Patent Description:
The present disclosure relates generally to communication systems, and more particularly, to methods and apparatus relating to transmitting uplink control information (UCI) in a short duration.

In some examples, a wireless multiple-access communication system may include a number of base stations, each simultaneously supporting communication for multiple communication devices, otherwise known as user equipment (UEs). In LTE or LTE-A network, a set of one or more base stations may define an eNodeB (eNB). In other examples (e.g., in a next generation or <NUM> network), a wireless multiple access communication system may include a number of distributed units (DUs) (e.g., edge units (EUs), edge nodes (ENs), radio heads (RHs), smart radio heads (SRHs), transmission reception points (TRPs), etc.) in communication with a number of central units (CUs) (e.g., central nodes (CNs), access node controllers (ANCs), etc.), where a set of one or more distributed units, in communication with a central unit, may define an access node (e.g., a new radio base station (NR BS), a new radio node-B (NR NB), a network node, <NUM> NB, eNB, etc.). A base station or DU may communicate with a set of UEs on downlink channels (e.g., for transmissions from a base station or to a UE) and uplink channels (e.g., for transmissions from a UE to a base station or distributed unit).

However, as the demand for mobile broadband access continues to increase, there exists a desire for further improvements in NR technology.

The 3GPP draft R1-<NUM>, "Performance evaluation on channel structure of short PUCCH for <NUM> or <NUM> bits UCI" teaches options for <NUM> or <NUM> bits UCI for one-symbol PUCCH to supplement various previous agreements regarding to structure of PUCCH in short duration and in particular proposes:.

<CIT> discloses UCI transmission in a common uplink burst, including ACK, SR, BSR or SRS.

<CIT> discloses joint transmission of pilots, ACK, SR and CSI request in the same symbol.

There is still a need for providing a more efficient way of transmitting UCI.

The present invention provides a solution according to the subject matter of the independent claims. Optional variants are described in the dependent claims.

In the following, non-limiting examples are presented to facilitate understanding the present invention.

Certain aspects provide a method for wireless communications by a transmitter, as defined in claim <NUM>.

Certain aspects provide an apparatus, as defined in claim <NUM>.

Certain aspects provide a computer program, as defined in claim <NUM>.

Aspects of the present disclosure relate to methods and apparatus relating to a channel design for transmitting uplink control information (UCI) in a short burst duration.

NR may support various wireless communication services, such as Enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) targeting wide bandwidth (e.g. <NUM> beyond), millimeter wave (mmW) targeting high carrier frequency (e.g. <NUM>), massive MTC (mMTC) targeting non-backward compatible MTC techniques, and/or mission critical targeting ultra-reliable low latency communications (URLLC).

In certain cases, uplink control information (UCI), such as acknowledgment (ACK), channel quality indicator (CQI), or scheduling request (SR) information, may be transmitted as defined in claim <NUM> in an uplink (UL) short burst (ULSB) of an uplink structure. Aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques for transmitting UCI that has different types of information, such as <NUM> or <NUM> bits of ACK and/or SR.

<FIG> illustrates an example wireless network <NUM>, such as a new radio (NR) or <NUM> network, in which aspects of the present disclosure may be performed. For example, UE <NUM> may perform operations <NUM> described in <FIG> as well as operations <NUM> described in <FIG>.

As illustrated in <FIG>, the wireless network <NUM> may include a number of BSs <NUM> and other network entities. A BS may be a station that communicates with UEs. Each BS <NUM> may provide communication coverage for a particular geographic area. In 3GPP, the term "cell" can refer to a coverage area of a Node B and/or a Node B subsystem serving this coverage area, depending on the context in which the term is used. In NR systems, the term "cell" and eNB, Node B, <NUM> NB, AP, NR BS, NR BS, or TRP may be interchangeable. In some examples, a cell may not necessarily be stationary, and the geographic area of the cell may move according to the location of a mobile base station. In some examples, the base stations may be interconnected to one another and/or to one or more other base stations or network nodes (not shown) in the wireless network <NUM> through various types of backhaul interfaces such as a direct physical connection, a virtual network, or the like using any suitable transport network.

A network controller <NUM> may be coupled to a set of BSs and provide coordination and control for these BSs. The BSs <NUM> may also communicate with one another, e.g., directly or indirectly via wireless or wireline backhaul.

