# US 12,120,689 B2 · Multiplexing of uplink control information

> Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt

- Number: US 12,120,689 B2
- Document ID: US12120689B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/776,737
- Filed: 2021-09-24
- Published: 2023-09-07
- Granted: 2024-10-15
- Earliest claimed: 2021-09-24
- Assignees: Apple Inc.
- Applicants: Apple Inc.
- Inventors: Weidong Yang; Oghenekome Oteri; Chunhai Yao; Chunxuan Ye; Dawei Zhang; Haitong Sun; Hong He; Huaning Niu; Seyed Ali Akbar Fakoorian; Sigen Ye; Wei Zeng; Yushu Zhang
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12120689B2

## CPC

- H04W 72/20: Control channels or signalling for resource management
- H04W 72/21: in the uplink direction of a wireless link, i.e. towards the network
- H04W 72/00: Local resource management
- H04W 72/0446: Resources in time domain, e.g. slots or frames
- H04W 72/563: of the wireless resources
- H04W 72/1268: of uplink data flows
- H04W 72/566: of the information or information source or recipient
- H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72)

## Abstract

Methods and devices for a UE to multiplex uplink control information (UCI). The UE establishes a connection with a base station. The UE determines whether to multiplex first UCI by first identifying whether intra-priority timing overlap exists between the timing resources of the first UCI and a PUSCH with the same priority. Subsequently, the UE identifies whether inter-priority timing overlap exists between the timing resources of the first UCI and a second PUCCH with a different priority from the first PUCCH. Finally, the UE identifies whether the timing resources of the first UCI overlap with a second PUSCH with a different priority than the first PUCCH. The UE multiplexes the first UCI based on the determination whether to multiplex the first UCI, and transmits the multiplexed first UCI to the base station.

## Claims

### Claim 1

An apparatus, comprising:
a processor configured to cause a user equipment (UE) to:
establish communication with a base station;
determine whether to multiplex first uplink control information (UCI) of a first physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) having a first physical layer priority, wherein, in the determining whether to multiplex the first UCI, the processor is configured to cause the UE to:
identify whether one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with one or more timing resources of a first physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) having the first physical layer priority,
subsequent to identifying whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with the one or more timing resources of the first PUSCH, identify whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with one or more timing resources of a second PUCCH having a second physical layer priority different from the first physical layer priority, and
subsequent to identifying whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with the one or more timing resources of the second PUCCH, identify whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with one or more timing resources of a second PUSCH having a third physical layer priority; and
multiplex the first UCI based on the determination whether to multiplex the first UCI, and
transmit the multiplexed first UCI to the base station.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1,
wherein in multiplexing the first UCI, the processor is configured to cause the UE to perform one or more of:
multiplexing the first UCI within the first PUSCH;
multiplexing the first UCI with the second UCI; or
multiplexing the first UCI within the second PUSCH.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1,
wherein the first physical layer priority comprises a low priority and the second and third physical layer priorities comprise a high priority, or
wherein the first physical layer priority comprises the high priority and the second and third physical layer priorities comprise the low priority.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The apparatus of claim 3,
wherein the low priority is associated with enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) communications, and
wherein the high priority is associated with ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC).

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1,
wherein multiplexing the first UCI comprises multiplexing the first UCI with the second UCI,
wherein multiplexing the first UCI with the second UCI comprises multiplexing the first UCI and the second UCI within a third PUCCH, wherein the third PUCCH comprises at least a subset of timing resources of the second PUCCH, physical resource blocks (PRBs) of the second PUCCH, and one or more additional PRBs that are not comprised within the second PUCCH.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1,
wherein multiplexing the first UCI comprises multiplexing the first UCI with the second UCI within the second PUCCH.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1,
wherein the processor is further configured to cause the UE to:
transmit configuration information to the base station indicating that the UE supports simultaneous PUCCH/PUSCH transmission;
configure simultaneous PUCCH/PUSCH transmission with the base station;
wherein the multiplexing for the first UCI comprises multiplexing the first UCI within the first or second PUSCH, wherein component carriers of the first or second PUSCH are selected for multiplexing that occur within a same band as component carriers of the first PUCCH.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1,
wherein the processor is further configured to cause the UE to:
transmit configuration information to the base station indicating that the UE supports simultaneous PUCCH/PUSCH transmission;
configure simultaneous PUCCH/PUSCH transmission with the base station;
wherein the multiplexing for the first UCI comprises multiplexing the first UCI within the first or second PUSCH, wherein any component carriers of the first or second PUSCH are selected for multiplexing the first UCI.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1,
wherein the UE has not configured simultaneous PUCCH/PUSCH transmission with the base station, and
wherein the multiplexing for the first UCI comprises multiplexing the first UCI within the first or second PUSCH, wherein any component carriers of the first or second PUSCH are selected for multiplexing the first UCI.

