Patent Description:
However, as the demand for mobile broadband access equipment to communicate on a municipal, national, regional, and even global level. <CIT> discloses the use of a FDD configuration, including a FDD downlink (DL) and an FDD uplink (UL), for communicating between nodes of a wireless network.

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 frequency division duplexing in unpaired spectrum, 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>, 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, UE <NUM> may include means for receiving an indication that the UE is to communicate using a frequency division duplexing (FDD) configuration on an unpaired frequency band that includes at least one uplink frequency region and at least one downlink frequency region in accordance with the FDD configuration; means for communicating using the FDD configuration; means for communicating in a full duplex mode, wherein the UE transmits on the at least one uplink frequency region while contemporaneously receiving on the at least one downlink frequency region according to the FDD configuration; means for communicating in a half duplex mode using the FDD configuration, where the UE is capable of either receiving on the at least one downlink frequency region or transmitting on the at least one uplink frequency region at a given time; means for performing cross-link interference management in connection with communicating using the FDD configuration; means for receiving an indication that a base station is capable of transmitting in the at least one uplink frequency region while receiving in the at least one downlink frequency region contemporaneously; means for receiving an indication that a base station is not capable of transmitting in the at least one uplink frequency region while receiving in the at least one downlink frequency region contemporaneously; means for receiving dynamic scheduling information that schedules an uplink or downlink communication in accordance with the FDD configuration; and/or the like. In some aspects, such means may include one or more components of UE <NUM> described in connection with <FIG>.

In some aspects, base station <NUM> may include means for transmitting an indication that a user equipment (UE) is to communicate using a frequency division duplexing (FDD) configuration on an unpaired frequency band that includes at least one uplink frequency region and at least one downlink frequency region in accordance with the FDD configuration; means for communicating with the UE using the FDD configuration; means for communicating in a full duplex mode, wherein the base station receives on the at least one uplink frequency region while contemporaneously transmitting on the at least one downlink frequency region according to the FDD configuration; means for communicating in a half duplex mode using the FDD configuration, where the base station is capable of either receiving on the at least one uplink frequency region or transmitting on the at least one downlink frequency region at a given time; means for performing inter-base-station interference management with a second base station based at least in part on respective FDD configurations of the first base station and the second base station; means for transmitting dynamic scheduling information that schedules an uplink or downlink communication in accordance with the FDD configuration; means for transmitting scheduling information that schedules an uplink or downlink communication in accordance with the FDD configuration; and/or the like. In some aspects, such means may include one or more components of base station <NUM> described in connection with <FIG>.

A wireless communication standard or governing body may specify how a wireless spectrum is to be used. For example, 3GPP may specify how wireless spectrum is to be used for the <NUM>/NR radio access technology and interface. As an example, a specification may indicate whether a band is to be used as paired spectrum or unpaired spectrum. A band in a paired spectrum may use a first frequency region for uplink communication and a second frequency region for downlink communication, wherein the first frequency region does not overlap the second frequency region. For example, a paired band may have an uplink operating band and a downlink operating band that are configured to use non-overlapped frequency regions. Examples of paired bands in NR include NR operating bands n1, n2, n3, n5, n7, n8, n12, n20, n25, and n28, as specified by 3GPP Technical Specification (TS) <NUM>-<NUM>. An unpaired band may allow downlink and uplink operation within a same frequency region (e.g., a same sub-band or component). For example, an unpaired band may configure an uplink sub-band and a downlink sub-band in the same frequency range. Some deployments may use time division duplexing (TDD) in the unpaired band, wherein some time intervals (e.g., slots, symbols, and/or the like) are used for uplink communications and other time intervals are used for downlink communications. In this case, substantially the entire bandwidth of a component carrier may be used for a downlink communication or an uplink communication, depending on whether the communication is performed in a downlink slot, an uplink slot, or a special slot (in which downlink or uplink communications can be scheduled). Examples of unpaired bands include NR operating bands n40, n41, and n50, as specified by 3GPP TS <NUM>-<NUM>.

