Patent Description:
US patent application <CIT> teaches configuring preamble transmissions to maintain synchronization with other network entities operating in an unlicensed spectrum.

US patent application <CIT> teaches interference mitigation for wireless signals in unlicensed spectrum wherein a wireless device receives a combined signal including a first radio access technology (RAT) signal and a second RAT signal.

US patent application <CIT> teaches control flow enhancement for LTE-U operation including enhancements for reference signal configuration for unlicensed cells.

Multiple wireless communication devices (e.g., user equipment or base stations) may share a spectrum (e.g., unlicensed frequency band) for communication, thus potentially causing interference among them. A first wireless communication device may generate and transmit to a second wireless communication device an indication that facilitates interference management (e.g., interference estimation, suppression, and/or mitigation). For example, an interfering device may indicate its transmission characteristics to an interfered device to facilitate receiver-side interference suppression, or an interfered device may indicate its reception characteristics to an interfering device to facilitate transmitter-side interference mitigation.

The present disclosure provides a method of wireless communication by a first wireless communication apparatus according to claim <NUM>, a first wireless communication apparatus according to claim <NUM>, and a non-transitory computer-readable medium according to claim <NUM>. Specific embodiments are subject of the dependent claims.

Other aspects, features, and embodiments of the present disclosure will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art, upon reviewing the following description of specific, exemplary aspects of the present disclosure in conjunction with the accompanying figures. While features of the present disclosure may be discussed relative to certain aspects and figures below, all aspects of the present disclosure can include one or more of the advantageous features discussed herein. In other words, while one or more aspects may be discussed as having certain advantageous features, one or more of such features may also be used in accordance with the various aspects of the disclosure discussed herein. In similar fashion, while exemplary aspects may be discussed below as device, system, or method aspects it should be understood that such exemplary aspects can be implemented in various devices, systems, and methods.

Multiple wireless communication devices (e.g., user equipment or base stations) may share a spectrum (e.g., unlicensed frequency band) for communication, thus potentially causing interference among them. To manage interference and control channel access, various techniques based on listen-before-talk (LBT) are often adopted to help multiple devices (some of which may belong to different operators or use different radio access technologies) coexist in the shared spectrum. However, LBT do not always work well. For example, some transmitter-based LBT methods (e.g., energy-based clear channel assessment in LTE Licensed Assisted Access) may not silence some interferers, for example, because one operator's base stations may not be able to detect another operator's base stations and hence may interfere (or jam) UEs from the later operator. On the other hand, some receiver-based LBT methods (e.g., Request to Send (RTS) / Clear to Send (CTS) in Wi-Fi) may silence more nodes than necessary, thus limiting overall system capacity.

A new approach to interference management for shared spectrum, potentially augmenting LBT, is thus desired to further enhance spectrum utilization and user experience. As described in detail herein, interfering and/or interfered devices signal each other to coordinate interference management. In particular, a first wireless communication device generates and transmits to a second wireless communication device an indication that facilitates interference management (e.g., interference estimation, suppression, and/or mitigation). For example, an interfering device may indicate its transmission characteristics to an interfered device to facilitate receiver-side interference suppression, or an interfered device may indicate its reception characteristics to an interfering device to facilitate transmitter-side interference mitigation.

Accordingly, in one or more example aspects, the functions described may be implemented in hardware, software, or any combination thereof.

Various aspects will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. References made to particular examples and implementations are for illustrative purposes, and are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure or the claims.

The techniques described herein may be used for one or more of various wireless communication networks such as code division multiple access (CDMA) networks, time division multiple access (TDMA) networks, frequency division multiple access (FDMA) networks, orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA) networks, single carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) networks, or other types of networks. A CDMA network may implement a radio access technology (RAT) such as universal terrestrial radio access (UTRA), CDMA2000, and/or the like. UTRA may include wideband CDMA (WCDMA) and/or other variants of CDMA. CDMA2000 may include Interim Standard (IS)-<NUM>, IS-<NUM> and IS-<NUM> standards. IS-<NUM> may also be referred to as 1x radio transmission technology (1xRTT), CDMA2000 1X, and/or the like. A TDMA network may implement a RAT such as global system for mobile communications (GSM), enhanced data rates for GSM evolution (EDGE), or GSM/EDGE radio access network (GERAN). An OFDMA network may implement a RAT such as evolved UTRA (E-UTRA), ultra mobile broadband (UMB), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) <NUM> (Wi-Fi), IEEE <NUM> (WiMAX), IEEE <NUM>, Flash-OFDM, and/or the like. UTRA and E-UTRA may be part of the universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS). 3GPP long-term evolution (LTE) and LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) are example releases of UMTS that use E-UTRA, which employs OFDMA on the downlink and SC-FDMA on the uplink. The techniques described herein may be used for the wireless networks and RATs mentioned above as well as other wireless networks and RATs.

As used herein, the terms "user equipment" and "mobile communication device" are used interchangeably and refer to any one or all of cellular telephones, smart phones, personal or mobile multi-media players, personal data assistants, laptop computers, personal computers, tablet computers, smart books, palm-top computers, wireless electronic mail receivers, multimedia Internet-enabled cellular telephones, wireless gaming controllers, and similar personal electronic devices that include a programmable processor, memory, and circuitry for connecting to at least two mobile communication networks. The various aspects may be useful in UEs, such as smart phones, and so such devices are referred to in the descriptions of various aspects.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating an example of a first wireless communication system <NUM> in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The wireless communication system (also referred to as a wireless wide area network (WWAN)) includes a wireless communication apparatuses, such as base stations <NUM> and UEs <NUM>, and includes an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) network <NUM>.

The base stations <NUM> (collectively referred to as an access network <NUM>, such as an Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN)) interface with the EPC network <NUM> through backhaul links <NUM> (e.g., S1 interface).

A network that includes both small cell and macro cells may be known as a heterogeneous network. The base stations <NUM> / UEs <NUM> may use spectrum up to YMHz (e.g., <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>) bandwidth, for example, per carrier allocated in a carrier aggregation of up to a total of Yx MHz (x component carriers), used for transmission in each direction. Allocation of carriers may be asymmetric with respect to DL and UL (e.g., more or less carriers may be allocated for DL than for UL).

In aspects, the wireless communication system may further include a Wi-Fi access point (AP) <NUM> in communication with Wi-Fi stations (STAs) <NUM> via communication links <NUM> in a <NUM> unlicensed frequency spectrum.

A base station (e.g., a gNodeB (gNB)) <NUM>, for example, may operate in millimeter wave (mmW) frequencies and/or near mmW frequencies in communication with the UE <NUM>.

The EPC network <NUM> may include a Mobility Management Entity (MME) <NUM>, other MMEs <NUM>, a Serving Gateway <NUM>, a Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS) Gateway <NUM>, a Broadcast Multicast Service Center (BM-SC) <NUM>, and a Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway <NUM>. The IP Services <NUM> may include the Internet, an intranet, an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), a PS Streaming Service (PSS), and/or other IP services.

