WO2025015535A1

WO2025015535A1 - Flexible frame structure

Info

Publication number: WO2025015535A1
Application number: PCT/CN2023/108006
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jie Gao; Claudio Rosa; Nhat-Quang NHAN; Jing Yuan Sun
Original assignee: Nokia Shanghai Bell Co Ltd; Nokia Solutions and Networks Oy; Nokia Technologies Oy
Current assignee: Nokia Shanghai Bell Co Ltd; Nokia Solutions and Networks Oy; Nokia Technologies Oy
Priority date: 2023-07-18
Filing date: 2023-07-18
Publication date: 2025-01-23
Anticipated expiration: 2026-01-18

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to devices, methods, apparatuses and computer readable storage media of especially for user equipment supporting non-overlapping full duplex (SBFD) or not supporting SBFD. The method comprises receiving, at a first apparatus and from a second apparatus, a common frame structure configuration for including a plurality of flexible slots; receiving, from the second apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD, structure or a TDD frame structure; and performing a communication to the second apparatus at least based on the dedicated frame structure configuration.

Description

FLEXIBLE FRAME STRUCTURE

FIELD

Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of telecommunication and in particular to devices, methods, apparatuses and computer readable storage media of flexible frame structure, especially for user equipment supporting non-overlapping full duplex (SBFD) or not supporting SBFD.

BACKGROUND

3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) 5th Generation Mobile Communication Technology (5G) New Radio (NR) currently supports two duplexing modes, namely Frequency Division Duplexing (FDD) for paired bands and Time division duplex (TDD) for unpaired bands. In TDD, the time domain resource may be split between downlink and uplink. Allocation of a limited time duration for the uplink in TDD may result in reduced coverage, increased latency, and reduced capacity. Therefore, a study of subband non-overlapping full duplex (SBFD) is initiated in the release 18.

SUMMARY

In a first aspect, there is provided a first apparatus. The first apparatus comprises at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first apparatus at least to: receive, from a second apparatus, a common frame structure configuration for including a plurality of flexible slots; receive, from the second apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD, structure or a TDD frame structure; and perform a communication to the second apparatus at least based on the dedicated frame structure configuration.

In a second aspect, there is provided a second apparatus. The second apparatus comprises at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the second apparatus at least to: transmit, to a first apparatus, a common frame structure configuration including a plurality of flexible slots; and transmit, to the first apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD structure or a TDD frame structure.

In a third aspect, there is provided a method. The method comprises receiving, at a first apparatus and from a second apparatus, a common frame structure configuration for including a plurality of flexible slots; receiving, from the second apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD, structure or a TDD frame structure; and performing a communication to the second apparatus at least based on the dedicated frame structure configuration.

In a fourth aspect, there is provided a method. The method comprises transmitting, from a second apparatus and to a first apparatus, a common frame structure configuration including a plurality of flexible slots; and transmitting, to the first apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD structure or a TDD frame structure.

In a fifth aspect, there is provided a first apparatus comprising means for receiving, from a second apparatus, a common frame structure configuration for including a plurality of flexible slots; means for receiving, from the second apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD, structure or a TDD frame structure; and means for performing a communication to the second apparatus at least based on the dedicated frame structure configuration.

In a sixth aspect, there is provided a second apparatus comprising means for transmitting, to a first apparatus, a common frame structure configuration including a plurality of flexible slots; and means for transmitting, to the first apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD structure or a TDD frame structure.

In a seventh aspect, there is provided a computer readable medium having a computer program stored thereon which, when executed by at least one processor of an apparatus, causes the apparatus to carry out the method according to the third aspect or the fourth aspect.

Other features and advantages of the embodiments of the present disclosure will also be apparent from the following description of specific embodiments when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of embodiments of the disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of the disclosure are presented in the sense of examples and their advantages are explained in greater detail below, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example environment in which example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented;

FIG. 2 shows an example of SBFD and non-SBFD slots according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 shows a signaling chart illustrating an example of process according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 shows an example of a common frame structure according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 shows an example of a SBFD frame structure according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 shows an example of a dedicated TDD frame structure according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7A and 7B shows other examples of a SBFD frame structure according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 shows a flowchart of an example method of flexible frame structure according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 shows a flowchart of an example method of flexible frame structure according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 shows a simplified block diagram of a device that is suitable for implementing example embodiments of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 11 shows a block diagram of an example computer readable medium in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals may represent the same or similar element.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Principle of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to some example embodiments. It is to be understood that these embodiments are described only for the purpose of illustration and help those skilled in the art to understand and implement the present disclosure, without suggesting any limitation as to the scope of the disclosure. Embodiments described herein may be implemented in various manners other than the ones described below.

In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein may have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skills in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

References in the present disclosure to “one embodiment, ” “an embodiment, ” “an example embodiment, ” and the like indicate that the embodiment described may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but it is not necessary that every embodiment includes the particular feature, structure, or characteristic. Moreover, such phrases are not necessarily referring to the same embodiment. Further, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, it is submitted that it is within the knowledge of one skilled in the art to affect such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with other embodiments whether or not explicitly described.

It shall be understood that although the terms “first, ” “second” and the like may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another. For example, a first element could be termed a second element, and similarly, a second element could be termed a first element, without departing from the scope of example embodiments. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the listed terms.

As used herein, “at least one of the following: <a list of two or more elements>” and “at least one of <a list of two or more elements>” and similar wording, where the list of two or more elements are joined by “and” or “or” , mean at least any one of the elements, or at least any two or more of the elements, or at least all the elements.

