# US 10,375,726 B2 · User equipment silencing based on transmission failure in shared spectrum > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,375,726 B2 - Document ID: US10375726B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/478,145 - Filed: 2017-04-03 - Published: 2017-07-20 - Granted: 2019-08-06 - Earliest claimed: 2015-11-25 - Assignees: QUALCOMM Incorporated - Applicants: QUALCOMM Incorporated - Inventors: Karl Georg Hampel; Junyi Li; Vincent Douglas Park - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10375726B2 ## CPC - H04W 74/002: {Transmission of channel access control information} - H04L 5/0007: {the frequencies being orthogonal, e.g. OFDM(A) or DMT} - H04L 5/0055: {Physical resource allocation for ACK/NACK (for physical mapping arrangements in ARQ protocols H04L1/1861)} - H04L 5/14: Two-way operation using the same type of signal, i.e. duplex - H04W 16/14: Spectrum sharing arrangements {between different networks} - H04W 72/23: in the downlink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards a terminal - H04W 74/04: Scheduled access (hybrid access H04W74/02) - H04W 74/0808: using carrier sensing, e.g. carrier sense multiple access [CSMA] - H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72) - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) ## Abstract Methods, systems, and devices for wireless communication are described. A wireless device communicating critical or latency sensitive information may determine that a transmission has failed in a shared radio frequency (RF) spectrum band. The device may then transmit a silencing signal in a managed RF spectrum band, and switch to communicating in the managed band. Other wireless devices communicating with the first device may receive the silencing signal and may also switch to the managed RF spectrum band. Based on the silencing signal, user equipments (UEs) not associated with the critical communications and operating in the managed band may suspend transmissions, although they may still receive downlink (DL) data. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method of wireless communication comprising: determining, by a wireless device, that a transmission in a shared radio frequency (RF) spectrum band has failed, wherein a radio access technology (RAT) operating in the shared RF spectrum band is synchronized with a RAT operating in a managed RF spectrum band; transmitting, by the wireless device, a silencing signal in the managed RF spectrum band indicating that at least one neighboring user equipment (UE) is to suspend uplink (UL) transmission in the managed RF spectrum band, wherein transmitting the silencing signal is based at least in part on the determination; and communicating, by the wireless device, in the managed RF spectrum band based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, further comprising: sending the transmission in the shared RF spectrum band, wherein determining that the transmission has failed is based at least in part on sending the transmission; and communicating in the managed RF spectrum band comprises: retransmitting the transmission in the managed RF spectrum band. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The method of claim 2, further comprising: receiving a negative acknowledgement (NACK), wherein determining that the transmission has failed is based at least in part on the NACK. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein determining that the transmission has failed comprises: determining that an expected transmission has not been received; and communicating in the managed RF spectrum band comprises: receiving the expected transmission in the managed RF spectrum band. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the silencing signal in the managed RF spectrum band comprises: transmitting the silencing signal during a first time slot of a subframe of a frame structure of the managed RF spectrum band based at least in part on the determination. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the silencing signal comprises a multi-tone orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) signal, a pseudo-noise (PN) signal, or a constant amplitude zero autocorrelation (CAZAC) signal. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein the managed RF spectrum band comprises a portion of a system bandwidth of a wireless wide area network (WWAN). ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein time resources of the managed RF spectrum band are organized according to a time division duplex (TDD) configuration. ### Claim 9 A method of wireless communication comprising: identifying, by a user equipment (UE), resources for an uplink (UL) transmission associated with a first radio access technology (RAT) operating in a managed radio frequency (RF) spectrum band; receiving, by the UE and from a wireless device, a silencing signal in the managed RF spectrum band indicating that at least one neighboring user equipment (UE) is to suspend uplink (UL) transmission in the managed RF spectrum band for a time period including the identified resources, wherein the silencing signal is based at least in part on a determination that a transmission in a shared RF spectrum band has failed, and wherein a second RAT operating in the shared RF spectrum band is synchronized with the first RAT operating in the managed RF spectrum band; and suspending, by the UE, transmission in the managed RF spectrum band during the time period based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The method of claim 9, further comprising: receiving an UL grant, wherein the resources are identified based at least in part on the UL grant. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) The method of claim 9, further comprising: receiving a downlink (DL) transmission during the time period based at least in part on a DL grant. ### Claim 12 (depends on 9) The method of claim 9, further comprising: receiving an UL grant for a subsequent time period; and resuming transmission in the managed RF spectrum band during the subsequent time period based at least in part on the UL grant. ### Claim 13 A method of wireless communication comprising: receiving, by a first wireless device, a silencing signal in a managed radio frequency (RF) spectrum band indicating that at least one neighboring user equipment (UE) is to suspend uplink (UL) transmission in the managed RF spectrum band, wherein the silencing signal is based at least in part on a determination that a transmission in a shared RF spectrum band has failed, and wherein a first radio access technology (RAT) operating in the managed RF spectrum band is synchronized with a second RAT operating in the shared RF spectrum band; and switching, by the first wireless device, from communicating with a second wireless device in the shared RF spectrum band to communicating with the second wireless device in the managed RF spectrum band, wherein the second wireless device is a source of the silencing signal and the switching is based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, further comprising: determining that an expected transmission has not been received; and transmitting a negative acknowledgement (NACK) based on the determination, wherein the silencing signal is transmitted based at least in part on the NACK. