MULTIPLE COMMUNICATION OPPORTUNITIES FOR SEMI-PERSISTENT SCHEDULING OCCASION

Information is communicated via a plurality of communication opportunities of a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) occasion. A base station may transmit first information via a first communication opportunity of an SPS occasion and transmit second information via a second communication opportunity of that same SPS occasion. A wireless communication device may monitor all communication opportunities of an SPS occasion to decode the information sent in two or more of the communication opportunities of the SPS occasion.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communication, and more specifically, to communicating information via a plurality of communication opportunities of a semi-persistent scheduling opportunity.

BACKGROUND

Next-generation wireless communication systems (e.g., 5GS) may include a 5G core network and a 5G radio access network (RAN), such as a New Radio (NR)-RAN. The NR-RAN supports communication via one or more cells. For example, a wireless communication device such as a user equipment (UE) may access a first cell of a first base station (BS) such as a gNB and/or access a second cell of a second BS.

A BS may schedule access to a cell to support access by multiple UEs. For example, a BS may allocate different resources (e.g., time domain and frequency domain resources) for different UEs operating within a cell of the BS.

As the demand for mobile broadband access continues to increase, research and development continue to advance communication technologies, including technologies for enhancing communication within a wireless network in particular, not only to meet the growing demand for mobile broadband access, but to advance and enhance the user experience with mobile communications.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF SOME EXAMPLES

Various aspects of the disclosure relate to communicating information via a plurality of communication opportunities of a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) occasion. For example, a base station may transmit first information via a first communication opportunity of an SPS occasion and transmit second information via a second communication opportunity of that same SPS occasion. In addition, a wireless communication device may monitor all communication opportunities of an SPS occasion to decode the information sent in two or more of the communication opportunities of the SPS occasion.

In some examples, a method of wireless communication at a wireless communication device may include receiving a message from a base station. The message may indicate a periodicity between semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) occasions for a configured SPS. The method may also include receiving, from the base station, a transmission for a first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions. The first SPS occasion may include a plurality of communication opportunities. The method may further include decoding downlink information included in at least two of the plurality of communication opportunities.

In some examples, a wireless communication device may include a transceiver, a memory, and a processor communicatively coupled to the transceiver and the memory. The processor and the memory may be configured to receive a message from a base station via the transceiver. The message may indicate a periodicity between semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) occasions for a configured SPS. The processor and the memory may also be configured to receive, from the base station via the transceiver, a transmission for a first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions. The first SPS occasion may include a plurality of communication opportunities. The processor and the memory may be further configured to decode downlink information included in at least two of the plurality of communication opportunities.

In some examples, a wireless communication device may include means for receiving a message from a base station. The message may indicate a periodicity between semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) occasions for a configured SPS. The means for receiving may be configured for receiving a transmission for a first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions. The first SPS occasion may include a plurality of communication opportunities. The wireless communication device may also include means for decoding downlink information included in at least two of the plurality of communication opportunities.

In some examples, an article of manufacture for use by a wireless communication device includes a computer-readable medium having stored therein instructions executable by one or more processors of the wireless communication device to receive a message from a base station. The message may indicate a periodicity between semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) occasions for a configured SPS. The computer-readable medium may also have stored therein instructions executable by one or more processors of the wireless communication device to receive, from the base station, a transmission for a first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions. The first SPS occasion may include a plurality of communication opportunities. The computer-readable medium may have stored therein further instructions executable by one or more processors of the wireless communication device to decode downlink information included in at least two of the plurality of communication opportunities.

In some examples, a method of wireless communication at a base station may include generating a message indicating a periodicity between semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) occasions for a configured SPS, transmitting the message to a wireless communication device, and transmitting, to the wireless communication device, a transmission for a first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions. The first SPS occasion may include a plurality of communication opportunities. At least two of the plurality of communication opportunities may include downlink information.

In some examples, a base station may include a transceiver, a memory, and a processor communicatively coupled to the transceiver and the memory. The processor and the memory may be configured to generate a message indicating a periodicity between semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) occasions for a configured SPS, transmit the message to a wireless communication device via the transceiver, and transmit, to the wireless communication device via the transceiver, a transmission for a first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions. The first SPS occasion may include a plurality of communication opportunities. At least two of the plurality of communication opportunities may include downlink information.

In some examples, a base station may include means for generating a message indicating a periodicity between semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) occasions for a configured SPS and means for transmitting the message to a wireless communication device. The means for transmitting may be configured for transmitting a transmission for a first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions. The first SPS occasion may include a plurality of communication opportunities. At least two of the plurality of communication opportunities may include downlink information.

In some examples, an article of manufacture for use by a base station includes a computer-readable medium having stored therein instructions executable by one or more processors of the base station to generate a message indicating a periodicity between semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) occasions for a configured SPS, transmit the message to a wireless communication device, and transmit, to the wireless communication device, a transmission for a first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions. The first SPS occasion may include a plurality of communication opportunities. At least two of the plurality of communication opportunities may include downlink information.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The various concepts presented throughout this disclosure may be implemented across a broad variety of telecommunication systems, network architectures, and communication standards. The description that follows provides illustrative examples, without limitation, of various aspects of the present disclosure.

FIG.1is a schematic illustration of a wireless communication system100according to some aspects of the disclosure. The wireless communication system100includes three interacting domains: a core network102, a radio access network (RAN)104, and at least one scheduled entity106. The at least one scheduled entity106may be referred to as a user equipment (UE)106in the discussion that follows. The RAN104includes at least one scheduling entity108. The at least one scheduling entity108may be referred to as a base station (BS)108in the discussion that follows. By virtue of the wireless communication system100, the UE106may be enabled to carry out data communication with an external data network110, such as (but not limited to) the Internet.

As illustrated, the RAN104includes a plurality of base stations108. Broadly, a base station is a network element in a radio access network responsible for radio transmission and reception in one or more cells to or from a UE. In different technologies, standards, or contexts, a base station may variously be referred to by those skilled in the art as a base transceiver station (BTS), a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a transceiver function, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), an access point (AP), a Node B (NB), an eNode B (eNB), a gNode B (gNB), or some other suitable terminology.

Base stations108are not the only entities that may function as scheduling entities. That is, in some examples, a UE may function as a scheduling entity, scheduling resources for one or more scheduled entities (e.g., one or more other UEs).