As used herein, unless stated explicitly, performing a step “in response to A” does not indicate that the step is performed immediately after “A” occurs and one or more intervening steps may be included.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of example embodiments. As used herein, the singular forms “a” , “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” , “comprising” , “has” , “having” , “includes” and/or “including” , when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, elements, and/or components etc., but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components and/or combinations thereof.

As used in this application, the term “circuitry” may refer to one or more or all of the following:

(a) hardware-only circuit implementations (such as implementations in only analog and/or digital circuitry) and

(b) combinations of hardware circuits and software, such as (as applicable) :

(i) a combination of analog and/or digital hardware circuit (s) with software/firmware and

(ii) any portions of hardware processor (s) with software (including digital signal processor (s) ) , software, and memory (ies) that work together to cause an apparatus, such as a mobile phone or server, to perform various functions) and

(c) hardware circuit (s) and or processor (s) , such as a microprocessor (s) or a portion of a microprocessor (s) , that requires software (e.g., firmware) for operation, but the software may not be present when it is not needed for operation.

This definition of circuitry applies to all uses of this term in this application, including in any claims. As a further example, as used in this application, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of merely a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and/or firmware. The term circuitry also covers, for example and if applicable to the particular claim element, a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device or a similar integrated circuit in server, a cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

As used herein, the term “communication network” refers to a network following any suitable communication standards, such as New Radio (NR) , Long Term Evolution (LTE) , LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) , Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) , High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) , Narrow Band Internet of Things (NB-IoT) , an Enhanced Machine type communication (eMTC) and so on. Furthermore, the communications between a terminal device and a network device in the communication network may be performed according to any suitable generation communication protocols, including, but not limited to, the first generation (1G) , the second generation (2G) , 2.5G, 2.75G, the third generation (3G) , the fourth generation (4G) , 4.5G, the fifth generation (5G) , the sixth generation (6G) communication protocols, and/or any other protocols either currently known or to be developed in the future. Embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied in various communication systems. Given the rapid development in communications, there will of course also be future type communication technologies and systems with which the present disclosure may be embodied. It should not be seen as limiting the scope of the present disclosure to only the aforementioned system.

As used herein, the terms “network device” , “radio network device” and/or “radio access network device” refers to a node in a communication network via which a terminal device accesses the network and receives services therefrom. The network device may refer to a base station (BS) or an access point (AP) , for example, a node B (NodeB or NB) , an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB) , an NR NB (also referred to as a gNB) , a Remote Radio Unit (RRU) , a remote radio head (RRH) , a relay, an Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) node, a low power node such as a femto, a pico, a non-terrestrial network (NTN) or non-ground network device such as a satellite network device, a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite and a geosynchronous earth orbit (GEO) satellite, an aircraft network device, and so forth, depending on the applied terminology and technology. In some example embodiments, low earth orbit (RAN) split architecture includes a Centralized Unit (CU) and a Distributed Unit (DU) . In some other example embodiments, part of the radio access network device or full of the radio access network device may embarked on an airborne or space-borne NTN vehicle.

The term “terminal device” refers to any end device that may be capable of wireless communication. By way of example rather than limitation, a terminal device may also be referred to as a communication device, user equipment (UE) , a Subscriber Station (SS) , a Portable Subscriber Station, a Mobile Station (MS) , or an Access Terminal (AT) . The terminal device may include, but not limited to, a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, voice over IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones, a tablet, a wearable terminal device, a personal digital assistant (PDA) , portable computers, desktop computer, image capture terminal devices such as digital cameras, gaming terminal devices, music storage and playback appliances, vehicle-mounted wireless terminal devices, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, laptop-embedded equipment (LEE) , laptop-mounted equipment (LME) , USB dongles, smart devices, wireless customer-premises equipment (CPE) , an Internet of Things (loT) device, a watch or other wearable, a head-mounted display (HMD) , a vehicle, a drone, a medical device and applications (e.g., remote surgery) , an industrial device and applications (e.g., a robot and/or other wireless devices operating in an industrial and/or an automated processing chain contexts) , a consumer electronics device, a device operating on commercial and/or industrial wireless networks, and the like. The terminal device may also correspond to a Mobile Termination (MT) part of an IAB node (e.g., a relay node) . In the following description, the terms “terminal device” , “communication device” , “terminal” , “user equipment” and “UE” may be used interchangeably.

As used herein, the term “resource, ” “transmission resource, ” “resource block, ” “physical resource block” (PRB) , “uplink resource, ” or “downlink resource” may refer to any resource for performing a communication, for example, a communication between a terminal device and a network device, such as a resource in time domain, a resource in frequency domain, a resource in space domain, a resource in code domain, or any other resource enabling a communication, and the like. In the following, unless explicitly stated, a resource in both frequency domain and time domain will be used as an example of a transmission resource for describing some example embodiments of the present disclosure. It is noted that example embodiments of the present disclosure are equally applicable to other resources in other domains.

FIG. 1 shows an example communication network 100 in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented. As shown in FIG. 1, the communication network 100 may include a first apparatus 110. Hereinafter the first apparatus 110 may also be referred to as a UE or a terminal device.

The communication network 100 may further include a second apparatus 120. Hereinafter the second apparatus 120 may also be referred to as a gNB or a network device. The first apparatus 110 may communicate with the second apparatus 120.

It is to be understood that the number of network devices and terminal devices shown in FIG. 1 is given for the purpose of illustration without suggesting any limitations. The communication network 100 may include any suitable number of network devices and terminal devices.