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein communicating in the managed RF spectrum band comprises: receiving the expected transmission in the managed RF spectrum band. ### Claim 16 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein communicating in the shared RF spectrum band comprises: transmitting a message in the shared RF spectrum band. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The method of claim 16, wherein communicating in the managed RF spectrum band comprises: retransmitting the message in the managed RF spectrum band. ### Claim 18 (depends on 16) The method of claim 16, further comprising: receiving a negative acknowledgement (NACK) in the shared RF spectrum band, wherein the NACK is transmitted based at least in part on a determination that the transmitted message has not been received. ### Claim 19 (depends on 16) The method of claim 16, further comprising: determining that the transmitted message has not been received based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 20 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, further comprising: powering up a radio for the managed RF spectrum band; and listening, using the radio, for the silencing signal in the managed RF spectrum band during a first portion of a subframe. ### Claim 21 An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: a processor; memory in electronic communication with the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and operable, when executed by the processor, to cause the apparatus to: determine that a transmission in a shared radio frequency (RF) spectrum band has failed, wherein a radio access technology (RAT) operating in the shared RF spectrum band is synchronized with a RAT operating in a managed RF spectrum band; transmit a silencing signal in the managed RF spectrum band indicating that at least one neighboring user equipment (UE) is to suspend uplink (UL) transmission in the managed RF spectrum band, wherein transmitting the silencing signal is based at least in part on the determination; and communicate in the managed RF spectrum band based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 22 (depends on 21) The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the instructions are further operable to cause the processor to: send the transmission in the shared RF spectrum band, wherein determining that the transmission has failed is based at least in part on sending the transmission; and communicating in the managed RF spectrum band comprises retransmitting the transmission in the managed RF spectrum band. ### Claim 23 (depends on 22) The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the instructions are further operable to cause the processor to: receive a negative acknowledgement (NACK), wherein determining that the transmission has failed is based at least in part on the NACK. ### Claim 24 (depends on 21) The apparatus of claim 21, wherein determining that the transmission has failed comprises determining that an expected transmission has not been received; and communicating in the managed RF spectrum band comprises receiving the expected transmission in the managed RF spectrum band. ### Claim 25 (depends on 21) The apparatus of claim 21, wherein transmitting the silencing signal in the managed RF spectrum band comprises transmitting the silencing signal during a first time slot of a subframe of a frame structure of the managed RF spectrum band based at least in part on the determination. ### Claim 26 (depends on 21) The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the silencing signal comprises a multi-tone orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) signal, a pseudo-noise (PN) signal, or a constant amplitude zero autocorrelation (CAZAC) signal. ### Claim 27 (depends on 21) The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the managed RF spectrum band comprises a portion of a system bandwidth of a wireless wide area network (WWAN). ### Claim 28 (depends on 21) The apparatus of claim 21, wherein time resources of the managed RF spectrum band are organized according to a time division duplex (TDD) configuration. ### Claim 29 An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: a processor; memory in electronic communication with the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and operable, when executed by the processor, to cause the apparatus to: identify resources for an uplink (UL) transmission associated with a first radio access technology (RAT) operating in a managed radio frequency (RF) spectrum band; receive, from a wireless device, a silencing signal in the managed RF spectrum band indicating that at least one neighboring user equipment (UE) is to suspend uplink (UL) transmission in the managed RF spectrum band for a time period including the identified resources, wherein the silencing signal is based at least in part on a determination that a transmission in a shared RF spectrum band has failed, and wherein a second RAT operating in the shared RF spectrum band is synchronized with the first RAT operating in the managed RF spectrum band; and suspend transmission in the managed RF spectrum band during the time period based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 30 (depends on 29) The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the instructions are further operable to cause the processor to: receive an UL grant, wherein the resources are identified based at least in part on the UL grant. ### Claim 31 (depends on 29) The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the instructions are further operable to cause the processor to: receive a downlink (DL) transmission during the time period based at least in part on a DL grant. ### Claim 32 (depends on 29) The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the instructions are further operable to cause the processor to: receive an UL grant for a subsequent time period; and resume transmission in the managed RF spectrum band during the subsequent time period based at least in part on the UL grant. ### Claim 33 An apparatus for wireless communication, comprising: a processor; memory in electronic communication with the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and operable, when executed by the processor, to cause the apparatus to: receive, from a wireless device, a silencing signal in a managed radio frequency (RF) spectrum band indicating that at least one neighboring user equipment (UE) is to suspend uplink (UL) transmission in the managed RF spectrum band, wherein the silencing signal is based at least in part on a determination that a transmission in a shared RF spectrum band has failed, and wherein a first radio access technology (RAT) operating in the managed RF spectrum band is synchronized with a second RAT operating in the shared RF spectrum band; and switch from communicating with the wireless device in the shared RF spectrum band to communicating with the wireless device in the managed RF spectrum