A UE may also be referred to as a mobile station, a terminal, an access terminal, a subscriber unit, a station, a Customer Premises Equipment (CPE), a cellular phone, a smart phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a wireless communication device, a handheld device, a laptop computer, a cordless phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a tablet, a camera, a gaming device, a netbook, a smartbook, an ultrabook, a medical device or medical equipment, a biometric sensor/device, a wearable device such as a smart watch, smart clothing, smart glasses, a smart wrist band, smart jewelry (e.g., a smart ring, a smart bracelet, etc.), an entertainment device (e.g., a music device, a video device, a satellite radio, etc.), a vehicular component or sensor, a smart meter/sensor, industrial manufacturing equipment, a global positioning system device, or any other suitable device that is configured to communicate via a wireless or wired medium. Some UEs may be considered evolved or machine-type communication (MTC) devices or evolved MTC (eMTC) devices. Some UEs may be considered Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices.

For example, the spacing of the subcarriers may be <NUM> and the minimum resource allocation (called a 'resource block') may be <NUM> subcarriers (or <NUM>). Consequently, the nominal FFT size may be equal to <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> or <NUM> for system bandwidth of <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> or <NUM> megahertz (MHz), respectively. For example, a subband may cover <NUM> (i.e., <NUM> resource blocks), and there may be <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> or <NUM> subbands for system bandwidth of <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> or <NUM>, respectively.

NR may utilize OFDM with a CP on the uplink and downlink and include support for half-duplex operation using time division duplex (TDD). A single component carrier bandwidth of <NUM> may be supported. NR resource blocks may span <NUM> sub-carriers with a sub-carrier bandwidth of <NUM> over a <NUM> duration. Each radio frame may consist of <NUM> subframes with a length of <NUM>. Consequently, each subframe may have a length of <NUM>. Each subframe may indicate a link direction (i.e., DL or UL) for data transmission and the link direction for each subframe may be dynamically switched. Each subframe may include DL/UL data as well as DL/UL control data. UL and DL subframes for NR may be as described in more detail below with respect to <FIG>. Alternatively, NR may support a different air interface, other than an OFDM-based. NR networks may include entities such CUs and/or DUs.

As noted above, a RAN may include a CU and DUs. A NR BS (e.g., eNB, <NUM> Node B, Node B, transmission reception point (TRP), access point (AP)) may correspond to one or multiple BSs. NR cells can be configured as access cell (ACells) or data only cells (DCells). For example, the RAN (e.g., a central unit or distributed unit) can configure the cells. DCells may be cells used for carrier aggregation or dual connectivity, but not used for initial access, cell selection/reselection, or handover. In some cases DCells may not transmit synchronization signals-in some case cases DCells may transmit SS. NR BSs may transmit downlink signals to UEs indicating the cell type. Based on the cell type indication, the UE may communicate with the NR BS. For example, the UE may determine NR BSs to consider for cell selection, access, handover, and/or measurement based on the indicated cell type.

<FIG> illustrates example components of the BS <NUM> and UE <NUM> illustrated in <FIG>, which may be used to implement aspects of the present disclosure. As described above, the BS may include a TRP. One or more components of the BS <NUM> and UE <NUM> may be used to practice aspects of the present disclosure. For example, antennas <NUM>, Tx/Rx <NUM>, processors <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and/or controller/processor <NUM> of the UE <NUM> and/or antennas <NUM>, processors <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and/or controller/processor <NUM> of the BS <NUM> may be used to perform the operations described herein and illustrated with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>.

At the base station <NUM>, a transmit processor <NUM> may receive data from a data source <NUM> and control information from a controller/processor <NUM>. The control information may be for the Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH), Physical Control Format Indicator Channel (PCFICH), Physical Hybrid ARQ Indicator Channel (PHICH), Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), etc. The data may be for the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), etc. The processor <NUM> may process (e.g., encode and symbol map) the data and control information to obtain data symbols and control symbols, respectively. The processor <NUM> may also generate reference symbols, e.g., for the PSS, SSS, and cell-specific reference signal. For example, the TX MIMO processor <NUM> may perform certain aspects described herein for RS multiplexing.

For example, MIMO detector <NUM> may provide detected RS transmitted using techniques described herein. According to one or more cases, CoMP aspects can include providing the antennas, as well as some Tx/Rx functionalities, such that they reside in distributed units. For example, some Tx/Rx processing can be done in the central unit, while other processing can be done at the distributed units. For example, in accordance with one or more aspects as shown in the diagram, the BS mod/demod <NUM> may be in the distributed units.

The processor <NUM> and/or other processors and modules at the base station <NUM> may perform or direct, and/or other processes for the techniques described herein. The processor <NUM> and/or other processors and modules at the UE <NUM> may also perform or direct processes for the techniques described herein in relation to <FIG> and <FIG>. The memories <NUM> and <NUM> may store data and program codes for the BS <NUM> and the UE <NUM>, respectively.

