# US 11,122,552 B2 · Downlink control signaling segmentation > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,122,552 B2 - Document ID: US11122552B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 16/476,657 - Filed: 2018-01-31 - Published: 2021-04-15 - Granted: 2021-09-14 - Earliest claimed: 2017-02-06 - Assignees: Apple Inc. - Applicants: Apple Inc. - Inventors: Dae Won Lee; Gang Xiong; Hong He; Seunghee Han - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11122552B2 ## CPC - H04W 72/23: in the downlink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards a terminal - H04L 1/0072: {Error control for data other than payload data, e.g. control data} - H04W 28/065: {using assembly or disassembly of packets} - 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 Technology for a Next Generation NodeB (gNB) operable to encode downlink control information (DCI) for transmission to a user equipment (UE) is disclosed. The gNB can identify DCI for transmission from the gNB. The gNB can determine that a size of the DCI exceeds a defined threshold. The gNB can divide the DCI into one or more DCI segments. Each DCI segment can include header information to enable the one or more DCI segments to be assembled at the UE. The gNB can encode the one or more DCI segments of the DCI for transmission from the gNB to the UE. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An apparatus of a base station operable to encode downlink control information (DCI) for transmission to a user equipment (UE), the apparatus comprising: one or more processors configured to: identify, at the base station, DCI for transmission from the base station; determine, at the base station, that a size of the DCI exceeds a defined threshold; divide, at the base station, the DCI into one or more DCI segments, wherein each DCI segment includes header information to enable the one or more DCI segments to be assembled at the UE, wherein the header information in a given DCI segment includes: a type field that indicates a DCI type; a subtype field that indicates a DCI subtype; and a segment identifier (ID) that indicates a unique ordering of the DCI segment; and encode, at the base station, the one or more DCI segments of the DCI for transmission from the base station to the UE; and a memory interface configured to retrieve from a memory the DCI. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a transceiver configured to transmit the DCI segments to the UE. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each DCI segment is a fixed payload size. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the type field indicates that the DCI corresponds to a downlink unicast transmission, a downlink broadcast transmission or an uplink transmission. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the subtype field indicates that the DCI corresponds to one of: TxD rank 1, closed loop (CL) spatial multiplexing (SM) single code word (CW), open loop (OL) SM single CW, CL SM multi-CW, joint transmission (JT) coordinated multipoint (CoMP), network assisted interference cancellation and suppression (NAICS), CL SM wideband precoding matrix indicator (PMI) or CL SM subband PMI. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to insert a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) in a last DCI segment of the one or more DCI segments, wherein the CRC is utilized to check an integrity of the one or more DCI segments. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to insert a header parity check field in a given DCI segment for checking a parity of the header information in the given DCI segment. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to encode the DCI segments of the DCI for transmission in different control channel resources. ### Claim 9 An apparatus of a user equipment (UE) operable to decode downlink control information (DCI) received from a base station, the apparatus comprising: one or more processors configured to: decode, at the UE, header information associated with one or more DCI segments received from the base station; and combine, at the UE, the one or more DCI segments to form a DCI using the header information included in each of the DCI segments, wherein the header information in a given DCI segment includes: a type field that indicates a DCI type; a subtype field that indicates a DCI subtype; and a segment identifier (ID) that indicates a unique ordering of the DCI segment; and a memory interface configured to send to a memory the DCI. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising a transceiver configured to receive the DCI segments from the base station. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: identify DCI segments received from the base station that are associated with a same DCI type; and combine the DCI segments that are associated with the same DCI type to form the DCI. ### Claim 12 (depends on 9) The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to check an integrity of the one or more DCI segments using a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) included in a last DCI segment of the one or more DCI segments. ### Claim 13 (depends on 9) The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to perform a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) for each combination of DCI segments that are associated with a same DCI type to identify a correct DCI. ### Claim 14 (depends on 9) The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to check a parity of the header information in a given DCI segment using a header parity check field that is included in the given DCI segment. ### Claim 15 At least one non-transitory machine readable storage medium having instructions embodied thereon for encoding downlink control information (DCI) for transmission from a base station to a user equipment (UE), the instructions when executed by one or more processors at the base station perform the following: identifying, at the base station, DCI for transmission from the base station; determining, at the base station, that a size of the DCI exceeds a defined threshold; dividing, at the base station, the DCI into one or more DCI segments, wherein each DCI segment includes header information to enable the one or more DCI segments to be assembled at the UE, wherein the header information in a given DCI segment includes: a type field that indicates a DCI type; a subtype field that indicates a DCI subtype; and a segment identifier (ID) that indicates a unique ordering of the DCI segment; and encoding, at the base station, the DCI segments of the DCI for transmission from the base station to the UE. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The at least one non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein each DCI segment is a fixed payload size. ### Claim 17 (depends on 15) The at least one non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the type field indicates that the DCI corresponds to a downlink unicast transmission, a downlink broadcast transmission or an uplink transmission. ### Claim 18 (depends on 15) The at least one non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the subtype field indicates that the DCI corresponds to one of: TxD rank 1, closed loop (CL) spatial multiplexing (SM) single code word (CW), open loop (OL) SM single CW, CL SM multi-CW, joint transmission (JT) coordinated multipoint (CoMP), network assisted interference cancellation and suppression (NAICS), CL SM wideband precoding matrix indicator (PMI) or CL SM subband PMI. ### Claim 19 (depends on 15) The at least one non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 15, further comprising instructions when executed perform the following: inserting a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) in a last DCI segment of the one or more DCI segments, wherein the CRC is utilized to check an integrity of the one or more DCI segments. ### Claim 20 (depends on 15) The at least one non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 15, further comprising instructions when executed perform the following: inserting a header parity check field in a given DCI segment for checking a parity of the header information in the given DCI segment. ### Claim 21 (depends on 15) The at least one non-transitory machine readable storage medium of claim 15, further comprising instructions when executed perform the following: encoding the DCI segments of the DCI for transmission in different control channel resources.