An access point ("AP") may comprise, be implemented as, or known as a NodeB, a Radio Network Controller ("RNC"), an eNodeB (eNB), a Base Station Controller ("BSC"), a Base Transceiver Station ("BTS"), a Base Station ("BS"), a Transceiver Function ("TF"), a Radio Router, a Radio Transceiver, a Basic Service Set ("BSS"), an Extended Service Set ("ESS"), a Radio Base Station ("RBS"), a Node B (NB), a gNB, a <NUM> NB, a NR BS, a Transmit Receive Point (TRP), wireless communication apparatus, or some other terminology.

An access terminal ("AT") may comprise, be implemented as, or be known as an access terminal, a subscriber station, a subscriber unit, a mobile station, a remote station, a remote terminal, a user terminal, a user agent, a user device, user equipment (UE), a user station, a wireless node, wireless communication apparatus, or some other terminology. In some aspects, an access terminal may comprise a cellular telephone, a smart phone, a cordless telephone, a Session Initiation Protocol ("SIP") phone, a wireless local loop ("WLL") station, a personal digital assistant ("PDA"), a tablet, a netbook, a smartbook, an ultrabook, a handheld device having wireless connection capability, a Station ("STA"), or some other suitable processing device connected to a wireless modem. Accordingly, one or more aspects taught herein may be incorporated into a phone (e.g., a cellular phone, a smart phone), a computer (e.g., a desktop), a portable communication device, a portable computing device (e.g., a laptop, a personal data assistant, a tablet, a netbook, a smartbook, an ultrabook), wearable device (e.g., smart watch, smart glasses, smart bracelet, smart wristband, smart ring, smart clothing, and/or the like), medical devices or equipment, biometric sensors/devices, an entertainment device (e.g., music device, video device, satellite radio, gaming device, and/or the like), a vehicular component or sensor, smart meters/sensors, industrial manufacturing equipment, a global positioning system device, or any other suitable device that is configured to communicate via a wireless or wired medium. In some aspects, the node is a wireless node. A wireless node may provide, for example, connectivity for or to a network (e.g., a wide area network such as the Internet or a cellular network) via a wired or wireless communication link.

In aspects, NR UEs may be considered Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) UEs employing service targeting wide bandwidth (e.g., <NUM> megahertz (MHz) and beyond). In aspects, such service may include, for example, voice, messaging and/or video streaming services similar to LTE communication. Additionally or alternatively, NR UEs may be considered millimeter wave (mmW) UEs targeting high carrier frequency (e.g., <NUM> gigahertz (GHz)) communication. Additionally or alternatively, NR UEs may be considered ultra reliable and low latency communications (URLLC) UEs using mission critical URLLC service. In aspects, such service may include, for example, factory automation, robotics, remote surgery, and/or autonomous driving. Additionally or alternatively, NR UEs may be considered machine-type communication (MTC) UEs, which may include remote devices that may communicate with a base station, another remote device, or some other entity. Machine type communications (MTC) may refer to communication involving at least one remote device on at least one end of the communication and may include forms of data communication which involve one or more entities that do not necessarily need human interaction. MTC UEs may include UEs that are capable of MTC communications with MTC servers and/or other MTC devices through Public Land Mobile Networks (PLMN), for example. Examples of MTC devices include sensors, meters, location tags, monitors, drones, robots/robotic devices, and/or the like. MTC UEs, as well as other types of UEs, may be implemented as NB-IoT (narrowband internet of things) devices. Additionally or alternatively, NR UEs may be considered massive MTC (mMTC) UEs targeting non-backward compatible MTC techniques.

In some aspects, wireless communication apparatuses may support URLLC services (e.g., over TDD). URLLC services may include transmission and reception of URLLC data. Such transmissions and receptions may often have low latency and high reliability requirements. Unfortunately, the nominal structure of an enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) TDD subframe has several fundamental limitations that restrict the reliability and latency achievements that can be obtained. For example, although a nominal TDD subframe may be self-contained, in that it may contain a downlink (DL) interval and an uplink (UL) interval, in the nominal TDD subframe structure only one direction in downlink or uplink may be active at any time. This feature creates a self-blocking characteristic in the nominal TDD subframe structure. Thus, during uplink intervals, no downlink transmissions are possible. Similarly, during downlink intervals, no uplink transmissions are possible.

In aspects, the first wireless communication system <NUM> may be associated with a first mobile operator network <NUM>. In aspects, one or more portions of the first wireless communication system <NUM> may operate over a shared channel or a shared communication medium, which may include a licensed spectrum, a shared spectrum, and/or an unlicensed spectrum, and may support dynamic medium sharing. For example, the frequency spectrum used by one or more wireless communication apparatuses and/or any other component in the first wireless communication system <NUM> may be shared with other wireless communication apparatuses, for example, which are not associated with the first wireless communication system <NUM>. In some cases, first wireless communications system <NUM> may utilize both licensed and unlicensed radio frequency spectrum bands. For example, the first wireless communications system <NUM> may employ LTE License Assisted Access (LTE-LAA) or LTE Unlicensed (LTE U) radio access technology or NR technology in an unlicensed band such as the <NUM> Industrial, Scientific, and Medical (ISM) band. When operating in such licensed or unlicensed radio frequency spectrum bands, wireless communication apparatuses, such as base stations <NUM>, <NUM>', <NUM> and UEs <NUM>, <NUM>' may employ listen-before-talk (LBT) procedures to ensure the channel is clear before transmitting data. In some cases, operations in unlicensed bands may be based on a CA configuration in conjunction with CCs operating in a licensed band. Operations in unlicensed spectrum may include downlink transmissions, uplink transmissions, or both. Duplexing in unlicensed spectrum may be based on frequency division duplexing (FDD), time division duplexing (TDD) or a combination of both.

Existing spectrum sharing is inefficient though. For example, LBT techniques do not always work well. Transmitter-based LBT procedures, like energy sensing used during LTE LAA operation may not silence appropriate interferers. For example, a first base station, like a gNB, associated with a first operator network may not be able to detect or sense a second base station, like a gNB, associated with a second operator network (e.g., such base stations may not be proximate each other in the communication system topology). However, the second base station may interfere or jam one or more UEs associated with the first base station, and vice versa. Additionally or alternatively, receiver-based LBT procedures, like a WiFi RTS/CTS procedure or protocol, may silence more wireless communication apparatuses than necessary. For example, for a communication, a wireless communication apparatus, like a UE, may receive an RTS signal and broadcast a CTS signal in response thereto. Another wireless communications apparatus, like a gNB, may receive the CTS and forgo a transmission even if such transmission would not have interfered (e.g., due to a direction of the transmission or due to a level of interference the transmission would have contributed to the communication) with the communication. Standardization of such a procedure that may not be suitable and/or optimized for all scenarios.