As illustrated inFIG.1, a scheduling entity108may broadcast downlink traffic112to one or more scheduled entities106. Broadly, the scheduling entity108is a node or device responsible for scheduling traffic in a wireless communication network, including the downlink traffic112and, in some examples, uplink traffic116from one or more scheduled entities106to the scheduling entity108. On the other hand, the scheduled entity106is a node or device that receives downlink control information114, including but not limited to scheduling information (e.g., a grant), synchronization or timing information, or other control information from another entity in the wireless communication network such as the scheduling entity108.

In addition, the uplink and/or downlink control information and/or traffic information may be time-divided into frames, subframes, slots, and/or symbols. As used herein, a symbol may refer to a unit of time that, in an orthogonal frequency division multiplexed (OFDM) waveform, carries one resource element (RE) per sub-carrier. A slot may carry 7 or 14 OFDM symbols. A subframe may refer to a duration of 1 ms. Multiple subframes or slots may be grouped together to form a single frame or radio frame. Of course, these definitions are not required, and any suitable scheme for organizing waveforms may be utilized, and various time divisions of the waveform may have any suitable duration.

In some examples, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)220, which may be a drone or quadcopter, can be a mobile network node and may be configured to function as a UE. For example, the UAV220may operate within cell202by communicating with base station210.

In a further aspect of the RAN200, sidelink signals may be used between UEs without necessarily relying on scheduling or control information from a base station. For example, two or more UEs (e.g., UEs226and228) may communicate with each other using peer to peer (P2P) or sidelink signals227without relaying that communication through a base station (e.g., base station212). In a further example, UE238is illustrated communicating with UEs240and242. Here, the UE238may function as a scheduling entity or a primary sidelink device, and UEs240and242may function as a scheduled entity or a non-primary (e.g., secondary) sidelink device. In still another example, a UE may function as a scheduling entity in a device-to-device (D2D), peer-to-peer (P2P), or vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) network, and/or in a mesh network. In a mesh network example, UEs240and242may optionally communicate directly with one another in addition to communicating with the UE238(e.g., functioning as a scheduling entity). Thus, in a wireless communication system with scheduled access to time-frequency resources and having a cellular configuration, a P2P configuration, or a mesh configuration, a scheduling entity and one or more scheduled entities may communicate utilizing the scheduled resources. In some examples, the sidelink signals227include sidelink traffic (e.g., a physical sidelink shared channel) and sidelink control (e.g., a physical sidelink control channel).

In the radio access network200, the ability for a UE to communicate while moving, independent of its location, is referred to as mobility. The various physical channels between the UE and the radio access network are generally set up, maintained, and released under the control of an access and mobility management function (AMF). The AMF (not shown inFIG.2) may include a security context management function (SCMF) that manages the security context for both the control plane and the user plane functionality, and a security anchor function (SEAF) that performs authentication.

FIG.3is a schematic illustration of wireless resources in an air interface utilizing orthogonal frequency divisional multiplexing (OFDM) according to some aspects of the disclosure. InFIG.3, an expanded view of an example DL subframe (SF)302A is illustrated, showing an OFDM resource grid. However, as those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, the PHY transmission structure for any particular application may vary from the example described here, depending on any number of factors. Here, time is in the horizontal direction with units of OFDM symbols; and frequency is in the vertical direction with units of subcarriers.

Scheduling of UEs (e.g., scheduled entities) for downlink or uplink transmissions typically involves scheduling one or more resource elements306within one or more bandwidth parts (BWPs), where each BWP includes two or more contiguous or consecutive RBs. Thus, a UE generally utilizes only a subset of the resource grid304. In some examples, an RB may be the smallest unit of resources that can be allocated to a UE. Thus, the more RBs scheduled for a UE, and the higher the modulation scheme chosen for the air interface, the higher the data rate for the UE.

In this illustration, the RB308is shown as occupying less than the entire bandwidth of the subframe302A, with some subcarriers illustrated above and below the RB308. In a given implementation, the subframe302A may have a bandwidth corresponding to any number of one or more RBs308. Further, in this illustration, the RB308is shown as occupying less than the entire duration of the subframe302A, although this is merely one possible example.

Although not illustrated inFIG.3, the various REs306within a RB308may be scheduled to carry one or more physical channels, including control channels, shared channels, data channels, etc. Other REs306within the RB308may also carry pilots or reference signals, including but not limited to a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) or a sounding reference signal (SRS). These pilots or reference signals may provide for a receiving device to perform channel estimation of the corresponding channel, which may enable coherent demodulation/detection of the control and/or data channels within the RB308.

In a DL transmission, the transmitting device (e.g., the scheduling entity) may allocate one or more REs306(e.g., within a control region312) to carry DL control information including one or more DL control channels, such as a PBCH; a physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH); a physical hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) indicator channel (PHICH); and/or a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), etc., to one or more scheduled entities. The transmitting device may further allocate one or more REs306to carry other DL signals, such as a DMRS; a phase-tracking reference signal (PT-RS); a channel state information—reference signal (CSI-RS); a primary synchronization signal (PSS); and a secondary synchronization signal (SSS).

The synchronization signals PSS and SSS, and in some examples, the PBCH and a PBCH DMRS, may be transmitted in a synchronization signal block (SSB) that includes 3 consecutive OFDM symbols, numbered via a time index in increasing order from 0 to 3. In the frequency domain, the SSB may extend over 240 contiguous subcarriers, with the subcarriers being numbered via a frequency index in increasing order from 0 to 239. Of course, the present disclosure is not limited to this specific SSB configuration. Other nonlimiting examples may utilize greater or fewer than two synchronization signals; may include one or more supplemental channels in addition to the PBCH; may omit a PBCH; and/or may utilize a different number of symbols and/or nonconsecutive symbols for an SSB, within the scope of the present disclosure.