The DL-centric subframe may also include a common UL portion <NUM>. The common UL portion <NUM> may sometimes be referred to as an UL burst, a common UL burst, and/or various other suitable terms. The common UL portion <NUM> may include feedback information corresponding to various other portions of the DL-centric subframe. For example, the common UL portion <NUM> may include feedback information corresponding to the control portion <NUM>. Non-limiting examples of feedback information may include an ACK signal, a NACK signal, a HARQ indicator, and/or various other suitable types of information. The common UL portion <NUM> may include additional or alternative information, such as information pertaining to random access channel (RACH) procedures, scheduling requests (SRs), and various other suitable types of information. As illustrated in <FIG>, the end of the DL data portion <NUM> may be separated in time from the beginning of the common UL portion <NUM>. One of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the foregoing is merely one example of a DL-centric subframe and alternative structures having similar features may exist without necessarily deviating from the aspects described herein.

<FIG> is a diagram <NUM> showing an example of an UL-centric subframe. The UL -centric subframe may include a control portion <NUM>. The control portion <NUM> may exist in the initial or beginning portion of the UL-centric subframe. The control portion <NUM> in <FIG> may be similar to the control portion described above with reference to <FIG>. The UL-centric subframe may also include an UL data portion <NUM>. The UL data portion <NUM> may sometimes be referred to as the payload of the UL-centric subframe. The UL data portion may refer to the communication resources utilized to communicate UL data from the subordinate entity (e.g., UE) to the scheduling entity (e.g., UE or BS). In some configurations, the control portion <NUM> may be a physical DL control channel (PDCCH).

As illustrated in <FIG>, the end of the control portion <NUM> may be separated in time from the beginning of the UL data portion <NUM>. The UL-centric subframe may also include a common UL portion <NUM>. The common UL portion <NUM> in <FIG> may be similar to the common UL portion <NUM> described above with reference to <FIG>. The common UL portion <NUM> may additionally or alternatively include information pertaining to channel quality indicator (CQI), sounding reference signals (SRSs), and various other suitable types of information. One of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the foregoing is merely one example of an UL-centric subframe and alternative structures having similar features may exist without necessarily deviating from the aspects described herein.

In mobile communication systems conforming to certain wireless communications standards, such as the Long Term Evolution (LTE) standards, certain techniques may be used to increase the reliability of data transmission. For example, after a base station performs an initial transmission operation for a specific data channel, a receiver receiving the transmission attempts to demodulate the data channel during which the receiver performs a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) for the data channel. If, as a result of the check, the initial transmission is successfully demodulated, the receiver may send an acknowledgement (ACK) to the base station to acknowledge the successful demodulation. If, however, the initial transmission is not successfully demodulated, the receiver may send a non-acknowledgement (NACK) to the base station. A channel that transmits ACK/NACK is called a response or an ACK channel.

In some cases, under the LTE standards, an ACK channel may comprise two slots (i.e. one subframe) or <NUM> symbols, which may be used to transmit an ACK that may comprise one or two bits of information. In some cases, when transmitting ACK channel information, a wireless device may perform frequency hopping. Frequency hopping refers to the practice of repeatedly switching frequencies within a frequency band in order to reduce interference and avoid interception.

Under other wireless communications standards, such as NR, the ACK channel information as well as other information may be transmitted through an uplink structure shown in <FIG> illustrates an example uplink structure with a transmission time interval (TTI) <NUM> that includes a region <NUM> for long uplink burst transmissions (shown as "UL Long Burst <NUM>"). UL Long Burst (ULLB) 806may transmit information such as ACK, channel quality indicator (CQI), or scheduling request (SR) information.

The duration of ULLB <NUM> may vary depending on how many symbols are used for the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) <NUM>, the gap <NUM>, and the short uplink burst (shown as UL Short Burst (ULSB) <NUM> ), as shown in <FIG>. For example, UL Long Burst <NUM> may comprise a number of slots (e.g., <NUM>), where the duration of each slot may vary from <NUM> to <NUM> symbols. <FIG> also shows a downlink structure having a TTI <NUM> that includes PDCCH, downlink physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), a gap, and an ULSB. Similar to the ULLB, the duration of the DL PDSCH may also depend on the number of symbols used by the PDCCH, the gap, and the ULSB.