In some example embodiments, links from the second apparatus 120 to the first apparatus 110 may be referred to as a downlink (DL) , while links from the first apparatus 110 to the second apparatus 120 may be referred to as an uplink (UL) . In DL, the second apparatus 120 is a transmitting (TX) device (or a transmitter) and the first apparatus 110 is a receiving (RX) device (or receiver) . In UL, the first apparatus 110 is a TX device (or transmitter) and the second apparatus 120 is a RX device (or a receiver) .

Communications in the communication environment 100 may be implemented according to any proper communication protocol (s) , includes, but not limited to, cellular communication protocols of the first generation (1G) , the second generation (2G) , the third generation (3G) , the fourth generation (4G) , 5G, the sixth generation (6G) , and the like, wireless local network communication protocols such as Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 and the like, and/or any other protocols currently known or to be developed in the future. Moreover, the communication may utilize any proper wireless communication technology, includes but not limited to: Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) , Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) , Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) , FDD, TDD, Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) , Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple (OFDM) , Discrete Fourier Transform spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) and/or any other technologies currently known or to be developed in the future.

The current two duplexing modes in 3GPP 5G NR are facing challenges that allocating the limited time duration in the duplexing modes can result in reduced capabilities. To address this challenge, 3GPP has agreed to initiate a release 18 study item on the evolution of duplexing operations in NR. One of the objectives of the study item is to allow simultaneous DL and UL transmission on different physical resource blocks (PRBs) /subbands within an unpaired wideband NR cell. In the present disclosure, this duplexing scheme is referred to as SBFD. In other sources, this duplexing scheme is also referred to as cross-division duplexing (xDD) scheme or Flexible Duplexing (FDU) .

FIG. 2 shows an example of SBFD and non-SBFD slots according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 2, there are two slot types exist for both DL and UL transmissions, including SBFD slots 220 and non-SBFD slots 210 and 230. During the SBFD slots 220, both the non-overlapping DL subbands 221 and 223 and UL subband (s) 222 exist, while during the non-SBFD slots210 and 230, the entire band is used for DL resource 211 or UL resource 231 (i.e., full DL/UL slots) .

Several SBFD operation modes have been studied including whether the time and frequency locations of subbands for SBFD operation are known to the SBFD-aware UE or not. It however has been agreed in 3GPP that at least the operation mode with time and frequency locations of subbands for SBFD operation being known to the SBFD-aware UE is prioritized. This means that SBFD slots should be known by the (SBFD-aware) UE in one way or another.

By introducing the SBFD, three type of frame structures are supported, namely the dynamic TDD, the static TDD and SBFD.

When using dynamic TDD, on the one hand, flexible (F) slots/symbols are configured in the frame structure. The link direction of flexible symbols is indicated via group-common physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) and therefore all UEs in a cell transmitting in the same symbol are in the same transmission direction. In terms of radio resource configuration, it will be difficult to plan statically the resource configuration, which increases the complexity of wireless resource management.

When using static TDD, slots/symbols are configured in frame structure and all UEs in a cell transmitting in the same symbol are in the same transmission direction. Poor flexibility, poor uplink coverage, poor latency, etc.

When using SBFD, a UE without SBFD capability (i.e., SBFD non-aware UE) are not aware of the SBFD structure (which may also be called as SBFD non-aware UE) . All SBFD advantages may not apply to SBFD non-aware UEs and will reduce SBFD non-aware UEs performance.

Therefore, it is to be excepted that the SBFD non-aware UE can also enjoy the benefits of SBFD, such as low latency, flexibility, enhanced coverage, etc.

The present disclosure proposes a solution of flexible frame structure. The first apparatus 110 receive a common frame structure configuration for including a plurality of flexible slots and also a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus 110 and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD structure or a TDD frame structure. Then the first apparatus 110 perform a communication to the second apparatus 120 at least based on the dedicated frame structure configuration.

In this way, a SBFD non-aware UE may also use SBFD resources. That is, the SBFD non-aware UE may be operated in flexible symbols compatible with SBFD frame structure and may flexibly use different frame structure in the same cell and at the same time. Therefore, the radio resource utilization can be improved, and the SBFD non-aware UE may benefit from the UL coverage enhancements.

Example embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Reference is now made to FIG. 3, which shows a signaling chart 300 for communication according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 3, the signaling chart 300 involves the first apparatus 110 and the second apparatus 120. For the purpose of discussion, reference is made to FIG. 1 to describe the signaling chart 300. It is to be understood that the process shown in FIG. 3 may also be adopted by other terminal devices and network devices shown in FIG. 1.

In a scenario where the SBFD can be supported, the second apparatus 120 transmit (302) a common frame structure configuration to the first apparatus 110. The common frame structure configuration may include the plurality of flexible slots. It is to be understood that the common frame structure configuration may include any suitable interval in a time domain to be flexibly scheduled for UL or DL. For example, the common frame structure configuration may include the plurality of flexible symbols or slots.

In some embodiments, the common frame structure configuration may comprise a plurality of adjacent flexible slots in a time domain and a plurality of adjacent flexible slots in a frequency domain.

Furthermore, the common frame structure configuration may also indicate a frequency band available for the first apparatus 110.

In an example, the common frame structure may be indicated as below:

Table 1: example of common frame structure

FIG. 4 shows an example of frame structure indicating by the common frame structure configuration, i.e., a frame structure of “DFFFU” , where “D” represents DL, “U” represents UL and “F” represents flexible. As shown in FIG. 4, the frame structure 400 may comprise a slot/symbol 410 for DL, a slot/symbol 430 for UL and 3 adjacent flexible slots/symbols 421, 422 and 423.