The PCFICH provides information to assist a receiving device in receiving and decoding the PDCCH. The PDCCH carries downlink control information (DCI) including but not limited to power control commands, scheduling information, a grant, and/or an assignment of REs for DL and UL transmissions. The PHICH carries HARQ feedback transmissions such as an acknowledgment (ACK) or negative acknowledgment (NACK). HARQ is a technique well-known to those of ordinary skill in the art, wherein the integrity of packet transmissions may be checked at the receiving side for accuracy, e.g., utilizing any suitable integrity checking mechanism, such as a checksum or a cyclic redundancy check (CRC). If the integrity of the transmission confirmed, an ACK may be transmitted, whereas if not confirmed, a NACK may be transmitted. In response to a NACK, the transmitting device may send a HARQ retransmission, which may implement chase combining, incremental redundancy, etc.

In an UL transmission, the transmitting device (e.g., the scheduled entity) may utilize one or more REs306to carry UL control information including one or more UL control channels, such as a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), to the scheduling entity. UL control information may include a variety of packet types and categories, including pilots, reference signals, and information configured to enable or assist in decoding uplink data transmissions. For example, the UL control information may include a DMRS or SRS. In some examples, the control information may include a scheduling request (SR), i.e., request for the scheduling entity to schedule uplink transmissions. Here, in response to the SR transmitted on the control channel, the scheduling entity may transmit downlink control information that may schedule resources for uplink packet transmissions. UL control information may also include HARQ feedback, channel state feedback (CSF), or any other suitable UL control information.

In addition to control information, one or more REs306(e.g., within the data region314) may be allocated for user data or traffic data. Such traffic may be carried on one or more traffic channels, such as, for a DL transmission, a PDSCH; or for an UL transmission, a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). In some examples, one or more REs306within the data region314may be configured to carry SIBs (e.g., SIB1), carrying system information that may enable access to a given cell.

The channels or carriers described above with reference toFIGS.1-3are not necessarily all of the channels or carriers that may be utilized between a scheduling entity and scheduled entities, and those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that other channels or carriers may be utilized in addition to those illustrated, such as other traffic, control, and feedback channels.

In some networks, a base station may use dynamic scheduling or semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) to schedule a UE. Dynamic scheduling may involve using a DCI to schedule an individual transmission or reception (e.g., on PDSCH or PUSCH). For example, a base station may use a first DCI to schedule a first PDSCH transmission, use a second DCI to schedule a second PDSCH transmission, and so on.

In contrast, for SPS, a base station may use a single DCI to schedule multiple transmissions (e.g., on PDSCH). In some implementations, a base station transmits an RRC message to configure an SPS (e.g., for a particular cell and a particular BWP). The base station may then send a DCI to activate the SPS.

The SPS configuration indicates an SPS periodicity between SPS occasions. In this way, the SPS configuration may schedule multiple SPS occasions at the indicated periodicity. In some examples, the periodicity may be referenced to a system frame number (SFN) and a sub-frame number of the DCI that initializes the SPS.

Thus, a UE can monitor the PDSCH at the SPS occasions according to the scheduled SPS periodicity to periodically obtain data from the base station. At some point in time, the base station may send a DCI to deactivate the SPS. In addition, the base station may send a DCI to reactivate the SPS.

The disclosure relates in some aspects to transmitting information in multiple communication opportunities of an SPS occasion. Here, an SPS occasion is defined to include multiple communication opportunities. For example, a given SPS occasion may be assigned several time slots (hereafter referred to simply as slots), where each communication occasion is associated with a corresponding one of the slots (or a corresponding subset of the slots). A base station may therefore transmit first information via a first communication opportunity of an SPS occasion and transmit second information via a second communication opportunity of that same SPS occasion. A wireless communication device (e.g., a UE) may blindly decode over all of the communication opportunities to recover information transmitted in any of the communication opportunities.

FIG.4is a conceptual illustration of an example of multiple communication opportunities of an SPS occasion400according to some aspects of the disclosure. Three SPS occasions are shown separated in time by a period of time T that is based on the configured SPS periodicity. DL traffic is scheduled by the SPS to arrive at a nominal arrival time (e.g., nominal arrival time402).

In practice, received data may be subject to jitter.FIG.4illustrates DL traffic with non-trivial jitter around a nominal arrival time and a low latency delivery requirement (within a window for delivery TV). For example, a DL transmission may be received prior to the nominal arrival time (e.g., as illustrated by an actual arrival404), after the nominal arrival time, or partially overlapping with the nominal arrival time as illustrated. In a multiple-opportunity SPS, multiple communication opportunities are provided per SPS occasion for a UE to receive the DL traffic in a situation where the base station transmits according to a packet arrival over one communication opportunity (e.g., corresponding to the nominal arrival time).

As illustrated inFIG.4, each SPS occasion is defined with (e.g., includes) three communication opportunities (e.g., as represented by the three lines406for the third SPS occasion) in this example. A different number of communication opportunities could be used in other examples. A UE may decode over all three of the communication opportunities inFIG.4to receive the DL traffic. Thus, a UE will be able to successfully receive traffic within any of the three communication opportunities. Accordingly, a multiple-opportunity SPS may be used to accommodate jittered periodic DL traffic (e.g., as shown inFIG.4).

A multiple-opportunity SPS may offer benefits over the use of multiple SPS configurations (e.g., where a base station establishes multiple SPS allocations, each of which is scheduled on different resources.). For example, a multiple-opportunity SPS may use a smaller number of HARQ processes, use a smaller number of HARQ responses, and have lower overhead on RRC configurations and DCI activation/deactivation as compared to a scenario that uses multiple SPS configurations.

In some examples, the communication opportunities within an SPS occasion may be homogeneous in terms of radio resource allocation. For example, different communication opportunities within the same SPS occasion may have the same frequency domain resource allocation (FDRA), the same start and length indicator vector (SLIV), and the same MCS. This approach may be advantageous when transmitting a fixed-size packet with jittered arrival. For example, a smaller DCI (smaller number of bits) can be used for activation/re-activation since unique information is not needed for each communication opportunity.

The use of homogeneous radio resource allocations for different communication opportunities within an SPS occasion may provide other benefits as well. For example, listen-before-talk (LBT) uncertainties at a base station can be mitigated by allocating communication opportunities to different LBT bandwidth (BW) in the 5 GHz/6 GHz unlicensed band. In addition, more flexible scheduling can be supported (e.g., Frequency Range 2 (FR2) may be used) by allocating communication opportunities with different receive (RX) beams. Also, slot aggregation can be turned on over some communication opportunities for delivering ultra-reliably packets.