As noted above, the ULSB region (e.g., ULSB <NUM>) may be <NUM> or <NUM> symbols and different approaches may be used to transmit UCI in this duration. For example, according to a "<NUM> symbol" UCI design, <NUM> or more bits of UCI may be sent using frequency division multiplexing (FDM). For <NUM> or <NUM> bits of ACK (which may indicate an acknowledgement or a lack of acknowledgement) and/or a <NUM> bit scheduling request (SR), a bit-sequence-based design may be used. For example, an SR may be sent with <NUM> bit-sequence, on-off keying, and may multiplex up to <NUM> users per RB. For a <NUM>-bit ACK, <NUM> bit-sequences may be used, and up to <NUM> users may be multiplexed per RB. For a <NUM>-bit ACK, <NUM> bit-sequences may be used and up to <NUM> users may be multiplexed per RB.

Generally, assigned ACK and SR RBs are not adjacent to each other. When both are required to be transmitted simultaneously, if each individual channel uses the same design, a few issues may result. One is an inter-modulation (IMD) issue caused by nonconsecutive RB transmissions. The other is an issue relating to the increased peak-to-average power ration (PAPR). Aspects of the present disclosure provide techniques for transmitting UCI that has different types of information, for example, <NUM> or <NUM> bits of ACK and SR. In certain aspects, the techniques described herein relate to combining ACK and SR bits into a joint payload and transmitting the joint payload in the same RB resulting in a low PAPR sequence and minimized IMD.

<FIG> illustrates example operations <NUM> for wireless communications by a transmitter, according to aspects of the present disclosure. Operations <NUM> may be performed, for example, by a UE (e.g., UE <NUM>).

Operations <NUM> begin, at <NUM>, by identifying resources, within an uplink short burst (ULSB) region within a transmission time interval (TTI), for transmitting at least a portion of uplink control information (UCI), the UCI including at least one of one scheduling request (SR) bit and one or more acknowledgment (ACK) bits for acknowledging or negatively acknowledging downlink transmissions. At <NUM>, the transmitter transmits the UCI using the identified resources.

<FIG> illustrates a wireless communications device 900A that may include various components (e.g., corresponding to means-plus-function components) configured to perform operations for the techniques disclosed herein, such as one or more of the operations illustrated in <FIG>. The communications device 900A includes a processing system <NUM> coupled to a transceiver <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> is configured to transmit and receive signals for the communications device 900A via an antenna <NUM>. The processing system <NUM> may be configured to perform processing functions for the communications device 900A, such as processing signals, etc..

The processing system <NUM> includes a processor <NUM> coupled to a computer-readable medium/memory <NUM> via a bus <NUM>. In certain aspects, the computer-readable medium/memory <NUM> is configured to store instructions that when executed by processor <NUM>, cause the processor <NUM> to perform one or more of the operations illustrated in <FIG>, or other operations for performing the various techniques discussed herein.

In certain aspects, the processing system <NUM> further includes an identifying component <NUM> for performing one or more of the operations illustrated at <NUM> in <FIG>. Additionally, the processing system <NUM> includes a transmitting component <NUM> for performing one or more of the operations illustrated at <NUM> in <FIG>.

The identifying component <NUM> and the transmitting component <NUM> may be coupled to the processor <NUM> via bus <NUM>. In certain aspects, the identifying component <NUM> and the transmitting component <NUM> may be hardware circuits. In certain aspects, the identifying component <NUM> and the transmitting component <NUM> may be software components that are executed and run on processor <NUM>.

As illustrated in <FIG>, in some aspects, SR and ACK bits may be sent in ULSB <NUM> using time division multiplexing. In some aspects, SR may be semi-statically configured (e.g., semi-static SR resource <NUM>) for transmission on a certain ULSB time resource (e.g., ULSB symbol <NUM><NUM>). Because SR is normally not delay sensitive (e.g., for enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB)), however, when SR needs to be sent together with ACK on the same short PUCCH symbol (e.g., ULSB symbol <NUM><NUM>), SR may be rescheduled from the semi-statically scheduled SR resource <NUM> on the ULSB symbol <NUM><NUM> to a different symbol with DCI. In other words, the need to send ACK with SR may override the semi-static SR resource <NUM> (e.g., the UE may skip transmitting SR on the original semi-static SR resource <NUM>).

In some aspects, the BS (e.g., <NUM>) may reconfigure the semi-static SR resource <NUM> if it envisions a constant transmission of SR and ACK on the same symbol (e.g., ULSB symbol <NUM><NUM>). For example, the BS may configure the UE for a semi-persistent self-contained transmission (constant ACK on short duration) with a <NUM> symbol short duration.