Improved interference management for spectrum sharing is desired. For example, interference management for spectrum sharing that is suitable and/or optimized across network deployments, that does not require extensive standardization, and/or that provides receiver differentiation (e.g., UE differentiation) are desired. As described below, the present disclosure provides a solution to these, and other problems, by providing methods and apparatus for interference management for spectrum sharing (e.g., methods and apparatus for managing interference to a UE associated with a first operator network caused by an interfering entity associated with a second operator network in a shared spectrum environment). For example, the present methods and apparatuses provide receiver based interference management for LTE U, LTE LAA, NR U and/or NR LAA.

<FIG> illustrates an example of a second wireless communication system <NUM> in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The second wireless communication system <NUM> may be present where wireless communication apparatuses (e.g., UEs and/or base stations) operate in networks of different mobile network operators (MNOs) and/or different frequency spectrums. The second wireless communication system <NUM> may be associated with and/or include a plurality of mobile telephony or operator networks in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. For example, the communication system <NUM> may be associated with and/or include a first operator network 194a and may be associated with and/or include a second operator network 194b. In aspects, the first operator network 194a and/or the second operator network 194b may be the same as or similar to the first operator network <NUM> of <FIG>, although the first operator network 194a and/or the second operator network 194b may have a different configuration. In aspects, the first operator network 194a and the second operator network 194b may be asynchronous. For example, a communication timing of one of the operator networks may be offset from a communication timing of the other operator networks. Each such mobile or operator network 194a, 194b may include one or more cellular base stations <NUM>. A first UE 104a may communicate with a first operator network 194a through the cellular connection <NUM> to a first base station 102a. A second UE 104b may similarly communicate with the second operator network 194b through the cellular connection <NUM> to a second base station 102b. The second UE 104b may communicate with the second operator network 194b through the cellular connection <NUM> to the second base station 102b. The cellular connections <NUM> and <NUM> may be made through two-way wireless communication links, such as <NUM>, <NUM>, CDMA, TDMA, WCDMA, GSM, and/or other mobile telephony communication technologies.

In aspects, the first operator network 194a and the second operator network 194b share licensed or unlicensed frequency spectrums. For example, one or more wireless communication apparatuses (e.g., UEs <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a and/or BSs <NUM>, <NUM>', <NUM>) associated with the first operator network 194a and one or more wireless communication apparatuses (e.g., UEs <NUM>, <NUM>', and/or BSs <NUM>, 102a, <NUM>) associated with the second operator network 194b share a frequency spectrum. In aspects, to reduce and/or avoid problems associated with LBT procedures, a wireless communication apparatus 102a, 104a associated with the first operator network 194a communicates with an interfering wireless communication apparatus 104b, 102b associated with the second operator network 194b to facilitate interference mitigation in the shared spectrum. For example, wireless communication apparatus 102a, 104a associated with the first operator network 194a may signal an indication to an interfering wireless communication apparatus 104b, 102b associated with the second operator network 194b to facilitate interference management in the shared spectrum. Additionally or alternatively, an interfering wireless communication apparatus 104b, 102b associated with the second operator network 194b may signal an indication to a wireless communication apparatus 102a, 104a (e.g., with which the interfering wireless communication apparatus 104b, 102b interferes) associated with the first operator network 194a to facilitate interference mitigation in the shared spectrum. In aspects, one or more of the wireless communication apparatuses 102a, 104a, 102b, 104b may perform the method <NUM> to facilitate interference mitigation in the shared spectrum as described below with reference to <FIG>, the method <NUM> to facilitate interference mitigation in the shared spectrum as described below with reference to <FIG> below, the method <NUM> to facilitate interference mitigation in the shared spectrum as described below with reference to <FIG> below, and/or as otherwise described herein.

<FIG> is a diagram <NUM> illustrating an example frame structure of one or more downlink (DL) frames in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. <FIG> is a diagram <NUM> illustrating an example of channels within the frame structure of a DL frame in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. <FIG> is a diagram <NUM> illustrating an example frame structure of one or more uplink (UL) frames in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. <FIG> is a diagram <NUM> illustrating an example of channels within the frame structure of a UL frame in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. A frame (<NUM>) may be divided into <NUM> equally sized subframes. Each subframe may include two consecutive time slots. A resource grid may be used to represent the two time slots, each time slot including one or more time concurrent resource blocks (RBs) (also referred to as physical RBs (PRBs)). For a normal cyclic prefix, an RB contains <NUM> consecutive subcarriers (e.g., for <NUM> subcarrier spacing) in the frequency domain and <NUM> consecutive symbols (for DL, OFDM symbols; for UL, SC-FDMA symbols) in the time domain, for a total of <NUM> REs. For an extended cyclic prefix, an RB contains <NUM> consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and <NUM> consecutive symbols in the time domain, for a total of <NUM> REs.

As illustrated in <FIG>, some of the REs carry DL reference (pilot) signals (DL-RS) for channel estimation at the UE. The DL-RS may include cell-specific reference signals (CRS) (e.g., also sometimes called common RS), UE-specific reference signals (UE-RS) like demodulation reference signals (DM-RSs), and channel state information reference signals (CSI-RS). <FIG> illustrates CRS for antenna ports <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and <NUM> (indicated as R<NUM>, R<NUM>, R<NUM>, and R<NUM>, respectively), UE-RS for antenna port <NUM> (indicated as R<NUM>), and CSI-RS for antenna port <NUM> (indicated as R). <FIG> illustrates an example of various channels within a DL subframe of a frame. The physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH) is within symbol <NUM> of slot <NUM>, and carries a control format indicator (CFI) that indicates whether the physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) occupies <NUM>, <NUM>, or <NUM> symbols (<FIG> illustrates a PDCCH that occupies <NUM> symbols). The PDCCH carries downlink control information (DCI) within one or more control channel elements (CCEs), each CCE including nine RE groups (REGs), each REG including four consecutive REs in an OFDM symbol. A UE may be configured with a UE-specific enhanced PDCCH (ePDCCH) that also carries DCI. The ePDCCH may have <NUM>, <NUM>, or <NUM> RB pairs (<FIG> shows two RB pairs, each subset including one RB pair). The physical hybrid automatic repeat request (ARQ) (HARQ) indicator channel (PHICH) is also within symbol <NUM> of slot <NUM> and carries the HARQ indicator (HI) that indicates HARQ acknowledgement (ACK) / negative ACK (NACK) feedback based on the physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). The primary synchronization channel (PSCH) may be within symbol <NUM> of slot <NUM> within subframes <NUM> and <NUM> of a frame. The PSCH carries a primary synchronization signal (PSS) that is used by a UE to determine subframe/symbol timing and a physical layer identity. The secondary synchronization channel (SSCH) may be within symbol <NUM> of slot <NUM> within subframes <NUM> and <NUM> of a frame. The SSCH carries a secondary synchronization signal (SSS) that is used by a UE to determine a physical layer cell identity group number and radio frame timing. Based on the PCI, the UE can determine the locations of the aforementioned DL-RS. The physical broadcast channel (PBCH), which carries a master information block (MIB), may be logically grouped with the PSCH and SSCH to form a synchronization signal (SS) block. The MIB provides a number of RBs in the DL system bandwidth, a PHICH configuration, and a system frame number (SFN).