In some cases, it may be inefficient to use TDD in unpaired spectrum. For example, uplink transmit power may be limited, meaning that UEs may not be capable of transmitting with enough power to efficiently utilize the full bandwidth of an uplink slot. This may be particularly problematic in large cells at the cell edge. Furthermore, the usage of TDD may introduce latency relative to a scheme in which uplink communications and downlink communications can be performed in the same time interval, since a given time interval may be used only for uplink communication or for downlink communication.

Some techniques and apparatuses described herein provide communication in an unpaired band using FDD. For example, some techniques and apparatuses described herein may use a single component carrier on which at least one uplink frequency region and at least one downlink frequency region are configured or scheduled. As another example, some techniques and apparatuses described herein may use respective component carriers for uplink and downlink communication in an unpaired band. Furthermore, techniques for interference management, cross-operator scheduling, and fixed and variable FDD configurations are provided. In this way, techniques and apparatuses described herein enable sub-band full duplex using FDD in unpaired spectrum. Thus, spectral efficiency in unpaired bands may be improved, particularly in large cells and at the cell edge. Furthermore, latency may be reduced on unpaired bands relative to a TDD configuration.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating an example <NUM> of a call flow for implementing an FDD configuration in unpaired spectrum, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. As shown, example <NUM> includes a UE <NUM> and a BS <NUM>. In example <NUM>, the UE <NUM> is configured using a system information block (SIB) that includes the FDD configuration. In some aspects, this may involve modification of a specification that prescribes SIB formats and content (such as a 3GPP TS and/or the like). For an example of configuration of an FDD configuration that may not involve modification of a specification, refer to example <NUM> of <FIG>.

As shown in <FIG>, and by reference number <NUM>, the BS <NUM> may transmit, to UEs <NUM> covered by the BS <NUM>, a SIB. As further shown, the SIB may identify the FDD configuration. For example, the SIB may include an indication that the UE <NUM> is to use the FDD configuration and/or may explicitly identify the FDD configuration. The FDD configuration may identify at least one uplink frequency region and at least one downlink frequency region for an unpaired frequency band. For example, the FDD configuration may identify locations of the at least one uplink frequency region and the at least one downlink frequency region. Particular examples of FDD configurations are provided in connection with <FIG>, below.

As shown by reference number <NUM>, the UE <NUM> may communicate according to the FDD configuration. For example, if the UE <NUM> supports an FDD configuration on the unpaired frequency band using the SIB, then the UE <NUM> may communicate according to the FDD configuration. If the UE <NUM> does not support the FDD configuration on the unpaired frequency band using the SIB (which may be referred to herein as a legacy UE), then the UE <NUM> may ignore the SIB, may use a different configuration (e.g., a TDD configuration), or may perform another action. In some aspects, the operations described in connection with example <NUM>, below, may be used to configure a legacy UE <NUM>.

As shown by reference number <NUM>, the UE <NUM> may perform initial access in accordance with the SIB. For example, the UE <NUM> may access a cell provided by the BS <NUM> in accordance with the SIB. In some aspects, the UE <NUM> may communicate with the BS <NUM> using the FDD configuration specified by the SIB. In some aspects, the SIB may indicate that the cell uses an FDD configuration, and the UE <NUM> may subsequently receive the FDD configuration from the BS <NUM>.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating an example <NUM> of another call flow for implementing an FDD configuration on unpaired spectrum, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. As shown, example <NUM> includes a BS <NUM> and a UE <NUM>. In example <NUM>, an FDD configuration is implemented using dynamic scheduling. For example, downlink and uplink communications are scheduled in accordance with the FDD configuration, meaning that FDD configurations can be implemented irrespective of whether the FDD configuration is in a specification.

