Patent Description:
<CIT> discloses methods, systems, and devices for wireless communications that support node connection techniques in wireless systems, such as relay node connections in a wireless backhaul network. A first node, which may be a new node or a node seeking to re-establish a connection, may initiate a connection establishment through transmission of a synchronization signal (SS). The first node, responsive to the SS transmission, may receive a response signal from one of the other nodes, and may establish a link with the other node. In some cases, the response signal may be an SS transmission from the other node, and the first node may transmit a random access request to the other node to initiate establishment of the link. In other cases, the response signal may be a random access request from the other node to initiate establishment of the link.

In some aspects, a repeater for wireless communication may include a memory and one or more processors operatively coupled to the memory. The memory and the one or more processors may be configured to receive configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in an access procedure; receive a signal associated with the access procedure from a first wireless communication device; and forward the signal associated with the access procedure to a second wireless communication device based at least in part on the configuration information and other information, associated with the access procedure, received by the repeater.

In some aspects, a base station for wireless communication may include a memory and one or more processors operatively coupled to the memory. The memory and the one or more processors may be configured to determine configuration information associated with configuring involvement of a repeater in an access procedure when forwarding a signal, received from a first wireless communication device, to a second wireless communication device; and transmit the configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in the access procedure and other information associated with the access procedure to the repeater.

In some aspects, a non-transitory computer-readable medium may store one or more instructions for wireless communication. The one or more instructions, when executed by one or more processors of a repeater, may cause the one or more processors to receive configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in an access procedure; receive a signal associated with the access procedure from a first wireless communication device; and forward the signal associated with the access procedure to a second wireless communication device based at least in part on the configuration information and other information, associated with the access procedure, received by the repeater.

In some aspects, a non-transitory computer-readable medium may store one or more instructions for wireless communication. The one or more instructions, when executed by one or more processors of a base station, may cause the one or more processors to determine configuration information associated with configuring involvement of a repeater in an access procedure when forwarding a signal, received from a first wireless communication device, to a second wireless communication device; and transmit the configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in the access procedure and other information associated with the access procedure to the repeater.

In some aspects, an apparatus for wireless communication may include means for receiving configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the apparatus in an access procedure; means for receiving a signal associated with the access procedure from a first wireless communication device; and means for forwarding the signal associated with the access procedure to a second wireless communication device based at least in part on the configuration information and other information, associated with the access procedure, received by the repeater.

In some aspects, an apparatus for wireless communication may include means for determining configuration information associated with configuring involvement of a repeater in an access procedure when forwarding a signal, received from a first wireless communication device, to a second wireless communication device; and means for transmitting the configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in the access procedure and other information associated with the access procedure to the repeater.

In some aspects, millimeter wave (mmW) repeater <NUM> (sometimes referred to herein as a repeater <NUM>) may receive an analog millimeter wave signal from a base station <NUM>, may amplify the analog millimeter wave signal, and may transmit the amplified millimeter wave signal to one or more UEs <NUM> (e.g., shown as UE 120f). In some aspects, the mmW repeater <NUM> may be an analog mmW repeater, sometimes also referred to as a layer-<NUM> mmW repeater. Additionally, or alternatively, the mmW repeater <NUM> may be a wireless TRP acting as a distributed unit (e.g., of a <NUM> access node) that communicates wirelessly with a base station <NUM> acting as a central unit or an access node controller (e.g., of the <NUM> access node). The mmW repeater may receive, amplify, and transmit the analog mmW signal without performing analog-to-digital conversion of the analog mmW signal and/or without performing any digital signal processing on the mmW signal. In this way, latency may be reduced and a cost to produce the mmW repeater <NUM> may be reduced. Additional details regarding mmW repeater <NUM> are provided elsewhere herein.

In some aspects, a base station <NUM> may determine configuration information associated with configuring involvement of a mmW repeater <NUM> in an access procedure when forwarding a signal, and may transmit the configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the mmW repeater <NUM> in the access procedure, as described herein. In some aspects, the mmW repeater <NUM> may receive the configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the mmW repeater <NUM> in the access procedure, and may receive and forward a signal, associated with the access procedure, based at least in part on the configuration information, as described herein.

A channel processor may determine a reference signal received power (RSRP) parameter, a received signal strength indicator (RSSI) parameter, a reference signal received quality (RSRQ) parameter, and/or a CQI) parameter, among other examples.

Controller/processor <NUM> of base station <NUM>, controller/processor <NUM> of UE <NUM>, and/or any other component(s) of <FIG> may perform one or more techniques associated with access procedure configuration of a mmW repeater, as described in more detail elsewhere herein. For example, controller/processor <NUM> of base station <NUM>, controller/processor <NUM> of UE <NUM>, and/or any other component(s) of <FIG> may perform or direct operations of, for example, process <NUM> of <FIG> and/or other processes as described herein. Memories <NUM> and <NUM> may store data and program codes for base station <NUM> and UE <NUM>, respectively. In some aspects, memory <NUM> and/or memory <NUM> may include a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing one or more instructions (e.g., code and/or program code) for wireless communication. For example, the one or more instructions, when executed (e.g., directly, or after compiling, converting, and/or interpreting) by one or more processors of the base station <NUM> and/or the UE <NUM>, may cause the one or more processors, the UE <NUM>, and/or the base station <NUM> to perform or direct operations of, for example, process <NUM> of <FIG> and/or other processes as described herein. In some aspects, executing instructions may include running the instructions, converting the instructions, compiling the instructions, and/or interpreting the instructions, among other examples.

In some aspects, base station <NUM> may include means for determining configuration information associated with configuring involvement of a mmW repeater <NUM> in an access procedure when forwarding a signal, received from a first wireless communication device (e.g., a base station <NUM>, a UE <NUM>, or the like) , to a second wireless communication device (e.g., the UE <NUM>, the base station <NUM>, or the like); means for transmitting the configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the mmW repeater <NUM> in the access procedure and other information associated with the access procedure to the repeater; and/or the like. In some aspects, such means may include one or more components of base station <NUM> described in connection with <FIG>, such as antenna <NUM>, DEMOD <NUM>, MIMO detector <NUM>, receive processor <NUM>, controller/processor <NUM>, transmit processor <NUM>, TX MIMO processor <NUM>, MOD <NUM>, antenna <NUM>, and/or the like.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating examples <NUM> of radio access networks, in accordance with the present disclosure.