Then the second apparatus 120 transmits (304) a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus 110 and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD structure or a TDD frame structure.

In some embodiments, if the first apparatus 110 can support SBFD (hereinafter may also be called as SBFD aware first apparatus or a SBFD aware UE) , the first apparatus 110 may obtain (306) the SBFD structure from the dedicated frame structure configuration. That is, the first apparatus 110 may understand the SBFD operation is supported in the flexible slots.

FIG. 5 shows an example of a dedicated frame structure configuration that is based on the common frame structure configuration of FIG. 4 and indicates that the plurality of flexible slots of the common frame configuration has a SBFD structure 500 that can be understood by the SBFD aware first apparatus. In this case, the first apparatus 110 may understand there is a “DUD” structure 510 in each of flexible slots/symbols 421 and 422 based on the dedicated frame structure configuration.

Furthermore, the first apparatus 110 may also be indicated at least one position of one or more uplink slots or one or more downlink slots in the plurality of flexible slots. For example, there is one resource indicator value (RIV, i.e., start resource block (RB) and length of RBs) to indicate the uplink sub-band location in frequency domain. The second apparatus 120 may indicate only UL sub-band and the first apparatus 110 may understand that the rest of the bandwidth is for DL in the flexible slots. Therefore, a SBFD aware first apparatus can know which slots are SBFD slots and have the “DUD” structure in frequency domain location distribution.

In some embodiments, if the first apparatus 110 cannot support SBFD (hereinafter may also be called as a SBFD non-aware first apparatus or a SBFD non-aware UE) , then the first apparatus 110 may obtain (306) dedicated TDD frame structure for the dedicated frame structure configuration. In this stage, the second apparatus 120 may configure a same dedicated TDD frame structure for each SBFD non-aware UE, because the second apparatus 120 may not have required UE-specific information available at this point of time.

In an example, the dedicated TDD frame structure may be indicated as below:

Table 2: example of dedicated TDD frame structure

FIG. 6 shows an example of a dedicated frame structure configuration from the first apparatus 110’s view indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a TDD frame structure 600. Except for the specific location of the frequency domain 601 (band) in the flexible slots 421, 422 and 423 that are configured for UL for supporting the SBFD (for example based on the example shown in FIG. 5) and that cannot be seen by the first apparatus, other location (s) (band (s) ) in the flexible slots 421, 422 and 423 are configured for DL or configured as special slot (s) , which may include DL, UL, and gap symbols. In case of multiple locations (bands) , they all may be configured to the same of DL or same special slot. That is, the TDD frame structure indicated in the dedicated frame structure configuration in this example is “DDDSU” .

In some embodiments, the second apparatus 120 may transmit the dedicated frame structure configuration to the first apparatus 110 via a system information and/or a radio resource control (RRC) signaling. In some other embodiments, the second apparatus 120 may transmit the dedicated frame structure configuration to the first apparatus 110 via a dedicated signaling.

After providing the dedicated frame structure configuration, the second apparatus may also update the configured dedicated frame structure for the first apparatus. Because the previous dedicated frame structure configuration may be configured at a time point when the second apparatus 120 is lack of the additional information of the first apparatus 110, such as traffic load, QoS requirement, etc.

As shown in FIG. 2, the second apparatus may transmit (308) an indication for reconfiguring the plurality of flexible slots having the TDD frame structure of the common frame structure configuration and thus implement the dedicated frame structure configuration for the first apparatus 110. The selection of the particular dedicated frame structure configuration may be based on, for example, based on a traffic load, a QoS, the capability, the function, measurements report associated with the first apparatus 110, and/or another parameter or condition associated with the first apparatus 110. Whenever the parameter (s) and/or conditions associated with the first apparatus change (s) , the second apparatus may again reconfigure the common frame structure configuration and implement another, different type of dedicated frame structure configuration.

Furthermore, the second apparatus 120 may also reconfigure particularly the plurality of flexible slots of the common frame structure configuration having the TDD frame structure, and the reconfiguration may be based on a traffic load, a QoS, the capability, the function, measurements report associated with the second apparatus 120. In other words, some of the slots (e.g., dedicated uplink and/or downlink slots) may be maintained fixed, while the flexible slots may be reconfigured to various dedicated frame structure configurations to address various different operating conditions.

For example, the second apparatus 120 may transmit the indication via downlink control information (DCI) , a medium access control-control element (MAC CE) and/or a RRC signaling.

In some embodiments, the second apparatus 120 may select semi-TDD frame structure for the first apparatus 110 based on traffic load model and QoS of the first apparatus 110. When the traffic model of the first apparatus 110 changes, the second apparatus 120 may configure a new semi-TDD frame structure to the first apparatus 110.

For example, in a case where the first apparatus 110 changes to an Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) model, then second apparatus 120 can reconfigure the current dedicated frame structure configuration into a further dedicated TDD frame structure configuration for the first apparatus 110.

FIG. 7A shows another example of a dedicated TDD frame structure from the first apparatus 110’s view according to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the dedicated frame structure comprising flexible slots configured with time-multiplexed different transmission actions.