As shown by reference number <NUM>, the UE <NUM> and the BS <NUM> may perform an initial access procedure, such as a random access procedure and/or the like. As shown by reference number <NUM>, the BS <NUM> may set up a connection with the UE <NUM>. In some aspects, as shown, the BS <NUM> may provide an indication that the UE <NUM> is to use an FDD configuration. In some aspects, this indication may identify one or more downlink frequency regions and one or more uplink frequency regions. For example, the indication may explicitly identify the frequency regions. In some aspects, the indication may indicate that one or more downlink frequency regions and one or more uplink frequency regions will be used. For example, the indication may indicate that the UE <NUM> is to communicate according to an FDD configuration on an unpaired frequency band.

As shown by reference number <NUM>, the BS <NUM> may perform dynamic scheduling for communications with the UE <NUM>. For example, and as shown, the BS <NUM> may schedule the communications according to the FDD configuration. In some aspects, the BS <NUM> may schedule downlink communications to the UE <NUM> in the one or more downlink frequency regions of the FDD configuration, and may schedule uplink communications from the UE <NUM> in the one or more uplink frequency regions of the FDD configuration. By dynamically scheduling in accordance with the FDD configuration, the BS <NUM> may conserve resources that would otherwise be used to configure the UE <NUM> to use the FDD configuration (e.g., using a SIB and/or the like, as described in connection with <FIG>) and may improve versatility of TDD communication in the unpaired spectrum.

<FIG> are diagrams illustrating examples of FDD configurations on unpaired spectrum, in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. <FIG> show examples of time intervals (e.g., slots, slot groups, subframes, sub-slots, mini-slots, symbols, and/or the like). A time interval may include an uplink frequency region, a downlink frequency region, or both an uplink frequency region and a downlink frequency region. Each time interval may be associated with a control region, which is illustrated as a darker-shaded portion of the time interval, and a data region, which is shown as DL Data for the downlink frequency region or physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) for the uplink frequency region. Uplink frequency regions are illustrated using a tighter dotted fill than downlink frequency regions.

An FDD configuration may indicate one or more downlink frequency regions and one or more uplink frequency regions. For example, an FDD configuration may divide an unpaired band (e.g., one or more component carriers of an unpaired band) into uplink frequency regions, downlink frequency regions, and/or other regions (e.g., guard bands in between frequency regions, guard times, and/or the like). In some aspects, the FDD configuration may identify a guard time. A guard time may separate an uplink frequency region from a downlink frequency region in the time domain. The guard time may provide time for a UE <NUM> and/or a BS <NUM> to switch between uplink operation and downlink operation or to switch between a frequency associated with the downlink frequency region and a frequency associated with the uplink frequency region. In some aspects, the FDD configuration may identify bandwidth part (BWP) configurations corresponding to the uplink frequency regions and downlink frequency regions. For example, a respective BWP may be configured for each uplink frequency region and each downlink frequency region.

An uplink frequency region and a downlink frequency region may or may not be equal in bandwidth. For example, in the example <NUM> shown in <FIG>, the two downlink frequency regions, shown by reference numbers <NUM> and <NUM>, occupy a smaller bandwidth than the uplink frequency region shown by reference number <NUM>. In this case, the uplink frequency region is provided between the downlink frequency regions, which may reduce interference from downlinks of other BSs <NUM> associated with frequencies adjacent to the component carrier of example <NUM>. In some aspects, the locations of the uplink frequency regions and the downlink frequency regions may be based at least in part on interference alignment between base stations and operators, as described in more detail elsewhere herein.

The usage of FDD configurations for unpaired spectrum communication may increase throughput and improve spectral efficiency. For example, consider, as a baseline, a TDD configuration of down-down-special-up. This may be associated with, for example, a downlink cell edge rate of <NUM> Mbps and an uplink cell edge rate of <NUM> kbps (e.g., with a <NUM> Mbps median user rate, that is 20dB less the maximum coupling loss (MCL)). In this case, FDD in the unpaired spectrum with an <NUM> downlink and a <NUM> uplink may reduce downlink cell edge spectral efficiency (SE) by <NUM>, assuming power spectral density (PSD) is not increased to utilize baseline power. In such a case, <NUM>~<NUM> Mbps may be achievable with a full duty cycle. The uplink UE SE may have no change at the cell edge and at the median. In this case, <NUM> kbps may be achieved at the cell edge, and <NUM> Mbps may be achieved at the median. Performance may be further improved for a full-duplex UE. In this case, assuming the same parameters as the previous example, a downlink throughput of <NUM> Mbps and an uplink throughput of <NUM> kbps may be concurrently achieved.

