duration PUCCH to carry large payload (to support CA/DC， MIMO) and/or to achieve enhanced coverage. Accordingly， the semi-static PUCCH format indication of conventional LTE may not be sufficient to flexibly support the diversified scenarios.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Methods for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator are disclosed. Apparatuses and systems also perform the functions of the methods. The methods may also be embodied in one or more computer program products comprising executable code.

In one embodiment， a method for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator receiving a downlink ( “DL” ) control signal from a base unit， the DL control signal comprising downlink control information ( “DCI” ) on a DL control channel resource monitoring set. The method includes identifying characteristics of the DL control channel. The method further includes determining at least one of a physical uplink control channel ( “PUCCH” ) format and a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics. Here， the identified characteristics implicitly indicate the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association.

Another method for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator includes determining a PUCCH format and/or a PUCCH resource set for a UE. The method includes identifying at least one characteristic of a DL control channel. Here， the DL control channel characteristic (s) correspond to the determined PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set. The method further includes transmitting a DL control signal to the UE， the DL control signal containing DCI on a DL control channel resource monitoring set. Here， identified characteristic (s) implicitly indicates PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more particular description of the embodiments briefly described above will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments that are illustrated in the appended drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only some embodiments and are not therefore to be considered to be limiting of scope， the embodiments will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through the use of the accompanying drawings， in which：

Figure 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a wireless communication system for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator；

Figure 2 illustrates one embodiment of a network for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator；

Figure 3 illustrates one embodiment of a procedure for implicitly indicating a PUCCH format；

Figure 4 illustrates one embodiment of a procedure for implicitly indicting a PUCCH resource set；

Figure 5 illustrates one embodiment of a procedure for implicitly indicting a PUCCH resource set which is associated with a PUCCH format；

Figure 6 illustrates another embodiment of a procedure for indicating a PUCCH resource allocation using a combination of explicit signaling and implicit association；

Figure 7 is a schematic block diagram illustrating one embodiment of an apparatus for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator；

Figure 8 is a schematic block diagram illustrating another embodiment of an apparatus for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator；

Figure 9 is a schematic flow chart diagram illustrating one embodiment of a method for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator； and

Figure 10 is a schematic flow chart diagram illustrating another embodiment of a method for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art， aspects of the embodiments may be embodied as a system， apparatus， method， or program product. Accordingly， embodiments may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment， an entirely software embodiment (including firmware， resident software， micro-code， etc. ) or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects.

For example， the disclosed embodiments may be implemented as a hardware circuit comprising custom very-large-scale integration ( “VLSI” ) circuits or gate arrays， off-the-shelf semiconductors such as logic chips， transistors， or other discrete components. The disclosed embodiments may also be implemented in programmable hardware devices such as field programmable gate arrays， programmable array logic， programmable logic devices， or the like. As another example， the disclosed embodiments may include one or more physical or logical blocks of executable code which may， for instance， be organized as an object， procedure， or function.

Furthermore， embodiments may take the form of a program product embodied in one or more computer readable storage devices storing machine readable code， computer readable code， and/or program code， referred hereafter as code. The storage devices may be tangible， non-transitory， and/or non-transmission. The storage devices may not embody signals. In a certain embodiment， the storage devices only employ signals for accessing code.

Any combination of one or more computer readable medium may be utilized. The computer readable medium may be a computer readable storage medium. The computer readable storage medium may be a storage device storing the code. The storage device may be， for example， but not limited to， an electronic， magnetic， optical， electromagnetic， infrared， holographic， micromechanical， or semiconductor system， apparatus， or device， or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the storage device would include the following： an electrical connection having one or more wires， a portable computer diskette， a hard disk， a random-access memory ( “RAM” ) ， a read-only memory ( “ROM” ) ， an erasable programmable read-only memory ( “EPROM” or Flash memory) ， a portable compact disc read-only memory ( “CD-ROM” ) ， an optical storage device， a magnetic storage device， or any suitable combination of the foregoing. In the context of this document， a computer readable storage medium may be any tangible medium that can contain， or store a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system， apparatus， or device.

Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment， ” “an embodiment， ” or similar language means that a particular feature， structure， or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus， appearances of the phrases “in one embodiment， ” “in an embodiment， ” and similar language throughout this specification may， but do not necessarily， all refer to the same embodiment， but mean “one or more but not all embodiments” unless expressly specified otherwise. The terms “including， ” “comprising， ” “having， ” and variations thereof mean “including but not limited to， ” unless expressly specified otherwise. An enumerated listing of items does not imply that any or all of the items are mutually exclusive， unless expressly specified otherwise. The terms “a， ” “an， ” and “the” also refer to “one or more” unless expressly specified otherwise.

Furthermore， the described features， structures， or characteristics of the embodiments may be combined in any suitable manner. In the following description， numerous specific details are provided， such as examples of programming， software modules， user selections， network transactions， database queries， database structures， hardware modules， hardware circuits， hardware chips， etc.， to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize， however， that embodiments may be practiced without one or more of the specific details， or with other methods， components， materials， and so forth. In other instances， well-known structures， materials， or operations are not shown or described in detail to avoid obscuring aspects of an embodiment.

Aspects of the embodiments are described below with reference to schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams of methods， apparatuses， systems， and program products according to embodiments. It will be understood that each block of the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams， and combinations of blocks in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams， can be implemented by code. This code may be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer， special purpose computer， or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine， such that the instructions， which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus， create means for implementing the functions/acts specified in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams.

The code may also be stored in a storage device that can direct a computer， other programmable data processing apparatus， or other devices to function in a particular manner， such that the instructions stored in the storage device produce an article of manufacture including instructions which implement the function/act specified in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams.

The code may also be loaded onto a computer， other programmable data processing apparatus， or other devices to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer， other programmable apparatus， or other devices to produce a computer implemented process such that the code which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide processes for implementing the functions/acts specified in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagram.

The schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams in the Figures illustrate the architecture， functionality， and operation of possible implementations of apparatuses， systems， methods， and program products according to various embodiments. In this regard， each block in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams may represent a module， segment， or portion of code， which includes one or more executable instructions of the code for implementing the specified logical function (s) .

It should also be noted that， in some alternative implementations， the functions noted in the block may occur out of the order noted in the Figures. For example， two blocks shown in succession may， in fact， be executed substantially concurrently， or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order， depending upon the functionality involved. Other steps and methods may be conceived that are equivalent in function， logic， or effect to one or more blocks， or portions thereof， of the illustrated Figures.

The description of elements in each figure may refer to elements of proceeding figures. Like numbers refer to like elements in all figures， including alternate embodiments of like elements.

In order to solve the above described problem of indicating PUCCH information in a 5G radio access network， the discloses methods， apparatus， and systems use implicit indications in the DL control channel combined with predetermined associations to PUCCH features to indicate PUCCH information to a UE with minimal overhead. The predetermined associations may be fixed， defined in a communication standard used by the network， configured by RRC signaling， or the like. Here， a useable PUCCH format and/or a usable PUCCH resource set is indicated to the UE using implicit indications in the DL control channel. Examples of implicit indications in the DL control channel include， but are not limited to， a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size (e.g.， slot size granularity) ， and a monitored control channel duration. Additionally， the UE may use a combination of explicit signaling and the implicit indications to identify a specific PUCCH resource allocation (e.g.， a specific slot， specific OFDM symbols within a slot， specific PRBs， and specific codes and/or sequences to use) .