As shown in FIG. 7A, in a dedicated TDD frame structure 700A, a part of the flexible slot 421 is configured for UL in a frequency location 701. The frequency location 701 is in this example between two frequency locations of the frame structure configuration but, in other embodiments, the frequency location 701 may be at an edge of the frame structure configuration. Except for the resources in the frequency location 701, the flexible slot 422 is configured for DL. In the flexible slot 423, a first part of the flexible slot 423 is configured for DL except for the resources in the frequency location 701, and a further part of the flexible slot 423 is configured for UL in all frequency locations. Since there is a gap 702 and resources for UL in the flexible slot 421, the flexible slot 421 can be considered as a “S” slot. Similarly, since there is a gap 703 between the DL and UL in the flexible slot 423, the flexible slot 423 can be considered as a “S” slot. Therefore, the dedicated TDD frame structure 700A of this case may be considered as having a “DSDSU” structure.

In this case, an indication for reconfiguring the plurality of flexible slots having the TDD frame structure may follow as below.

Table 3: an example of indication for reconfiguring the dedicated TDD frame structure

As another example, in a case where the first apparatus 110 switches from a given operating model to a power saving model, then second apparatus 120 can configure a further dedicated TDD frame structure configuration for the first apparatus 110 that is tailored for the power saving model.

FIG. 7B shows another example of a dedicated TDD frame structure from the first apparatus 110’s view according to the embodiments of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 7B, in the flexible slot 421, a part of flexible slot 421 is configured for DL in frequency locations 704 and 705 and the other part of flexible slot 421 is configured for UL in a frequency location 701. The part and the other part are non-overlapping in both time and frequency domains within the same flexible slot 421. The flexible slot 422 is configured for UL in the frequency location 701. In flexible slot 423, a part of flexible slot 423 is configured for UL only in the frequency location 701 and a part of flexible slot 423 is configured for UL in all frequency locations. The flexible slot 423 thus has a variable bandwidth for the UL. Since there is a gap 706 between UL and DL in the flexible slot 421, the flexible slot 421 can be considered as a “S” slot. The dedicated TDD frame structure 700B of this case may be considered as having a “DSUUU” structure.

Table 4: an example of indication for reconfiguring the dedicated TDD frame structure

In some other embodiments, the second apparatus 120 may select semi-TDD frame structure for the first apparatus 110 based on current an environment condition and/or status on transmit power on the first apparatus 110.

For example, the UL coverage enhancement mode may use a structure “SUUUU” , if, e.g., L1 RSRP is low. If the path loss is large, and power headroom of the first apparatus 110 is low, then the first apparatus 110 may use UL heavy frame structure.

Furthermore, if the first apparatus 110 determines an interference mode based on Channel Quality Indication (CQI) and/or Signal to Interference plus Noise Ratio (SINR) , a common frame structure may be used. For a UE to UE interference mode, the used frame structure may be same with near inter-cell UEs.

In some other embodiments, the second apparatus 120 may select semi-TDD frame structure for the first apparatus 110 based on function requirement. For example, for a UE power saving, a structure “SUUUU” may be used. For a UE discontinuous reception (DRX) , a structure “DSUUU” may be used.

In some other embodiments, the second apparatus 120 may select semi-TDD frame structure for the first apparatus 110 based on UE capability such as whether the first apparatus 110 supports a TDD pattern. Furthermore, the second apparatus 120 may select the frame structure based on the temperature, power consumption, and battery allowance etc.

Based on the dedicated frame structure indicated by the second apparatus 120, the first apparatus 110 may perform (310) a communication to the second apparatus 120.

In some other embodiments, in a handover of the first apparatus 110, the second apparatus 120 (e.g., acting as a serving cell of the first apparatus 110) may inform the dedicated frame structure of the first apparatus 110 (and/or a common frame structure) to a target network device of the handover. For example, the second apparatus 120 may indicate the dedicated TDD frame structure of the first apparatus 110 to the target network device in a handover request message transmitted, for example, over Xn or Ng interface. Then the target network device may determine a new frame structure based on the dedicated TDD frame structure indicated from the second apparatus 120. In an embodiment where the target network device receives the common frame structure from the second apparatus 120, the target network device may then select the dedicated frame structure for the first apparatus 110 by following any one of the embodiments described herein and signal the selected dedicated frame structure to the first apparatus 110 during the handover or after the handover.

In this way, the flexible slots can be configured for supporting SBFD structure or TDD frame structure and both SBFD aware UE and SBFD non-aware UE may benefit from this solution. Therefore, the radio resource utilization can be improved because the UEs can be configured according to prevailing operating conditions.

FIG. 8 shows a flowchart of an example method 800 of flexible frame structure according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. The method 500 may be implemented at the first apparatus 110 (which may be implemented as a terminal device) as shown in FIG. 1. For the purpose of discussion, the method 800 will be described with reference to FIG. 1.

At 810, the first apparatus receives, from a second apparatus, a common frame structure configuration for including a plurality of flexible slots.

At 820, the first apparatus receives, from the second apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD structure or a TDD frame structure.

At 830, the first apparatus performs a communication to the second apparatus at least based on the dedicated frame structure configuration.

In some example embodiments, the method 800 may further comprise receiving the dedicated frame structure configuration for the first apparatus via at least one of the following: system information, a radio resource control signaling, or a dedicate signaling.

In some example embodiments, the plurality of flexible slots has the TDD frame structure in a case where the first apparatus is incapable of SBFD, the method 800 may further comprise performing the communication to the second apparatus based on the dedicated frame structure configuration indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has the TDD frame structure.