As illustrated in <FIG>, some of the REs carry demodulation reference signals (DM-RS) for channel estimation at the base station. The UE may additionally transmit sounding reference signals (SRS) in the last symbol of a subframe. <FIG> illustrates an example of various channels within an UL subframe of a frame. A physical random access channel (PRACH) may be within one or more subframes within a frame based on the PRACH configuration. The PRACH may include six consecutive RB pairs within a subframe. The PRACH allows the UE to perform initial system access and achieve UL synchronization. A physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) may be located on edges of the UL system bandwidth. In aspects, the DL frame structure, DL channels within the DL frame structure, the UL frame structure, and/or UL channels within the UL frame structure described with reference to <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>, respectively, may be employed in the first operator network 194a and/or the second operator network 194b.

<FIG> is a block diagram of a base station <NUM> in communication with a UE <NUM> in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. In the DL, IP packets from the EPC network <NUM> may be provided to a controller/processor <NUM>.

One or more components of UE <NUM> may be configured to perform methods of interference management for spectrum sharing, as described in more detail elsewhere herein. For example, the controller/processor <NUM>, channel estimator <NUM>, and/or other processors and modules of UE <NUM> may perform or direct operations of, for example, method <NUM> of <FIG>, method <NUM> of <FIG>, method <NUM> of <FIG>, and/or other methods as described herein. One or more components of base station <NUM> may be configured to perform methods of interference management for spectrum sharing, as described in more detail elsewhere herein. For example, the controller/processor <NUM>, channel estimator <NUM>, and/or other processors and modules of base station <NUM> may perform or direct operations of, for example, method <NUM> of <FIG>, method <NUM> of <FIG>, method <NUM> of <FIG>, and/or other methods as described herein. In some aspects, one or more of the components shown in <FIG> may be employed to perform example method <NUM> of <FIG>, method <NUM> of <FIG>, method <NUM> of <FIG>, and/or other methods as described herein.

To simplify the discussion, the exemplary methods and apparatus may be discussed within the context of LTE and/or NR. However, one of ordinary skill in the art would understand that the exemplary methods and apparatuses are applicable more generally to a variety of other wireless communication systems.

<FIG> is a diagram illustrating an example of an indication <NUM> that facilitates interference management by a wireless communication apparatus in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The indication <NUM> may provide data that assists in channel estimation. Such data-assisted channel estimation is more accurate than blind channel estimation, which is prone to error, and therefore, results in improved interference management. In aspects, the indication <NUM> may be communicated by a wireless communication apparatus (e.g., to another wireless communication apparatus or from another wireless communication apparatus). For example, the indication <NUM> may be communicated by a first wireless communication apparatus (e.g., to a second wireless communication apparatus interfering with the first wireless communication apparatus). In such examples, the first wireless communication apparatus may be a UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM> and the second wireless communication apparatus may be a base station102, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM>. Alternatively, in such examples, the first wireless communication apparatus may be a base station and the second wireless communication apparatus may be a UE104, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>. The first wireless communication apparatus is associated with a first operator network and the second wireless communication apparatus is associated with a second operator network.

In aspects, the indication <NUM> includes a message portion <NUM> that facilitates mitigation of interference by the first wireless communication apparatus caused by the second wireless communication apparatus. The indication <NUM> may also include a preamble portion <NUM>. The preamble portion may include a preamble or sequence that provides timing synchronization. In aspects, the preamble may be operator-, cell-, or cell identifier-specific. For example, indication may be configured such that the message portion <NUM> follows the preamble portion <NUM> after a period of time (e.g., a predetermined period of time). A wireless communication apparatus may detect the preamble while in a low-power mode or state. In this manner, the preamble indicates to the wireless communication apparatus when to decode the message portion <NUM>. Consequently, the wireless communication apparatus does not have to constantly attempt to decode signals. Thus, when a wireless communication device detects the preamble, such wireless communication device becomes aware of a timing associated with the message portion <NUM> of the indication <NUM> and may process (e.g., decode) such message (Msg) portion <NUM>. The timing synchronization provided by the preamble portion <NUM> may be useful for unlicensed shared spectrum operation because such information is not exchanged via backhaul communication. In this manner, a first wireless communication apparatus associated with a first operator network may communicate (e.g., transmit) the indication <NUM> to a second wireless communication apparatus associated with a second operator network, even if the second operator network is asynchronous from the first operator network, has a different frame timing than the first operator network, and/or has a different frame structure than the first operator network. In this manner, the preamble portion <NUM> may provide the wireless communication apparatus receiving the indication <NUM> with timing synchronization (e.g., for the indication). In aspects, the preamble portion <NUM> may also facilitate or provide the wireless communication apparatus receiving the indication <NUM> with a time synchronization, such that communications from the first and second wireless communication apparatuses are aligned to a same boundary (e.g., an OFDM symbol boundary). In aspects, the indication <NUM> may be included in a message <NUM> that includes a data portion <NUM>. The data portion <NUM> may include data traffic, for example, associated with a communication by the wireless communication apparatus with another wireless communication apparatus in the same operator network. For example the other wireless communication apparatus in the same operator network may be a wireless communication apparatus serving, or alternatively served by, the wireless communication apparatus transmitting the data portion <NUM>.

In aspects, the first wireless communication apparatus may transmit the indication <NUM> to the second wireless communication apparatus interfering with the first wireless communication apparatus. In such aspects, the message portion <NUM> may include an indication of interference mitigation capability. For example, the message portion <NUM> may signal or indicate an MMSE receiver interference suppression capability of the first wireless communication apparatus, a number of interfering streams the MMSE receiver of the first wireless communication apparatus may suppress, a number of antennas the first wireless communication apparatus has, a rank limitation for the second wireless communication apparatus, and/or a rank to be employed by the second wireless communication apparatus for transmission(s).

Additionally or alternatively, the message portion includes channel occupancy time (COT) associated with the first wireless communication apparatus. The COT may indicate a period of time that a channel is employed for a communication with the first wireless communication apparatus. Such channel may employ one or more portions of a frequency spectrum shared by the first and second wireless communication apparatuses. The second wireless communication apparatus may adjust communication (e.g., with other wireless communication apparatus, for example, in the second operator network) based on the interference mitigation capability and/or COT to reduce interference to the first wireless communication apparatus.

Thus, in aspects, the first wireless communication apparatus may transmit a waveform and/or message that indicates and/or signals an MMSE suppression capability of the first wireless communication apparatus, and potentially a COT (e.g., associated with the first wireless communication apparatus). Thus, in aspects, each receiver can transmit the signal that aids an unintended interfering transmitter to reduce or suppress interference. For example, after receiving the indication <NUM>, the second wireless communication apparatus may adjust a rank, time, frequency, code and/or the like for one or more of its transmissions to reduce interference to the first wireless communication apparatus.