Figure 1 depicts a wireless communication system 100 for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator， according to embodiments of the disclosure. In one embodiment， the wireless communication system 100 includes remote units 105， cellular base units 110， and communication links 115. Even though a specific number of remote units 105， cellular base units 110， and communication links 115 are depicted in Figure 1， one of skill in the art will recognize that any number of remote units 105， cellular base units 110， and communication links 115 may be included in the wireless communication system 100.

In one implementation， the wireless communication system 100 is compliant with the 5G system specified in the 3GPP specifications. More generally， however， the wireless communication system 100 may implement some other open or proprietary communication network， for example， LTE-A or WiMAX， among other networks. The present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the implementation of any particular wireless communication system architecture or protocol.

In one embodiment， the remote units 105 may include computing devices， such as desktop computers， laptop computers， personal digital assistants ( “PDAs” ) ， tablet computers， smart phones， smart televisions (e.g.， televisions connected to the Internet) ， smart appliances (e.g.， appliances connected to the Internet) ， set-top boxes， game consoles， security systems (including security cameras) ， vehicle on-board computers， network devices (e.g.， routers， switches， modems) ， or the like. In some embodiments， the remote units 105 include wearable devices， such as smart watches， fitness bands， optical head-mounted displays， or the like. Moreover， the remote units 105 may be referred to as subscriber units， mobiles， mobile stations， users， terminals， mobile terminals， fixed terminals， subscriber stations， user equipment ( “UE” ) ， user terminals， a device， or by other terminology used in the art. The remote units 105 may communicate directly with one or more of the cellular base units 110 via uplink ( “UL” ) and downlink ( “DL” ) communication signals. Furthermore， the UL and DL communication signals may be carried over the communication links 115.

The cellular base units 110 may be distributed over a geographic region. In certain embodiments， a cellular base unit 110 may also be referred to as an access terminal， a base， a base station， a Node-B， an eNB， a gNB， a Home Node-B， a relay node， a device， or by any other terminology used in the art. The cellular base units 110 are generally part of a radio access network ( “RAN” ) that may include one or more controllers communicably coupled to one or more corresponding cellular base units 110. The RAN is generally communicably coupled to one or more core networks， which in turn may be coupled to other networks， like the Internet and public switched telephone networks， among other networks. These and other elements of radio access and core networks are not illustrated but are well known generally by those having ordinary skill in the art. The cellular base units 110 connect to the mobile core network 130 via the RAN.

The cellular base units 110 may serve a number of remote units 105 within a serving area， for example， a cell or a cell sector via a wireless communication link. The cellular base units 110 may communicate directly with one or more of the remote units 105 via communication signals. Generally， the cellular base units 110 transmit downlink ( “DL” ) communication signals to serve the remote units 105 in the time， frequency， and/or spatial domain. Furthermore， the DL communication signals may be carried over the communication links 115. The communication links 115 may be any suitable carrier in licensed or unlicensed radio spectrum. The communication links 115 facilitate communication between one or more of the remote units 105 and/or one or more of the cellular base units 110.

In one embodiment， the mobile core network 130 is a 5G core ( “5GC” ) or the evolved packet core ( “EPC” ) ， which may be coupled to other data network 125， like the Internet and private data networks， among other data networks. Each mobile core network 130 belongs to a single public land mobile network ( “PLMN” ) . The present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the implementation of any particular wireless communication system architecture or protocol.

The mobile core network 130 includes several network functions ( “NFs” ) . As depicted， the mobile core network 130 includes an access and mobility management function (“AMF” ) 135， a session management function ( “SMF” ) 140， and a user plane function ( “UPF” ) 145. Although a specific number of AMFs 135， SMFs 140， and UPFs 145 are depicted in Figure 1， one of skill in the art will recognize that any number of AMFs 135， SMFs 140， and UPFs 145 may be included in the mobile core network 130.

The AMF 135 provides services such as UE registration， UE connection management， and UE mobility management. The SMF 140 manages the data sessions of the remote units 105， such as a PDU session. The UPF 145 provides user plane (e.g.， data) services to the remote units 105. A data connection between the remote unit 105 and a data network 125 is managed by a UPF 145.

Figure 2 depicts a network 200 used for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator， according to embodiments of the disclosure. The network 200 includes a UE 205 and gNB 210. The network 200 depicts a simplified embodiment of the wireless communication system 100. The UE 205 may be one embodiment of the UE 205 105， while the gNB 210 may be one embodiment of the base unit 110. Here， the gNB 210 may be a gNB or 5G base station. Although only one UE 205 is depicted， in other embodiments the gNB 210 may serve a plurality of UEs 205.

The gNB 210 sends a DL control signal 215 to the UE 205， for example over a wireless communication link 115. The DL control signal 215 contains at least DCI on a DL control channel resource monitoring set 225 within the DL control channel 220. As depicted， the DL control channel includes a plurality of DL control channel resource monitoring sets 225. While a specific number of DL control channel resource monitoring sets 225 are shown， in other embodiments the DL control channel 220 may include more or fewer DL control channel resource monitoring sets 225.

The gNB 210 determines a PUCCH format and/or a PUCCH resource set for the UE 205 and implicitly indicates the PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set using DL control channel characteristics mapped to the PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association. In certain embodiments， the gNB 210 transmits the predetermined association to the UE 205 via radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling.

The UE 205 receives the DL control signal 215 from the gNB 210 identifies characteristics of the DL control channel. Here， the UE 205 may identify one or more of a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size (e.g.， a slot size granularity) ， and a monitored control channel duration. The UE 205 further determines PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics. Here， the identified characteristics implicitly indicate PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set.

In some embodiments， the UE 205 identifies a first characteristic (e.g.， a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot (or mini-slot) size， or a monitored control channel duration) and determines a PUCCH format to be used to transmit uplink control information ( “UCI” ) from the first characteristic using the predetermined association. In certain embodiments， the UE 205 identifies a second characteristic different than the first characteristic and determines a PUCCH resource set to be used to transmit UCI from the second characteristic using the predetermined association.

In some embodiments， the UE 205 further decodes the DCI and determines a PUCCH resource allocation (e.g.， from within the determined PUCCH resource set) from implicit and/or explicit indications. Here， the UE 205 may identify one or more of： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a search space index within the DL control channel resource monitoring set， an aggregation level of the decoded DCI， a dynamic indication field within the decoded DCI， a lowest CCE index used by the decoded DCI， and a PUCCH resource set configuration in RRC signaling in order to determine the PUCCH resource allocation for transmitting the UCI.

Accordingly， the gNB 210 implicitly indicates to the UE 205 a PUCCH format， PUCCH resource set using the DL control channel characteristics. The gNB 210 may further indicate a PUCCH resource allocation using implicit indications or a combination of implicit and explicit indications. The DL control channel characteristics may be used implicitly indicates one or more of： a PUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform.

