Method and apparatus for handling SFI (slot format information) collision in a wireless communication system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10660091-B2
Application number	US-201816050862-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 31, 2018
Priority date	Aug 10, 2017
Publication date	May 19, 2020
Grant date	May 19, 2020

Abstract

A method and apparatus are disclosed from the perspective of a network node. In one embodiment, the method includes the network node transmitting a first slot format information (SFI) to a User Equipment (UE), wherein the first SFI indicates transmitted direction of symbols of a first set of slots. The method also includes the network node transmitting a second SFI carried by a group common physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) to the UE, wherein the second SFI indicates transmitted direction of symbols of a second set of slots, and wherein if the first set of slots and the second set of slots are partially overlapped in time domain and the second SFI is transmitted after the first SFI, transmitted direction of overlapped symbols indicated by the second SFI is aligned with transmitted direction of the overlapped symbols indicated by the first SFI.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of a network node, comprising:
transmitting a first slot format information (SFI) carried by a group common Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) to a User Equipment (UE), wherein the first SFI indicates transmitted direction of symbols of a first set of slots; and
transmitting a second SFI carried by the group common physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) to the UE, wherein the second SFI indicates transmitted direction of symbols of a second set of slots and the second SFI is transmitted after the first SFI, and the first set of slots and the second set of slots are partially overlapped in time domain; and
coordinating SFI aligning by a transmitted direction of overlapped symbols indicated by the second SFI with a transmitted direction of overlapped symbols indicated by the first SFI to prevent collision of the transmitted direction of overlapped symbols.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first SFI and the second SFI are transmitted via different beams or different transmission and reception points (TRPs).

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first SFI and the second SFI are for different beams.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first SFI and the second SFI are for the same cell.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the cell operates in Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) or in paired spectrum.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first SFI and the second SFI are indicated on a per component carrier basis, per numerology basis, or per bandwidth part basis.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein transmitted direction of a symbol is indicated as downlink, uplink, or flexible.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein transmitted direction of the overlapped symbols indicated by the second SFI is not allowed to be different from transmitted direction of the overlapped symbols indicated by the first SFI.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first SFI is carried by a UE-specific downlink control information (DCI).

10. A network node, comprising:
a control circuit;
a processor installed in the control circuit;
a memory installed in the control circuit and coupled to the processor;
wherein the processor is configured to execute a program code stored in the memory to:
transmit a first slot format information (SFI) carried by a group common Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) to a User Equipment (UE), wherein the first SFI indicates transmitted direction of symbols of a first set of slots; and
transmit a second SFI carried by the group common physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) to the UE, wherein the second SFI indicates transmitted direction of symbols of a second set of slots and the second SFI is transmitted after the first SFI, and the first set of slots and the second set of slots are partially overlapped in time domain; and
coordinate SFI aligning by a transmitted direction of overlapped symbols indicated by the second SFI with a transmitted direction of overlapped symbols indicated by the first SFI to prevent collision of the transmitted direction of overlapped symbols.

11. The network node of claim 10 , wherein the first SFI and the second SFI are transmitted via different beams or different transmission and reception points (TRPs).

12. The network node of claim 10 , wherein the first SFI and the second SFI are for different beams.

13. The network node of claim 10 , wherein the first SFI and the second SFI are for the same cell.

14. The network node of claim 13 , wherein the cell operates in Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) or in paired spectrum.

15. The network node of claim 10 , wherein the first SFI and the second SFI are indicated on a per component carrier basis, per numerology basis, or per bandwidth part basis.

16. The network node of claim 10 , wherein transmitted direction of a symbol is indicated as downlink, uplink, or flexible.

17. The network node of claim 10 , wherein transmitted direction of the overlapped symbols indicated by the second SFI is not allowed to be different from transmitted direction of the overlapped symbols indicated by the first SFI.

18. The network node of claim 10 , wherein the first SFI is carried by a UE-specific downlink control information (DCI).

Assignees

• Asustek Comp Inc

Inventors

• Huang Chun-Wei
• Lin Ko-Chiang
• Guo Yu-Hsuan

Classifications

• H04L5/0053

  Allocation of signalling, i.e. of overhead other than pilot signals · CPC title

• H04L2025/03414

  Multicarrier · CPC title

• H04L5/001

  the frequencies being arranged in component carriers · CPC title

• H04L5/0098

  Signalling of the activation or deactivation of component carriers, subcarriers or frequency bands · CPC title

• H04L5/0048

  Allocation of pilot signals, i.e. of signals known to the receiver (allocation of control signalling H04L5/0053; use of control signalling H04L5/0091) · CPC title