Additionally or alternatively, in aspects, the second wireless communication apparatus, interfering with the first wireless communication apparatus, may transmit the indication <NUM> to the first wireless communication apparatus. In such aspects, the message portion <NUM> may include an indication of a user-specific reference signal (UE-RS) (e.g., a demodulation reference signal (DMRS)) port configuration. Additionally or alternatively, the message portion <NUM> includes channel occupancy time (COT) associated with the second wireless communication apparatus. The COT may indicate a period of time that a channel is employed for a communication by the second wireless communication apparatus (e.g., with another wireless communication apparatus, for example, in the second operator network). Such channel may employ one or more portions of a frequency spectrum shared by the first and second wireless communication apparatuses. Thus, in aspects, the second wireless communication apparatus, interfering with a first wireless communication apparatus, may transmit a waveform and/or message, such as the indication <NUM>, that facilitates accurate estimation of interfering channel by the first wireless communication apparatus (e.g., as opposed to treating noise from desired channel estimation as interference) resulting in improved receiver MMSE suppression capability by the first wireless communication apparatus. For example, the user-specific reference signal port configuration and the COT may indicate time and frequency resources used by the second wireless communication apparatus for the interfering transmission. The first wireless communication apparatus may employ techniques such as beam forming to detect and perform channel estimation of the interfering channel. More specifically, the user-specific reference signal port configuration indicates resource elements employed to send the UR-RSs, like DM-RSs. Based on this information, the first wireless communication apparatus may estimate the interfering channel (e.g., using receive beam forming). The first wireless communication apparatus may perform interference mitigation based on the interfering channel estimation thereby improving interference mitigation accuracy.

Additionally or alternatively, in aspects, the message portion <NUM> may indicate a modulation order of a communication (e.g., the interfering transmission) associated with the second wireless communication apparatuses. Thus, in aspects, the second wireless communication apparatus, interfering with a first wireless communication apparatus, may transmit a waveform and/or message, such as the indication <NUM>, that facilitates estimating or decoding of symbols of an interfering channel (e.g., more efficiently than blind decoding) by the first wireless communication apparatus resulting in improved receiver interference suppression techniques, such as data interference cancellation, as well.

The present methods and apparatus provide improved and/or optimized receiver based interference suppression. For example, the present methods and apparatus provide for signaling from a first wireless communication apparatus serving as a transmitter that improves receiver MMSE suppression capability of a receiving wireless communication apparatus. One or more interferers may transmit such signal that aids a wireless communication apparatus receiving an unintended interfering signal from another wireless communication apparatus to suppress the interference (e.g., with receiver MMSE suppression). In this manner, the transmitter may provide signaling that facilitates MMSE receiver of the other wireless communication apparatus to suppress strong interference.

In aspects, one or more nodes within and across operators may be synchronized. For example, the interfering wireless communication apparatus may be time synchronization with the wireless communication apparatus with which it interferes. In such aspects, interference, from an interfering wireless communication apparatus, to a wireless communication apparatus may be OFDM symbol synchronized with transmission of a desired signal for wireless communication apparatus. Such time synchronization may provide improved or better results for MMSE suppression and/or other forms of suppression by the wireless communication apparatus experiencing interference. For example, such wireless communication apparatus may not have to deal with timing offset. Furthermore, such time synchronization may allow for more interference management choices or procedures than those allowed without the time synchronization. In aspects, time synchronization may include having an OFDM symbol boundary of an interfering signal aligned with an OFDM symbol boundary of the transmission of the desired signal.

<FIG> is a flow diagram of a method to facilitate interference mitigation in a shared spectrum not claimed in the appended claims. Steps of the method <NUM> can be executed by a computing device (e.g., a processor, processing circuit, and/or other suitable component) of a wireless communication apparatus, such as the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM> and/or base station <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM>. As illustrated, the method <NUM> of wireless communication includes a number of enumerated steps, but aspects of the method <NUM> may include additional steps before, after, and in between the enumerated steps. In some aspects, one or more of the enumerated steps may be omitted or performed in a different order.

At step <NUM>, the method <NUM> includes communicating, by the wireless communication apparatus(e.g., to another wireless communication apparatus or from another wireless communication apparatus), an indication that facilitates interference management by the wireless communication apparatus. At step <NUM>, the method <NUM> includes receiving a combined signal using a spectrum shared among at least the wireless communication apparatus and an interfering entity. At step <NUM>, the method <NUM> includes performing interference management on the received combined signal in accordance with the indication. In aspects, communicating, by the wireless communication apparatus, the indication that facilitates interference management by the wireless communication apparatus includes receiving from the interfering entity the indication that facilitates interference management by the wireless communication apparatus. In such aspects, performing interference management on the received combined signal in accordance with the indication includes performing at least one of interference suppression or interference cancellation in accordance with the indication.

In such aspects, the indication includes at least a reference signal (e.g., a user -specific reference signal, such as a demodulation reference signal and/or the like) configuration associated with the interfering entity. In such further aspects, the indication further includes a sequence allowing for timing synchronization. In such aspects, performing interference management on the received combined signal based on the indication includes estimating the interfering channel based on the reference signal configuration associated with the interfering entity.

In such aspects, the indication further includes at least one of a channel occupancy time for a communication associated with the interfering entity, or a modulation order for a communication associated with the interfering entity. In such further aspects, the indication further includes a sequence allowing for timing synchronization. In such aspects, performing interference management on the received combined signal in accordance with the indication includes estimating or decoding symbols of the interfering channel based on the at least one of the channel occupancy time for the communication associated with the interfering entity or the modulation order for the communication associated with the interfering entity.

In aspects, communicating, by the wireless communication apparatus, the indication that facilitates interference management by the wireless communication apparatus includes transmitting to the interfering entity the indication that facilitates interference management by the wireless communication apparatus. In such aspects, the indication further includes a channel occupancy time for a communication associated with the wireless communication apparatus. In such aspects, wherein the indication further includes a sequence allowing for timing synchronization. In such aspects, receiving the combined signal using a spectrum shared among at least the wireless communication apparatus and the interfering entity includes receiving, from the interfering entity, an interfering signal based on the indication. In such aspects, the indication includes an indication of an interference management capability of the wireless communication apparatus. In such further aspects, the interference management capability of the wireless communication apparatus includes an indication of a minimum mean square error (MMSE) interference suppression capability of the wireless communication apparatus. In such further aspects, the MMSE interference suppression capability includes an indication of a number of interfering streams the wireless communication apparatus may suppress.

In aspects, receiving the combined signal using a spectrum shared among at least the wireless communication apparatus and the interfering entity includes receiving a desired signal, and receiving an interfering signal aligned to a symbol boundary associated with the desired signal. In aspects, the wireless communication apparatus is associated with a first operator network and the interfering entity is associated with a second operator network. In such aspects, the first operator network and the second operator network are asynchronous.

In aspects, the wireless communication apparatus may be a UE and the interfering entity may be a base station. For example, the wireless communication apparatus may be a UE 104a associated with a first operator network 194a and the interfering entity may be a base station 102b associated with a second operator network 194b. In this manner, interference may be managed for spectrum sharing (e.g., while reducing and/or avoiding the problems associated with LBT procedures).