As shown by reference number <NUM>, a traditional (e.g., <NUM>, <NUM>, LTE, and/or the like) radio access network may include multiple base stations <NUM> (e.g., access nodes (AN)), where each base station <NUM> communicates with a core network via a wired backhaul link <NUM>, such as a fiber connection. A base station <NUM> may communicate with a UE <NUM> via an access link <NUM>, which may be a wireless link. In some aspects, a base station <NUM> shown in <FIG> may correspond to a base station <NUM> shown in <FIG>. Similarly, a UE <NUM> shown in <FIG> may correspond to a UE <NUM> shown in <FIG>.

As shown by reference number <NUM>, a radio access network may include a wireless backhaul network, sometimes referred to as an integrated access and backhaul (IAB) network. In an IAB network, at least one base station is an anchor base station <NUM> that communicates with a core network via a wired backhaul link <NUM>, such as a fiber connection. An anchor base station <NUM> may also be referred to as an IAB donor (or IAB-donor). The IAB network may include one or more non-anchor base stations <NUM>, sometimes referred to as relay base stations or IAB nodes (or IAB-nodes). The non-anchor base station <NUM> may communicate directly with or indirectly with (e.g., via one or more non-anchor base stations <NUM>) the anchor base station <NUM> via one or more backhaul links <NUM> to form a backhaul path to the core network for carrying backhaul traffic. Backhaul link <NUM> may be a wireless link. Anchor base station(s) <NUM> and/or non-anchor base station(s) <NUM> may communicate with one or more UEs <NUM> via access links <NUM>, which may be wireless links for carrying access traffic. In some aspects, an anchor base station <NUM> and/or a non-anchor base station <NUM> shown in <FIG> may correspond to a base station <NUM> shown in <FIG>. Similarly, a UE <NUM> shown in <FIG> may correspond to a UE <NUM> shown in <FIG>.

As shown by reference number <NUM>, in some aspects, a radio access network that includes an IAB network may utilize millimeter wave technology and/or directional communications (e.g., beamforming, precoding and/or the like) for communications between base stations and/or UEs (e.g., between two base stations, between two UEs, and/or between a base station and a UE). For example, wireless backhaul links <NUM> between base stations may use millimeter waves to carry information and/or may be directed toward a target base station using beamforming, precoding, and/or the like. Similarly, the wireless access links <NUM> between a UE and a base station may use millimeter waves and/or may be directed toward a target wireless node (e.g., a UE and/or a base station). In this way, inter-link interference may be reduced.

In some aspects, an IAB network may support a multi-hop wireless backhaul. Additionally, or alternatively, nodes of an IAB network may use the same radio access technology (e.g., <NUM>/NR). Additionally, or alternatively, nodes of an IAB network may share resources for access links and backhaul links, such as time resources, frequency resources, spatial resources, and/or the like. Furthermore, various architectures of IAB nodes and/or IAB donors may be supported.

The configuration of base stations and UEs in <FIG> is shown as an example, and other examples are contemplated. For example, one or more base stations illustrated in <FIG> may be replaced by one or more UEs that communicate via a UE-to-UE access network (e.g., a peer-to-peer network, a device-to-device network, and/or the like). In this case, an anchor node may refer to a UE that is directly in communication with a base station (e.g., an anchor base station or a non-anchor base station).

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating an example <NUM> of communicating using an analog millimeter wave repeater, in accordance with the present disclosure.

Because millimeter wave communications have a higher frequency and shorter wavelength than other types of radio waves used for communications (e.g., sub-<NUM> communications), millimeter wave communications may have shorter propagation distances and may be more easily blocked by obstructions than other types of radio waves. For example, a wireless communication that uses sub-<NUM> radio waves may be capable of penetrating a wall of a building or a structure to provide coverage to an area on an opposite side of the wall from a base station <NUM> that communicates using the sub-<NUM> radio waves. However, a millimeter wave may not be capable of penetrating the same wall (e.g., depending on a thickness of the wall, a material from which the wall is constructed, and/or the like). Some techniques and apparatuses described herein use a millimeter wave repeater <NUM> to increase the coverage area of a base station <NUM>, to extend coverage to UEs <NUM> without line of sight to the base station <NUM> (e.g., due to an obstruction), and/or the like. Furthermore, the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> described herein may be a layer <NUM> or an analog millimeter wave repeater, which is associated with a lower cost, less processing, and lower latency than a layer <NUM> or layer <NUM> repeater.

As shown in <FIG>, a millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may perform directional communication by using beamforming to communicate with a base station <NUM> via a first beam (e.g., a backhaul beam over a backhaul link with the base station <NUM>) and to communicate with a UE <NUM> via a second beam (e.g., an access beam over an access link with the UE <NUM>). To achieve long propagation distances and/or to satisfy a required link budget, the millimeter wave repeater may use narrow beams (e.g., with a beam width less than a threshold) for such communications.

However, using a narrower beam requires the use of more resources of the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> (e.g., processing resources, memory resources, power, battery power, and/or the like) and more network resources (e.g., time resources, frequency resources, spatial resources, and/or the like), as compared to a wider beam, to perform beam training (e.g., to determine a suitable beam), beam maintenance (e.g., to find a suitable beam as conditions change due to mobility and/or the like), beam management, and/or the like. This may waste resources of the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> and/or network resources as compared to using a wider beam, and may lead to increased cost of production of millimeter wave repeaters <NUM>, which may be deployed extensively throughout a radio access network.

For example, a millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may be deployed in a fixed location with limited or no mobility, similar to a base station <NUM>. As shown in <FIG>, the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may use a narrower beam to communicate with the base station <NUM> without unnecessarily consuming network resources and/or resources of the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> because the need for beam training, beam maintenance, and/or beam management may be limited, due to limited or no mobility of the base station <NUM> and the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> (and/or due to a line of sight communication path between the base station <NUM> and the millimeter wave repeater <NUM>).

