EPDCCH resource and quasi-co-location management in LTE

• US 9,756,627 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2015
• Issued: 09/05/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Chen, Wanshi, Geirhofer, Stefan, Gaal, Peter, Xu, Hao, Luo, Tao
• Primary Examiner(s): Murphy, Rhonda
• Application Number:
  US14/719,208
• Publication Number:
  US 20150257138A1
• Time in Patent Office: 838 Days
• Field of Search: 370329
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/024 Co-operative use of antennas of several sites, e.g. in co-ordinated multipoint or co-operative multiple-input multiple-output [MIMO] systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/0626 Channel coefficients, e.g. channel state information [CSI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0038 Blind format detection for detection of modulation format H04L27/0012
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/0067 Rate matching H04L1/0013 and H04L1/08 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 1/1812 Hybrid protocols; Hybrid automatic repeat request [HARQ]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 25/0204 of multiple channels
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/001 the frequencies being arranged in component carriers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0035 Resource allocation in a cooperative multipoint environment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0048 Allocation of pilot signals, i.e. of signals known to the receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 5/0053 Allocation of signaling, i.e. of overhead other than pilot signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/044 based on the type of the allocated resource
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/23 in the downlink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards a terminal

Abstract

A method, an apparatus, and a computer program product for wireless communication are provided. In an aspect, the apparatus may determine whether a starting symbol of an enhanced physical downlink control channel (EPDCCH) is an initial symbol in a subframe based on an EPDCCH configuration. Based on the determination, the apparatus may refrain from decoding a subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is the initial symbol in the subframe. The legacy control channel may comprise at least one of a physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH), a physical hybrid-ARQ indicator channel (PHICH), or a combination thereof.

Claims

1. A method of wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), comprising:

receiving, at the UE, a downlink signal comprising one or more control channels;

determining at the UE, based on an enhanced physical downlink control channel (EPDCCH) configuration, whether a starting symbol of an EPDCCH is transmitted in an initial symbol in a subframe; and

refraining, at the UE, from decoding a subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is transmitted in the initial symbol in the subframe.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the refraining comprises refraining from decoding the subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when both the subframe does not include a downlink broadcast transmission and the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is the initial symbol in the subframe.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the EPDCCH configuration identifies a first EPDCCH resource set and a second EPDCCH resource set, and wherein the refraining comprises refraining from decoding the subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when a starting symbol of the first EPDCCH resource set and a starting symbol of the second EPDCCH resource set both comprise the initial symbol in the subframe.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the legacy control channels for which the subset is refrained from decoding comprise at least one of:

a physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH),

a physical hybrid-ARQ indicator channel (PHICH),

or a combination thereof.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the refraining includes refraining from decoding all legacy control channels in the subframe when the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is the initial symbol in the subframe.

6. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising:

means for receiving, at a user equipment (UE), a downlink signal comprising one or more control channels;

means for determining at the UE, based on an enhanced physical downlink control channel (EPDCCH) configuration, whether a starting symbol of an EPDCCH is transmitted in an initial symbol in a subframe; and

means for refraining, at the UE, from decoding a subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is transmitted in the initial symbol in the subframe.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the means for refraining are configured to refrain from decoding the subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when both the subframe does not include a downlink broadcast transmission and the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is the initial symbol in the subframe.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the EPDCCH configuration identifies a first EPDCCH resource set and a second EPDCCH resource set, and wherein the means for refraining are configured to refrain from decoding the subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when a starting symbol of the first EPDCCH resource set and a starting symbol of the second EPDCCH resource set both comprise the initial symbol in the subframe.

9. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the legacy control channels for which the subset is refrained from decoding comprise at least one of:

a physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH),

a physical hybrid-ARQ indicator channel (PHICH),

or a combination thereof.

10. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the means for refraining are configured to refrain from decoding all legacy control channels in the subframe when the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is the initial symbol in the subframe.

11. An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising:

a memory; and

at least one processor coupled to the memory and configured to;

receive, at a user equipment (UE), a downlink signal comprising one or more control channels;

determine, at the UE, based on an enhanced physical downlink control channel (EPDCCH) configuration, whether a starting symbol of an EPDCCH is transmitted in an initial symbol in a subframe; and

refrain, at the UE, from decoding a subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is transmitted in the initial symbol in the subframe.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the refraining comprises refraining from decoding the subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when both the subframe does not include a downlink broadcast transmission and the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is the initial symbol in the subframe.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the EPDCCH configuration identifies a first EPDCCH resource set and a second EPDCCH resource set, and wherein the refraining comprises refraining from decoding the subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when a starting symbol of the first EPDCCH resource set and a starting symbol of the second EPDCCH resource set both comprise the initial symbol in the subframe.

14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the legacy control channels for which the subset is refrained from decoding comprise at least one of:

a physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH),

a physical hybrid-ARQ indicator channel (PHICH),

or a combination thereof.

15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to refrain from decoding all legacy control channels in the subframe when the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is the initial symbol in the subframe.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer executable code for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), comprising code for:

receiving, at the UE, a downlink signal comprising one or more control channels;

determining at the UE, based on an enhanced physical downlink control channel (EPDCCH) configuration, whether a starting symbol of an EPDCCH is transmitted in an initial symbol in a subframe; and

refraining, at the UE, from decoding a subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is transmitted in the initial symbol in the subframe.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the refraining comprises refraining from decoding the subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when both the subframe does not include a downlink broadcast transmission and the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is the initial symbol in the subframe.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the EPDCCH configuration identifies a first EPDCCH resource set and a second EPDCCH resource set, and wherein the refraining comprises refraining from decoding the subset of legacy control channels in the subframe when a starting symbol of the first EPDCCH resource set and a starting symbol of the second EPDCCH resource set both comprise the initial symbol in the subframe.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the legacy control channels for which the subset is refrained from decoding comprise at least one of:

a physical control format indicator channel (PCFICH),

a physical hybrid-ARQ indicator channel (PHICH),

or a combination thereof.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 16, further comprising code for refraining from decoding all legacy control channels in the subframe when the starting symbol of the EPDCCH is the initial symbol in the subframe.