Abstract: Various novel concepts and schemes pertaining to non-orthogonal multiple access for wireless communications are described. A group orthogonal coded access (GOCA) scheme is introduced to reduce multi-user interference (MUI) and improve performance. A repetition division multiple access (RDMA) scheme is introduced to differentiate user equipment (UEs) by different repetition patterns. A low-density spreading (LDS) scheme is introduced to reduce MUI and improve performance.

Abstract: A User Equipment (UE) including a wireless transceiver and a controller is provided. The wireless transceiver performs wireless transmission and reception to and from a cellular station. The controller uses one or more first preambles within a PRACH time-frequency resource to perform a synchronous transmission on the PRACH to the cellular station via the wireless transceiver, or uses one or more second preambles within the PRACH time-frequency resource to perform an asynchronous transmission or a synchronous transmission on the PRACH to the cellular station via the wireless transceiver.

Abstract: A User Equipment (UE) including a wireless transceiver and a controller is provided. The wireless transceiver performs wireless transmission and reception to and from a cellular station. The controller selects a downlink reference signal associated with a candidate beam among a plurality of downlink reference signals including Channel State Information-Reference Signal (CSI-RS) resources, Synchronization Signal (SS) blocks, or Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH) blocks, and determines one from a plurality sets of Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) preambles and RACH occasions for the selected downlink reference signal according to an association configured between the downlink reference signals and PRACH resources. Also, the controller uses the determined set of PRACH preamble and RACH occasion to perform a PRACH transmission to the cellular station via the wireless transceiver.

Abstract: A wireless communication device including a controller and a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium operatively coupled to the controller is provided. The controller executes program code stored in the non-transitory machine-readable storage medium to perform operations including: transmitting or receiving wireless signals by sweeping beams in a non-sequential order.

Abstract: Various examples and schemes pertaining to uplink (UL) designs for New Radio (NR) unlicensed spectrum (NR-U) operation in mobile communications are described. An apparatus as a user equipment (UE) receives, from a network node, a scheduling of a plurality of starting slots for an UL transmission by the apparatus. The apparatus performs a listen-before-talk (LBT) procedure and, based on a result of the LBT procedure, the apparatus performs the UL transmission with an initial slot of the UL transmission in one of the plurality of starting slots.

Abstract: Various solutions for wake-up signal and preamble design for mobile communications are described. An apparatus, while in a first mode of operation, receives a wake-up signal (WUS) from a network. In response to receiving the WUS, the apparatus switches to a second mode of operation from the first mode of operation. The apparatus then detects a preamble in downlink (DL) transmissions from the network. In response to detecting the preamble, the apparatus monitors a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) to check for an uplink (UL) transmission grant for the apparatus from the network.

Abstract: In an aspect of the disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a UE. The UE detects a discovery reference signal on an unlicensed carrier. The UE determines timing information of a base station based on a location of the discovery reference signal in a transmission opportunity window of the base station. The UE determines resource elements of a down link control channel transmitted by the base station based on the timing information. The UE decodes the down link control channel.

Abstract: In an aspect of the disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a UE. The UE receives, from a base station, one or more downlink reference signals on an unlicensed carrier. The UE determines that the base station occupies the unlicensed carrier for a predetermined first channel occupancy time based on the one or more downlink reference signals. The UE receives, on the unlicensed carrier and in the predetermined first channel occupancy time, a control burst including a plurality of down link control channels. The UE attempts to decode a first down link control channel directed to the UE from the control burst.

Abstract: In an aspect of the disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a UE. The UE receives, on an unlicensed carrier and from a base station, a downlink signal including Listen-Before-Talk (LBT) parameters, the downlink signal being a non-physical layer signal. The UE performs an LBT operation based on the LBT parameters. The UE transmits an uplink signal to the base station when the LBT operation is successful.

Abstract: A method can include receiving one or more downlink control informations (DCIs) that are associated with first downlink transmissions belonging to a first hybrid automatic repeat request acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) feedback group at a user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system, receiving a first request that indicates a first group index (GI) of the first HARQ-ACK feedback group and a first HARQ-ACK transmission opportunity (TxOP), and transmitting first acknowledge bits for acknowledging receptions of downlink transmissions belonging to the first HARQ-ACK feedback group over the first HARQ-ACK TxOP indicated by the first request.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided to reduce access latency in a random-access channel (RACH) procedure. A user equipment (UE) can transmit multiple Msg1 on multiple RACH transmission occasions before the end of a random-access response (RAR) window. The UE receives one or more RARs in response to the multiple transmitted Msg1. The one or more RARs can be carried in a single RAR window or multiple RAR windows. The UE determines the detected Msg1 based on explicit signals, implicit indications, or both. The explicit signals can be carried in the one or more RARs received by the UE. The implicit indications can be one or more signatures being associated with the multiple RACH transmission occasions. The one or more signatures comprise at least one of physical random-access channel (PRACH) preambles or preamble indices, random-access radio-network temporary identifier (RA-RNTI) values, RAR windows, and control regions for physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).