As further shown in <FIG>, the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may use a wider beam (e.g., a pseudo-omnidirectional beam and/or the like) to communicate with one or more UEs <NUM>. This wider beam may provide wider coverage for access links, thereby providing coverage to mobile UEs <NUM> without requiring frequent beam training, beam maintenance, and/or beam management. In this way, network resources and/or resources of the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may be conserved. Furthermore, if the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> does not include digital signal processing capabilities, resources of the base station <NUM> (e.g., processing resources, memory resources, and/or the like) may be conserved that would otherwise be used to perform such signal processing for the millimeter wave repeater <NUM>, and network resources may be conserved that would otherwise be used to communicate input to or output of such processing between the base station <NUM> and the millimeter wave repeater <NUM>.

In this way, the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may increase a coverage area, provide access around obstructions (as shown), and/or the like, while conserving resources of the base station <NUM>, resources of the millimeter wave repeater <NUM>, network resources, and/or the like. Additional details are described below.

<FIG> and <FIG> are diagrams illustrating examples of a millimeter wave repeater <NUM>, in accordance with the present disclosure. In some aspects, millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may correspond to millimeter wave repeater <NUM> shown in <FIG>.

As shown in <FIG>, in some aspects, the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may include one or more phased array antennas <NUM>-<NUM> through <NUM>-N (N ≥ <NUM>), a gain component <NUM>, a controller <NUM>, a communication component <NUM>, and a multiplexer (MUX) and/or demultiplexer (DEMUX) (MUX/DEMUX) <NUM>.

As shown in <FIG>, in some aspects, the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may include one or more metamaterial antennas <NUM>'-<NUM> through <NUM>'-N, gain component <NUM>, controller <NUM>, communication component <NUM>, and one or more MUX/DEMUX <NUM>.

An antenna <NUM>/<NUM>' includes one or more antenna elements capable of being configured for beamforming. In some aspects, as illustrated in <FIG>, millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may include one or more phased array antennas <NUM>, which may be referred to as a phased array because phase values and/or phase offsets of the antenna elements may be configured to form a beam, with different phase values and/or phase offsets being used for different beams (e.g., in different directions).

In some aspects, as illustrated in <FIG>, millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may include one or more metamaterial antennas <NUM>'. In some aspects, a metamaterial antenna may comprise a synthetic material with negative permittivity and/or permeability, which yields a negative refractive index. Due to the resulting superior antenna gain and electro-magnetic lensing, the metamaterial antenna may not need to be used in a phased-array configuration. However, if in a phased-array configuration, antenna spacing may be less than a typically used spacing of lambda/<NUM>, where lambda refers to a wavelength of the RF carrier signal. In some aspects, due to superior beamforming, the metamaterial antenna may reduce leakage back to the receive (RX) antenna and may reduce a chance of instability in the RF chain. Hence, the use of metamaterial antennas may reduce or obviate a need for a feedback path.

In some aspects, an antenna <NUM>/<NUM>' may be a fixed RX antenna capable of only receiving communications, and not transmitting communications. In some aspects, an antenna <NUM>/<NUM>' may be a fixed TX antenna capable of only transmitting communications, and not receiving communications. In some aspects, an antenna <NUM>/<NUM>' may be capable of being configured to act as an RX antenna or a TX antenna (e.g., via a TX/RX switch, a MUX/DEMUX, and/or the like). The antennas <NUM>/<NUM>' may be capable of communicating using millimeter waves.

Gain component <NUM> includes a component capable of amplifying an input signal and outputting an amplified signal. For example, gain component <NUM> may include a power amplifier, a variable gain component, and/or the like. In some aspects, gain component <NUM> may have variable gain control. The gain component <NUM> may connect to an RX antenna (e.g., a first antenna <NUM>/<NUM>'-<NUM>) and a TX antenna (e.g., a second antenna <NUM>/<NUM>'-<NUM>) such that an analog millimeter wave signal, received via the RX antenna, can be amplified by the gain component <NUM> and output to the TX antenna for transmission. In some aspects, the level of amplification of the gain component <NUM> may be controlled by the controller <NUM>.

Controller <NUM> includes a component capable of controlling one or more other components of the millimeter wave repeater <NUM>. For example, the controller <NUM> may include a controller, a microcontroller, a processor, and/or the like. In some aspects, the controller <NUM> may control the gain component <NUM> by controlling a level of amplification or gain applied by the gain component <NUM> to an input signal. Additionally, or alternatively, the controller <NUM> may control an antenna <NUM>/<NUM>' by controlling a beamforming configuration for the antenna <NUM>/<NUM>' (e.g., one or more phase values for the antenna <NUM>/<NUM>', one or more phase offsets for the antenna <NUM>/<NUM>', one or more power parameters for the antenna <NUM>/<NUM>', one or more beamforming parameters for the antenna <NUM>/<NUM>', a TX beamforming configuration, an RX beamforming configuration, and/or the like), by controlling whether the antenna <NUM>/<NUM>' acts as an RX antenna or a TX antenna (e.g., by configuring interaction and/or connections between the antenna <NUM>/<NUM>' and a MUX/DEMUX <NUM>), and/or the like. Additionally, or alternatively, the controller <NUM> may power on or power off one or more components of millimeter wave repeater <NUM> (e.g., when a base station <NUM> does not need to use the millimeter wave repeater to serve UEs <NUM>). In some aspects, the controller <NUM> may control a timing of one or more of the above configurations.

Communication component <NUM> may include a component capable of wirelessly communicating with a base station <NUM> using a wireless technology other than millimeter wave. For example, the communication component <NUM> may communicate with the base station <NUM> using a personal area network (PAN) technology (e.g., Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), and/or the like), a <NUM> or LTE radio access technology, a narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) technology, a visible light communication technology, and/or the like. In general, the communication component <NUM> enables communication (e.g., with base station <NUM>) via a low frequency (LF) interface (e.g., an interface that uses a sub-<NUM> frequency). In some aspects, the communication component <NUM> may use a low frequency communication technology, and an antenna <NUM>/<NUM>' may use a higher frequency (HF) communication technology (e.g., millimeter wave and/or the like). In some aspects, an antenna <NUM>/<NUM>' may be used to transfer data between the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> and the base station <NUM>, and the communication component <NUM> may be used to transfer control information between the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> and the base station <NUM> (e.g., a report, a configuration, instructions to power on or power off one or more components, and/or the like).