Figure 3 depicts a procedure 300 used to implicitly indicate a PUCCH format， according to embodiments of the disclosure. The procedure 300 involves the UE 205 receiving a DL control signal and identifying implicit PUCCH format indications from the DL control channel 220. As depicted， the DL control channel 220 includes a first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 having a first monitoring time domain interval and a first monitored slot size. Here， the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 has a monitoring time domain interval of every OFDM symbol (e.g.， a “symbol-level” interval size) . The first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 also has a monitored slot size of 1 OFDM symbol. The first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 has additional characteristics including， but not limited to， a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， and a monitored control channel duration.

The DL control channel 220 also includes a second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310. As depicted， the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 has a second monitoring time domain interval of every 7 OFDM symbols (e.g.， a “slot-level” interval size， where 1 slot equals 7 OFDM symbols) . The second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 also has a monitored slot size of 7 OFDM symbols with 2 symbols of DL control channel resource. The second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 also has additional characteristics including， but not limited to， a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， and a monitored control channel duration. In certain embodiments， the first or second DL control channel resource monitoring set 305-310 may have a “mini-slot level” interval size， where the mini-slot is a predetermined number of OFDM symbols greater than 1 and less than 7. The mini-slot may be defined by RRC signaling.

In the procedure 300， the UE 205 is assigned to a certain DL control channel resource monitoring set， e.g.， one of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 and second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310. The UE 205 receives the DL control channel 220 and analyzes its DL control channel resource monitoring set. The UE 205 then identifies the relevant DL control channel characteristics to determine a PUCCH attribute (here， a PUCCH format or component thereof) through a predetermined， implicit association.

The association between DL control channel characteristic and PUCCH attribute may be predefined or configured by RRC signaling. In one embodiment， the association is fixed. In another embodiment， the association is dynamically configured， e.g.， by RRC signaling. The UE 205 stores the implicit association in memory and refers to it when determining the implicitly indicated PUCCH attribute.

As a first example， the relevant characteristic may be the DL control channel resource monitoring set index， wherein a usable PUCCH format is implicitly indicated by the DL control channel resource monitoring set index. Alternatively， the DL control channel resource monitoring set index may implicitly indicate a PUCCH format component， such as a PUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols (e.g.， short vs long duration) ， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform to be used. In certain embodiments， the short PUCCH format and the long PUCCH format have predefined duration lengths (e.g.， as configured via RRC signaling) .

Here， if the UE 205 receives the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305， then the UE 205 determines， through a first implicit association/indication 315， that the corresponding UCI is to be carried by short PUCCH format. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 being associated with the short PUCCH format. However， ifthe UE 205 receives the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310， then the UE 205 determines， through a second implicit association/indication 320， that the corresponding UCI is to be carried by long PUCCH format. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 being associated with the long PUCCH format.

As a second example， the relevant characteristic may be the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， wherein a usable PUCCH format is implicitly indicated by the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval. Alternatively， the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval may implicitly indicate a PUCCH format component， such as a PUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols (e.g.， short vs long duration) ， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform to be used.

Here， if the UE 205 receives the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305， then the UE 205 determines， through a first implicit association/indication 315， that the corresponding UCI is to be carried by short PUCCH format. This is due to the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 being associated with the short PUCCH format. However， ifthe UE 205 receives the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310， then the UE 205 determines， through a second implicit association/indication 320， that the corresponding UCI is to be carried by long PUCCH format. This is due to the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval of the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 being associated with the long PUCCH format.

Figure 4 depicts a procedure 400 used to implicitly indicting a PUCCH resource set， according to embodiments of the disclosure. The procedure 400 involves the UE 205 receiving a DL control signal and identifying implicit PUCCH resource set indications from the DL control channel 220. As depicted， the DL control channel 220 includes the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 and the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 described above.

In the procedure 400， the UE 205 is assigned to a certain DL control channel resource monitoring set， e.g.， one of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 and second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310. The UE 205 receives the DL control channel 220 and analyzes its DL control channel resource monitoring set. The UE 205 then identifies the relevant DL control channel characteristics to determine a PUCCH attribute (here， a PUCCH resource set) through a predetermined， implicit association.

The association between DL control channel characteristic and PUCCH resource set may be predefined or configured by RRC signaling. In one embodiment， the association is fixed. In another embodiment， the association is dynamically configured， e.g.， by RRC signaling. The UE 205 stores the implicit association in memory and refers to it when determining the implicitly indicated PUCCH resource set.

As a first example， the relevant characteristic may be the DL control channel resource monitoring set index， wherein a usable PUCCH resource set is implicitly indicated by the DL control channel resource monitoring set index. In certain embodiments， the implicitly indicated PUCCH resource set is further associated with a specific PUCCH format， as discussed in further detail below.

Here， if the UE 205 receives the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305， then the UE 205 determines， through a first implicit association/indication 405， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent on a first PUCCH resource set. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 being associated with the first PUCCH resource set (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) . However， if the UE 205 receives the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310， then the UE 205 determines， through a second implicit association/indication 410， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent on a second PUCCH resource set. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 being associated with the second PUCCH resource set (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) .

As a second example， the relevant characteristic may be the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， wherein a usable PUCCH resource set is implicitly indicated by the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval. Again， the implicitly indicated PUCCH resource set may be further associated with a specific PUCCH format.

Here， if the UE 205 receives the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305， then the UE 205 determines， through a first implicit association/indication 315， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent on a first PUCCH resource set. This is due to the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 being associated with the first PUCCH resource set (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) . However， if the UE 205 receives the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310， then the UE 205 determines， through a second implicit association/indication 320， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent using a second PUCCH resource set. This is due to the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval of the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 being associated with the second PUCCH resource set (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) .

Figure 5 depicts a procedure 500 used to implicitly indicting a PUCCH resource set which is associated with a PUCCH format， according to embodiments of the disclosure. The procedure 500 involves the UE 205 receiving a DL control signal and identifying implicit PUCCH resource set indications from the DL control channel 220. Here， each PUCCH resource set is associated with a specific PUCCH format. As depicted， the DL control channel 220 includes the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 and the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 described above.

In the procedure 500， the UE 205 is assigned to a certain DL control channel resource monitoring set， e.g.， one of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 and second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310. The UE 205 receives the DL control channel 220 and analyzes its DL control channel resource monitoring set. The UE 205 then identifies the relevant DL control channel characteristics to determine a PUCCH attribute (here， a PUCCH resource set) through a predetermined， implicit association. Additionally， the predetermined association indicates a PUCCH format (or a component thereof) that corresponds to the PUCCH resource set. In certain embodiments， each PUCCH resource set is associated with a specific PUCCH format. In other embodiments， an additional DL control channel characteristic may be used to identify the PUCCH format for the implicitly indicated PUCCH resource set.