In some example embodiments, the method 800 may further comprise receiving, from the second apparatus or from a third apparatus associated with a handover of the first apparatus, an indication for reconfiguring the plurality of flexible slots having the TDD frame structure; and reconfiguring the plurality of flexible slots based on the indication.

In some example embodiments, the indication is received via at least one of: downlink control information, a medium access control-control element, or a radio resource control signaling.

In some example embodiments, the dedicated frame structure configuration indicates that the plurality of flexible slots has the SBFD structure, and wherein the dedicated frame structure configuration indicates at least one position of one or more uplink slots or one or more downlink slots in the plurality of flexible slots.

In some example embodiments, the at least one position of one or more uplink slots in a frequency domain is indicated by a resource indicator value.

In some example embodiments, the common frame structure configuration comprises a plurality of adjacent flexible slots in a time domain and a plurality of adjacent flexible slots in a frequency domain.

In some example embodiments, the plurality of flexible slots has the SBFD structure, the method 800 may further comprise receiving, from the second apparatus, a further dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus for changing the plurality of flexible slots from the SBFD structure to the TDD structure; and performing a further communication to the second apparatus at least based on the TDD frame structure configuration.

In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network device.

FIG. 9 shows a flowchart of an example method 900 of flexible frame structure according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure. The method 900 may be implemented at the second apparatus 120 (which may be implemented as a network device) as shown in FIG. 1. For the purpose of discussion, the method 900 with be described with reference to FIG. 1.

At 910, the second apparatus transmits, to a first apparatus, a common frame structure configuration including a plurality of flexible slots.

At 920, the second apparatus transmits, to the first apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD structure or a TDD frame structure.

In some example embodiments, the method 900 may further comprise transmitting the dedicated frame structure configuration for the first apparatus via at least one of the following: system information, a radio resource control signaling, or a dedicate signaling.

In some example embodiments, the method 900 may further comprise transmitting to the first apparatus, an indication for reconfiguring the plurality of flexible slots associated with the TDD frame structure.

In some example embodiments, the method 900 may further comprise generating the indication by considering at least one of the following: a traffic load of the first apparatus and/or the second apparatus, quality of service associated with the first apparatus and/or the second apparatus, an environment condition of the first apparatus and/or the second apparatus, a transmit power associated with the first apparatus and/or the second apparatus, a function requirement associated with the first apparatus and/or the second apparatus, a capability of the first apparatus and/or the second apparatus.

In some example embodiments, the indication indicates a semi-TDD frame structure selected by the second apparatus for the first apparatus.

In some example embodiments, the method 900 may further comprise transmitting to a third apparatus associated with a handover of the first apparatus via a Xn or Ng interface, a handover request at least including the dedicated frame structure configuration associated with the TDD frame structure.

In some example embodiments, the plurality of flexible slots has the SBFD structure, the method 900 may further comprise transmitting, to the first apparatus, a further dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus for changing the plurality of flexible slots from the SBFD structure to the TDD structure.

In some example embodiments, a first apparatus capable of performing the method 800 (for example, implemented at the first apparatus 110) may include means for performing the respective steps of the method 800. The means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the means may be implemented in a circuitry or software module.

In some example embodiments, the first apparatus comprises means for receiving, from a second apparatus, a common frame structure configuration for including a plurality of flexible slots; means for receiving, from the second apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD, structure or a TDD frame structure; and means for performing a communication to the second apparatus at least based on the dedicated frame structure configuration.

In some example embodiments, the first apparatus may further comprise means for receiving the dedicated frame structure configuration for the first apparatus via at least one of the following: system information, a radio resource control signaling, or a dedicate signaling.

In some example embodiments, the first apparatus may further comprise means for receiving, from the second apparatus or from a third apparatus associated with a handover of the first apparatus, an indication for reconfiguring the plurality of flexible slots having the TDD frame structure; and means for reconfiguring the plurality of flexible slots based on the indication.

In some example embodiments, the plurality of flexible slots has the SBFD structure, first apparatus may further comprise means for receiving, from the second apparatus, a further dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus for changing the plurality of flexible slots from the SBFD structure to the TDD structure; and means for performing a further communication to the second apparatus at least based on the TDD frame structure configuration.

In some example embodiments, a second apparatus capable of performing the method 900 (for example, implemented at the second apparatus 120) may include means for performing the respective steps of the method 900. The means may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the means may be implemented in a circuitry or software module.

In some example embodiments, the second apparatus comprises means for transmitting, to a first apparatus, a common frame structure configuration including a plurality of flexible slots; and means for transmitting, to the first apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD structure or a TDD frame structure.

In some example embodiments, the second apparatus may further comprise means for transmitting the dedicated frame structure configuration for the first apparatus via at least one of the following: system information, a radio resource control signaling, or a dedicate signaling.

In some example embodiments, the second apparatus may further comprise means for transmitting to the first apparatus, an indication for reconfiguring the plurality of flexible slots associated with the TDD frame structure.

In some example embodiments, the second apparatus may further comprise means for generating the indication by considering at least one of the following: a traffic load of the first apparatus and/or the second apparatus, quality of service associated with the first apparatus and/or the second apparatus, an environment condition of the first apparatus and/or the second apparatus, a transmit power associated with the first apparatus and/or the second apparatus, a function requirement associated with the first apparatus and/or the second apparatus, a capability of the first apparatus and/or the second apparatus.

In some example embodiments, the second apparatus may further comprise means for transmitting to a third apparatus associated with a handover of the first apparatus via a Xn or Ng interface, a handover request at least including the dedicated frame structure configuration associated with the TDD frame structure.