<FIG> is a flow diagram of another method of interference management for spectrum sharing in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The method of interference management for spectrum sharing may include a method of wireless communication by an entity interfering with a first wireless communication apparatus. Steps of the method <NUM> can be executed by a computing device (e.g., a processor, processing circuit, and/or other suitable component) of a wireless communication apparatus, such as the base stations <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM>. In aspects, steps of the method <NUM> can be executed by a computing device (e.g., a processor, processing circuit, and/or other suitable component) of a wireless communication apparatus, such as a UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>. As illustrated, the method <NUM> of wireless communication includes a number of enumerated steps, but aspects of the method <NUM> may include additional steps before, after, and in between the enumerated steps. In some aspects, one or more of the enumerated steps may be omitted or performed in a different order.

At step <NUM>, the method <NUM> includes communicating, by the entity (e.g., to the first wireless communication apparatus or from the first wireless communication apparatus), an indication that facilitates interference management by the first wireless communication apparatus. At step <NUM>, the method <NUM> includes communicating, using a spectrum shared among at least the first wireless communication apparatus and the interfering entity, with a second wireless communication apparatus based on the indication. In aspects, the method <NUM> further includes determining, by the entity, the indication that facilitates interference management by the first wireless communication apparatus, wherein communicating, by the entity, the indication that facilitates interference management by the first wireless communication apparatus includes transmitting the indication that facilitates interference management to the first wireless communication apparatus.

In such aspects, the indication includes at least a reference signal configuration associated with the entity. In such further aspects, the indication further includes a sequence allowing for timing synchronization. In such aspects, the indication further includes at least one of a channel occupancy time for a communication associated with the interfering entity, or a modulation order for a communication associated with the interfering entity. In such further aspects, wherein the indication further includes a sequence allowing for timing synchronization.

In aspects, communicating, by the entity, the indication that facilitates interference management by the first wireless communication apparatus includes receiving by the interfering entity the indication that facilitates interference management by the first wireless communication apparatus.

In such further aspects, the indication includes an indication of an interference management capability of the first wireless communication apparatus. In such further aspects, the interference management capability of the first wireless communication apparatus includes an indication of a minimum mean square error (MMSE) interference suppression capability of the first wireless communication apparatus. In such further aspects, the MMSE interference suppression capability includes an indication of a number of interfering streams the first wireless communication apparatus may suppress. In such aspects, the indication further includes a channel occupancy time for a communication associated with the first wireless communication apparatus. In such aspects, the indication further includes a sequence allowing for timing synchronization. In such aspects, communicating, using a spectrum shared among at least the first wireless communication apparatus and the interfering entity, with the second wireless communication apparatus based on the indication includes transmitting a signal to the second wireless communication apparatus based on the indication. In such further aspects, transmitting the signal to the second wireless communication apparatus based on the indication includes transmitting the signal to the second wireless communication apparatus using a rank based on the indication.

In aspects, the first wireless communication apparatus is associated with a first operator network and the entity interfering with the first wireless communication apparatus is associated with a second operator network. In such aspects, the first operator network and the second operator network are asynchronous.

In this manner, interference may be managed for spectrum sharing (e.g., while reducing and/or avoiding the problems associated with LBT procedures).

<FIG> is a flow diagram of another method of interference management for spectrum sharing in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. The method of interference management for spectrum sharing may include a method of wireless communication by a first wireless communication apparatus. Steps of the method <NUM> can be executed by a computing device (e.g., a processor, processing circuit, and/or other suitable component) of a wireless communication apparatus, such as the base stations <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM>. In aspects, steps of the method <NUM> can be executed by a computing device (e.g., a processor, processing circuit, and/or other suitable component) of a wireless communication apparatus, such as a UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>. As illustrated, the method <NUM> of wireless communication includes a number of enumerated steps, but aspects of the method <NUM> may include additional steps before, after, and in between the enumerated steps. In some aspects, one or more of the enumerated steps may be omitted or performed in a different order. The method <NUM> may encompass various aspects of indication <NUM>, the method <NUM>, and the method <NUM>, described with reference to <FIG> respectively.

At step <NUM>, a first wireless communication apparatus generates an indication that facilitates interference management for a spectrum shared by the first wireless communication apparatus and a second wireless communication apparatus. At step <NUM>, the first wireless communication apparatus transmits the indication to the second wireless communication apparatus.

The content of the indication may depend on whether the first wireless communication apparatus is an interfering entity or is an interfered entity with respect to the second wireless communication apparatus. If the first wireless communication apparatus is an interferer to the second wireless communication apparatus over the (shared) spectrum, the indication may contain one or more parameters on transmission characteristics of the first wireless communication apparatus, e.g., as described with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>. Such indication may be referred to as "transmitter signaling," as is signaled by a transmitter (at the first wireless communication apparatus) that causes interference to a receiver (at the second wireless communication apparatus). As illustrated in the message portion <NUM> of <FIG>, the one or more parameters may include at least one of a configuration of reference signal transmission, a channel occupation time of data transmission, or a modulation order of data transmission, by the first wireless communication apparatus. The one or more parameters may facilitate receiver-side interference suppression by the second wireless communication apparatus. The second wireless communication apparatus (the interfered entity in this case) may suppress interference from the first wireless communication apparatus, using the one or more parameters received from the indication, e.g., as generally described with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>. For example, knowing the reference signal configuration (e.g., DMRS), the second wireless communication apparatus may be able to more accurately measure interference channel and thus may tune its MMSE filters to suppress interference coming from the directions of the interference channel.

On the other hand, if the second wireless communication apparatus is an interferer to the first wireless communication apparatus over the (shared) spectrum, the indication may contain one or more parameters on reception characteristics of the first wireless communication apparatus, e.g., as described with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>. Such indication may be referred to as "receiver signaling," as is signaled by a receiver (at the first wireless communication apparatus) that is interfered by a transmitter (at the second wireless communication apparatus). As illustrated in the message portion <NUM> of <FIG>, the one or more parameters may include an interference suppression capability (e.g., MMSE interference suppression capability) of the first wireless communication apparatus. The one or more parameters may facilitate transmitter-side interference mitigation by the second wireless communication apparatus. The second wireless communication apparatus (the interfering entity in this case) may mitigate its interference to the first wireless communication apparatus, using the one or more parameters received from the indication, e.g., as generally described with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>. For example, knowing the MMSE suppression capacity (e.g., which ranks or particular directions of the interference the receiver may suppress), the second wireless communication apparatus may limit the rank of its transmission.

As generally described with reference to <FIG> and <FIG>, the above aspects may be combined in a single entity (e.g., the first or second wireless communication apparatus). A wireless communication apparatus may be both interfering to and interfered by another wireless communication apparatus. For example, the first wireless communication apparatus may transmit both a transmitter-side, interference management indication and a receiver-side, interference management indication to the second wireless communication apparatus. In addition, a wireless communication apparatus may transmit and receive interference management indications to and from another wireless communication apparatus. For example, the first wireless communication apparatus may transmit an interference management indication to the second wireless communication apparatus to help the later suppress interference, while adapting its transmission to mitigate interference based on an interference management indication received from the later.