In some scenarios, a UE may need to carry more than one periodic flow. For example, an industrial IoT (IIoT) UE can be connected to more than one sensor and/or actuator. In addition, the associated concurrent traffic flows can have different periodicities and/or have different latency requirements.

The disclosure relates in some aspects to sending information over multiple communication opportunities of an SPS occasion. For example, a base station may transmit data on a first communication opportunity and a second communication opportunity of the same SPS occasion.

The disclosure also relates in some aspects, to sending information over multiple communication sub-opportunities for each SPS communication opportunity. This may be referred to as massive-opportunity SPS DL.

FIG.5is a conceptual illustration of an example of multiple communication opportunities and communication sub-opportunities of SPS occasions500according to some aspects of the disclosure. Similar toFIG.4, each SPS occasion is defined with (e.g., includes) three communication opportunities (e.g., as represented by the three columns502for the third SPS occasion) in this example. In addition, each communication opportunity is defined with (e.g., includes) two communication sub-opportunities (e.g., as represented by the two rows504for the third SPS occasion)

A base station may transmit over any one or more of the communication opportunities. A UE may be configured via RRC to support a multiple-opportunity SPS DL. A parameter s (s≥1) may specify the number of communication opportunities starting from the offset in a given period.

In some examples, one HARQ process may be used per communication opportunity. A UE may perform blind decoding of the SPS PDSCH at each communication opportunity, and report s-bit ACK/NACK (A/N) feedback. Based on the A/N feedback, the base station can schedule a retransmission on a per-opportunity basis using dynamic grants (DGs).

In some examples, a base station may transmit one transport block (TB) per communication opportunity for an “opportunistic” massive opportunity. In some examples, a base station may transmit multiple TBs per communication opportunity for a massive opportunity. In some examples, a base station may transmit multiple transport blocks (TBs) over more than one communication opportunity in a SPS occasion.

As discussed herein, the use of communication opportunities may provide lower signaling overhead than other techniques. However, the use of communication opportunities may result in additional overhead associated with the per-opportunity HARQ process and per-opportunity A/N feedback. Nevertheless, the use of communication opportunities may still have lower RRC configuration (L3) overhead and lower DCI activation/re-activation (L1) overhead in comparison with multiple SPS configurations that require separate RRC messaging and DCIs for multiple SPS processes.

In some examples, the communication opportunities (e.g., for a given SPS or for a given SPS occasion) may be homogeneous. For example, the communication opportunities may share a common TDRA, a common FDRA (for FDM, including different component carriers), antenna ports and/or transmission configuration indicators (TCIs) (for spatial division multiplexing, SDM), or a combination thereof.

In some examples, the communication opportunities may be heterogeneous. The use of heterogeneous communication opportunities may involve the use of more bits in the activation/re-activation DCI than in the homogeneous scenario. Nevertheless, the L3 and L1 signaling overhead may still be lower than the L3 and L1 signaling overhead required by multiple SPS configurations.

FIG.6is a conceptual illustration of an example of hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) processes for multiple communication opportunities of an SPS occasion according to some aspects of the disclosure. Different HARQ processes (HARQ 0, HARQ 1, and HARQ 2) are used for the different communication opportunities. In this example, all of the communication opportunities are configured/activated with the same amount of radio resources for a homogeneous initial transmission. That is, the communication opportunities are simply shifted in time. In addition, the UE uses a single PUCCH to transmit s-bit A/N feedback.

In this example, the base station sends data via the first communication opportunity (opportunity 1) and the third communication opportunity (opportunity 3). The second communication opportunity is a discontinuous transmission (DTX). Since the UE was able to decode the first communication opportunity but was unable to decode the second and third communication opportunities, the UE sends corresponding (A/N) feedback in the PUCCH602as shown inFIG.6. In response, the base station schedules a retransmission for the third communication opportunity. Specifically, the base station sends a DCI604that schedules the retransmission for HARQ2 in a PDSCH606.

The multi-opportunity SPS ofFIG.6may be activated/de-activated by a compact-size DCI.FIG.7is a conceptual illustration of an example of a DCI activating/re-activating multiple communication opportunities of an SPS occasion according to some aspects of the disclosure. In this example, the SLIV applies to all s slots (i.e., all communication opportunities use the same SLIV) starting from the slot indicated by K0in the SPS activation DCI702. In addition, the communication opportunities use the same FDRA, the same MCS(s), and the same TCI in this example. The indicated K1timing can be with respect to the first communication opportunity (as shown inFIG.7) or the last communication opportunity.

FIG.8is a conceptual illustration of an example of HARQ feedback and HARQ retransmission scheduling for multiple communication opportunities in an SPS occasion according to some aspects of the disclosure. After receiving multiple NACKs, a base station can use a composite DCI802to schedule multiple PDSCH retransmissions. To reduce overhead, the composite DCI802may have a single CRC, a common MCS (e.g., since the retransmissions are towards the same UE), a common FDRA, a common TCI, and/or the same SLIV in different slots.

The DCI802may include an incremental HARQ process ID wrap-around within the HARQ process ID space of the SPS. The DCI802may include a new data indicator (NDI) to indicate which communication opportunity is retransmitted due to the continuous HARQ ID restriction. This may assume a pre-configured redundancy vector (RV) sequence. In the example ofFIG.8, 4 bits (e.g., 2 bits for HARQ process ID=0 and 2 bits for the NDI-based re-transmission indication for remaining HARQ processes) may be used to indicate a retransmission to HARQ 0 and to HARQ2.

As an alternative to the homogeneous approach ofFIG.8, an SPS may have heterogeneous (with respect to the radio resource allocation) communication opportunities within an SPS occasion.FIG.9is a conceptual illustration of an example of a HARQ process (HARQO in this example) covering a multi-slot communication opportunity of an SPS occasion according to some aspects of the disclosure. In particular,FIG.9illustrates that the first communication opportunity supports slot-aggregation over two slots. Slot-aggregation over more than two slots could be used as well.

In the example ofFIG.9, a retransmission DG (e.g., in the DCI902) for the same HARQ ID may apply the same-level of slot aggregation. Other examples of heterogenous operation include the use of different MCSs, or the use of different SLIVs, or both. In some aspects, heterogenous operation may involve the use of a larger DCI for activation/re-activation (e.g., to specify different parameters for different communication opportunities).