band, wherein the wireless device is a source of the silencing signal and the switching is based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 34 (depends on 33) The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the instructions are further operable to cause the processor to: determine that an expected transmission has not been received; and transmit a negative acknowledgement (NACK) based on the determination, wherein the silencing signal is transmitted based at least in part on the NACK. ### Claim 35 (depends on 34) The apparatus of claim 34, wherein communicating in the managed RF spectrum band comprises receiving the expected transmission in the managed RF spectrum band. ### Claim 36 (depends on 33) The apparatus of claim 33, wherein communicating in the shared RF spectrum band comprises transmitting a message in the shared RF spectrum band. ### Claim 37 (depends on 36) The apparatus of claim 36, wherein communicating in the managed RF spectrum band comprises retransmitting the message in the managed RF spectrum band. ### Claim 38 (depends on 36) The apparatus of claim 36, wherein the instructions are further operable to cause the processor to: receive a negative acknowledgement (NACK) in the shared RF spectrum band, wherein the NACK is transmitted based at least in part on a determination that the transmitted message has not been received. ### Claim 39 (depends on 36) The apparatus of claim 36, wherein the instructions are further operable to cause the processor to: determine that the transmitted message has not been received based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 40 (depends on 33) The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the instructions are further operable to cause the processor to: power up a radio for the managed RF spectrum band; and listen, using the radio, for the silencing signal in the managed RF spectrum band during a first portion of a subframe. ### Claim 41 An apparatus for wireless communication comprising: means for determining that a transmission in a shared radio frequency (RF) spectrum band has failed, wherein a radio access technology (RAT) operating in the shared RF spectrum band is synchronized with a RAT operating in a managed RF spectrum band; means for transmitting a silencing signal in the managed RF spectrum band indicating that at least one neighboring user equipment (UE) is to suspend uplink (UL) transmission in the managed RF spectrum band, wherein transmitting the silencing signal is based at least in part on the determination; and means for communicating in the managed RF spectrum band based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 42 An apparatus for wireless communication comprising: means for identifying resources for an uplink (UL) transmission associated with a first radio access technology (RAT) operating in a managed radio frequency (RF) spectrum band; means for receiving, from a wireless device, a silencing signal in the managed RF spectrum band indicating that at least one neighboring user equipment (UE) is to suspend uplink (UL) transmission in the managed RF spectrum band for a time period including the identified resources, wherein the silencing signal is based at least in part on a determination that a transmission in a shared RF spectrum band has failed, and wherein a second RAT operating in the shared RF spectrum band is synchronized with the first RAT operating in the managed RF spectrum band; and means for suspending transmission in the managed RF spectrum band during the time period based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 43 An apparatus for wireless communication comprising: means for receiving, from a wireless device, a silencing signal in a managed radio frequency (RF) spectrum band indicating that at least one neighboring user equipment (UE) is to suspend uplink (UL) transmission in the managed RF spectrum band, wherein the silencing signal is based at least in part on a determination that a transmission in a shared RF spectrum band has failed, and wherein a first radio access technology (RAT) operating in the managed RF spectrum band is synchronized with a second RAT operating in the shared RF spectrum band; and means for switching from communicating with the wireless device in the shared RF spectrum band to communicating with the wireless device in the managed RF spectrum band, wherein the wireless device is a source of the silencing signal and the switching is based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 44 A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication, the code comprising instructions executable to: determine that a transmission in a shared radio frequency (RF) spectrum band has failed, wherein a radio access technology (RAT) operating in the shared RF spectrum band is synchronized with a RAT operating in a managed RF spectrum band; transmit a silencing signal in the managed RF spectrum band indicating that at least one neighboring user equipment (UE) is to suspend uplink (UL) transmission in the managed RF spectrum band, wherein transmitting the silencing signal is based at least in part on the determination; and communicate in the managed RF spectrum band based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 45 A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication, the code comprising instructions executable to: identify resources for an uplink (UL) transmission associated with a first radio access technology (RAT) operating in a managed radio frequency (RF) spectrum band; receive, from a wireless device, a silencing signal in the managed RF spectrum band indicating that at least one neighboring user equipment (UE) is to suspend uplink (UL) transmission in the managed RF spectrum band for a time period including the identified resources, wherein the silencing signal is based at least in part on a determination that a transmission in a shared RF spectrum band has failed, and wherein a second RAT operating in the shared RF spectrum band is synchronized with the first RAT operating in the managed RF spectrum band; and suspend transmission in the managed RF spectrum band during the time period based at least in part on the silencing signal. ### Claim 46 A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication, the code comprising instructions executable to: receive, from a wireless device, a silencing signal in a managed radio frequency (RF) spectrum band indicating that at least one neighboring user equipment (UE) is to suspend uplink (UL) transmission in the managed RF spectrum band, wherein the silencing signal is based at least in part on a determination that a transmission in a shared RF spectrum band has failed, and wherein a first radio access technology (RAT) operating in the managed RF spectrum band is synchronized with a second RAT operating in the shared RF spectrum band; and switch from communicating with the wireless device in the shared RF spectrum band to communicating with the wireless device in the managed RF spectrum band, wherein the wireless device is a source of the silencing signal and the switching is based at least in part on the silencing signal.