<FIG> illustrates examples <NUM> and <NUM> of a fixed FDD configuration and a variable FDD configuration, respectively. As shown, the fixed FDD configuration shown by reference number <NUM> uses the same FDD configuration for each time interval. As shown by reference number <NUM>, the variable FDD configuration shown by reference number <NUM> uses a different FDD configuration for a fourth time interval than for a first three time intervals. The fixed FDD configuration may be more efficient with regard to signaling, whereas the variable FDD configuration may provide increased flexibility for scheduling. For example, the variable FDD configuration may be used to schedule an uplink-focused time interval, thereby increasing throughput in the uplink-focused time interval while maintaining the low latency associated with the FDD configuration in the other time intervals.

The various FDD configurations described herein may be associated with certain advantages. For example, a less complex FDD configuration may be associated with a lower base station complexity than a more complex FDD configuration. As another example, a particular FDD configuration may be used to provide synchronization between operators and/or between base stations. As yet another example, a particular FDD configuration may be used to provide channel reciprocity between base stations. As still another example, an FDD configuration with an uplink frequency region and a downlink frequency region in each time interval may provide support for low-latency control and data. As another example, a particular FDD configuration may provide a higher uplink or downlink peak rate at the cost of coverage, or vice versa.

As just one example, the variable FDD configuration shown by reference number <NUM> may require base station synchronization (for the wideband uplink slot shown by reference number <NUM>), may allow low-latency control and data for lower throughputs, may support two-step channel reciprocity, may support base station cancellation, and may have a lower downlink peak rate than some TDD configurations. A network controller or base station may balance these concerns when determining an FDD configuration.

<FIG> illustrates examples <NUM> and <NUM> of FDD configurations. In example <NUM>, a fixed FDD configuration is used and the uplink frequency region is provided at an edge of the component carrier (e.g., rather than in between downlink frequency regions). In example <NUM>, a mixture of TDD and FDD is used. For example, FDD is used in the time interval shown by reference number <NUM>, wherein TDD is used in the time intervals shown by reference numbers <NUM> and <NUM>. While FDD partitioning within a single component carrier is shown in <FIG> for simplicity, it should be understood that FDD partitioning can also be extended to carrier aggregation on the unpaired spectrum.

<FIG> shows an example <NUM> of an FDD configuration for a half-duplex BS <NUM>. A half-duplex BS <NUM> may refer to a BS <NUM> that is capable of only one of transmitting or receiving at a given time. Some low-cost or low-complexity base stations may use half-duplex communication. As shown, in example <NUM>, the BS <NUM> may perform only uplink or downlink communication at a given time. In this case, the BS <NUM> may utilize dynamic scheduling to improve uplink or downlink resource utilization (for example, by increasing the bandwidth of the uplink or downlink frequency region during the uplink or downlink transmission).

<FIG> shows an example <NUM> of inter-base-station interference management for FDD on unpaired spectrum. Alignment of uplink and downlink partitions across base stations may reduce impact of downlink aggressors. For illustration, refer to example <NUM>. Example <NUM> shows transmissions and receptions on a single component carrier for two synchronized cells. In example <NUM>, the downlink of Cell <NUM> is an aggressor to the uplink of Cell <NUM>. Accordingly, Cell <NUM> and Cell <NUM> may be coordinated such that Cell <NUM> does not transmit on the time interval shown by reference number <NUM>, which may reduce interference with Cell <NUM>'s uplink frequency region. Additionally, or alternatively, a frequency gap (shown by reference numbers <NUM> and <NUM> as a guard band) may be provided between the uplink frequency regions and the downlink frequency regions by Cell <NUM> and Cell <NUM>, thereby further reducing interference. In some aspects, the frequency gap may be provided between any uplink frequency region and any downlink frequency region, including those described herein and those associated with other FDD configurations not described herein.