NR operation in an unlicensed band may be referred to as NR-U. For a reduced capability NR-U UE with an operating BW≤20 MHz and served by a wide-band (e.g., 80 MHz BW) base station, the communication opportunities of an SPS occasion can be heterogeneous with respect to the transmission frequency band. By using different LBT bandwidth for the communication opportunities, listen-before-talk (LBT) uncertainty at the base station may be mitigated. The FDRAs (e.g., the frequency bands) of the respective communication opportunities may be set/reset by the DCI activation/re-activation.FIG.10is a conceptual illustration of an example of transmitting different communication opportunities of an SPS occasion via different radio frequency (RF) bands according to some aspects of the disclosure. In this example, a base station transmits communication opportunity 11002in one RF band and transmits communication opportunity 31004in another RF band. Thus, for different communication opportunities, a UE may monitor different RF bands.

For a UE in FR2 (or some other mmW band), the communication opportunities of an SPS occasion can be heterogenous in the spatial domain (e.g., a UE can tune to different beams transmitted by the base station). The beams to be used may be set/reset by DCI activations/re-activations.FIG.11is a conceptual illustration of an example of transmitting different communication opportunities of an SPS occasion via different RF beams according to some aspects of the disclosure. In this example, a base station transmits communication opportunity 1 via a one RF beam1102and transmits communication opportunity 3 via another RF beam1104. Thus, for different communication opportunities, a UE may monitor different spatial domains.

As discussed above, the disclosure relates in some aspects to the use of communication sub-opportunities. For example, t (t≥1) sub-opportunities may be defined per communication opportunity. Among t communication sub-opportunities, a base station may elect to transmit on one of the sub-opportunities per communication opportunity in some examples. A base station may elect to transmit on more than one of the sub-opportunities per communication opportunity in other examples. For each communication opportunity, a UE may perform blind decoding at each sub-opportunity. In some examples, a UE may select the sub-opportunity with the largest likelihood of PDSCH decoding for HARQ combination.

Through the use of communication sub-opportunities, a UE may be configured with a massive-opportunity DL SPS. A base station may transmit a TB over any sub-opportunity (not being limited to one). One HARQ process may be used for each sub-opportunity. A UE may report s*t A/Ns per SPS occasion.

The above communication sub-opportunities may be allocated with different FDRAs. This may be used for frequency domain diversity (including different component carriers (CCs)). For example, different communication sub-opportunities may be used at different LBT BWs to mitigate LBT un-certainties in the unlicensed band. A DCI may be sent over a CC to activate/re-activate communication sub-opportunities in other CCs. The communication sub-opportunities discussed herein may be allocated to different beams (e.g., through the use of different antenna ports or different TCIs). The communication sub-opportunities discussed herein be allocated to different FDRAs and different beams

FIG.12is a signaling diagram illustrating SPS communication1200in a wireless communication network including a UE1202and a BS1204. In some examples, the UE1202may correspond to one or more of the scheduled entity126(e.g., a UE, etc.) ofFIG.1, or the UE222,224,226,228,230,232,234,238,240, or242ofFIG.2. In some examples, the BS1204may correspond to one or more of the scheduling entity128ofFIG.1, or the base station210,212,214, or216ofFIG.2.

At step1206ofFIG.12, the BS1204configures an SPS. In some examples, the SPS configuration may specify that each SPS occasion includes multiple communication opportunities.

At step1208, the BS1204transmits an RRC message that includes the SPS configuration.

At step1210, the BS1204activates the SPS.

At step1212, the BS1204sends a DCI to the UE1202indicating that the configured SPS is being activated. In some examples, the DCI may specify that data may be sent in multiple communication opportunities of an SPS occasion.

At step1214, the BS1204generates DL data for a first SPS occasion that includes multiple communication opportunities.

At step1216, the BS1204transmits the first SPS occasion. The first SPS occasion includes data in multiple communication opportunities(e.g., as discussed herein).

At step1218, the UE1202decodes the first SPS occasion and determines whether each communication opportunity was successfully decoded. For example, the UE1032may conduct a separate HARQ process for each communication opportunity.

At step1220, the UE1202sends a PUCCH message that includes a corresponding acknowledgement (e.g., a positive acknowledgement (ACK) or a negative acknowledgement (NACK) for each communication opportunity.

At step1222, if the PUCCH included any NACKs, the BS1204schedules a retransmission for each corresponding communication opportunity.

At step1224, if applicable, the BS1204sends a DCI that schedules a corresponding retransmission for each communication opportunity that was NACKed.

At step1226, if applicable, the BS1204transmits each scheduled retransmission (e.g., on PDSCH).

At step1228, if applicable, the UE1202receives and decodes each scheduled retransmission (e.g., on PDSCH). The above HARQ process may repeat, as need, if the UE1202has not successfully decoded all of the communication opportunities that include data.

At step1230, the BS1204generates DL data for a second SPS occasion that includes multiple communication opportunities.

At step1232, the BS1204transmits the second SPS occasion. The second SPS occasion includes data in multiple communication opportunities (e.g., as discussed herein). As represented by the line1234, the BS1204transmits the second SPS occasion (relative to the first SPS occasion) according to the SPS periodicity specified by the SPS configuration.

At step1236, the UE1202decodes the second SPS occasion and determines whether each communication opportunity was successfully decoded. Again, the UE1032may conduct a separate HARQ process for each communication opportunity.

At step1238, the UE1202sends a PUCCH message that include a corresponding acknowledgement (e.g., an ACK or a NACK) for each communication opportunity.

FIG.13is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for a wireless communication device1300employing a processing system1314. For example, the wireless communication device1300may be a user equipment (UE) or other device configured to wirelessly communicate with a base station, as discussed in any one or more ofFIGS.1-12. In accordance with various aspects of the disclosure, an element, or any portion of an element, or any combination of elements may be implemented with a processing system1314that includes one or more processors1304. In some implementations, the wireless communication device1300may correspond to one or more of the scheduled entity106(e.g., a UE, etc.) ofFIG.1, the UE222,224,226,228,230,232,234,238,240, or242ofFIG.2, or the UE1202ofFIG.12.

