Partial repetition of physical broadcast channel

A system comprising at least a terminal device and a network element of a wireless communication network;

• the network element comprising a first processor and a first memory, wherein the first memory comprises first computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the first processor, causes the network element to perform the following operations:
• transmitting a physical broadcast channel in a synchronization signal block, wherein a payload of the physical broadcast channel comprises at least a set of least significant bits of a system frame number, and the set of least significant bits indicates, at least partly, one or more values of the system frame number;
• and
• transmitting at least one partial repetition of the payload of the physical broadcast channel, wherein the at least one partial repetition comprises at least a subset of the set of least significant bits;
• the terminal device comprising a second processor and a second memory, wherein the second memory comprises second computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the second processor, causes the terminal device to perform the following operations:
• receiving a physical broadcast channel in a synchronization signal block, wherein a payload of the physical broadcast channel comprises at least a set of least significant bits of a system frame number, and the set of least significant bits indicates, at least partly, one or more values of the system frame number, and wherein the set of least significant bits comprises at least four bits;
• receiving at least one partial repetition of the payload of the physical broadcast channel, wherein the at least one partial repetition is received at least in a symbol preceding or following a symbol comprising a primary synchronization signal comprised in the synchronization signal block, and wherein the at least one partial repetition comprises at least a subset of the set of least significant bits, and the at least the subset of the set of least significant bits comprises at least two bits of the at least four bits;
• determining, based at least partly on the at least the subset of the set of least significant bits, whether the synchronization signal block is a first synchronization signal block within a time window;
• combining, based on the synchronization signal block not being the first synchronization signal block within the time window based on the determination, one or more log-likelihood ratios of a codeword indicative of the payload with one or more log-likelihood ratios of one or more previously received codewords within the time window, based at least partly on the at least the subset of the set of least significant bits;
• decode the codeword indicative of the payload of the physical broadcast channel by decoding the combined one or more log-likelihood ratios;
• and
• decode the payload of the physical broadcast channel based on the at least one partial repetition of the payload.

A method comprising:

• receiving, by an apparatus, a physical broadcast channel in a synchronization signal block, wherein a payload of the physical broadcast channel comprises at least a set of least significant bits of a system frame number, and the set of least significant bits indicates, at least partly, one or more values of the system frame number, and wherein the set of least significant bits comprises at least four bits;
• receiving at least one partial repetition of the payload of the physical broadcast channel, wherein the at least one partial repetition is received at least in a symbol preceding or following a symbol comprising a primary synchronization signal comprised in the synchronization signal block, and wherein the at least one partial repetition comprises at least a subset of the set of least significant bits, and the at least the subset of the set of least significant bits comprises at least two bits of the at least four bits;
• determining, based at least partly on the at least the subset of the set of least significant bits, whether the synchronization signal block is a first synchronization signal block within a time window;
• combining, based on the synchronization signal block not being the first synchronization signal block within the time window based on the determination, one or more log-likelihood ratios of a codeword indicative of the payload with one or more log-likelihood ratios of one or more previously received codewords within the time window, based at least partly on the at least the subset of the set of least significant bits;
• decoding the codeword indicative of the payload of the physical broadcast channel by decoding the combined one or more log-likelihood ratios;
• and
• decoding the payload of the physical broadcast channel based on the at least one partial repetition of the payload.