In modern telecommunications, control information and data are typically carried in separate regions of the subframe or packet. For instance, in third generation partnership project (3GPP) long term evolution (LTE) networks, control information is carried in a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) and/or enhanced PDDCH (ePDCCH) of the subframe, while data/traffic is carried in a physical shared control channel (PSCCH) of the subframe. Additionally, pilot signals are oftentimes communicated contemporaneously with the data transmission in order to facilitate demodulation. More specifically, a pilot signal consists of a series or collection of known reference symbols (i.e., a priori information) which the receiver evaluates upon reception in order to estimate parameters (e.g., fading, scattering) of the air channel. In 3GPP LTE networks, pilot signaling is achieved through the inclusion of cell-specific reference signals (CRS) and/or demodulation reference signals (DMRS) within the subframe.
Data recovery techniques/processes allow receivers to obtain data carried by an earlier data transmission with which the receiver was unable to successfully demodulate/decode. Conventional data recovery techniques rely on either re-transmitting the entire original data transmission or otherwise communicating additional forward error correction (FEC) bits related to the entire original data transmission, e.g., via hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) signaling. For instance, one conventional data recovery technique may re-transmit substantially all of the data/traffic carried in the PDSCH region of an LTE subframe. Another conventional data recovery technique may re-transmit FEC bits pertaining to the entire PDSCH region of the LTE subframe. These conventional techniques may consume significant bandwidth, particularly when the original data payload was large or when poor channel conditions necessitate a relatively low coding rate. As such, more efficient mechanisms for recovering data are desired.