Wireless communication system, a base station and a method therein

1. A method implemented in a base station used in a wireless communications system that supports flexible-time division duplex (flexible-TDD) uplink-downlink (UL-DL) configuration, the method comprising:

configuring a first type of user equipment (UE) with a first type of configuration;

configuring a second type of UE with a second type of configuration;

receiving from a user equipment a hybrid automatic repeat request-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) signal according to a DL association set, the DL association set comprising:

a first DL association set for a UL-DL TDD configuration used by the first type of UE, and

a second DL association set for a reference UL-DL TDD configuration including a third DL association set for PUCCH resource mapping used by the second type of UE, the third DL association set comprising

a first subset indicating one or more subframes including at least one of a fixed DL subframe and a special subframe, the first subset having a size which is dependent on the number of subframes in the first DL association set which are used as flexible subframes in the second DL association set,

a second subset containing remaining fixed subframes in the third DL association set, and

a third subset which contains flexible subframes in the third DL association set,

performing physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource allocation according to the received DL association set,

wherein, for subframes in the second subset, a PUCCH resource is allocated to flexible subframes with a higher probability of being used as DL subframes ahead of flexible subframes with a lower probability of being used as DL subframes, and

the PUCCH resource allocation is performed independently for the first subset, the second subset, and the third subset.

2. The method as in claim 1 ,

wherein the first type of UE comprises a legacy UE or a 3GPP Release 8, 9, and 10 UE,

wherein the second type of UE comprises a flexible-TDD UE,

wherein the first type of configuration comprises a long term UL-DL TDD configuration, and

wherein the second type of configuration comprises a flexible-TDD configuration.

3. The method as in claim 1 ,

wherein the first DL association set indicates one or more subframes including at least one of a DL subframe and a special subframe for which a HARQ-ACK feedback is sent to the base station according to the UL-DL TDD configuration,

wherein the second DL association set indicates one or more subframes including at least one of a DL subframe and a special subframe for which a HARQ-ACK feedback is sent to the base station according to the reference UL-DL TDD configuration, and

wherein the third DL association set indicates one or more subframes excluding said one or more subframes indicated by the first DL association set.

4. The method as in claim 3 , further comprising:

for said one or more subframes indicated by the first DL association set, performing the PUCCH resource allocation by block interleaving;

for said one or more subframes indicated by the third DL association set, performing the PUCCH resource allocation such that a PUCCH region either follows a PUCCH region of the first DL association set or a specified PUCCH offset is used.

5. The method as in claim 1 ,

wherein the PUCCH resource allocation is performed independently for said one or more subframes indicated by the first subset and for said one or more subframes indicated by the second subset.

6. The method as in claim 5 ,

wherein the PUCCH resource allocation for said one or more subframes indicated by the first subset is block interleaved.

7. The method as in claim 5 ,

wherein a UE-specific PUCCH offset is indicated by radio resource control (RRC)-signalling,

wherein the method further comprises:

configuring an enhanced physical downlink control channel (EPDCCH) for DL transmission in a flexible subframe for the second type of UE, and

wherein a PUCCH associated with the EPDCCH is reserved for a subframe with a higher probability of being used as a DL subframe, followed by a PUCCH for a subframe with a lower probability of being used as a DL subframe.

8. The method as in claim 1 ,

wherein one or more DL subframes according to the UL-DL TDD configuration comprise one or more UL subframes according to the reference UL-DL TDD configuration, and

wherein the method further comprises:

assigning unused PUCCH resources associated with the UL-DL TDD configuration to a fixed DL subframe in the reference UL-DL TDD configuration; and

scheduling the first type of UE on the fixed DL subframe.

9. The method as in claim 1 ,

wherein the PUCCH allocation for one or more subframes indicated by the second subset is block interleaved.

10. The method as in claim 1 , wherein the performing the PUCCH resource allocation comprises allocating PUCCH resources for one or more subframes indicated by the third subset after the PUCCH allocation for subframes in the second subset.

11. The method as in claim 1 , wherein the performing the PUCCH resource allocation comprises allocating PUCCH resources for one or more subframes indicated by the third subset to a flexible subframe with a higher probability of being used as a DL subframe ahead of a flexible subframe with a lower probability of being used as a DL subframe.

12. The method as in claim 1 ,

wherein a UE-specific PUCCH offset is indicated by radio resource control (RRC)-signalling, and

wherein the method further comprises:

configuring an enhanced physical downlink control channel (EPDCCH) for DL transmission in a flexible subframe for the second type of UE, and

wherein a PUCCH associated with an EPDCCH set of two is reserved for a subframe with a higher probability of being used as a DL subframe, followed by a PUCCH for a subframe with a lower probability of being used as a DL subframe.

13. In a wireless communications system that supports flexible-time division duplex (flexible-TDD) uplink-downlink (UL-DL) configuration, the wireless communications system including a first type of user equipment (UE) and a second type of UE, a method implemented in the second type of UE, the method comprising:

transmitting to a base station a hybrid automatic repeat request-acknowledgement HARQ-ACK signal according to a DL association set, the DL association set comprising:

a first DL association set for a UL-DL TDD configuration used by the first type of UE, and

a second DL association set for a reference UL-DL TDD configuration including a third DL association set for PUCCH resource mapping used by the second type of UE, the third DL association set comprising

a first subset indicating one or more subframes including at least one of a fixed DL subframe and a special subframe, the first subset having a size which is dependent on the number of subframes in the first DL association set which are used as flexible subframes in the second DL association set,

a second subset containing remaining fixed subframes in the third DL association set, and

a third subset which contains flexible subframes in the third DL association set,

wherein physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource allocation is performed according to the transmitted DL association set,

for subframes in the second subset, a PUCCH resource is allocated to flexible subframes with a higher probability of being used as DL subframes ahead of flexible subframes with a lower probability of being used as DL subframes, and

the first type of UE is configured with a first type of configuration, and the second type of UE is configured with a second type of configuration, and

the PUCCH resource allocation is performed independently for the first subset, the second subset, and the third subset.

14. A method implemented in a wireless communications system that supports flexible-time division duplex (flexible-TDD) uplink-downlink (UL-DL) configuration, the method comprising:

configuring a first type of user equipment (UE) with a first type of configuration;

configuring a second type of UE with a second type of configuration;

transmitting from a user equipment to a base station a hybrid automatic repeat request-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) signal according to a DL association set, the DL association set comprising:

a first DL association set for a UL-DL TDD configuration used by the first type of UE; and

a second DL association set for a reference UL-DL TDD configuration including a third DL association set for PUCCH resource mapping used by the second type of UE, the third DL association set comprising

a first subset indicating one or more subframes including at least one of a fixed DL subframe and a special subframe, the first subset having a size which is dependent on the number of subframes in the first DL association set which are used as flexible subframes in the second DL association set,

a second subset containing remaining fixed subframes in the third DL association set, and

a third subset which contains flexible subframes in the third DL association set,

performing physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource allocation according to the transmitted DL association set,

wherein, for subframes in the second subset, a PUCCH resource is allocated to flexible subframes with a higher probability of being used as DL subframes ahead of flexible subframes with a lower probability of being used as DL subframes, and

the PUCCH resource allocation is performed independently for the first subset, the second subset, and the third subset.