The wireless communication device1300may be implemented with a processing system1314that includes one or more processors1304. Examples of processors1304include microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gated logic, discrete hardware circuits, and other suitable hardware configured to perform the various functionality described throughout this disclosure. In various examples, the wireless communication device1300may be configured to perform any one or more of the functions described herein. That is, the processor1304, as utilized in a wireless communication device1300, may be used to implement any one or more of the processes and procedures described below.

In this example, the processing system1314may be implemented with a bus architecture, represented generally by the bus1302. The bus1302may include any number of interconnecting buses and bridges depending on the specific application of the processing system1314and the overall design constraints. The bus1302communicatively couples together various circuits including one or more processors (represented generally by the processor1304), a memory1305, and computer-readable media (represented generally by the computer-readable medium1306). The bus1302may also link various other circuits such as timing sources, peripherals, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art, and therefore, will not be described any further. A bus interface1308provides an interface between the bus1302and a transceiver1310and between the bus1302and an interface1330. The transceiver1310provides a communication interface or means for communicating with various other apparatus over a wireless transmission medium. In some examples, the wireless communication device may include two or more transceivers1310, each configured to communicate with a respective network type (e.g., terrestrial or non-terrestrial). The interface1330provides a communication interface or means of communicating with various other apparatuses and devices (e.g., other devices housed within the same apparatus as the wireless communication device or other external apparatuses) over an internal bus or external transmission medium, such as an Ethernet cable. Depending upon the nature of the apparatus, the interface1330may include a user interface (e.g., keypad, display, speaker, microphone, joystick). Of course, such a user interface is optional, and may be omitted in some examples, such as an IoT device.

The processor1304is responsible for managing the bus1302and general processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium1306. The software, when executed by the processor1304, causes the processing system1314to perform the various functions described below for any particular apparatus. The computer-readable medium1306and the memory1305may also be used for storing data that is manipulated by the processor1304when executing software.

The wireless communication device1300may be configured to perform any one or more of the operations described herein (e.g., as described above in conjunction withFIGS.1-12and as described below in conjunction withFIG.14). In some aspects of the disclosure, the processor1304, as utilized in the wireless communication device1300, may include circuitry configured for various functions.

The processor1304may include communication and processing circuitry1341. The communication and processing circuitry1341may include one or more hardware components that provide the physical structure that performs various processes related to wireless communication (e.g., signal reception and/or signal transmission) as described herein. The communication and processing circuitry1341may further include one or more hardware components that provide the physical structure that performs various processes related to signal processing (e.g., processing a received signal and/or processing a signal for transmission) as described herein. In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1341may include two or more transmit/receive chains, each configured to process signals in a different RAT (or RAN) type. The communication and processing circuitry1341may further be configured to execute communication and processing software1351included on the computer-readable medium1306to implement one or more functions described herein.

In some implementations where the communication involves receiving information, the communication and processing circuitry1341may obtain information from a component of the wireless communication device1300(e.g., from the transceiver1310that receives the information via radio frequency signaling or some other type of signaling suitable for the applicable communication medium), process (e.g., decode) the information, and output the processed information. For example, the communication and processing circuitry1341may output the information to another component of the processor1304, to the memory1305, or to the bus interface1308. In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1341may receive one or more of signals, messages, other information, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1341may receive information via one or more channels. In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1341may include functionality for a means for receiving.

In some implementations where the communication involves sending (e.g., transmitting) information, the communication and processing circuitry1341may obtain information (e.g., from another component of the processor1304, the memory1305, or the bus interface1308), process (e.g., encode) the information, and output the processed information. For example, the communication and processing circuitry1341may output the information to the transceiver1310(e.g., that transmits the information via radio frequency signaling or some other type of signaling suitable for the applicable communication medium). In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1341may send one or more of signals, messages, other information, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1341may send information via one or more channels. In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1341may include functionality for a means for sending (e.g., means for transmitting).

The processor1304may include SPS processing circuitry1342configured to perform SPS processing-related operations as discussed herein (e.g., determining the configuration of the communication opportunities or sub-opportunities to be used per SPS occasion). The SPS processing circuitry1342may include functionality for a means for receiving an SPS message. The SPS processing circuitry1342may further be configured to execute SPS processing software1352included on the computer-readable medium1306to implement one or more functions described herein.

The processor1304may include decoding circuitry1343configured to perform decoding-related operations as discussed herein. The decoding circuitry1343may include functionality for a means for decoding downlink information (e.g., decoding communication opportunities or sub-opportunities). The decoding circuitry1343may further be configured to execute decoding software1353included on the computer-readable medium1306to implement one or more functions described herein.

FIG.14is a flow chart illustrating an example process1400for a wireless communication system in accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure. As described below, some or all illustrated features may be omitted in a particular implementation within the scope of the present disclosure, and some illustrated features may not be required for implementation of all embodiments. In some examples, the process1400may be carried out by the wireless communication device1300illustrated inFIG.13. In some aspects, the wireless communication device may be a user equipment. In some examples, the process1400may be carried out by any suitable apparatus or means for carrying out the functions or algorithm described below.

At block1402, a wireless communication device may receive a message from a base station, the message indicating a periodicity between semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) occasions for a configured SPS. For example, the SPS processing circuitry1342in cooperation with the communication and processing circuitry1341and the transceiver1310, shown and described above in connection withFIG.13, may receive an RRC message from a base station, where the RRC message schedules an SPS.

At block1404, the wireless communication device may receive, from the base station, a transmission for a first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions, the first SPS occasion including a plurality of communication opportunities. For example, the SPS processing circuitry1342in cooperation with the communication and processing circuitry1341and the transceiver1310, shown and described above in connection withFIG.13, may receive an SPS occasion (according to the SPS periodicity) from a base station, where the SPS occasion includes multiple communication opportunities.

At block1406, the wireless communication device may decode downlink information included in at least two of the plurality of communication opportunities. For example, the decoding circuitry1343, shown and described above in connection withFIG.13, may decode an SPS occasion to recover information included in multiple communication opportunities of the SPS occasion.

In some examples, the downlink information may include first information in a first communication opportunity of the plurality of communication opportunities and second information in a second communication opportunity of the plurality of communication opportunities. The first communication opportunity may include a first communication sub-opportunity and the second communication opportunity may include a second communication sub-opportunity.