In various aspects, the interference management indication may additionally include a timing synchronization preamble, e.g., as illustrated by preamble portion <NUM> of <FIG>. The timing synchronization preamble may be generated based on a timing synchronization sequence, which can be detected by the first and/or second wireless communication apparatus to allow for timing synchronization. Timing synchronization may provide many advantages for interference management, especially across different nodes or operators. For example, MMSE (or other forms of) interference suppression may work better when the interference is time-aligned (e.g., with respect to OFDM symbol boundary) with the desired signal.

<FIG> is a block diagram of an exemplary wireless communication apparatus not claimed in the appended claims. In aspects, the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> may be a UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>, as discussed above, for example. In aspects, the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> may be a BS <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM>, as discussed above, for example. As shown, the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> may include a processor <NUM>, a memory <NUM>, communicating an indication that facilitates interference management module <NUM>, a receiving a combined signal using a spectrum shared module <NUM>, a performing interference management on the received combined signal in accordance with the indication module <NUM>, a transceiver <NUM> including a modem subsystem <NUM> and a radio frequency (RF) unit <NUM>, and one or more antennas <NUM>. These elements may be in direct or indirect communication with each other, for example via one or more buses.

The processor <NUM> may include a central processing unit (CPU), a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a controller, a field programmable gate array (FPGA) device, another hardware device, a firmware device, or any combination thereof configured to perform the operations described herein.

The memory <NUM> may include a cache memory (e.g., a cache memory of the processor <NUM>), random access memory (RAM), magnetoresistive RAM (MRAM), read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM), flash memory, solid state memory device, hard disk drives, other forms of volatile and non-volatile memory, or a combination of different types of memory. In an aspect, the memory <NUM> includes a non-transitory computer-readable medium. The instructions <NUM> may include instructions that, when executed by the processor <NUM>, cause the processor <NUM> to perform the operations, such as methods <NUM> described herein with reference to one or more of the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM> and/or with reference to one or more of the BSs <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM> in connection with aspects of the present disclosure. Instructions <NUM> may also be referred to as code. The terms "instructions" and "code" should be interpreted broadly to include any type of computer-readable statement(s). For example, the terms "instructions" and "code" may refer to one or more programs, routines, sub-routines, functions, procedures, etc. "Instructions" and "code" may include a single computer-readable statement or many computer-readable statements.

The communicating an indication that facilitates interference management module <NUM>, the receiving a combined signal using a spectrum shared module <NUM>, and/or the performing interference management on the received combined signal in accordance with the indication module <NUM> may be used for various aspects of the present disclosure. For example, the communicating an indication that facilitates interference management module <NUM> may communicate, by the wireless communication apparatus <NUM>, an indication that facilitates interference management by the wireless communication apparatus. The receiving a combined signal using a spectrum shared module <NUM> may receive a combined signal using a spectrum shared among at least the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> and an interfering entity. The performing interference management on the received combined signal in accordance with the indication module <NUM> may perform interference management on the received combined signal in accordance with the indication.

As shown, the transceiver <NUM> may include the modem subsystem <NUM> and the RF unit <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> can be configured to communicate bi-directionally with other devices, such as the BSs <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM> and/or UEs <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>. The modem subsystem <NUM> may be configured to modulate and/or encode the data from the memory <NUM>, the communicating an indication that facilitates interference management module <NUM>, the receiving a combined signal using a spectrum shared module <NUM>, and/or the performing interference management on the received combined signal in accordance with the indication module <NUM> according to a modulation and coding scheme (MCS), e.g., a low-density parity check (LDPC) coding scheme, a turbo coding scheme, a convolutional coding scheme, a digital beamforming scheme, etc. The RF unit <NUM> may be configured to process (e.g., perform analog to digital conversion or digital to analog conversion, etc.) modulated/encoded data from the modem subsystem <NUM> (on outbound transmissions) or of transmissions originating from another source such as a UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM> or a BS <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM>. The RF unit <NUM> may be further configured to perform analog beamforming in conjunction with the digital beamforming. Although shown as integrated together in transceiver <NUM>, the modem subsystem <NUM> and the RF unit <NUM> may be separate devices that are coupled together at the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> to enable the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> to communicate with other devices.

The RF unit <NUM> may provide the modulated and/or processed data, e.g. data packets (or, more generally, data messages that may contain one or more data packets and other information), to the antennas <NUM> for transmission to one or more other devices. This may include, for example, transmission of an indication that facilitates interference management by the wireless communications apparatus <NUM>, according to aspects of the present disclosure. The antennas <NUM> may further receive data messages transmitted from other devices. This may include, for example, receiving transmission of an indication that facilitates interference management by the wireless communications apparatus <NUM>, according to aspects of the present disclosure. The antennas <NUM> may provide the received data messages for processing and/or demodulation at the transceiver <NUM>. The antennas <NUM> may include multiple antennas of similar or different designs in order to sustain multiple transmission links. The RF unit <NUM> may configure the antennas <NUM>. In aspects, the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> may be a UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>, <NUM>, and one or more of any of the components of the UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>, <NUM> may perform interference management for spectrum sharing as described herein. In aspects, the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> may be a base station <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM> and one or more of any of the components of the base station <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM> may perform interference management for spectrum sharing as described herein.

Other examples are possible and may differ from what was described in connection with <FIG>.

<FIG> is another block diagram of an exemplary wireless communication apparatus in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The wireless communication apparatus may be an interfering entity <NUM>. In aspects, interfering entity <NUM> may be a BS <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM>, as discussed above, for example. In aspects, the interfering entity <NUM> may be a UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>, as discussed above, for example. As shown, the interfering entity may include a processor <NUM>, a memory <NUM>, a communicating an indication that facilitates interference management by a first wireless communication apparatus module <NUM>, a communicating with a second wireless communication apparatus based on the indication module <NUM>, a transceiver <NUM> including a modem subsystem <NUM> and a radio frequency (RF) unit <NUM>, and one or more antennas <NUM>. These elements may be in direct or indirect communication with each other, for example via one or more buses.

The memory <NUM> may include a cache memory (e.g., a cache memory of the processor <NUM>), random access memory (RAM), magnetoresistive RAM (MRAM), read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM), flash memory, solid state memory device, hard disk drives, other forms of volatile and non-volatile memory, or a combination of different types of memory. In an aspect, the memory <NUM> includes a non-transitory computer-readable medium. The instructions <NUM> may include instructions that, when executed by the processor <NUM>, cause the processor <NUM> to perform the operations, such as methods <NUM> described herein with reference to one or more of the BSs <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM> and/or with reference to one or more of the UEs <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM> in connection with aspects of the present disclosure. Instructions <NUM> may also be referred to as code. The terms "instructions" and "code" should be interpreted broadly to include any type of computer-readable statement(s). For example, the terms "instructions" and "code" may refer to one or more programs, routines, sub-routines, functions, procedures, etc. "Instructions" and "code" may include a single computer-readable statement or many computer-readable statements.