As shown in <FIG>, dynamic SR (e.g., SR that is scheduled dynamically) may use a resource (e.g., dynamic SR resource <NUM>) that is on a different symbol (e.g., ULSB symbol <NUM><NUM>) in the short duration (e.g., ULSB <NUM>) of a current slot (e.g., slot <NUM>, which may be half the duration of TTT <NUM> of <FIG>) or may be scheduled for a same or different symbol in the short duration of a later slot (e.g., a lot after slot <NUM>). In some cases, the dynamic SR may use a resource (e.g., resource <NUM>) in the long duration (e.g., ULLB <NUM>) in a current slot (e.g., slot <NUM>) and/or a long SR may be sent as a short SR with repetition. In certain aspects, SR may also have time domain spreading across multiple symbols and may only occupy a subset of the long duration (e.g., ULLB <NUM>) of a current slot (e.g., slot <NUM>) or a later slot.

In some cases, the resource selection may be based on a value of the SR bit (e.g., one RB for a negative SR (SR=<NUM>), another RB for a positive SR (SR=<NUM>), or one set of sequences for a negative SR, another set of sequences for a positive SR. For each RB, a UE may use a normal sequence-based ACK transmission (e.g., <NUM> bit-sequences for <NUM> ACK bit or <NUM> bit-sequences for <NUM> ACK bits).

As illustrated in <FIG>, according to one technique (labeled technique 2A), an RB <NUM> for SR =<NUM> may be the same as an original SR RB (e.g., the semi-static resource <NUM>). As illustrated in <FIG>, this technique may utilize <NUM> resources (e.g., <NUM> sequences * 2RBs) for <NUM> bits of ACK plus SR. In this manner, this technique may use more resources for SR-only transmissions (<NUM> or <NUM> bit-sequences). These bit sequences may each have different cyclic shifts. <FIG> illustrates circular representations of RBs 1102A and 1104A, each of which comprises a number of bit-sequences. RB 1102A comprises <NUM> bit-sequences 1102A<NUM>-1102A<NUM> for carrying a negative SR as well as ACK bits. RB 1104A comprises <NUM> bit-sequences for carrying a positive SR as well as ACK bits. For example, RB 1104A comprises bit-sequences for indicating a positive SR as well as two ACK bits. Each bit-sequence represents a different acknowledgement scenario.

For example, bit-sequence 1104A<NUM> may indicate a positive SR and two ACK bits corresponding to two non-acknowledgements (e.g., one per codeword). This bit sequence is shown different than bit sequences 1104A<NUM>-1104A<NUM>, because this sequence is the same as an SR-only bit sequence (e.g., when ACK/NACK is DTX). As such, with respect bit sequence 1104A<NUM>, the BS is not able to differentiate if the bit sequence is a SR+DTX or SR+ NACK/NACK bit sequence (e.g., the BS is not able to perform DTX detection). This is, for example, different from bit sequence 1104B<NUM>, where the bit sequence is in a different RB than the other bit sequences, enabling the BS to perform DTX detection.

Moving now to bit-sequence 1104A<NUM>, bit-sequence 1104A<NUM> may indicate a positive SR and two ACK bits corresponding to one acknowledgment relating to one codeword and a non-acknowledgement relating to the other codeword. Bit-sequence 1104A<NUM> may indicate a positive SR and two ACK bits corresponding to one non-acknowledgment relating to one codeword and an acknowledgement relating to the other codeword. Bit-sequence 1104A<NUM> may indicate a positive SR and two ACK bits corresponding to two one acknowledgments. As shown, in certain aspects, bit-sequences 1104A<NUM> and 1104A<NUM> may be allocated to a <NUM>-bit ACK or reserved when SR is transmitted alone. Also, in certain aspects, 1104A<NUM> may be reserved even when SR is transmitted alone.