The association between DL control channel characteristic and PUCCH resource set and/or PUCCH format may be predefined or configured by RRC signaling. Additionally， the association between a PUCCH resource set and a specific PUCCH format may be predefined or configured by RRC signaling. In one embodiment， these associations are fixed. In another embodiment， these associations are dynamically configured， e.g.， by RRC signaling. The UE 205 stores the implicit association in memory and refers to it when determining the implicitly indicated PUCCH resource set.

As a first example， the relevant characteristic may be the DL control channel resource monitoring set index， wherein a usable PUCCH resource set is implicitly indicated by the DL control channel resource monitoring set index. Additionally， the implicitly indicated PUCCH resource set is further associated with a specific PUCCH format， for example， as configured using RRC signaling.

Here， if the UE 205 receives the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305， then the UE 205 determines， through a first implicit association/indication 505， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent on a first PUCCH resource set. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 being associated with the first PUCCH resource set (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) . Further， the UE 205 recognizes that the corresponding UCI is to be carried by short PUCCH format on first PUCCH resource set. This is due to the first PUCCH resource set being associated with the short PUCCH format (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) .

However， if the UE 205 receives the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310， then the UE 205 determines， through a second implicit association/indication 410， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent on a second PUCCH resource set. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 being associated with the second PUCCH resource set (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) . Further， the UE 205 recognizes that the corresponding UCI is to be carried bylong PUCCH format on second PUCCH resource set. This is due to the second PUCCH resource set being associated with the long PUCCH format (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) .

As a second example， the relevant characteristic may be the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， wherein a usable PUCCH resource set is implicitly indicated by the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval. Again， the implicitly indicated PUCCH resource set is further associated with a specific PUCCH format， for example， as configured using RRC signaling.

Here， if the UE 205 receives the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305， then the UE 205 determines， through a first implicit association/indication 315， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent on a first PUCCH resource set. This is due to the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 being associated with the first PUCCH resource set (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) . Further， the UE 205 recognizes that the corresponding UCI is to be carried by short PUCCH format on first PUCCH resource set. This is due to the first PUCCH resource set being associated with the short PUCCH format (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) .

However， if the UE 205 receives the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310， then the UE 205 determines， through a second implicit association/indication 320， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent using a second PUCCH resource set. This is due to the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval of the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 being associated with the second PUCCH resource set (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) . Further， the UE 205 recognizes that the corresponding UCI is to be carried by long PUCCH format on second PUCCH resource set. This is due to the second PUCCH resource set being associated with the long PUCCH format (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) .

As a third example， a first relevant characteristic is the DL control channel resource monitoring set index， wherein a usable PUCCH resource set is implicitly indicated by the DL control channel resource monitoring set index. Additionally， a second relevant characteristic may be the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， wherein a usable PUCCH format is implicitly indicated by the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval. Alternatively， the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval may implicitly indicate a PUCCH format component， such as a PUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols (e.g.， short vs long duration) ， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform to be used.

Here， if the UE 205 receives the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305， then the UE 205 determines， through a first implicit association/indication 505， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent on a first PUCCH resource set. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 being associated with the first PUCCH resource set (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) . Further， the UE 205 determines， through the first implicit association/indication 505， that the corresponding UCI is to be carried by short PUCCH format. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 being associated with the short PUCCH format.

However， if the UE 205 receives the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310， then the UE 205 determines， through a second implicit association/indication 510， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent on a second PUCCH resource set. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 being associated with the second PUCCH resource set (e.g.， as previously configured using RRC signaling) . Additionally， the UE 205 determines， through the second implicit association/indication 510， that the corresponding UCI is to be carried by long PUCCH format. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 being associated with the long PUCCH format.

Figure 6 depicts a procedure 600 used to indicating a PUCCH resource allocation using a combination of explicit signaling and implicit association， according to embodiments of the disclosure. The procedure 600 involves the UE 205 receiving a DL control signal and identifying a PUCCH resource allocation， using a combination of explicit signaling and implicit association， from the DL control channel 220. As depicted， the DL control channel 220 includes the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 and the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 described above.

In the procedure 600， the UE 205 is assigned to a certain DL control channel resource monitoring set， e.g.， one of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 and second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310. The UE 205 receives the DL control channel 220 and analyzes its DL control channel resource monitoring set. The UE 205 then identifies the relevant DL control channel characteristics to determine a PUCCH attribute (here， a PUCCH resource set 615) through a predetermined， implicit association.

The association between DL control channel characteristic and PUCCH resource set may be predefined or configured by RRC signaling. In one embodiment， the association is fixed. In another embodiment， the association is dynamically configured， e.g.， by RRC signaling. The UE 205 stored the implicit association in memory and refers to it when determining the implicitly indicated PUCCH resource set 615.

Additionally， after identifying the PUCCH resource set 615， the UE 205 proceeds to decode its DCI (step 620) and determines a specific PUCCH resource allocation using a combination of explicit and implicit signaling. Here， the specific PUCCH resource allocation is determined using a combination of factors including one or more of the DL control channel resource monitoring set index， a search space index within the DL control channel resource monitoring set， the aggregation level of the decoded DCI， the lowest CCE index used by the decoded DCI， and the value of a dynamic indication field within the decoded DCI. A PUCCH resource set configuration in the RRC signaling may be an additional factor considered by the UE 205. The combination of factors points to a specific resource allocation within the identified PUCCH resource set.

As a first example， the relevant characteristic may be the DL control channel resource monitoring set index， wherein a usable PUCCH resource set is implicitly indicated by the DL control channel resource monitoring set index. In certain embodiments， the implicitly indicated PUCCH resource set is further associated with a specific PUCCH format or may be implicitly indicated by a second DL control channel characteristic， as discussed above.

Here， if the UE 205 receives the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305， then the UE 205 determines， through a first implicit association/indication 405， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent on specific PUCCH resource set， such as a first PUCCH resource set in the example of Figure 4. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 being associated with， e.g.， the first PUCCH resource set. Additionally， the UE 205 uses a combination of factors， as discussed above， to identify a specific PUCCH resource allocation within the specific resource set.

However， if the UE 205 receives the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310， then the UE 205 determines， through a second implicit association/indication 410， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent on specific PUCCH resource set， such as a first PUCCH resource set in the example of Figure 4. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 being associated with， e.g.， the second PUCCH resource set. Additionally， the UE 205 uses a combination of factors， as discussed above， to identify a specific PUCCH resource allocation within the specific resource set.

As a second example， the relevant characteristic may be the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， wherein a usable PUCCH resource set is implicitly indicated by the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval. Again， the implicitly indicated PUCCH resource set may be further associated with a specific PUCCH format or may be implicitly indicated by a second DL control channel characteristic.

Here， if the UE 205 receives the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305， then the UE 205 determines， through a first implicit association/indication 315， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent on specific PUCCH resource set， such as a first PUCCH resource set in the example of Figure 4. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the first DL control channel resource monitoring set 305 being associated with， e.g.， the first PUCCH resource set. Additionally， the UE 205 uses a combination of factors， as discussed above， to identify a specific PUCCH resource allocation within the specific resource set.