The communicating an indication that facilitates interference management by a first wireless communication apparatus module <NUM> and/or the communicating with a second wireless communication device based on the indication module <NUM> may be used for various aspects of the present disclosure. For example, the communicating an indication that facilitates interference management by a first wireless communication apparatus module <NUM> may communicate, by the entity <NUM>, an indication that facilitates interference management by the first wireless communication apparatus. The communicating with a second wireless communication device based on the indication module <NUM> may communicate, using a spectrum shared among at least the first wireless communication apparatus and an interfering entity <NUM>, with a second wireless communication apparatus based on the indication.

As shown, the transceiver <NUM> may include the modem subsystem <NUM> and the RF unit <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> can be configured to communicate bi-directionally with other devices, such as UEs <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM> and/or the BSs <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM>. The modem subsystem <NUM> may be configured to modulate and/or encode the data from the memory <NUM>, the communicating an indication that facilitates interference management by a first wireless communication apparatus module <NUM> and/or the communicating with a second wireless communication device based on the indication module <NUM> according to a modulation and coding scheme (MCS), e.g., a low-density parity check (LDPC) coding scheme, a turbo coding scheme, a convolutional coding scheme, a digital beamforming scheme, etc. The RF unit <NUM> may be configured to process (e.g., perform analog to digital conversion or digital to analog conversion, etc.) modulated/encoded data from the modem subsystem <NUM> (on outbound transmissions) or of transmissions originating from another source such as a UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM> or a BS <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM>. The RF unit <NUM> may be further configured to perform analog beamforming in conjunction with the digital beamforming. Although shown as integrated together in transceiver <NUM>, the modem subsystem <NUM> and the RF unit <NUM> may be separate devices that are coupled together at the interfering entity <NUM> to enable the interfering entity <NUM> to communicate with other devices.

The RF unit <NUM> may provide the modulated and/or processed data, e.g. data packets (or, more generally, data messages that may contain one or more data packets and other information), to the antennas <NUM> for transmission to one or more other devices. This may include, for example, transmission of an indication that facilitates interference management by a wireless communication apparatus, according to aspects of the present disclosure. The antennas <NUM> may further receive data messages transmitted from other devices. This may include, for example, receiving transmission of an indication that facilitates interference management by a wireless communication apparatus, according to aspects of the present disclosure. The antennas <NUM> may provide the received data messages for processing and/or demodulation at the transceiver <NUM>. The antennas <NUM> may include multiple antennas of similar or different designs in order to sustain multiple transmission links. The RF unit <NUM> may configure the antennas <NUM>. In aspects, the interfering entity <NUM> may be a base station <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM>, and one or more of any of the components of the base station <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM> may perform interference management for spectrum sharing as described herein. In aspects, the interfering entity <NUM> may be a wireless communication apparatus like a UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>, <NUM>, and one or more of any of the components of the UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>, <NUM> may perform interference management for spectrum sharing as described herein.

<FIG> is another block diagram of an exemplary wireless communication apparatus in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. In aspects, the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> may be a UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>, as discussed above, for example. In aspects, the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> may be a BS <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM>, as discussed above, for example. As shown, the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> may be a first wireless communication apparatus that includes a processor <NUM>, a memory <NUM>, an indication generation module <NUM>, an indication transmission module <NUM>, a transceiver <NUM> including a modem subsystem <NUM> and a radio frequency (RF) unit <NUM>, and one or more antennas <NUM>. These elements may be in direct or indirect communication with each other, for example via one or more buses.

The indication generation module <NUM> and/or indication transmission module <NUM> may be used for various aspects of the present disclosure. For example, the indication generation module <NUM> may be configured to generate an indication that facilitates interference management for a spectrum shared by the first wireless communication apparatus and a second wireless communication apparatus. The indication transmission module <NUM> may transmit the indication to the second wireless communication apparatus.

As shown, the transceiver <NUM> may include the modem subsystem <NUM> and the RF unit <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> can be configured to communicate bi-directionally with other devices, such as the BSs <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM> and/or UEs <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>. The modem subsystem <NUM> may be configured to modulate and/or encode the data from the memory <NUM>, the indication generation module <NUM> and/or the indication transmission module <NUM> according to a modulation and coding scheme (MCS), e.g., a low-density parity check (LDPC) coding scheme, a turbo coding scheme, a convolutional coding scheme, a digital beamforming scheme, etc. The RF unit <NUM> may be configured to process (e.g., perform analog to digital conversion or digital to analog conversion, etc.) modulated/encoded data from the modem subsystem <NUM> (on outbound transmissions) or of transmissions originating from another source such as a UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM> or a BS <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM>. The RF unit <NUM> may be further configured to perform analog beamforming in conjunction with the digital beamforming. Although shown as integrated together in transceiver <NUM>, the modem subsystem <NUM> and the RF unit <NUM> may be separate devices that are coupled together at the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> to enable the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> to communicate with other devices.

The RF unit <NUM> may provide the modulated and/or processed data, e.g. data packets (or, more generally, data messages that may contain one or more data packets and other information), to the antennas <NUM> for transmission to one or more other devices. This may include, for example, transmission of an indication that facilitates interference management by the wireless communication apparatus <NUM>, according to aspects of the present disclosure. The antennas <NUM> may further receive data messages transmitted from other devices. This may include, for example, receiving, by the first wireless communications apparatus <NUM>, transmission of another indication that facilitates interference management, according to aspects of the present disclosure. The antennas <NUM> may provide the received data messages for processing and/or demodulation at the transceiver <NUM>. The antennas <NUM> may include multiple antennas of similar or different designs in order to sustain multiple transmission links. The RF unit <NUM> may configure the antennas <NUM>. In aspects, the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> may be a UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>, <NUM>, and one or more of any of the components of the UE <NUM>, <NUM>', 104a, 104b, <NUM>, <NUM> may perform interference management for spectrum sharing as described herein. In aspects, the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> may be a base station <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM> and one or more of any of the components of the base station <NUM>, <NUM>', 102a, 102b, <NUM> may perform interference management for spectrum sharing as described herein. In aspects, the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> may be a first wireless communication apparatus that causes interference to a second wireless communication apparatus. In aspects, the wireless communication apparatus <NUM> may be a first wireless communication apparatus that is caused interference by a second wireless communication apparatus.

Claim 1:
A method of wireless communication by a first wireless communication apparatus (102a, 104a), comprising:
generating (<NUM>) an indication (<NUM>) that facilitates interference management for a spectrum shared by the first wireless communication apparatus and a second wireless communication apparatus (102b, 104b); and
transmitting (<NUM>) the indication to the second wireless communication apparatus;
wherein the first wireless communication apparatus and the second wireless communication apparatus are associated with different operator networks (<NUM>);
wherein the indication (<NUM>) includes a message portion (<NUM>); and
wherein the message portion comprises a channel occupancy time, COT, associated with the first wireless communication apparatus.