As illustrated in <FIG>, according to another technique (labeled technique 2B), the RB (e.g., RB <NUM>) used for a positive SR (SR =<NUM>) may be different than an original SR RB <NUM> (e.g., the semi-static resource <NUM>). As illustrated in <FIG>, technique 2B may utilize <NUM> resources for <NUM> bits of ACK + SR (e.g., <NUM> bit-sequence in RB 1104B for SR+DTX (discontinuous transmission) and <NUM> bit-sequences * <NUM> for <NUM> bits of ACK+SR) or <NUM> resources for <NUM> bit of ACK + SR (e.g., <NUM> bit-sequence in RB 1104B for SR+DTX (discontinuous transmission) and <NUM> bit-sequences * <NUM> for <NUM> bit of ACK +SR). For an example with <NUM> bits of ACK + SR, as shown, RB 1102B comprises four bit-sequences 1102B<NUM>-1102B<NUM> and RB <NUM> comprises four bit-sequences <NUM><NUM>-<NUM><NUM>, while RB 1104B comprises <NUM> bit-sequence 1104B<NUM>. In certain aspects, one or more bit-sequences may be derived from the same base bit-sequence with different cyclic shifts. As used herein, DTX refers to a discontinuous transmission (e.g., when the UE did not detect anything and, therefore, has no ACK/NACK information to send). As illustrated in <FIG>, technique 2B may need only <NUM> resource for an SR-only transmission (e.g., <NUM> bit-sequence 1104B<NUM> in RB 1104B). Technique 2B may allow for detection of DTX when SR = <NUM> (e.g., if SR=<NUM> is detected in original SR resource (e.g., RB 1104B corresponding to semi-static SR resource <NUM> of <FIG>), this may be considered a DTX + SR=<NUM> indication). In both technique 2A and technique 2B, if no bit-sequence is detected in all resources, this may be considered as DTX+SR=<NUM>.

In certain aspects, the UE may identify one RB for transmitting a SR bit as well as one or more ACK bits (e.g., RBs <NUM> or 1102B in <FIG>) when there are ACK bits to transmit. The selection of this RB may depend on the value of the SR bit (e.g., where SR is positive or negative). However, when there are no ACK bits to transmits, the UE may identify a different RB for transmitting an SR bit without any ACK bits (e.g., RB 1104B).

In cases where there are ACK bits to transmits and an RB is selected for the transmission of the SR bit and the one or more ACK bits, the sequence-base design described above is used to transmit the SR bit and the one or more ACK bits. For example, as described above, when ACK is only <NUM> bit, two bit-sequences may be identified to convey the ACK bit and a positive SR and another two bit-sequences may be identified to convey the ACK bit and a negative SR. In another example, as described above, when ACK is <NUM> bits, four bit-sequences may be identified to convey the ACK bit and a positive SR (e.g., SR=<NUM> and ACK-NACK, ACK-ACK, NACK-ACK, and NACK-NACK) and another four bit-sequences may be identified to convey the ACK bit and a negative SR (e.g., SR=<NUM> and ACK-NACK, ACK-ACK, NACK-ACK, and NACK-NACK).

As described above, in some aspects, when there are no ACK bits (e.g., DTX: when the UE did not detect anything and, therefore, has no ACK/NACK information to send), the UE may identify an RB (e.g., RB 1104B) that uses only <NUM> sequence to transmit an SR without any ACK bits. In certain aspects, the SR transmitted on RB 1104B may be positive.

As illustrated in <FIG>, in some cases UCI (SR and ACK) may be sent via parallel transmissions with adjacent RBs (e.g., FDM'd in the same symbol). For example, adjacent RBs <NUM> and <NUM> may be used for the transmission of UCI in the same ULSB symbol. Using such a technique may lead to no intermodulation leakage, low (peak to average power ratio (PAPR), and relatively simple transmit and receive processing. This technique may, however, result in power splitting between SR and ACK bits, which may have the potential for performance loss compared to individual transmissions. Such a performance may be acceptable, for example, if the UE is not link budget limited.

In some aspects, however, this technique (FDM of SR and ACK in the same symbol as shown in <FIG>) may be power headroom (PHR) dependent. For example, if a latest PHR report is available at both the UE and the BS and the latest PHR indicates a power that is at least some threshold (e.g., X dB) below max power (e.g., X=6dB), the UE may use parallel transmission (technique shown in <FIG>). On the other hand, if the latest PHR indicates a power that is less than X dB from max power, the UE may use a bundled ACK. For example, in such aspects, the UE may combine 2bits of ACK into 1bit and transmit with SR on ACK resource (e.g., using <NUM> bit-sequences in <NUM> RB).

There are various options, if power splitting is performed for parallel transmission of SR and ACK. For example, if SR=<NUM>, all power could be allocated to ACK. On the other hand, if SR=<NUM>: Y% of power may be allocated to SR, while <NUM>-Y% of power may be allocated to a <NUM> bit ACK. Y may be chosen depending on a goal, for example, as follows:.

<FIG> illustrates another technique for transmitting UCI in the ULSB region. In certain aspects, this technique may be used for a <NUM>-bit ACK with resource selection, which may avoid the need to power split between the <NUM> bits of ACK. Using this technique, the <NUM>nd bit of ACK may be transmitted with <NUM> bit-sequences on one RB for a first value of the <NUM>st bit of ACK, (e.g., <NUM>st ACK=<NUM>), and on another RB for a second value of the <NUM>st bit of ACK (e.g., <NUM>st ACK=<NUM>). For example, RB 1402A comprises two bit-sequences for the first bit of ACK having a value of <NUM> and RB 1404A comprises two bit-sequences for the first bit of ACK having a value of <NUM>.