<FIG> illustrates an example <NUM> of interference management for asynchronous operators. As shown, a first cell, provided by an Operator <NUM>, may be asynchronous with a second cell, provided by Operator <NUM>. As further shown, the first cell and the second cell may be associated with different component carriers (CCs) (CC1 and CC2, respectively). In this case, a frequency gap (shown as guard band) may mitigate intra-cell interference. Furthermore, the provision of uplink frequency regions within the two downlink frequency regions may reduce inter-cell interference. For example, Operator <NUM>'s downlink frequency region may be separated from Operator <NUM>'s uplink frequency region by Operator <NUM>'s downlink frequency region, thereby reducing the impact of interference between Operator <NUM>'s downlink frequency region and Operator <NUM>'s uplink frequency region. In some aspects, Operator <NUM> or Operator <NUM> (or BS <NUM> or UE <NUM>) may use other interference mitigation or cancellation techniques, such as an adjacent channel leakage ratio (ACLR)-based approach, half-duplex transmission, interference nulling, a cross-link interference (CLI) mitigation technique, a remote interference management (RIM) technique, and/or the like. Additionally, or alternatively, a spatial separation may be provided between antennas of Operator <NUM> and Operator <NUM>, which may further reduce interference and aid with interference cancellation. For example, a first antenna array or sub-array may be used to provide a cell associated with Operator <NUM>, and a second antenna array or sub-array, spatially separated from the first antenna array or sub-array, may be used to provide a cell associated with Operator <NUM>.

<FIG> illustrates an example <NUM> of interference management for synchronous operators. As shown, example <NUM> includes a first operator deploying an FDD network in unpaired spectrum and a second operator (shown as Legacy Operator) deploying a TDD network in the unpaired spectrum. For example, the second operator may be associated with a guaranteed synchronous operation (such as in deployments in some countries, such as some Chinese deployments), a semi-static operation (as in LTE), and/or the like. In this case, and as shown by reference number <NUM>, the operator deploying the FDD network may configure an uplink frequency region to be adjacent to an uplink time interval of the legacy operator, thereby reducing interference between the operator deploying the FDD network and the legacy operator. Furthermore, as shown by reference number <NUM>, the operator deploying the FDD network may provide a time gap between a downlink frequency region of the operator deploying the FDD network and the uplink time interval of the legacy operator, thereby further reducing inter-operator interference. In some aspects, additional or alternative interference mitigation or cancellation operations may be performed in the time region shown by reference number <NUM>, such as spatial/jammer nulling, inter-operator aggressor detection, and/or the like.

<FIG> illustrates an example <NUM> of variable frequency partitions and fixed frequency partitions for operators on different component carriers. As shown by reference number <NUM>, a first cell may use variable frequency partitions, in which different frequency partitions can be used in different slots. As shown by reference number <NUM>, a second cell may use a fixed frequency partition, in which a same frequency partition is used across multiple time intervals. In a case when interference mitigation or cancellation techniques (such as ACLR-based approaches, guard bands, and spatial separation of antennas) are sufficient to provide adequate interference control (e.g., to achieve a target interference ratio and/or the like), then each operator may independently choose frequency partitions. When interference mitigation or cancellation techniques are not sufficient to provide adequate interference control, then operators may coordinate with each other using the techniques described elsewhere herein.

It should be noted that the approach described in connection with <FIG> can be implemented without modifying a wireless communication standard for <NUM>/NR communication. For example, each operator's BS or cell may provide scheduling information that conforms with the respective FDD configurations shown, thereby providing the FDD configuration without modification of a SIB or other message to signal information identifying the FDD configuration.