MUX/DEMUX <NUM> may be used to multiplex and/or demultiplex communications received from and/or transmitted to an antenna <NUM>/<NUM>'. For example, MUX/DEMUX <NUM> may be used to switch an RX antenna to a TX antenna.

In some aspects, the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> does not include any components for digital signal processing. For example, the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may not include a digital signal processor, a baseband processor, a digital-to-analog converter (DAC), an analog-to-digital converter (ADC), and/or the like. In this way, a cost to produce the millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may be reduced. Furthermore, latency may be reduced by eliminating digital processing of received millimeter wave signals prior to transmission of corresponding amplified millimeter wave signals.

In some aspects, one or more antennas <NUM>/<NUM>', gain component <NUM>, controller <NUM>, communication component <NUM>, MUX/DEMUX <NUM>, and/or the like may perform one or more operations associated with access procedure configuration of a mmW repeater, as described in more detail elsewhere herein. For example, one or more components of millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may perform or direct operations of, for example, process <NUM> of <FIG> and/or other processes as described herein.

In some aspects, millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may include means for receiving configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the mmW repeater <NUM> in an access procedure; means for receiving a signal associated with the access procedure from a first wireless communication device (e.g., a base station <NUM>, a UE <NUM>, or the like); means for forwarding the signal associated with the access procedure to a second wireless communication device (e.g., the UE <NUM>, the base station, or the like) based at least in part on the configuration information and other information, associated with the access procedure, received by the mmW repeater <NUM>; and/or the like. In some aspects, such means may include one or more components of millimeter wave repeater <NUM> described in connection with <FIG> and <FIG>.

As indicated above, <FIG> and <FIG> are provided as an example. For example, millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may include additional components, fewer components, different components, or differently arranged components than those shown in <FIG> and <FIG>. Furthermore, two or more components shown in <FIG> and <FIG> may be implemented within a single component, or a single component shown in <FIG> and <FIG> may be implemented as multiple components. Additionally, or alternatively, a set of components (e.g., one or more components) of millimeter wave repeater <NUM> may perform one or more functions described as being performed by another set of components of millimeter wave repeater <NUM>.

In a wireless communication system, a backhaul link may be established between a base station (e.g., a base station <NUM>) and a repeater (e.g., a mmW repeater <NUM>). The backhaul link can be used, for example, as a control path for carrying signals (e.g., uplink signals and/or downlink signals) associated with configuring the repeater. A repeater capable for which operation can be configured in such a way can also be referred to as a smart repeater or a hybrid node. In some cases, the backhaul link may use a relatively small bandwidth part in the mmW frequency range (e.g., in FR2) and may achieve a relatively low data rate. Further, an access link may be established between the base station and a UE (e.g., UE <NUM>), with the repeater being configured to act as a relay between the base station and the UE (e.g., such that the repeater receives and forwards signals on the access link). The access link can be used, for example, as a data path for carrying signals (e.g., uplink signals and/or downlink signals) between the base station and the UE. In some cases, the access link may use a relatively larger bandwidth in the mmW frequency range and may achieve a relatively high data rate. In some deployments, signals on the backhaul link can be multiplexed (e.g., frequency domain multiplexed (FDM)) with signals on the access link.

Operation of the repeater with respect to the access link can be configured via the backhaul link. That is, operation of the repeater in association with receiving and forwarding signals on the access link can be configured via the backhaul link. For example, the backhaul link can be used to configure the repeater with a beamforming configuration to be used on the access link (e.g., a configuration indicating one or more beams to be used for receiving or forwarding a signal), a switching configuration to be used on the access link (e.g., a configuration indicating whether the repeater is to receive and forward signals on the downlink or the uplink), and a schedule to be used on the access link (e.g., an indication of time resources in which to adopt the beamforming and switching configurations). Additional examples of configurations that may be provided via the backhaul link include a transmit power configuration for the access link (e.g., a configuration indicating a transmit power to be used when forwarding a signal) and an on-off configuration to be used on the access link (e.g., a configuration indicating whether the repeater is to forward signals or refrain from forwarding signals).

In some cases, such configurations of the repeater can be provided using a control signal on the backhaul link. For example, a downlink control information (DCI) format may be defined to enable information associated with one or more of the above configurations to be provided. In some cases, such a control signal may be a common-purpose control signal (e.g., a DCI) that can be used to configure (e.g., dynamically and/or semi-statically) operation of the repeater in a set of upcoming resources. In general, a common-purpose control signal can be used for configuring operation of the repeater as related to any procedure associated with the access link. For example, a common-purpose control signal may be used to configure the repeater for receiving and forwarding cell-specific or broadcast communications (e.g., synchronization signal blocks (SSBs), remaining minimum system information (RMSI), random access channel (RACH) related messages, and/or the like) on the uplink or the downlink. As another example, a common-purpose control signal may be used to configure the repeater for receiving and forwarding UE-specific uplink and downlink communications (e.g., semi-statically scheduled communications, dynamically scheduled communications, one-time communications, periodic communications, semi-persistent communications, or the like).

As a particular example, common-purpose control signals can be used to configure the repeater for operation as related to an initial access procedure associated with the access link. From the perspective of a base station, an initial access procedure includes periodically transmitting one or more SSBs and, for each SSB, periodically transmitting physical downlink control channels (PDCCHs) scheduling RMSI, transmitting physical downlink shared channel (PDSCHs) carrying the scheduled RMSI, and having RACH occasions for receiving RACH messages (e.g., RACH preambles). Here, to extend coverage of the initial access procedure, the base station may need to configure the repeater to receive and forward at least a subset of the SSBs, RMSI PDCCH/PDSCH, and RACH messages associated with the initial access procedure. The base station may use common-purpose control signals to configure the repeater operation on resources associated with these signals related to the initial access procedure. However, configuration of the repeater using common-purpose control signals may result in an undesirable amount of signaling overhead and/or inefficient resource usage (e.g., due to the number of common-purpose control signals needed and/or the amount of information to be conveyed in the common-purpose control signals).

Some aspects described herein provide techniques and apparatuses for access procedure configuration of a repeater (e.g., a mmW repeater <NUM>). In some aspects, as described below, information that is available to the repeater (e.g., information previously received by the repeater) may be leveraged to simplify configuration of the repeater with respect to involvement of the repeater in the access procedure, which may reduce signaling overhead and/or improve resource usage efficiency when configuring involvement of the repeater in the access procedure.