Abstract: In an aspect of the disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a UE. The UE detects one or more signals transmitted from a base station in a first unit of a set of units contained in a bandwidth part of an unlicensed carrier, the first unit having contiguous frequency resources. The one or more signals indicating that the base station has occupied the first unit for a first time duration and indicating a schedule of a set of slots in the first time duration for communication with the base station. The UE receives, in a first time slot of the set of slots and from the base station, a control channel.

Abstract: A User Equipment (UE) including a wireless transceiver and a controller is provided. The wireless transceiver performs wireless transmission and reception to and from a service network. The controller initiates a random access procedure with the service network by controlling the wireless transceiver to perform wireless transmission using at least one of: a random access preamble configured for System Information (SI) request, and a corresponding Physical Random Access Channel (PRACH) time-frequency resource allocated for the random access preamble. Also, the controller receives a random access response, which includes a Random Access Preamble Identifier (RAPID) only and does not include a Timing Advance (TA) command, an uplink grant, and a temporary Cell Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI), from the service network via the wireless transceiver.

Abstract: In an aspect of the disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a UE. The UE receives, from a base station, a timing advance command on a first downlink component carrier in a first time slot measured from a perspective of a first uplink component carrier. The UE determines a number of slots between the first time slot and a second time slot measured from the perspective of the first uplink component carrier based on at least one of: a first time duration allocated to the UE for decoding a downlink data channel, and a second time duration allocated to the UE for preparing an uplink data channel. The UE applies a timing advance based on the timing advance command on the first uplink component carrier or a second uplink component carrier in the second time slot.

Abstract: Techniques and examples of interlace design for New Radio unlicensed spectrum (NR-U) operation are described. An apparatus (e.g., user equipment (UE)) assigns a plurality of resources to a plurality of interlaces such that, when the plurality of resources cannot be evenly distributed among all the plurality of interlaces, one or more remaining resources of the plurality of resources are assigned to one or more interlaces of the plurality of interlaces. The apparatus then performs an uplink (UL) transmission to a wireless network in a New Radio unlicensed spectrum (NR-U) using the plurality of resources with block interlaced frequency-division multiple access (B-IFDMA).

Abstract: In an aspect of the disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a UE. The UE receives, in an active down-link bandwidth part, a random access response from a base station indicating an up-link resource in an active up-link bandwidth part for transmitting a random access message. The UE generates the random access message based on a numerology of the active up-link bandwidth part. The UE transmits the random access message at the up-link resource in the active up-link bandwidth part.

Abstract: Techniques and examples of channel multiplexing within interlace for New Radio (NR) unlicensed spectrum (NR-U) operation are described. An apparatus (e.g., user equipment (UE)) determines which sub-interlace of multiple sub-interlaces in each of a plurality of interlaces is assigned to the apparatus. The apparatus then performs an uplink (UL) transmission to a wireless network in an NR-U using the assigned sub-interlace in each of the plurality of interlaces. Each of the plurality of interlaces may be divided into respective multiple sub-interlaces with channel multiplexing.

Abstract: Techniques and examples of design for initial access in New Radio (NR) unlicensed spectrum (NR-U) are described. An apparatus receives from a base station of a wireless network which transmits one or multiple synchronization signal and PBCH blocks (SS/PBCH blocks) whose indices are indicated in a cyclic-wrapped order subject to a result of listen-before-talk (LBT) in NR-U. The apparatus also transmits a random access request on random access channel (RACH) resources allocated by the base station.

Abstract: Techniques and examples of efficient detection of a transmission session in New Radio unlicensed spectrum (NR-U) are described. An apparatus (e.g., user equipment (UE)) detects presence of an indication from a base station of a wireless network in an NR-U. The apparatus determines that a transmission opportunity (TXOP) follows the indication responsive to the detecting. The apparatus then receives a downlink (DL) transmission in the NR-U from the base station during the TXOP.

Abstract: In an aspect of the disclosure, a method, a computer-readable medium, and an apparatus are provided. The apparatus may be a UE. The UE decodes, based on a first down-link reference signal received from a base station, a first PDCCH indicating a first PDSCH that contains a random access response. The UE decodes, based on the first down-link reference signal, the first PDSCH to obtain the random access message. The UE monitors a second PDCCH in a PDCCH common search space set based on the first down-link reference signal.