However， if the UE 205 receives the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310， then the UE 205 determines， through a second implicit association/indication 320， that the corresponding UCI is to be sent on specific PUCCH resource set， such as a second PUCCH resource set in the example of Figure 4. This is due to the DL control channel resource monitoring set index of the second DL control channel resource monitoring set 310 being associated with， e.g.， the second PUCCH resource set. Additionally， the UE 205 uses a combination of factors， as discussed above， to identify a specific PUCCH resource allocation within the specific resource set.

Figure 7 depicts one embodiment of a remote apparatus 700 that may be used for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator， according to embodiments of the disclosure. The remote apparatus 700 may be one embodiment of the remote unit 105 and/or UE 205， described above. Furthermore， the remote apparatus 700 may include a controller 705， a memory 710， an input device 715， an output device 720， a transceiver 725 for communicating with one or more base units 110.

As depicted， the transceiver 725 may include a transmitter 730 and a receiver 735. The transceiver 725 may also support one or more network interfaces 740， such as the Uu interface used to communicate with a gNB. In some embodiments， the input device 715 and the output device 720 are combined into a single device， such as a touchscreen. In certain embodiments， the remote apparatus 700 may not include any input device 715 and/or output device 720.

The controller 705， in one embodiment， may include any known controller capable of executing computer-readable instructions and/or capable of performing logical operations. For example， the controller 705 may be a microcontroller， a microprocessor， a central processing unit ( “CPU” ) ， a graphics processing unit ( “GPU” ) ， an auxiliary processing unit， a field programmable gate array ( “FPGA” ) ， or similar programmable controller. In some embodiments， the controller 705 executes instructions stored in the memory 710 to perform the methods and routines described herein. The controller 705 is communicatively coupled to the memory 710， the input device 715， the output device 720， and the transceiver 725.

In some embodiments， the receiver 735 receives a DL control signal from a base unit. Here， the DL control signal includes DCI on a DL control channel resource monitoring set. The controller 705 identifies characteristics of the DL control channel. From the identified characteristics， the controller 705 determines a PUCCH format and/or a PUCCH resource set. Here， the DL control channel characteristics implicitly indicate the PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association.

In certain embodiments， the identified characteristics of the DL control channel implicitly indicate one or more of： a PUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform. In one embodiment， the receiver 735 receives the predetermined association via radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling.

In some embodiments， the controller 705 identifies characteristics of the DL control channel by identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot (or mini-slot) size， and a monitored control channel duration. The controller 705 then uses the predetermined association to determine at least a PUCCH format for UCI transmission from the first characteristic. In certain embodiments， the PUCCH format to be used is one of a PUCCH format with a set of short durations and a PUCCH format with a set of long durations. Here， the exact duration length of the short duration PUCCH and/or long duration PUCCH may be predetermined， for example configured by RRC signaling.

In further embodiments， the controller 705 further identifies a second characteristic different than the first characteristic. Here， the second characteristic is also selected from： the set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， the DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， the monitored slot (or mini-slot) size， and a monitored control channel duration. Additionally， the controller 705 uses the predetermined association to identify a PUCCH resource set for UCI transmission from the second characteristic.

In some embodiments， the controller 705 identifies the first characteristic of the DL control channel and uses the predetermined association to identify a PUCCH resource set for UCI transmission from the first characteristic. Again， the first characteristic may be one of： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size (e.g.， slot size granularity) ， and a monitored control channel duration. In certain embodiments， the predetermined association further indicates a PUCCH format to be used with the PUCCH resource set， for example a set of short duration PUCCH formats or a set of long duration PUCCH formats associated with the PUCCH resource set.

In further embodiments， the controller 705 decodes the DCI and determines a PUCCH resource allocation (e.g.， from within the determined PUCCH resource set) from implicit and/or explicit indications. Here， the controller 705 may identify one or more of： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a search space index within the DL control channel resource monitoring set， an aggregation level of the decoded DCI， a dynamic indication field within the decoded DCI， a lowest CCE index used by the decoded DCI， and a PUCCH resource set configuration in RRC signaling in order to determine the PUCCH resource allocation for transmitting the UCI.

The memory 710， in one embodiment， is a computer readable storage medium. In some embodiments， the memory 710 includes volatile computer storage media. For example， the memory 710 may include a RAM， including dynamic RAM ( “DRAM” ) ， synchronous dynamic RAM ( “SDRAM” ) ， and/or static RAM ( “SRAM” ) . In some embodiments， the memory 710 includes non-volatile computer storage media. For example， the memory 710 may include a hard disk drive， a flash memory， or any other suitable non-volatile computer storage device. In some embodiments， the memory 710 includes both volatile and non-volatile computer storage media.

In some embodiments， the memory 710 stores data relating to providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator. For example， the memory may store PUCCH format associations， PUCCH resource set associations， and/or PUCCH resource allocation associations. In some embodiments， the memory 710 also stores program code and related data， such as an operating system or other controller algorithms operating on the remote unit 105 and one or more software applications.

The input device 715， in one embodiment， may include any known computer input device including a touch panel， a button， a keyboard， a stylus， a microphone， or the like. In some embodiments， the input device 715 may be integrated with the output device 720， for example， as a touchscreen or similar touch-sensitive display. In some embodiments， the input device 715 includes two or more different devices， such as a keyboard and a touch panel. In certain embodiments， the input device 715 may include a camera for capturing images or otherwise inputting visual data.

The output device 720， in one embodiment， may include any known electronically controllable display or display device. The output device 720 may be designed to output visual， audible， and/or haptic signals. In some embodiments， the output device 720 includes an electronic display capable of outputting visual data to a user. For example， the output device 720 may include， but is not limited to， an LCD display， an LED display， an OLED display， a projector， or similar display device capable of outputting images， text， or the like to a user.

In certain embodiments， the output device 720 includes one or more speakers for producing sound. For example， the output device 720 may produce an audible alert or notification (e.g.， a beep or chime) . In some embodiments， the output device 720 includes one or more haptic devices for producing vibrations， motion， or other haptic feedback. In some embodiments， all or portions of the output device 720 may be integrated with the input device 715. For example， the input device 715 and output device 720 may form a touchscreen or similar touch-sensitive display. In other embodiments， the output device 720 may be located near the input device 715.

The transceiver 725 communicates with base units 110 of a mobile communication network. The transceiver 725 may include one or more transmitters 730 and one or more receivers 735. As discussed above， the transceiver 725 may support one or more the network interface 735 for communicating with the base unit 110.

Figure 8 depicts one embodiment of a base station apparatus 800 that may be used for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator， according to embodiments of the disclosure. The base station apparatus 800 may be one embodiment of the base unit 110 and/or gNB 210， described above. Furthermore， the base station apparatus 800 may include a controller 805， a memory 810， an input device 815， an output device 820， a transceiver 825 for communicating with one or more remote units 105 and/or a mobile core network 130.

As depicted， the transceiver 825 may include a transmitter 830 and a receiver 835. The transceiver 825 may also support one or more network interface， such as the Uu interface， N2 interface， N3 interface， and/or other network interfaces suitable for communication with a remote unit and/or core network. In some embodiments， the input device 815 and the output device 820 are combined into a single device， such as a touchscreen. In certain embodiments， the base station apparatus 800 may not include any input device 815 and/or output device 820.