In some example embodiments, the plurality of flexible slots has the SBFD structure, the second apparatus may further comprise means for transmitting, to the first apparatus, a further dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus for changing the plurality of flexible slots from the SBFD structure to the TDD structure.

FIG. 10 is a simplified block diagram of a device 1000 that is suitable for implementing example embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 1000 may be provided to implement a communication device, for example, the first terminal device 110 or the second terminal device 120 as shown in FIG. 1. As shown, the device 1000 includes one or more processors 1010, one or more memories 1020 coupled to the processor 1010, and one or more communication modules 1040 coupled to the processor 1010.

The communication module 1040 is for bidirectional communications. The communication module 1040 has one or more communication interfaces to facilitate communication with one or more other modules or devices. The communication interfaces may represent any interface that is necessary for communication with other network elements. In some example embodiments, the communication module 1040 may include at least one antenna.

The processor 1010 may be of any type suitable to the local technical network and may include one or more of the following: general purpose computers, special purpose computers, microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs) and processors based on multicore processor architecture, as non-limiting examples. The device 1000 may have multiple processors, such as an application specific integrated circuit chip that is slaved in time to a clock which synchronizes the main processor.

The memory 1020 may include one or more non-volatile memories and one or more volatile memories. Examples of the non-volatile memories include, but are not limited to, a Read Only Memory (ROM) 1024, an electrically programmable read only memory (EPROM) , a flash memory, a hard disk, a compact disc (CD) , a digital video disk (DVD) , an optical disk, a laser disk, and other magnetic storage and/or optical storage. Examples of the volatile memories include, but are not limited to, a random access memory (RAM) 1022 and other volatile memories that will not last in the power-down duration.

A computer program 1030 includes computer executable instructions that are executed by the associated processor 1010. The instructions of the program 1030 may include instructions for performing operations/acts of some example embodiments of the present disclosure. The program 1030 may be stored in the memory, e.g., the ROM 1024. The processor 1010 may perform any suitable actions and processing by loading the program 1030 into the RAM 1022.

The example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented by means of the program 1030 so that the device 1000 may perform any process of the disclosure as discussed with reference to FIG. 2 to FIG. 9. The example embodiments of the present disclosure may also be implemented by hardware or by a combination of software and hardware.

In some example embodiments, the program 1030 may be tangibly contained in a computer readable medium which may be included in the device 1000 (such as in the memory 1020) or other storage devices that are accessible by the device 1000. The device 1000 may load the program 1030 from the computer readable medium to the RAM 1022 for execution. In some example embodiments, the computer readable medium may include any types of non-transitory storage medium, such as ROM, EPROM, a flash memory, a hard disk, CD, DVD, and the like. The term “non-transitory, ” as used herein, is a limitation of the medium itself (i.e., tangible, not a signal) as opposed to a limitation on data storage persistency (e.g., RAM vs. ROM) .

FIG. 11 shows an example of the computer readable medium 1100 which may be in form of CD, DVD or other optical storage disk. The computer readable medium 1100 has the program 1030 stored thereon.

Generally, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented in hardware or special purpose circuits, software, logic or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented in hardware, while other aspects may be implemented in firmware or software which may be executed by a controller, microprocessor or other computing device. While various aspects of embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated and described as block diagrams, flowcharts, or using some other pictorial representations, it is to be understood that the block, apparatus, system, technique or method described herein may be implemented in, as non-limiting examples, hardware, software, firmware, special purpose circuits or logic, general purpose hardware or controller or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

Some example embodiments of the present disclosure also provide at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a computer readable medium, such as a non-transitory computer readable medium. The computer program product includes computer-executable instructions, such as those included in program modules, being executed in a device on a target physical or virtual processor, to carry out any of the methods as described above. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, or the like that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The functionality of the program modules may be combined or split between program modules as desired in various embodiments. Machine-executable instructions for program modules may be executed within a local or distributed device. In a distributed device, program modules may be located in both local and remote storage media.

Program code for carrying out methods of the present disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. The program code may be provided to a processor or controller of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, such that the program code, when executed by the processor or controller, cause the functions/operations specified in the flowcharts and/or block diagrams to be implemented. The program code may execute entirely on a machine, partly on the machine, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the machine and partly on a remote machine or entirely on the remote machine or server.

In the context of the present disclosure, the computer program code or related data may be carried by any suitable carrier to enable the device, apparatus or processor to perform various processes and operations as described above. Examples of the carrier include a signal, computer readable medium, and the like.

The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signal medium or a computer readable storage medium. A computer readable medium may include but not limited to an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples of the computer readable storage medium would include 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) , an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) , an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

Further, while operations are depicted in a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring that such operations be performed in the particular order shown or in sequential order, or that all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirable results. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Likewise, while several specific implementation details are contained in the above discussions, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to particular embodiments. Unless explicitly stated, certain features that are described in the context of separate embodiments may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, unless explicitly stated, various features that are described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented in a plurality of embodiments separately or in any suitable sub-combination.