In some examples, the process may further include conducting a first hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process for the first information and conducting a second HARQ process for the second information in the second communication opportunity. In some examples, the process may further include transmitting, to the base station, a physical uplink control channel (PUSCH) message that includes a first acknowledgement for the first information; and a second acknowledgement for the second information. In some aspects, the process may further include receiving a downlink control information (DCI) from the base station after transmitting the PUSCH message. The DCI may indicate at least one of a first resource for a retransmission of the first information; a second resource for a retransmission of the second information, or a combination thereof.

In some examples, the first information is for a first transport block and the second information is for a second transport block. In some examples, the first communication opportunity is two slots in length and the second communication opportunity is one slot in length. In some examples, the process may further include generating a first acknowledgement for the first information and generating a second acknowledgement for the second information.

In some examples, receiving, from the base station, the transmission for the first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions may include receiving the first information in the first communication opportunity on a first radio frequency (RF) band and receiving the second information in the second communication opportunity on a second RF band that is different from the first RF band. In some examples, receiving, from the base station, the transmission for the first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions may include receiving the first information in the first communication opportunity via a first (RF) beam and receiving the second information in the second communication opportunity on a second RF beam that is different from the first RF beam.

In some examples, the first communication opportunity and the second communication opportunity may include a plurality of communication sub-opportunities and decoding downlink information included in at least two of the plurality of communication opportunities may include decoding information included in at least two of the plurality of communication sub-opportunities. In some examples, the process may further include conducting a first hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process for a first communication sub-opportunity of the plurality of communication sub-opportunities; and conducting a second HARQ process for a second communication sub-opportunity of the plurality of communication sub-opportunities. In some examples, receiving, from the base station, the transmission for the first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions may include receiving the first information in the first communication sub-opportunity on a first radio frequency (RF) band and receiving the second information in the second communication sub-opportunity on a second RF band that is different from the first RF band. In some examples, receiving, from the base station, the transmission for the first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions may include receiving the first information in the first communication sub-opportunity via a first (RF) beam and receiving the second information in the second communication sub-opportunity on a second RF beam that is different from the first RF beam.

In some examples, the process may further include receiving a downlink control information (DCI) from the base station. The DCI may indicate at least one of a start and length indicator (SLIV) for the plurality of communication opportunities, a frequency domain resource allocation (FDRA) for the plurality of communication opportunities, a time domain resource allocation (TDRA) for the plurality of communication opportunities, a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for the plurality of communication opportunities, a transmission configuration indicator (TCI) for the plurality of communication opportunities, or any combination thereof.

In some examples, the process may further include receiving a downlink control information (DCI) from the base station. The DCI may indicate at least one of a first start and length indicator (SLIV) for the first communication opportunity and a second SLIV that is different from the first SLIV for the second communication opportunity, a first frequency domain resource allocation (FDRA) for the first communication opportunity and a second FDRA that is different from the first FDRA for the second communication opportunity, a first time domain resource allocation (TDRA) for the first communication opportunity and a second TDRA that is different from the first TDRA for the second communication opportunity, a first modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for the first communication opportunity and a second MCS that is different from the first MCS for the second communication opportunity, a first transmission configuration indicator (TCI) for the first communication opportunity and a second TCI that is different from the first TCI for the second communication opportunity, any combination thereof.

FIG.15is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for base station (BS)1500employing a processing system1514. In accordance with various aspects of the disclosure, an element, or any portion of an element, or any combination of elements may be implemented with a processing system1514that includes one or more processors1504. In some implementations, the BS1500may correspond to one or more of the scheduling entity108(e.g., a gNB, a transmit receive point, a UE, etc.) ofFIG.1, the base station210,212,214, or218ofFIG.2, or the BS1204ofFIG.12.

The processing system1514may be substantially the same as the processing system1314illustrated inFIG.13, including a bus interface1508, a bus1502, memory1505, a processor1504, and a computer-readable medium1506. Furthermore, the BS1500may include an interface1530(e.g., a network interface) that provides a means for communicating with at least one other apparatus within a core network and with at least one radio access network.

The BS1500may be configured to perform any one or more of the operations described herein (e.g., as described above in conjunction withFIGS.1-12and as described below in conjunction withFIG.16). In some aspects of the disclosure, the processor1504, as utilized in the BS1500, may include circuitry configured for various functions.

In some aspects of the disclosure, the processor1504may include communication and processing circuitry1541. The communication and processing circuitry1541may include one or more hardware components that provide the physical structure that performs various processes related to communication (e.g., signal reception and/or signal transmission) as described herein. The communication and processing circuitry1541may further include one or more hardware components that provide the physical structure that performs various processes related to signal processing (e.g., processing a received signal and/or processing a signal for transmission) as described herein. The communication and processing circuitry1541may further be configured to execute communication and processing software1551included on the computer-readable medium1506to implement one or more functions described herein.

In some implementations where the communication involves receiving information, the communication and processing circuitry1541may obtain information from a component of the BS1500(e.g., from the transceiver1510that receives the information via radio frequency signaling or some other type of signaling suitable for the applicable communication medium), process (e.g., decode) the information, and output the processed information. For example, the communication and processing circuitry1541may output the information to another component of the processor1504, to the memory1505, or to the bus interface1508. In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1541may receive one or more of signals, messages, other information, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1541may receive information via one or more channels. In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1541may include functionality for a means for receiving.

In some implementations where the communication involves sending (e.g., transmitting) information, the communication and processing circuitry1541may obtain information (e.g., from another component of the processor1504, the memory1505, or the bus interface1508), process (e.g., encode) the information, and output the processed information. For example, the communication and processing circuitry1541may output the information to the transceiver1510(e.g., that transmits the information via radio frequency signaling or some other type of signaling suitable for the applicable communication medium). In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1541may send one or more of signals, messages, other information, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1541may send information via one or more channels. In some examples, the communication and processing circuitry1541may include functionality for a means for sending (e.g., means for transmitting).

The processor1504may include SPS configuration circuitry1542configured to perform SPS configuration-related operations as discussed herein (e.g., generating an SPS configuration and sending an RRC message indicating the SPS configuration). The SPS configuration circuitry1542may include functionality for a means for transmitting an message (e.g., an SPS configuration message and/or an SPS activation/deactivation message). The SPS configuration circuitry1542may further be configured to execute SPS configuration software1552included on the computer-readable medium1506to implement one or more functions described herein.