<FIG> shows an example <NUM> of a set of FDD configurations and TDD configurations for an Operator <NUM> (performing in-band FDD), an Operator <NUM> (performing in-band FDD), and an Operator <NUM> (performing TDD, referred to as a legacy operator). Each operator is associated with a respective component carrier. As shown by reference number <NUM>, Operator <NUM> may provide a frequency gap between a downlink frequency region of Operator <NUM> and an uplink frequency region of Operator <NUM>, which may reduce interference between Operator <NUM> and Operator <NUM>. Furthermore, as shown by reference number <NUM>, Operator <NUM> may provide a frequency gap between the uplink frequency region of Operator <NUM> and downlink transmissions of Operator <NUM>, which may reduce interference between Operator <NUM> and Operator <NUM>. In some aspects, Operator <NUM> may use one or more restrictions during the time interval shown by reference number <NUM> to reduce interference between a downlink transmission of Operator <NUM> (not shown) and an uplink transmission of Operator <NUM>.

The FDD configurations shown in <FIG> (and in the other Figures) may be implemented based at least in part on modifying a specification. For example, the FDD configurations shown in <FIG> may be communicated using system information, such as a SIB, whose format is specified in a wireless communication standard. In some aspects, an FDD configuration may be slot-dependent. Additionally, or alternatively, a particular slot format indication may be associated with an FDD configuration that is communicated to a UE <NUM>.

<FIG> shows an example <NUM> of an FDD configuration in unpaired spectrum using multiple component carriers (CCs). As shown by reference number <NUM>, in some aspects, a first CC may provide an uplink frequency region and a second component carrier may provide a downlink frequency region. As shown by reference number <NUM>, in some aspects, a first CC may provide an uplink frequency region and a downlink frequency region, and a second CC may provide a downlink frequency region. Of course, other multi-CC examples may differ from the specific FDD configuration shown in <FIG>.

<FIG> shows an example <NUM> of a periodic slot format indicator being used to provide an FDD configuration. A periodic slot format indicator may allow a BS to signal, to a UE, a slot format for a set of slots that repeats over time. For example, for a TDD configuration, the periodic slot format indicator may indicate down-down-special-up, and this pattern of slots may repeat every four slots. This is referred to as a semi-static slot format indication. Semi-static slot format indications may provide transparency to regulators, and may be used to reduce spurious transmissions when control information is mis-decoded.

In some aspects, the slot format indication may be used to indicate an FDD configuration. For example, as shown by reference number <NUM>, each slot may be associated with an FDD configuration (shown as BW1, BW2, and BW3). The FDD configuration may indicate at least one downlink frequency region and/or at least one uplink frequency region for each slot. For example, BW1 is associated with a downlink frequency region across an entire bandwidth of the component carrier (shown as DL <NUM>-<NUM>) whereas BW2 is associated with a first downlink frequency region across a first <NUM> percent of the bandwidth of the component carrier, an uplink frequency region across a center <NUM> percent of the bandwidth of the component carrier, and a second downlink frequency region across a second <NUM> percent of the bandwidth of the component carrier. It can be seen that frequency gaps are also configured by the slot format indication, for example, in BW1 as gaps between the first <NUM> percent, the center <NUM> percent, and the second <NUM> percent.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating a process <NUM> according to the claimed invention and performed by by a user equipment. Process <NUM> is process where a UE (e.g., user equipment <NUM> and/or the like) performs operations associated with frequency division duplexing in the unpaired spectrum.

As shown in <FIG>, in some aspects, process <NUM> may include receiving an indication that the UE is to communicate using an FDD configuration on an unpaired frequency band that includes at least one uplink frequency region and at least one downlink frequency region in accordance with the FDD configuration (block <NUM>). For example, the UE (e.g., using antenna <NUM>, DEMOD <NUM>, MIMO detector <NUM>, receive processor <NUM>, controller/processor <NUM>, and/or the like) may receive an indication that the UE is to communicate using an FDD configuration on an unpaired frequency band that includes at least one uplink frequency region and at least one downlink frequency region in accordance with the FDD configuration, as described above.