<FIG> illustrates another example, similar to <FIG>, where SR may be transmitted in a manner that allows for a DTX indication. For example, RB 1402B comprises four bit-sequences for a first bit of ACK having a value of <NUM>. The four bit-sequences of RB 1402B include two bit-sequences for a negative SR and two bit-sequences for a positive SR. RB 1404B comprises four bit-sequences for a first bit of ACK having a value of <NUM>. The four bit-sequences of 1404B include two bit-sequences for a negative SR and two bit-sequences for a positive SR. RB <NUM> includes a bit-sequence for SR + DTX.

In some cases, different UEs may have different ULLB durations. According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, the ULLB regions of different UEs may be multiplexed in the same RB with different long durations.

<FIG> illustrates example operations <NUM> for wireless communications by a transmitter, according to aspects of the present disclosure. Operations <NUM> may be performed, for example, by a UE. The UEs are multiplexed in the same RB with different duration. There is a common uplink region which is the overlapped part between the UEs. There is also an extra region from the UEs with longer duration. The extra region may be present on either side of the common region or both sides.

Operations <NUM> begin, at <NUM>, by identifying extended resources, adjacent in time to a common uplink region within a transmission time interval (TTI), dynamically available for uplink transmission by the UE. At <NUM>, the transmitter sends an uplink transmission using the extended resources.

<FIG> illustrates a wireless communications device 1500A that may include various components (e.g., corresponding to means-plus-function components) configured to perform operations for the techniques disclosed herein, such as one or more of the operations illustrated in <FIG>. The communications device 1500A includes a processing system <NUM> coupled to a transceiver <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> is configured to transmit and receive signals for the communications device 1500A via an antenna <NUM>. The processing system <NUM> may be configured to perform processing functions for the communications device 1500A, such as processing signals, etc..

In certain aspects, the processing system <NUM> further includes an identifying component <NUM> for performing one or more of the operations illustrated at <NUM> in <FIG>. Additionally, the processing system <NUM> includes a sending component <NUM> for performing one or more of the operations illustrated at <NUM> in <FIG>.

The identifying component <NUM> and the sending component <NUM> may be coupled to the processor <NUM> via bus <NUM>. In certain aspects, the identifying component <NUM> and the sending component <NUM> may be hardware circuits. In certain aspects, the identifying component <NUM> and the sending component <NUM> may be software components that are executed and run on processor <NUM>.

<FIG> illustrates an example of UE multiplexing for UEs with different ULLB durations. In some cases, different UEs may have different ULLB durations. For example, one UE may have a ULLB including only a common region 1602A. However, another UE may have a ULLB including two regions: a common region 1602B and an extra region <NUM>. Also, some UEs may support dynamic extension, while some may not support dynamic extension. In some cases, if time domain spreading is enabled, resources may be divided into code division multiplexing (CDM) groups into the two common and extra regions (e.g., common region 1602B and extra region <NUM>). Extra regions include extended resourced. For example, a common region <NUM> may be used to ensure orthogonality and a first CDM group in this region may start at the same symbol at which the common region <NUM> starts. For an extra region <NUM>, additional CDM groups may be defined (e.g., this may be only for UEs with extra region) and spreading may be disabled in this extra region <NUM>. In some cases, the hopping position <NUM> for frequency hopping in the extra region <NUM> may be calculated based on the common region <NUM> (e.g., the extra region may hop together with the adjacent common region).

According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, ACK resources may be determined via an implicit mapping, as illustrated in <FIG>. In NR, an ACK channel may have different payloads (e.g., <NUM> or <NUM> bits or <NUM> or more bits). In some cases, the number of ACK RBs may also range from <NUM> to multiple RBs. The resource region for <NUM> RB or more RBs may overlap or may be non-overlapping (as shown in <FIG>). For example, in symbol 1700A, region 1702A for a <NUM>-RB ACK is not overlapping with region 1704B for a <NUM>-RB ACK. In another example, in symbol 1700B, region 1702B for a <NUM>-RB ACK is overlapping with region 1704B for a <NUM>-RB ACK.