The controller 805， in one embodiment， may include any known controller capable of executing computer-readable instructions and/or capable of performing logical operations. For example， the controller 805 may be a microcontroller， a microprocessor， a central processing unit ( “CPU” ) ， a graphics processing unit ( “GPU” ) ， an auxiliary processing unit， a field programmable gate array ( “FPGA” ) ， or similar programmable controller. In some embodiments， the controller 805 executes instructions stored in the memory 810 to perform the methods and routines described herein. The controller 805 is communicatively coupled to the memory 810， the input device 815， the output device 820， and the transceiver 825.

In some embodiments， the controller 805 determines a PUCCH format and/or a PUCCH resource set for a UE. The controller 805 identifies at least one characteristic of a DL control channel. Here， the DL control channel characteristic (s) correspond to the determined PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set. The controller 805 further controls the transmitter 830 to transmit a DL control signal to the UE， the DL control signal containing DCI on a DL control channel resource monitoring set. Here， identified characteristic (s) implicitly indicates PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association.

In certain embodiments， the identified characteristics of the DL control channel implicitly indicate one or more of： a PUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform. In one embodiment， the controller 805 controls the transmitter 830 to send the predetermined association via radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling.

In certain embodiments， the controller 805 identifies the at least one characteristic of the DL control channel by identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot (or mini slot) size， and a monitored control channel duration. Here， the first characteristic corresponding to a PUCCH format (to be used by the UE to transmit UCI) ， according to the predetermined association. In certain embodiments， the PUCCH format to be used by the UE is one of a PUCCH format with a set of short durations and a PUCCH format with a set of long durations. Here， the exact duration length of the short duration PUCCH and/or long duration PUCCH may be predetermined， for example configured by RRC signaling. In further embodiments， the controller 805 also identifies a second DL control channel characteristic different than the first characteristic. Here， the second characteristic also may be selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size (e.g.， slot size granularity) ， and a monitored control channel duration， the second characteristic corresponding to a PUCCH resource set to be used by the UE to transmit UCI.

In some embodiments， the controller 805 identifies the first characteristic of the DL control channel that corresponds to a PUCCH resource set to be used by the UE to transmit UCI. Again， the first characteristic may be one of： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration. In certain embodiments， the predetermined association further indicates a PUCCH format to be used with the PUCCH resource set， for example a set of short duration PUCCH formats or a set of long duration PUCCH formats associated with the PUCCH resource set.

In further embodiments， the controller 805 implicitly indicates a PUCCH resource allocation to the UE from within the PUCCH resource set using one or more of： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a search space index within the DL control channel resource monitoring set， an aggregation level of the DCI， a dynamic indication field within the DCI， a lowest CCE index used by the DCI， and a PUCCH resource set configuration in RRC signaling.

The memory 810， in one embodiment， is a computer readable storage medium. In some embodiments， the memory 810 includes volatile computer storage media. For example， the memory 810 may include a RAM， including dynamic RAM ( “DRAM” ) ， synchronous dynamic RAM ( “SDRAM” ) ， and/or static RAM ( “SRAM” ) . In some embodiments， the memory 810 includes non-volatile computer storage media. For example， the memory 810 may include a hard disk drive， a flash memory， or any other suitable non-volatile computer storage device. In some embodiments， the memory 810 includes both volatile and non-volatile computer storage media.

In some embodiments， the memory 810 stores data relating to providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator. For example， the memory may store PUCCH format associations， PUCCH resource set associations， and/or PUCCH resource allocation associations. In some embodiments， the memory 810 also stores program code and related data， such as an operating system or other controller algorithms operating on the remote unit 105 and one or more software applications.

The input device 815， in one embodiment， may include any known computer input device including a touch panel， a button， a keyboard， a stylus， a microphone， or the like. In some embodiments， the input device 815 may be integrated with the output device 820， for example， as a touchscreen or similar touch-sensitive display. In some embodiments， the input device 815 includes two or more different devices， such as a keyboard and a touch panel. In certain embodiments， the input device 815 may include a camera for capturing images or otherwise inputting visual data.

The output device 820， in one embodiment， may include any known electronically controllable display or display device. The output device 820 may be designed to output visual， audible， and/or haptic signals. In some embodiments， the output device 820 includes an electronic display capable of outputting visual data to a user. For example， the output device 820 may include， but is not limited to， an LCD display， an LED display， an OLED display， a projector， or similar display device capable of outputting images， text， or the like to a user.

In certain embodiments， the output device 820 includes one or more speakers for producing sound. For example， the output device 820 may produce an audible alert or notification (e.g.， a beep or chime) . In some embodiments， the output device 820 includes one or more haptic devices for producing vibrations， motion， or other haptic feedback. In some embodiments， all or portions of the output device 820 may be integrated with the input device 815. For example， the input device 815 and output device 820 may form a touchscreen or similar touch-sensitive display. In other embodiments， the output device 820 may be located near the input device 815.

The transceiver 825 communicates with remote unit within a mobile communication network. The transceiver 825 may also communicate with a core network， such as the mobile core network 130. The transceiver 825 may include one or more transmitters 830 and one or more receivers 835. As discussed above， the transceiver 825 may supports one or more the network interface 840 for communicating with remote units 105 and the mobile core network 130.

Figure 9 is a schematic flow chart diagram illustrating one embodiment of a method 900 for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator， according to embodiments of the disclosure. In some embodiments， the method 900 is performed by a remote unit， such as the remote unit 105， UE 205， and/or the remote apparatus 700， described above. In certain embodiments， the method 900 may be performed by a processor executing program code， for example， a microcontroller， a microprocessor， a CPU， a GPU， an auxiliary processing unit， a FPGA， or the like.

The method 900 begins and receives 905 a downlink ( “DL” ) control signal from a base unit， the DL control signal containing downlink control information ( “DCI” ) on a DL control channel resource monitoring set.

The method 900 includes identifying 910 characteristics of the DL control channel. In some embodiments， identifying 910 characteristics of the DL control channel includes identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration. In one embodiment， identifying 910 characteristics of the DL control channel resource monitoring set further includes identifying a second characteristic different than the first characteristic. Here， the second characteristic may be selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration.

The method 900 further includes determining 915 a PUCCH format and/or a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics. Here， the identified characteristics implicitly indicate PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association. In some embodiments， determining 915 the PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics includes determining a PUCCH format to be used to transmit UCI from the first characteristic using the predetermined association. In certain embodiments， the PUCCH format to be used is one of a PUCCH format with a set of short durations and a PUCCH format with a set of long durations. Here， the exact duration length of the short duration PUCCH and/or long duration PUCCH may be predetermined， for example configured by RRC signaling.

In some embodiments， the identified characteristics of the DL control channel implicitly indicate one or more of： a PUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform. In one embodiment， the method 900 includes receiving the predetermined association via RRC signaling prior to receiving the DL control signal.