As further shown in <FIG>, in some aspects, process <NUM> may include communicating using the FDD configuration (block <NUM>). For example, the UE (e.g., using controller/processor <NUM>, transmit processor <NUM>, TX MIMO processor <NUM>, MOD <NUM>, antenna <NUM>, DEMOD <NUM>, MIMO detector <NUM>, receive processor <NUM>, and/or the like) may communicate using the FDD configuration, as described above.

In a first aspect, the FDD configuration is for communication on a single component carrier.

In a second aspect, alone or in combination with the first aspect, the FDD configuration is fixed across multiple time intervals.

In a third aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first and second aspects, the at least one downlink frequency region includes two downlink frequency regions and is non-contiguous, wherein the at least one uplink frequency region is contiguous and located within the two downlink frequency regions.

In a fourth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through third aspects, the at least one uplink frequency region and the at least one downlink frequency region are different in a first time interval than in a second time interval.

In a fifth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fourth aspects, the FDD configuration is used in one or more first time intervals and a TDD configuration is used in one or more second time intervals.

In a sixth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fifth aspects, the at least one uplink frequency region is associated with a different bandwidth than the at least one downlink frequency region.

In a seventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through sixth aspects, communicating using the FDD configuration further comprises communicating in a full duplex mode, wherein the UE transmits on the at least one uplink frequency region while contemporaneously receiving on the at least one downlink frequency region according to the FDD configuration.

In an eighth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through seventh aspects, communicating using the FDD configuration further comprises communicating in half duplex using the FDD configuration, wherein the UE is capable of either receiving on the at least one downlink frequency region or transmitting on the at least one uplink frequency region at a given time.

In a ninth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eighth aspects, the UE may perform cross-link interference management in connection with communicating using the FDD configuration.

In a tenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through ninth aspects, the UE may receive an indication that a base station is capable of transmitting in the at least one uplink frequency region while receiving in the at least one downlink frequency region contemporaneously.

In an eleventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through tenth aspects, the UE may receive an indication that a base station is not capable of transmitting in the at least one uplink frequency region while receiving in the at least one downlink frequency region contemporaneously.

In a twelfth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eleventh aspects, a frequency gap is provided between an uplink frequency region of the at least one uplink frequency region and a downlink frequency region of the at least one downlink frequency region.

In a thirteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twelfth aspects, the FDD configuration is used for communication between the UE and a serving base station, and for communication between the UE and a neighboring base station.

In a fourteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through thirteenth aspects, respective partitions of the at least one uplink frequency region and the at least one downlink frequency region are configured in accordance with the indication, and the UE may receive dynamic scheduling information that schedules an uplink or downlink communication in accordance with the FDD configuration.

In a fifteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fourteenth aspects, the indication indicates the FDD configuration.

In a sixteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fifteenth aspects, the FDD configuration is associated with a slot format indication communicated to the UE.

In a seventeenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through sixteenth aspects, communicating using the FDD configuration is based at least in part on receiving scheduling information that schedules an uplink or downlink communication in accordance with the FDD configuration.

In an eighteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through seventeenth aspects, the FDD configuration is specified in a wireless communication standard.

In a nineteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eighteenth aspects, the FDD configuration is indicated to the UE through broadcast system information.

In a twentieth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through nineteenth aspects, the at least one uplink frequency region and the at least one downlink frequency region associated with the FDD configuration are slot-dependent.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating a process <NUM> according to the claimed invention and performed by a base station. Process <NUM> is process where a base station (e.g., base station <NUM> and/or the like) performs operations associated with frequency division duplexing in unpaired spectrum.

As shown in <FIG>, process <NUM> includes transmitting an indication that a UE is to communicate using an FDD configuration on an unpaired frequency band that includes at least one uplink frequency region and at least one downlink frequency region in accordance with the FDD configuration (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 transmit an indication that a UE is to communicate using an FDD configuration on an unpaired frequency band that includes at least one uplink frequency region and at least one downlink frequency region in accordance with the FDD configuration, as described above.

As further shown in <FIG>, in some aspects, process <NUM> may include communicating with the UE using the FDD configuration (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 communicate with the UE using the FDD configuration, as described above.