For example, with regard to an initial access procedure, a repeater that uses an in-band control path (e.g., a control path in a same frequency band as a data path) would have previously detected a base station on the frequency band and acquired system information (SI) associated with the base station. Therefore, the repeater would have information indicating a location (e.g., in a time-domain) of SSBs transmitted by the base station (e.g., based on a bitmap received in system information block <NUM> (SIB1) and/or one or more radio resource control (RRC) messages that indicate the location of actually transmitted SSBs), a RMSI PDCCH configuration and resources associated with each SSB, a RACH message (e.g., MSG1) configuration and resources associated with each SSB, and a PDCCH configuration and resource for RACH responses. Such information can be leveraged to allow a number and/or size of control messages, associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in the initial access procedure, to be reduced, thereby reducing signaling overhead and/or improving resource usage efficiency associated with configuring the repeater.

In some aspects, the improved configuration of the repeater may utilize configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in an access procedure (herein referred to as an access procedure configuration). In some aspects, the access procedure configuration may require a comparatively smaller amount of information than a configuration provided via a typical common-purpose control message. In some aspects, as described in further detail below, a base station may determine the access procedure configuration and may transmit the access procedure configuration to the repeater. The repeater may receive the access procedure configuration, receive a signal associated with the access procedure from a first wireless communication device (e.g., the base station, a UE, or the like), and forward the signal associated with the access procedure to a second wireless communication device (e.g., the UE, the base station, or the like) based at least in part on the access procedure configuration.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating an example <NUM> associated with access procedure configuration of a repeater (e.g., a mmW repeater <NUM>), in accordance with the present disclosure. In example <NUM>, the repeater is to act as a relay between a base station (e.g., a base station <NUM>) and a UE (e.g., UE <NUM>).

As shown in <FIG> by reference <NUM>, the base station may determine configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in an access procedure when forwarding a signal (e.g., to/from the UE). Such configuration information is herein referred to an access procedure configuration. The base station may determine the configuration information using, for example, transmit processor <NUM>, receive processor <NUM>, controller/processor <NUM>, memory <NUM>, determination component <NUM>, or the like.

In some aspects, the access procedure configuration may include an indication of whether the repeater is to forward signals in resources associated with a set of SSBs, PDCCHs associated with scheduling RMSI associated with the set of SSBs, RACH messages carried in RACH occasions associated with the set of SSBs, PDCCHs associated with scheduling RACH responses, and/or the like.

In some aspects, the indication can be carried in a single bit. For example, a single bit may be used to indicate whether the repeater is to forward signals (e.g., uplink signals and downlink signals) on resources associated with the set of SSBs, PDCCHs associated with scheduling RMSI associated with the set of SSBs, RACH messages carried in RACH occasions associated with the set of SSBs, and PDCCHs associated with scheduling responses to the RACH messages. Here, a first value (e.g., <NUM>) of the single bit may be used to indicate that the repeater is to forward signals in resources associated with each of the above described types of access procedure communications, while a second value (e.g., <NUM>) of the single bit may be used to indicate that the repeater is not to forward signals in the resources associated with any of these types of access procedure communications.

In the claimed invention, a bitmap is used to indicate whether the repeater is to forward signals on resources associated with the set of SSBs, PDCCHs associated with scheduling RMSI associated with the set of SSBs, RACH messages carried in RACH occasions associated with the set of SSBs, and/or PDCCHs associated with scheduling responses to the RACH messages. Here, a first value (e.g., <NUM>) in a first bit of the bitmap may be used to indicate that the repeater is to forward signals in resources associated with a first type of access procedure communication (e.g., the set of SSBs), while a second value (e.g., <NUM>) in the first bit may be used to indicate that the repeater is not to forward signals in resources associated with the first type of access procedure communication. Similarly, the first value in a second bit in the bitmap may be used to indicate that the repeater is to forward signals in resources associated with a second type of access procedure communication (e.g., PDCCHs associated with scheduling RMSI), while the second value in the second bit may be used to indicate that the repeater is not to forward signals in resources associated with the second type of access procedure communication.

The access procedure configuration includes a bitmap comprising a set of bits, where a given bit of the set of bits indicates whether to forward signals in resources associated with a particular SSB and, optionally, one or more other types of access procedure communications associated with the particular SSB (e.g., PDCCHs associated with scheduling RMSI associated with the particular SSB, RACH messages associated with the particular SSB, PDCCHs associated with scheduling RACH responses for the RACH messages associated with the SSB, or the like). For example, a first value (e.g., <NUM>) in a first bit of the bitmap may be used to indicate that the repeater is to forward signals in resources associated with a first SSB and in resources associated with other types of access procedure communications associated with the first SSB, while a second value (e.g., <NUM>) in the first bit of the bitmap may be used to indicate that the repeater is not to forward signals in resources associated with the first SSB or in resources associated with other types of access procedure communications associated with the first SSB. Similarly, the first value in a second bit of the bitmap may be used to indicate that the repeater is to forward signals in resources associated with a second SSB and in resources associated with other types of access procedure communications associated with the second SSB, while the second value in the second bit of the bitmap may be used to indicate that the repeater is not to forward signals in resources associated with the second SSB or in resources associated with other types of access procedure communications associated with the second SSB. In some aspects, a number of bits in the bitmap may match a maximum number of SSBs for a frequency range in which the repeater is operating (e.g., the bitmap may have a size of <NUM> bits for FR2). Alternatively, in some aspects, a number of bits in the bitmap may match a number of SSBs actually transmitted by the base station (which may be previously indicated to the repeater by the base station via, for example, an RRC message). Alternatively, in some aspects, the bitmap may be a compressed bitmap (e.g., such that a number of bits in the bitmap is less than a number of SSBs actually transmitted by the base station). In such a case, a first bit of the bitmap may correspond to a first subset of the SSBs, a second bit of the bitmap may correspond to a second subset of the SSBs, and so on (e.g., such that the access procedure configuration is the same for each subset of SSBs).