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1,
wherein multiplexing the first UCI comprises:
multiplexing the first UCI and the second UCI within the second PUCCH; and
multiplexing the second PUCCH within the second PUSCH.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The apparatus of claim 10,
wherein the first and third physical layer priorities comprise a low priority and the second physical layer priority comprises a high priority, or
wherein the first and third physical layer priorities comprise the high priority and the second physical layer priority comprises the low priority.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1,
wherein identifying whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with the one or more timing resources of the second PUCCH comprises scanning for overlap from earlier PUCCHs having the second physical layer priority to later PUCCHs having the second physical layer priority.

### Claim 13 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1,
wherein the first UCI comprises one or more of:
a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) acknowledgment (ACK) or negative acknowledgment (NACK) message;
a scheduling request (SR); or
channel state information (CSI).

### Claim 14 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1,
wherein establishing communication with the base station comprises receiving resource grants for one or more of the first PUCCH, the first PUSCH, the second PUCCH, and the second PUSCH,
wherein identifying whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with the one or more timing resources of the first PUSCH, the second PUCCH, and the second PUSCH is performed based on the resource grants received from the base station.

### Claim 15 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1,
wherein the processor is further configured to cause the UE to:
prior to identifying whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with the one or more timing resources of the first PUSCH, identify whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with one or more other PUCCHs having the first physical layer priority,
wherein multiplexing the first UCI comprises multiplexing the first UCI within one or more of the other PUCCHs having the first physical layer priority based at least in part on identifying that the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with the one or more other PUCCHs having the first physical layer priority.

### Claim 16

A user equipment (UE), comprising:
a radio; and
a processor operably connected to the radio and configured to cause the UE to:
establish communication with a base station;
determine whether to multiplex first uplink control information (UCI) of a first physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) having a first physical layer priority, wherein, in the determining whether to multiplex the first UCI, the UE is configured to:
identify whether one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with one or more timing resources of a first physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) having the first physical layer priority,
subsequent to identifying whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with the one or more timing resources of the first PUSCH, identify whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with one or more timing resources of a second PUCCH having a second physical layer priority different from the first physical layer priority, and
subsequent to identifying whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with the one or more timing resources of the second PUCCH, identify whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with one or more timing resources of a second PUSCH having a third physical layer priority; and
multiplex the first UCI based on the determination whether to multiplex the first UCI, and
transmit the multiplexed first UCI to the base station.

### Claim 17 (depends on 16)

The UE of claim 16,
wherein multiplexing the first UCI comprises one or more of:
multiplexing the first UCI within the first PUSCH;
multiplexing the first UCI with the second UCI; or
multiplexing the first UCI within the second PUSCH.

### Claim 18 (depends on 16)

The UE of claim 16,
wherein the first physical layer priority comprises a low priority and the second and third physical layer priorities comprise a high priority, or
wherein the first physical layer priority comprises the high priority and the second and third physical layer priorities comprise the low priority,
wherein the low priority is associated with enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) communications, and
wherein the high priority is associated with ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC).

### Claim 19

A method for operating a user equipment (UE), the method comprising:
establishing communication with a base station;
determining whether to multiplex first uplink control information (UCI) of a first physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) having a first physical layer priority, wherein said determining comprises:
identifying whether one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with one or more timing resources of a first physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) having the first physical layer priority,
subsequent to identifying whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with the one or more timing resources of the first PUSCH, identifying whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with one or more timing resources of a second PUCCH having a second physical layer priority different from the first physical layer priority, and
subsequent to identifying whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with the one or more timing resources of the second PUCCH, identifying whether the one or more timing resources of the first PUCCH overlap with one or more timing resources of a second PUSCH having a third physical layer priority; and
multiplexing the first UCI based on the determination whether to multiplex the first UCI, and
transmitting the multiplexed first UCI to the base station.

### Claim 20 (depends on 19)

The method of claim 19,
wherein multiplexing the first UCI comprises multiplexing the first UCI with the second UCI,
wherein multiplexing the first UCI with the second UCI comprises multiplexing the first UCI and the second UCI within a third PUCCH, wherein the third PUCCH comprises at least a subset of timing resources of the second PUCCH, physical resource blocks (PRBs) of the second PUCCH, and one or more additional PRBs that are not comprised within the second PUCCH.