The processor1504may include scheduling circuitry1543configured to perform scheduling-related operations as discussed herein (e.g., sending a DCI that activates, deactivates, or reactivates SPS). The scheduling circuitry1543may include functionality for a means for transmitting a transmission (e.g., for an SPS occasion including a plurality of communication opportunities). The scheduling circuitry1543may further be configured to execute scheduling software1553included on the computer-readable medium1506to implement one or more functions described herein.

FIG.16is a flow chart illustrating an example process1600for a wireless communication system in accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure. As described below, some or all illustrated features may be omitted in a particular implementation within the scope of the present disclosure, and some illustrated features may not be required for implementation of all embodiments. In some examples, the process1000may be carried out by the base station1500illustrated inFIG.15. In some examples, the process1600may be carried out by any suitable apparatus or means for carrying out the functions or algorithm described below.

At block1602, a BS may generate a message indicating a periodicity between semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) occasions for a configured SPS. For example, the SPS configuration circuitry1542, shown and described above in connection withFIG.15, may generate an RRC message that schedules an SPS (e.g., for a cell and a BSP).

At block1604, the BS may transmit the message to a wireless communication device. For example, the SPS configuration circuitry1542in cooperation with the communication and processing circuitry1541and the transceiver1510, shown and described above in connection withFIG.15, may broadcast, the RRC message, transmit the RRC message to the wireless communication device, or communicate the RRC message in some other way.

At block1606, the BS may transmit, to the wireless communication device, a transmission for a first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions. The first SPS occasion may include a plurality of communication opportunities and at least two of the plurality of communication opportunities may include downlink information. For example, the scheduling circuitry1543in cooperation with the communication and processing circuitry1541and the transceiver1510, shown and described above in connection withFIG.15, may transmit an SPS occasion (according to the SPS periodicity), where the SPS occasion includes multiple communication opportunities.

In some examples, the downlink information may include first information in a first communication opportunity of the plurality of communication opportunities and second information in a second communication opportunity of the plurality of communication opportunities. The first communication opportunity may include a first communication sub-opportunity and the second communication opportunity may include a second communication sub-opportunity.

In some examples, the process may further include conducting a first hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process for the first information and conducting a second HARQ process for the second information. In some examples, the process may further include receiving, from the wireless communication device, a physical uplink control channel (PUSCH) message that includes a first acknowledgement for the first information, and a second acknowledgement for the second information. In some examples, the process may further include, after receiving the PUSCH message, generating a composite a downlink control information (DCI) indicating a first resource for a first retransmission of the first information and second resource for a second retransmission of the second information and transmitting the DCI to the wireless communication device.

In some examples, the first information is for a first transport block and the second information is for a second transport block. In some examples, the first communication opportunity is two slots in length and the second communication opportunity is one slot in length. In some examples, the process may further include receiving, from the wireless communication device a first acknowledgement for the first information and a second acknowledgement for the second information.

In some examples, transmitting, to the wireless communication device, the transmission for the first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions may include transmitting the first information in the first communication opportunity on a first radio frequency (RF) band and transmitting the second information in the second communication opportunity on a second RF band that is different from the first RF band. In some examples, transmitting, to the wireless communication device, the transmission for the first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions may include transmitting the first information in the first communication opportunity via a first (RF) beam and transmitting the second information in the second communication opportunity on a second RF beam that is different from the first RF beam.

In some examples, the first communication opportunity and the second communication opportunity may include a plurality of communication sub-opportunities and transmitting, to the wireless communication device, the transmission for the first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions may include transmitting information in at least two of the plurality of communication sub-opportunities. In some examples, the process may further include conducting a first hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process for a first communication sub-opportunity of the plurality of communication sub-opportunities and conducting a second HARQ process for a second communication sub-opportunity of the plurality of communication sub-opportunities. In some examples, transmitting, to the wireless communication device, the transmission for the first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions may include transmitting the first information in the first communication sub-opportunity on a first radio frequency (RF) band and transmitting the second information in the second communication sub-opportunity on a second RF band that is different from the first RF band. In some examples, transmitting, to the wireless communication device, the transmission for the first SPS occasion of the SPS occasions may include transmitting the first information in the first communication sub-opportunity via a first (RF) beam and transmitting the second information in the second communication sub-opportunity on a second RF beam that is different from the first RF beam.

In some examples, the process may further include transmitting a downlink control information (DCI) to the wireless communication device. The DCI may indicate at least one of a start and length indicator (SLIV) for the plurality of communication opportunities, a frequency domain resource allocation (FDRA) for the plurality of communication opportunities, a time domain resource allocation (TDRA) for the plurality of communication opportunities, a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for the plurality of communication opportunities, a transmission configuration indicator (TCI) for the plurality of communication opportunities, or any combination thereof.

In some examples, the process may further include transmitting a downlink control information (DCI) to the wireless communication device. The DCI may indicate at least one of a first start and length indicator (SLIV) for the first communication opportunity and a second SLIV that is different from the first SLIV for the second communication opportunity, a first frequency domain resource allocation (FDRA) for the first communication opportunity and a second FDRA that is different from the first FDRA for the second communication opportunity, a first time domain resource allocation (TDRA) for the first communication opportunity and a second TDRA that is different from the first TDRA for the second communication opportunity, a first modulation and coding scheme (MCS) for the first communication opportunity and a second MCS that is different from the first MCS for the second communication opportunity, a first transmission configuration indicator (TCI) for the first communication opportunity and a second TCI that is different from the first TCI for the second communication opportunity, any combination thereof.

Several aspects of a wireless communication network have been presented with reference to an example implementation. As those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, various aspects described throughout this disclosure may be extended to other telecommunication systems, network architectures and communication standards.

One or more of the components, steps, features and/or functions illustrated inFIGS.1-16may be rearranged and/or combined into a single component, step, feature or function or embodied in several components, steps, or functions. Additional elements, components, steps, and/or functions may also be added without departing from novel features disclosed herein. The apparatus, devices, and/or components illustrated inFIGS.1,2,12,13, and15may be configured to perform one or more of the methods, features, or steps escribed herein. The novel algorithms described herein may also be efficiently implemented in software and/or embedded in hardware.