In some aspects, the access procedure configuration may include a beamforming configuration. That is, in some aspects, the access procedure configuration may include beamforming configuration information that indicates beam directions to be used (e.g., on the service-side) for forwarding signals in resources associated with the access procedure.

As shown by reference <NUM>, the base station may transmit, and the repeater may receive, the access procedure configuration. In some aspects, the base station has a control interface to the repeater, and the base station may transmit the access procedure configuration via the control interface. In some aspects, the base station may transmit, and the repeater may receive, the access procedure configuration via, for example, DCI, a medium access control control element (MAC-CE), RRC signaling, and/or the like. The base station may transmit the access procedure configuration using, for example, transmit processor <NUM>, antenna <NUM>, controller/processor <NUM>, memory <NUM>, transmission component <NUM>, or the like. The repeater may receive the access procedure configuration using, for example, antenna <NUM>, controller <NUM>, communication component <NUM>, reception component <NUM>, or the like.

In some aspects, the base station may transmit, and the repeater may receive, the access procedure configuration in a special-purpose control signal associated with configuring involvement of repeaters in access procedures. The special-purpose control signal may be a signal that uses, for example, a DCI format that is configured differently from a common-purpose control signal (e.g. a different radio network temporary identifier (RNTI), different resources, or the like). In other words, in some aspects, the access procedure configuration may be conveyed in a control signal defined for conveying access procedure configurations.

Alternatively, in some aspects, the base station may transmit, and the repeater may receive, the access procedure configuration in a common-purpose control signal that includes an indication that the common-purpose control signal is associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in the access procedure. For example, the access procedure configuration may be provided in a common-purpose control signal (e.g., DCI) that includes a header indicating that the purpose of the common-purpose control signal is associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in the access procedure.

In some aspects, the repeater receives a signal associated with the access procedure from a first wireless communication device and forwards the signal to a second wireless communication device. In some aspects, the repeater receives and/or forwards the signal based at least in part on the access procedure configuration and other information associated with the access procedure (e.g., information previously received by the repeater). The other information may include, for example, information indicating a location (e.g., in a time-domain) of a set of SSBs, RMSI PDCCH configuration and resources associated with each SSB of the set of SSBs, a RACH message configuration and resources associated with SSB of the set of SSBs, and/or a PDCCH configuration and resource for RACH responses associated with the RACH messages. In some aspects, such other information may be received from the base station via a SIB, an RRC message, or the like (e.g., when the repeater acquires SI associated with the base station, as described above). The repeater may receive the signal using, for example, antenna <NUM>, controller <NUM>, communication component <NUM>, reception component <NUM>, or the like. The repeater may forward the signal using, for example, antenna <NUM>, controller <NUM>, communication component <NUM>, forwarding component <NUM>, transmission component <NUM>, or the like.

As an example, as shown by reference <NUM>, the repeater may receive a first signal associated with the access procedure from the base station and, as shown by reference <NUM>, may forward the first signal to the UE. The first signal may include, for example, a first SSB transmitted by the base station. Here, the access procedure configuration may indicate (e.g., via a one bit indication, via a bitmap, or the like), that the repeater is to forward the first SSB, and the other information may identify resources in which the base station is to transmit the first SSB. In this example, the repeater may, based at least in part on the access procedure configuration and the other information, receive the signal in the resources associated with the first SSB and may forward the signal to the UE.

As another example, as shown by reference <NUM>, the repeater may receive a second signal associated with the access procedure from the UE and, as shown by reference <NUM>, may forward the second signal to the base station. The second signal may include, for example, a RACH message associated with the first SSB. Here, the access procedure configuration may indicate (e.g., via a one bit indication, via a bitmap, or the like), that the repeater is to forward RACH messages associated with the first SSB, and the other information may identify resources in which RACH messages associated with the first SSB are to be transmitted by UEs. In this example, the repeater may, based at least in part on the access procedure configuration and the other information, receive the signal in the resources associated with RACH messages associated with the first SSB and may forward the signal to the base station.

In some aspects, the repeater may forward the signal further based at least in part on a beamforming configuration received by the repeater (e.g., a beamforming configuration included in the access procedure configuration, a beamforming configuration received by the repeater at an earlier time, or the like).

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating an example process <NUM> performed, for example, by a repeater, in accordance with the present disclosure. Example process <NUM> is an example where the repeater (e.g., mmW repeater <NUM>, mmW repeater <NUM>, and/or the like) performs operations associated with access procedure configuration of a repeater.

As shown in <FIG>, in some aspects, process <NUM> may include receiving configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in an access procedure (block <NUM>). For example, the repeater (e.g., using antenna <NUM>, controller <NUM>, communication component <NUM>, and/or the like) may receive configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in an access procedure, as described above in association with, for example, reference <NUM> of <FIG>.

As further shown in <FIG>, in some aspects, process <NUM> may include receiving a signal associated with the access procedure from a first wireless communication device (block <NUM>). For example, the repeater (e.g., using antenna <NUM>, controller <NUM>, communication component <NUM>, MUX/DEMULTIPLEXER <NUM>, and/or the like) may receive a signal associated with the access procedure from a first wireless communication device, as described above in association with, for example, references <NUM> and <NUM> of <FIG>.

As further shown in <FIG>, in some aspects, process <NUM> may include forwarding the signal associated with the access procedure to a second wireless communication device based at least in part on the configuration information and other information, associated with the access procedure received by the repeater (block <NUM>). For example, the repeater (e.g., using antenna <NUM>, gain component <NUM>, controller <NUM>, communication component <NUM>, MUX/DEMULTIPLEXER <NUM>, and/or the like) may forward the signal associated with the access procedure to a second wireless communication device based at least in part on the configuration information and other information, associated with the access procedure, received by the repeater, as described above in association with, for example, references <NUM> and <NUM> of <FIG>.

In a first aspect, the signal is forwarded further based at least in part on other information, associated with the access procedure, received by the repeater. In a second aspect, alone or in combination with the first aspect, the other information associated with the access procedure is received via at least one of: a system information block, or a radio resource control message.

In a third aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first and second aspects, the configuration information includes an indication of whether to forward signals in resources associated with at least one of: a set of SSBs, PDCCHs associated with scheduling remaining minimum system information associated with the set of SSBs, RACH messages associated with the set of SSBs, or PDCCHs associated with scheduling RACH responses for the RACH messages associated with the set of SSBs. In a fourth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through third aspects, the indication is carried in a single bit. In a fifth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fourth aspects, the indication is carried in a bitmap.