In a seventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through sixth aspects, communicating using the FDD configuration further comprises communicating in a full duplex mode, wherein the base station receives on the at least one uplink frequency region while contemporaneously transmitting on the at least one downlink frequency region according to the FDD configuration.

In an eighth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through seventh aspects, communicating using the FDD configuration further comprises communicating in a half duplex mode using the FDD configuration, wherein the base station is capable of either receiving on the at least one uplink frequency region or transmitting on the at least one downlink frequency region at a given time.

In a ninth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eighth aspects, the base station provides a first cell and a second cell, wherein respective downlink communications or respective uplink communications of the first cell and the second cell are transmitted using a first set of antennas for the first cell and a second set of antennas for the second cell, wherein the first set of antennas and the second set of antennas are spatially separated from each other.

In a tenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through ninth aspects, the first cell is associated with a first operator and the second cell is associated with a second operator.

In an eleventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through tenth aspects, the at least one uplink frequency region and the at least one downlink frequency region at least partially overlap each other in time.

In a twelfth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eleventh aspects, the at least one uplink frequency region and the at least one downlink frequency region do not overlap each other in time.

In a thirteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twelfth aspects, a frequency gap is provided between an uplink frequency region of the at least one uplink frequency region and a downlink frequency region of the at least one downlink frequency region.

In a fourteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through thirteenth aspects, the base station is a first base station, wherein the at least one downlink frequency region is configured not to overlap with an uplink frequency region of a second base station.

In a fifteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fourteenth aspects, the uplink frequency region of the second base station is on a same carrier as the at least one uplink frequency region of the first base station.

In a sixteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through fifteenth aspects, a guard band is provided between the at least one downlink frequency region and the uplink frequency region of the second base station.

In a seventeenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through sixteenth aspects, the base station is a first base station, wherein the at least one downlink frequency region is configured not to be adjacent with an uplink frequency region of a second base station.

In an eighteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through seventeenth aspects, the first base station and the second base station are asynchronous with each other.

In a nineteenth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through eighteenth aspects, the base station is a first base station, wherein the method further comprises performing inter-base-station interference management with a second base station based at least in part on respective FDD configurations of the first base station and the second base station.

In a twentieth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through nineteenth aspects, the indication identifies respective partitions of the at least one uplink frequency region and the at least one downlink frequency region, and wherein the base station is to transmit dynamic scheduling information that schedules an uplink or downlink communication in accordance with the FDD configuration.

In a twenty first aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twentieth aspects, the indication indicates the FDD configuration.

In a twenty second aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twenty first aspects, the FDD configuration is associated with a slot format indication communicated to the UE.

In a twenty third aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twenty second aspects, the base station may transmit scheduling information that schedules an uplink or downlink communication in accordance with the FDD configuration.

In a twenty fourth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twenty third aspects, the FDD configuration is specified in a wireless communication standard.

In a twenty fifth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twenty fourth aspects, the indication comprises a system information block (SIB).

In a twenty sixth aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twenty fifth aspects, the base station is a first base station. In some aspects, the FDD configuration is based at least in part on a time division duplexing (TDD) configuration of a second base station.

In a twenty seventh aspect, alone or in combination with one or more of the first through twenty sixth aspects, the at least one downlink frequency region is not provided adjacent in frequency to an uplink slot of the second base station.

Claim 1:
A method (<NUM>) of wireless communication performed by a user equipment, UE, comprising:
receiving (<NUM>), from a base station, an indication that the UE is to communicate using a frequency division duplexing, FDD, configuration on an unpaired frequency band that includes at least one uplink frequency region and at least one downlink frequency region for communication on a single component carrier in accordance with the FDD configuration,
wherein the at least one downlink frequency region includes two downlink frequency regions and is non-contiguous within the single component carrier, and wherein the at least one uplink frequency region is contiguous and located within the two downlink frequency regions, and
wherein the FDD configuration is for communication on the single component carrier; and
communicating (<NUM>) with the base station using the FDD configuration.