Although the present disclosure has been described in languages specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the present disclosure defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

A first apparatus, comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the first apparatus at least to:

receive, from a second apparatus, a common frame structure configuration for including a plurality of flexible slots;

receive, from the second apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a subband full duplex, SBFD, structure or a Time division duplex, TDD frame structure; and

perform a communication to the second apparatus at least based on the dedicated frame structure configuration.
The first apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first apparatus is caused to:

receive the dedicated frame structure configuration for the first apparatus via at least one of the following:

system information,

a radio resource control signaling, or

a dedicated signaling.
The first apparatus of claim 1 or 2, wherein the plurality of flexible slots has the TDD frame structure in a case where the first apparatus is incapable of SBFD, and wherein the first apparatus is caused to:

perform the communication to the second apparatus based on the dedicated frame structure configuration indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has the TDD frame structure.
The first apparatus of claim 3, wherein the first apparatus is further caused to:

receive, from the second apparatus or from a third apparatus associated with a handover of the first apparatus, an indication for reconfiguring the plurality of flexible slots having the TDD frame structure; and

reconfigure the plurality of flexible slots based on the indication.
The first apparatus of claim 4, wherein the indication is received via at least one of:

downlink control information,

a medium access control-control element, or

a radio resource control signaling.
The first apparatus of claim 1, wherein the dedicated frame structure configuration indicates that the plurality of flexible slots has the SBFD structure, and wherein the dedicated frame structure configuration indicates at least one position of one or more uplink slots or one or more downlink slots in the plurality of flexible slots.
The first apparatus of claim 6, wherein the at least one position of one or more uplink slots in a frequency domain is indicated by a resource indicator value.
The first apparatus of any of claims 1-7, wherein the common frame structure configuration comprises a plurality of adjacent flexible slots in a time domain and a plurality of adjacent flexible slots in a frequency domain.
The first apparatus of any of claims 1-8, wherein the plurality of flexible slots has the SBFD structure, and wherein the first apparatus is further caused to:

receive, from the second apparatus, a further dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus for changing the plurality of flexible slots from the SBFD structure to the TDD structure; and

perform a further communication to the second apparatus at least based on the TDD frame structure configuration.
The first apparatus of any of claims 1-9, wherein the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network device.
A second apparatus, comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the second apparatus at least to:

transmit, to a first apparatus, a common frame structure configuration including a plurality of flexible slots; and

transmit, to the first apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a subband full duplex, SBFD, structure or a Time division duplex, TDD frame structure.
The second apparatus of claim 11, wherein the second apparatus is caused to:

transmit the dedicated frame structure configuration for the first apparatus via at least one of the following:

system information,

a radio resource control signaling, or

a dedicate signaling.
The second apparatus of claim 11 or 12, wherein the second apparatus is caused to:

transmit, to the first apparatus, an indication for reconfiguring the plurality of flexible slots associated with the TDD frame structure.
The second apparatus of claim 13, wherein the second apparatus is caused to:

generate the indication by considering at least one of the following:

a traffic load of at least one of the first apparatus or the second apparatus,

quality of service associated with at least one of the first apparatus or the second apparatus,

an environment condition of at least one of the first apparatus or the second apparatus,

a transmit power associated with at least one of the first apparatus or the second apparatus,

a function requirement associated with at least one of the first apparatus or the second apparatus,

a capability of at least one of the first apparatus or the second apparatus.
The second apparatus of claim 13 or 14, wherein the indication indicates a semi-TDD frame structure selected by the second apparatus for the first apparatus.
The second apparatus of any of claims 13-15, wherein the indication is transmitted via at least one of:

downlink control information,

a medium access control-control element, or

a radio resource control signaling.
The second apparatus of any of claims 13-16, wherein the second apparatus is caused to:

transmit, to a third apparatus associated with a handover of the first apparatus via a Xn or Ng interface, a handover request at least including the dedicated frame structure configuration associated with the TDD frame structure.
The second apparatus of any of claims 11-17, wherein the dedicated frame structure configuration indicates that the plurality of flexible slots has the SBFD structure, and wherein the dedicated frame structure configuration indicates at least one position of one or more uplink slots or one or more downlink slots in the plurality of flexible slots.
The second apparatus of claim 18, wherein the at least one position of one or more uplink slots in a frequency domain is indicated by a resource indicator value.
The second apparatus of any of claims 11-19, wherein the common frame structure configuration comprises a plurality of adjacent flexible slots in a time domain and a plurality of adjacent flexible slots in a frequency domain.
The second apparatus of any of claims 11-20, wherein the plurality of flexible slots has the SBFD structure, and wherein the first apparatus is further caused to:

transmit, to the first apparatus, a further dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus for changing the plurality of flexible slots from the SBFD structure to the TDD structure.
The second apparatus of any of claim 11-21, wherein the first apparatus comprises a terminal device and the second apparatus comprises a network device.
A method comprising:

receiving, at a first apparatus and from a second apparatus, a common frame structure configuration for including a plurality of flexible slots;

receiving, from the second apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD, structure or a TDD frame structure; and

performing a communication to the second apparatus at least based on the dedicated frame structure configuration.
A method comprising:

transmitting, from a second apparatus and to a first apparatus, a common frame structure configuration including a plurality of flexible slots; and

transmitting, to the first apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD structure or a TDD frame structure.
A first apparatus comprising:

means for receiving, from a second apparatus, a common frame structure configuration for including a plurality of flexible slots;

means for receiving, from the second apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD, structure or a TDD frame structure; and

means for performing a communication to the second apparatus at least based on the dedicated frame structure configuration.
A second apparatus comprising:

means for transmitting, to a first apparatus, a common frame structure configuration including a plurality of flexible slots; and

means for transmitting, to the first apparatus, a dedicated frame structure configuration dedicated to the first apparatus and indicating that the plurality of flexible slots has a SBFD structure or a TDD frame structure.
A computer readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform at least the method of claim 23 or the method of claim 24.