In a sixth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fifth aspects, the configuration information includes a bitmap comprising a set of bits, and a bit of the set of bits indicates whether to forward signals in resources associated with an SSB of a set of SSBs and at least one of: PDCCHs associated with scheduling remaining minimum system information associated with the SSB, RACH messages associated with the SSB, or PDCCHs associated with scheduling RACH responses for the RACH messages associated with the SSB. In a seventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through sixth aspects, a number of bits in the bitmap matches a maximum number of SSBs for a frequency range in which the repeater is operating. In an eighth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through seventh aspects, a number of bits in the bitmap matches a number of SSBs actually transmitted by a base station. In a ninth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eighth aspects, the bitmap is a compressed bitmap such that a number of bits in the bitmap is less than a number of SSBs actually transmitted by a base station.

In a tenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through ninth aspects, the configuration information includes a beamforming configuration.

In an eleventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through tenth aspects, the configuration information is received via at least one of: downlink control information, a medium access control control element, or radio resource control signaling.

In a twelfth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eleventh aspects, the configuration information is received in a special-purpose control signal associated with configuring involvement of repeaters in access procedures. In a thirteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twelfth aspects, the configuration information is received in a common-purpose control signal that includes an indication that the common-purpose control signal is associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in the access procedure.

In a fourteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through thirteenth aspects, the repeater operates in a millimeter wave frequency range. In a fifteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fourteenth aspects, the repeater has a control interface to a base station associated with configuring operation of the repeater. In a sixteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fifteenth aspects, the signal is forwarded based at least in part on a beamforming configuration received by the repeater.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating an example process <NUM> performed, for example, by a base station, in accordance with the present disclosure. Example process <NUM> is an example where the base station (e.g., base station <NUM> and/or the like) performs operations associated with access procedure configuration of a repeater.

As shown in <FIG>, in some aspects, process <NUM> may include determining configuration information associated with configuring involvement of a repeater in an access procedure when forwarding a signal, received from a first wireless communication device, to a second wireless communication device (block <NUM>). For example, the base station (e.g., using transmit processor <NUM>, receive processor <NUM>, controller/processor <NUM>, memory <NUM>, and/or the like) may determine configuration information associated with configuring involvement of a repeater (e.g., mmW repeater <NUM>) in an access procedure when forwarding a signal, received from a first wireless communication device, to a second wireless communication device, as described above in association with, for example, reference <NUM> of <FIG>.

As further shown in <FIG>, in some aspects, process <NUM> may include transmitting the configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in the access procedure and other information associated with the access procedure to the repeater (block <NUM>). For example, the base station (e.g., using transmit processor <NUM>, controller/processor <NUM>, memory <NUM>, and/or the like) may transmit the configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in the access procedure and other information associated with the access procedure to the repeater, as described above in association with, for example, reference <NUM> of <FIG>.

In a first aspect, other information associated with the access procedure is transmitted to the repeater. In a second aspect, alone or in combination with the first aspect, the other information associated with the access procedure is transmitted via at least one of: a system information block, or a radio resource control message.

In a third aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first and second aspects, the configuration information includes an indication of whether the repeater is to forward signals in resources associated with at least one of: a set of SSBs, PDCCHs associated with scheduling remaining minimum system information associated with the set of SSBs, RACH messages associated with the set of SSBs, or PDCCHs associated with scheduling RACH responses for the RACH messages associated with the set of SSBs. In a fourth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through third aspects, the indication is carried in a single bit. In a fifth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fourth aspects, the indication is carried in a bitmap.

In a sixth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fifth aspects, the configuration information includes a bitmap comprising a set of bits, and a bit of the set of bits indicates whether the repeater is to forward signals in resources associated with an SSB of a set of SSBs and at least one of: PDCCHs associated with scheduling remaining minimum system information associated with the SSB, RACH messages associated with the SSB, or PDCCHs associated with scheduling RACH responses for the RACH messages associated with the SSB. In a seventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through sixth aspects, a number of bits in the bitmap matches a maximum number of SSBs for a frequency range in which the repeater is operating. In an eighth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through seventh aspects, a number of bits in the bitmap matches a number of SSBs actually transmitted by the base station. In a ninth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eighth aspects, the bitmap is a compressed bitmap such that a number of bits in the bitmap is less than a number of SSBs actually transmitted by the base station.

In an eleventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through tenth aspects, the configuration information is transmitted via at least one of: downlink control information, a medium access control control element, or radio resource control signaling.

In a twelfth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eleventh aspects, the configuration information is transmitted in a special-purpose control signal associated with configuring involvement of repeaters in access procedures. In a thirteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twelfth aspects, the configuration information is transmitted in a common-purpose control signal that includes an indication that the common-purpose control signal is associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in the access procedure.

In a fourteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through thirteenth aspects, the repeater operates in a millimeter wave frequency range. In a fifteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fourteenth aspects, the base station has a control interface to the repeater.

<FIG> is a conceptual data flow diagram <NUM> illustrating a data flow between different components in an example apparatus <NUM>. The apparatus <NUM> may be a repeater (e.g., mmW repeater <NUM>). In some aspects, the apparatus <NUM> includes a reception component <NUM>, a forwarding component <NUM>, and/or a transmission component <NUM>.

In some aspects, reception component <NUM> may receive configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in an access procedure, and may receive a signal associated with the access procedure from a first wireless communication device. In some aspects, the forwarding component <NUM> and/or the transmission component <NUM> may forward the signal associated with the access procedure to a second wireless communication device based at least in part on the configuration information and other information, associated with the access procedure, received by the repeater.

The apparatus may include additional components that perform each of the blocks of the algorithm in the aforementioned process <NUM> of <FIG> and/or the like. Each block in the aforementioned process <NUM> of <FIG> and/or the like may be performed by a component and the apparatus may include one or more of those components.

<FIG> is a diagram <NUM> illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for an apparatus <NUM>' employing a processing system <NUM>. The apparatus <NUM>' may be a repeater (e.g., mmW repeater <NUM>).

