Network relay signaling for downlink transparent relay

1. A method of providing downlink (DL) retransmissions to a mobile station in a wireless communication network, said wireless communication network comprising a base station communicatively linked to a transparent relay station, said method comprising:

at said base station:

receiving a request for a retransmission from said mobile station;

scheduling resources for said retransmission;

signaling, using a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) in a long term evolution (LTE) network or an LTE advanced (LTE-A) network, scheduling information for said retransmission to said transparent relay station via a control link on a first frequency band using a first format, wherein the first format is different from a second format used for signaling scheduling information to a mobile station;

at said transparent relay station:

receiving, at said transparent relay station, said scheduling information for said retransmission on said control link during a subframe in the first frequency band; and

in response to receiving said scheduling information in the subframe, sending, using a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) in the LTE network or the LTE-A network, said retransmission from said transparent relay station to said mobile station in the subframe on a retransmit frequency band, wherein the retransmit frequency band is different from the first frequency band.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the mobile station is a cell-edge mobile station.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the base station is a long term evolution eNB.

4. A system for providing downlink retransmissions to a mobile station in a wireless communication network, the system comprising:

a base station comprising a processor configured to:

receive a request for a retransmission from said mobile station,

schedule resources for said retransmission,

signal, using a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) in a long term evolution (LTE) network or an LTE advanced (LTE-A) network, scheduling information for said retransmission to said transparent relay station via a control link on a first frequency band using a first format, wherein the first format is different from a second format used for signaling scheduling information to a mobile station; and

a transparent relay station in communication with the base station and comprising a processor configured to:

receive said scheduling information for said retransmission on said control link during a subframe on the first frequency band; and

in response to receiving said scheduling information in the subframe, send, using a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) in the LTE network or LTE-A network, said retransmission from said transparent relay station to said mobile station in the subframe on a retransmit frequency band, wherein the retransmit frequency band is different from the first frequency band.

5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the mobile station is a cell-edge mobile station.

6. The system of claim 4 , wherein the base station is a long term evolution eNB.

7. A transparent relay for providing downlink retransmissions to a mobile station in a wireless communication network, comprising:

one or more processors configured to:

receive, from a base station using a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) in a long term evolution (LTE) network or an LTE advanced (LTE-A) network, scheduling information for a retransmission on a control link during a subframe on a first frequency band, wherein the base station schedules resources based on a request for a retransmission from the mobile station, the scheduling information for the retransmission is transmitted using a first format, the first format being different from a second format that is used for transmitting scheduling information to a mobile station; and

in response to receiving the scheduling information in the subframe, transmit, using a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) in the LTE network or the LTE-A network, the retransmission from the transparent relay station to the mobile station in the subframe on a retransmit frequency band, wherein the retransmit frequency band is different from the first frequency band.

8. The transparent relay of claim 7 , wherein the mobile station is a cell-edge mobile station.