In some cases, implicit mapping from PDCCH to ACK resources may help save DCI overhead. According to one technique, a UE may perform implicit mapping for <NUM> or <NUM> bits of ACK in the long (e.g., ULLB) and short (e.g., ULSB) durations with a <NUM>-RB allocation only and perform explicit signaling for the rest of the ACK bits. In some cases, long ACK and short ACK may use different resource pools. For a long PUCCH, <NUM> or <NUM> ACK bits may use the same number of resources with different modulations, such that the mapping may not depend on payload size. For a short PUCCH, <NUM> or <NUM> ACK bits may use different number of resources (e.g., <NUM> bit may use <NUM> shifts, <NUM> bits may use <NUM> shifts), such that the mapping rule may depend on payload size. For a short PUCCH, the mapping may determine the first resource only, the rest of the resources (e.g., the second resource for <NUM> bit, and the other <NUM> resources for <NUM> bits) may be derived based on the first resource.

According to another technique, a UE may perform implicit mapping for <NUM> or <NUM> bits of ACK in the long and short durations with any number of RB allocations and perform explicit signaling for the rest of the ACK bits. The resource regions for different numbers of RBs may be overlapping or non-overlapping (e.g., <FIG>). In some aspects, for non-overlapping regions, the number of RBs may be derived based on a mapping function. For overlapping regions, the number of RBs may be explicitly signaled and the mapping function may depend on the number of RBs allocated.

In some aspects, a UE may perform implicit mapping for any number of ACKs in the long and short durations with a <NUM>-RB allocation only and perform explicit signaling for the rest of the ACK bits. In such aspects, the mapping function for performing the implicit mapping may be a function of payload size.

In some aspects, a UE may perform implicit mapping for any number of ACKs in the long and short durations with any number of RB allocations and perform explicit signaling for the rest of the ACK bits. In such aspects, the mapping function for performing the implicit mapping may be a function of a payload size and a number of RBs.

According to certain aspects of the present disclosure, there may be cell-specific and UE-specific long and short durations. In some aspects, cell specific short durations may be semi-statically configured (e.g., so all neighbor cells may configure the same short duration in the same slot to avoid mixed interference).

In some aspects, a cell specific long duration may be derived (e.g., as slot duration - semi-static cell-specific short duration - semi-static PDCCH duration - GAP). In such aspects, a cell specific PDCCH region may be semi-statically configured and the actual PDCCH region may be dynamically indicated with a control format indicator CFI.

In some aspects, a UE-specific short duration may be a subset of the cell specific short duration. For example, the cell specific short duration may be <NUM> symbols long while a UE specific short duration may be <NUM> symbol long. In some aspects, a UE specific short duration may not go beyond the cell-specific short duration in order to avoid mixed interference.

A UE-specific long duration may be a subset of the cell specific long duration. For example, a cell specific long duration may be <NUM> symbols, while a UE specific long duration may be <NUM> symbols.

In some cases, a UE-specific long duration extension may be available. According to one technique, there may be no dynamic extension, such that the UE specific long duration may not go beyond cell specific long duration. This may be controlled by the BS with a start/end symbol index. According to another technique, with dynamic extension, a UE specific long duration may go beyond cell specific long duration. This may be controlled by the BS with a start/end symbol index. The cell specific long duration may be used to determine the common region (e.g., common region <NUM> shown in <FIG>).

Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but is to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language claims, wherein reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean "one and only one" unless specifically so stated, but rather "one or more. §<NUM>, sixth paragraph, unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase "means for" or, in the case of a method claim, the element is recited using the phrase "step for.

For example, means for transmitting and/or means for receiving may comprise one or more of a transmit processor <NUM>, a TX MIMO processor <NUM>, a receive processor <NUM>, or antenna(s) <NUM> of the base station <NUM> and/or the transmit processor <NUM>, a TX MIMO processor <NUM>, a receive processor <NUM>, or antenna(s) <NUM> of the user equipment <NUM>. Additionally, means for generating, means for multiplexing, and/or means for applying may comprise one or more processors, such as the controller/processor <NUM> of the base station <NUM> and/or the controller/processor <NUM> of the user equipment <NUM>.

Claim 1:
A method for wireless communications by a transmitter, comprising:
identifying resources, within an uplink short burst, ULSB, region (<NUM>) of one or two symbols within a transmission time interval, TTI, (<NUM>), for transmitting at least a portion of uplink control information, UCI, the UCI including at least one of one scheduling request, SR, bit and one or more acknowledgment, ACK, bits for acknowledging or negatively acknowledging downlink transmissions, wherein the SR bit and the one or more ACK bits are frequency division multiplexed for transmitting in different resource blocks of a same symbol; and
transmitting the UCI using the identified resources.