The processing system <NUM> may be implemented with a bus architecture, represented generally by the bus <NUM>. The bus <NUM> may include any number of interconnecting buses and bridges depending on the specific application of the processing system <NUM> and the overall design constraints. The bus <NUM> links together various circuits including one or more processors and/or hardware components, represented by the processor <NUM>, the components <NUM>, <NUM>, and/or <NUM>, and the computer-readable medium / memory <NUM>. The bus <NUM> may 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.

The processing system <NUM> may be coupled to a transceiver <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> is coupled to one or more antennas <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> provides a means for communicating with various other apparatuses over a transmission medium. The transceiver <NUM> receives a signal from the one or more antennas <NUM>, extracts information from the received signal, and provides the extracted information to the processing system <NUM>, specifically the reception component <NUM>. In addition, the transceiver <NUM> receives information from the processing system <NUM>, specifically the transmission component <NUM>, and based at least in part on the received information, generates a signal to be applied to the one or more antennas <NUM>. The processing system <NUM> includes a processor <NUM> coupled to a computer-readable medium / memory <NUM>. The processor <NUM> is responsible for general processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium / memory <NUM>. The software, when executed by the processor <NUM>, causes the processing system <NUM> to perform the various functions described herein for any particular apparatus. The computer-readable medium / memory <NUM> may also be used for storing data that is manipulated by the processor <NUM> when executing software. The processing system further includes at least one of the components <NUM>, <NUM>, and/or <NUM>. The components may be software modules running in the processor <NUM>, resident/stored in the computer-readable medium / memory <NUM>, one or more hardware modules coupled to the processor <NUM>, or some combination thereof. The processing system <NUM> may be a component of the UE <NUM> and may include the memory <NUM> and/or at least one of the TX MIMO processor <NUM>, the RX processor <NUM>, and/or the controller/processor <NUM>.

In some aspects, the apparatus <NUM>/<NUM>' for wireless communication includes means for receiving configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the apparatus <NUM>/<NUM>' in an access procedure; means for receiving a signal associated with the access procedure from a first wireless communication device; means for forwarding the signal associated with the access procedure to a second wireless communication device based at least in part on the configuration information and other information, associated with the access procedure, received by the repeater; and/or the like. As described elsewhere herein, the processing system <NUM> may include the TX MIMO processor <NUM>, the RX processor <NUM>, and/or the controller/processor <NUM>. In one configuration, the aforementioned means may be the TX MIMO processor <NUM>, the RX processor <NUM>, and/or the controller/processor <NUM> configured to perform the functions and/or operations recited herein.

<FIG> is a conceptual data flow diagram <NUM> illustrating a data flow between different components in an example apparatus <NUM>. The apparatus <NUM> may be a base station (e.g., base station <NUM>). In some aspects, the apparatus <NUM> includes a reception component <NUM>, a determination component <NUM>, and/or a transmission component <NUM>.

In some aspects, determination component <NUM> may determine configuration information associated with configuring involvement of a repeater in an access procedure when forwarding a signal, received from a first wireless communication device, to a second wireless communication device. In some aspects, transmission component <NUM> may transmit the configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in the access procedure and other information associated with the access procedure to the repeater.

<FIG> is a diagram <NUM> illustrating an example of a hardware implementation for an apparatus <NUM>' employing a processing system <NUM>. The apparatus <NUM>' may be a base station (e.g., base station <NUM>).

The processing system <NUM> may be coupled to a transceiver <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> is coupled to one or more antennas <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> provides a means for communicating with various other apparatuses over a transmission medium. The transceiver <NUM> receives a signal from the one or more antennas <NUM>, extracts information from the received signal, and provides the extracted information to the processing system <NUM>, specifically the reception component <NUM>. In addition, the transceiver <NUM> receives information from the processing system <NUM>, specifically the transmission component <NUM>, and based at least in part on the received information, generates a signal to be applied to the one or more antennas <NUM>. The processing system <NUM> includes a processor <NUM> coupled to a computer-readable medium / memory <NUM>. The processor <NUM> is responsible for general processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium / memory <NUM>. The software, when executed by the processor <NUM>, causes the processing system <NUM> to perform the various functions described herein for any particular apparatus. The computer-readable medium / memory <NUM> may also be used for storing data that is manipulated by the processor <NUM> when executing software. The processing system further includes at least one of the components <NUM>, <NUM>, and/or <NUM>. The components may be software modules running in the processor <NUM>, resident/stored in the computer-readable medium / memory <NUM>, one or more hardware modules coupled to the processor <NUM>, or some combination thereof. The processing system <NUM> may be a component of the base station <NUM> and may include the memory <NUM> and/or at least one of the TX MIMO processor <NUM>, the RX processor <NUM>, and/or the controller/processor <NUM>.

In some aspects, the apparatus <NUM>/<NUM>' for wireless communication includes means for determining configuration information associated with configuring involvement of a repeater in an access procedure when forwarding a signal, received from a first wireless communication device, to a second wireless communication device; means for transmitting the configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in the access procedure and other information associated with the access procedure to the repeater; and/or the like. As described elsewhere herein, the processing system <NUM> may include the TX MIMO processor <NUM>, the receive processor <NUM>, and/or the controller/processor <NUM>. In one configuration, the aforementioned means may be the TX MIMO processor <NUM>, the receive processor <NUM>, and/or the controller/processor <NUM> configured to perform the functions and/or operations recited herein.

Claim 1:
A method of wireless communication performed by a repeater, comprising:
receiving (<NUM>) configuration information associated with configuring involvement of the repeater in an access procedure;
receiving (<NUM>) a signal associated with the access procedure from a first wireless communication device; and
forwarding (<NUM>) the signal associated with the access procedure to a second wireless communication device based at least in part on the configuration information and other information, associated with the access procedure, received by the repeater, wherein the configuration information includes a bitmap comprising a set of bits, wherein a bit of the set of bits indicates whether to forward signals in resources associated with a synchronization signal block, SSB, of a set of SSBs and at least one of:
physical downlink control channel, PDCCHs, associated with scheduling remaining minimum system information associated with the SSB,
random access channel, RACH, messages associated with the SSB, or PDCCHs associated with scheduling RACH responses for the RACH messages associated with the SSB.