In one embodiment， determining 915 the PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics includes determining a PUCCH resource set to be used to transmit UCI from the second characteristic using the predetermined association. In other embodiments， determining 915 the PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics includes determining a PUCCH resource set to be used to transmit UCI from the first characteristic using the predetermined association. Here， the predetermined association may further indicate a PUCCH format to be used with the PUCCH resource set， the PUCCH format indicating one of a set of short duration PUCCH formats and a set of long duration PUCCH formats.

In certain embodiments， determining 915 the PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics further includes decoding the DCI and determining a PUCCH resource allocation (e.g.， from within the determined PUCCH resource set) from implicit and/or explicit indications. Here， determining the PUCCH resource allocation may include identifying one or more of： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a search space index within the DL control channel resource monitoring set， an aggregation level of the decoded DCI， a dynamic indication field within the decoded DCI， a lowest CCE index used by the decoded DCI， and a PUCCH resource set configuration in RRC signaling， in order to determine the PUCCH resource allocation for transmitting the UCI. The method 900 ends.

Figure 10 is a schematic flow chart diagram illustrating one embodiment of a method 1000 for providing a UE with PUCCH information using an implicit indicator， according to embodiments of the disclosure. In some embodiments， the method 1000 is performed by a base unit， such as the base unit 110， the gNB 210， and or the base station apparatus 800. In certain embodiments， the method 1000 may be performed by a processor executing program code， for example， a microcontroller， a microprocessor， a CPU， a GPU， an auxiliary processing unit， a FPGA， or the like.

The method 1000 begins and determines 1005 at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set for a UE. The method 1000 includes identifying 1010 at least one characteristic of a DL control channel. Here， the DL control channel characteristic (s) correspond to the determined PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set. In certain embodiments， at least one identified characteristic of the DL control channel implicitly indicates one or more of： a PUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform. In some embodiments， identifying 1010 at least one characteristic of the DL control channel includes identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration.

In one embodiment， the first characteristic corresponds to a PUCCH format to be used by the UE to transmit UCI. In certain embodiments， the PUCCH format to be used is one of a PUCCH format with a set of short durations and a PUCCH format with a set of long durations. Here， the exact duration length of the short duration PUCCH and/or long duration PUCCH may be predetermined， for example configured by RRC signaling. In another embodiment， the first characteristic corresponds to a PUCCH resource set to be used by the UE to transmit UCI. Here， the predetermined association may indicate a PUCCH format to be used with the PUCCH resource set， the PUCCH format indicating one of a set of short duration PUCCH formats and a set of long duration PUCCH formats.

In one embodiment， identifying 1010 at least one characteristic of the DL control channel resource monitoring set further includes identifying a second characteristic different than the first characteristic. Here， the second characteristic may be selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration. In such an embodiment， the second characteristic corresponds to a PUCCH resource set to be used by the UE to transmit UCI. In certain embodiments， the DL control channel implicitly indicates a PUCCH resource allocation to the UE from within the PUCCH resource set using one or more of： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a search space index within the DL control channel resource monitoring set， an aggregation level of a DCI， a dynamic indication field within the DCI， a lowest CCE index used by the DCI， and a PUCCH resource set configuration in RRC signaling.

The method 1000 includes transmitting 1015 a DL control signal to the UE， the DL control signal containing the DCI on a DL control channel resource monitoring set. Here， the at least one identified characteristic implicitly indicates PUCCH format and/or PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association. The method 1000 may also include transmitting the predetermined association to the UE via RRC signaling. The method 1000 ends.

Embodiments may be practiced in other specific forms. The described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the invention is， therefore， indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. All changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.

Claims

An apparatus comprising：

a receiver that receives a downlink ( “DL” ) control signal from a base unit， the DL control signal comprising downlink control information ( “DCI” ) on a DL control channel resource monitoring set； and

a controller that

identifies characteristics of the DL control channel， and

determines at least one of a physical uplink control channel ( “PUCCH” ) format and a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics， wherein the identified characteristics implicitly indicate the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association.
The apparatus of claim 1，

wherein identifying characteristics of the DL control channel comprises the controller identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration，

wherein determining the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics comprises the controller determining a PUCCH format to be used to transmit uplink control information ( “UCI” ) from the first characteristic using the predetermined association.
The apparatus of claim 2， wherein the PUCCH format to be used is one of a PUCCH format with a set of short durations and a PUCCH format with a set of long durations， where a short duration length and a long duration length are predetermined.
The apparatus of claim 2，

wherein identifying characteristics of the DL control channel resource monitoring set further comprises the controller identifying a second characteristic different than the first characteristic， the second characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration，

wherein determining the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics further comprises the controller determining a PUCCH resource set to be used to transmit UCI from the second characteristic using the predetermined association.
The apparatus of claim 1，

wherein identifying characteristics of the DL control channel resource monitoring set comprises the controller identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration，

wherein determining the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics comprises the controller determining a PUCCH resource set to be used to transmit uplink control information ( “UCI” ) from the first characteristic using the predetermined association.
The apparatus of claim 5， wherein the predetermined association further indicates a PUCCH format to be used with the PUCCH resource set， the PUCCH format indicating one of a set of short duration PUCCH formats and a set of long duration PUCCH formats.
The apparatus of claim 5，

wherein the controller further decodes the DCI，

wherein the controller identifies one or more of： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a search space index within the DL control channel resource monitoring set， an aggregation level of the decoded DCI， a dynamic indication field within the decoded DCI， a lowest control channel element ( “CCE” ) index used by the decoded DCI， and a PUCCH resource set configuration in radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling， and

wherein the controller determines a PUCCH resource allocation within the determined PUCCH resource set for transmitting the UCI.
The apparatus of claim 1， wherein the identified characteristics of the DL control channel implicitly indicate one or more of： a PUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform.
The apparatus of claim 1， wherein the receiver further receives the predetermined association via radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling.
A method comprising：

receiving a downlink ( “DL” ) control signal from a base unit， the DL control signal comprising downlink control information ( “DCI” ) on a DL control channel resource monitoring set；

identifying characteristics of the DL control channel； and

determining at least one of a physical uplink control channel ( “PUCCH” ) format and a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics， wherein the identified characteristics implicitly indicate the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association.
The method of claim 10，

wherein identifying characteristics of the DL control channel comprises identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration，

wherein determining the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics comprises determining a PUCCH format to be used to transmit uplink control information ( “UCI” ) from the first characteristic using the predetermined association.
The method of claim 11， wherein the PUCCH format to be used is one of a PUCCH format with a short duration and a PUCCH format with a long duration， where a short duration length and a long duration length are predetermined.
The method of claim 11，

wherein identifying characteristics of the DL control channel resource monitoring set further comprises identifying a second characteristic different than the first characteristic， the second characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration，

wherein determining the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics further comprises determining a PUCCH resource set to be used to transmit UCI from the second characteristic using the predetermined association.
The method of claim 10，

wherein identifying characteristics of the DL control channel resource monitoring set comprises identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration，

wherein determining the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics comprises determining a PUCCH resource set to be used to transmit uplink control information ( “UCI” ) from the first characteristic using the predetermined association.
The method of claim 14， wherein the predetermined association further indicates a PUCCH format to be used with the PUCCH resource set， the PUCCH format indicating one of a set of short duration PUCCH formats and a set of long duration PUCCH formats.
The method of claim 14， further comprising：

decoding the DCI，

identifying one or more off a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a search space index within the DL control channel resource monitoring set， an aggregation level of the decoded DCI， a dynamic indication field within the decoded DCI， a lowest control channel element ( “CCE” ) index used by the decoded DCI， and a PUCCH resource set configuration in radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling， and

determining a PUCCH resource allocation within the determined PUCCH resource set for transmitting the UCI.
The method of claim 10， wherein the identified characteristics of the DL control channel implicitly indicate one or more of： a PUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform.
The method of claim 10， further comprising receiving the predetermined association via radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling.
An apparatus comprising：

a controller that

determines at least one of a physical uplink control channel ( “PUCCH” ) format and a PUCCH resource set for a user equipment ( “UE” ) ， and

identifies at least one characteristic of a DL control channel that corresponds to the determined at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set； and

a transmitter that transmits a downlink ( “DL” ) control signal to the UE， the DL control signal comprising downlink control information ( “DCI” ) on a DL control channel resource monitoring set， wherein the at least one identified characteristic implicitly indicates the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association.
The apparatus of claim 19， wherein identifying at least one characteristic of the DL control channel comprises the controller identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration， the first characteristic corresponding to a PUCCH format to be used by the UE to transmit uplink control information ( “UCI” ) .
The apparatus of claim 20， wherein the PUCCH format to be used by the UE is one of a PUCCH format with a short duration and a PUCCH format with a long duration， where a short duration length and a long duration length are predetermined.
The apparatus of claim 20， wherein identifying at least one characteristic of the DL control channel further comprises the controller identifying a second characteristic different than the first characteristic， the second characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration， the second characteristic corresponding to a PUCCH resource set to be used by the UE to transmit UCI.
The apparatus of claim 19， wherein identifying at least one characteristic of the DL control channel comprises the controller identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration， the first characteristic corresponding to a PUCCH resource set to be used by the UE to transmit uplink control information ( “UCI” ) .
The apparatus of claim 23， wherein the predetermined association further indicates a PUCCH format to be used with the PUCCH resource set， the PUCCH format indicating one of a set of short duration PUCCH formats and a set of long duration PUCCH formats.
The apparatus of claim 23， wherein the controller further implicitly indicates a PUCCH resource allocation to the UE from within the PUCCH resource set using one or more of： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a search space index within the DL control channel resource monitoring set， an aggregation level of the DCI， a dynamic indication field within the DCI， a lowest control channel element ( “CCE” ) index used by the DCI， and a PUCCH resource set configuration in radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling.
The apparatus of claim 19， wherein the at least one identified characteristic of the DL control channel implicitly indicates one or more of： a PUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform.
The apparatus of claim 19， wherein the transmitter further transmits the predetermined association to the UE via radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling.
A method comprising：

determining at least one of a physical uplink control channel ( “PUCCH” ) format and a PUCCH resource set for a user equipment ( “UE” ) ， and

identifying at least one characteristic of a DL control channel that corresponds to the determined at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set； and

transmitting a downlink ( “DL” ) control signal to the UE， the DL control signal comprising downlink control information ( “DCI” ) on a DL control channel resource monitoring set， wherein the at least one identified characteristic implicitly indicates the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association.
The method of claim 28， wherein identifying characteristics of the DL control channel comprises identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration， the first characteristic corresponding to a PUCCH format to be used by the UE to transmit uplink control information ( “UCI” ) .
The method of claim 29， wherein the PUCCH format to be used by the UE is one of a PUCCH format with a short duration and a PUCCH format with a long duration， where a short duration length and a long duration length are predetermined.
The method of claim 29， wherein identifying characteristics of the DL control channel resource monitoring set further comprises identifying a second characteristic different than the first characteristic， the second characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration， the second characteristic corresponding to a PUCCH resource set to be used by the UE to transmit UCI.
The method of claim 28， wherein identifying characteristics of the DL control channel resource monitoring set comprises identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration， the first characteristic corresponding to a PUCCH resource set to be used by the UE to transmit uplink control information ( “UCI” ) .
The method of claim 32， wherein the predetermined association further indicates a PUCCH format to be used with the PUCCH resource set， the PUCCH format indicating one of a set of short duration PUCCH formats and a set of long duration PUCCH formats.
The method of claim 32， further comprising implicitly indicating a PUCCH resource allocation to the UE from within the PUCCH resource set using one or more of： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a search space index within the DL control channel resource monitoring set， an aggregation level of the DCI， a dynamic indication field within the DCI， a lowest control channel element ( “CCE” ) index used by the DCI， and a PUCCH resource set configuration in radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling.
The method of claim 28， wherein the at least one identified characteristic of the DL control channel implicitly indicates one or more of： a PUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform.
The method of claim 28， further comprising transmitting the predetermined association to the UE via radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling.
A system comprising：

a base unit comprising：

a first controller that determines at least one of a physical uplink control channel ( “PUCCH” ) format and a PUCCH resource set for a remote unit； and

a transmitter that transmits a downlink ( “DL” ) control signal to the remote unit， the DL control signal comprising downlink control information ( “DCI” ) on a DL control channel resource monitoring set； and

a remote unit comprising：

a receiver that receives the DL control signal from the base unit； and

a second controller that

identifies characteristics of the DL control channel， and

determines the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics， wherein the identified characteristics implicitly indicate the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set using a predetermined association.
The system of claim 37， wherein the transmitter further transmits the predetermined association to the remote unit via radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling.
The system of claim 37，

wherein identifying characteristics of the DL control channel comprises the second controller identifying a first characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration，

wherein determining the at least one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics comprises the second controller determining a PUCCH format to be used to transmit uplink control information ( “UCI” ) from the first characteristic using the predetermined association.
The system of claim 39，

wherein identifying characteristics of the DL control channel further comprises the second controller identifying a second characteristic different than the first characteristic， the second characteristic selected from： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a DL control channel monitoring time domain interval， a monitored slot size， and a monitored control channel duration，

wherein determining one of a PUCCH format and a PUCCH resource set from the identified characteristics further comprises the second controller determining a PUCCH resource set to be used to transmit UCI from the second characteristic using the predetermined association.
The system of claim 40，

wherein the second controller further decodes the DCI，

wherein the second controller identifies one or more of： a set index of the DL control channel resource monitoring set， a search space index within the DL control channel resource monitoring set， an aggregation level of the decoded DCI， a dynamic indication field within the decoded DCI， a lowest control channel element ( “CCE” ) index used by the decoded DCI， and a PUCCH resource set configuration in radio resource control ( “RRC” ) signaling， and

wherein the second controller determines a PUCCH resource allocation within the determined PUCCH resource set for transmitting the UCI.
The system of claim 37， wherein the DL control channel implicitly indicates one or more of：aPUCCH duration in terms of number of OFDM/DFT-S-OFDM symbols， a frequency bandwidth， a payload size， frame structure numerology， and a waveform.