A beam training method, apparatus and communication device

Abstract

The application discloses a beam training method, device and communication equipment, and relates to the technical field of communication. When the beam training method is executed, a first communication equipment can acquire first vector information, determine first information according to the first vector information and an association relationship between the first vector information and second cell first information. The first information is first reference signal resource information, or the first information is first transmission configuration indication state (TCI state) information. If the first information is the first reference signal resource information, a first reference signal is received on the first reference signal resource, or if the first information is the first TCI state information, a downlink physical channel is received according to the first TCI state information. Through the beam training method, the interaction of signaling can be reduced, and the efficiency of beam training is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a beam training method, apparatus and communication equipment. Background Technology

[0002] To improve user capacity and terminal device communication speeds in communication systems, 5G (5th generation mobile networks) New Radio (NR) systems introduced millimeter-wave spectrum. While millimeter-wave spectrum has a large bandwidth, signal attenuation is significant during transmission. To address this attenuation issue, Multi-Input Multi-Output (MIMO) technology was introduced to improve signal gain. MIMO increases millimeter-wave signal gain and reduces signal loss. However, the signal lacks a specific direction during transmission, resulting in low coordination between multiple antennas and susceptibility to interference. Therefore, beamforming was developed to transmit directional beams.

[0003] Because the measurement capabilities of terminal devices are limited during beam training, not only can not all beams be measured in a single beam measurement and reporting process, but network devices also need to reconfigure signaling multiple times to switch the beam set required for beam training. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides a beam training method, apparatus, and communication device to reduce signaling overhead during beam training and improve the efficiency of beam training.

[0005] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a beam training method. This method can be applied to a first communication device. In specific execution, the first communication device can send first vector information, which is determined by measuring a first cell. Based on the first vector information and the association between the first vector information and first information of a second cell, first information is determined. The first information is first reference signal resource information, or the first information is first transmission configuration indicator (TCI) state information. If the first information is first reference signal resource information, a first reference signal is received on the first reference signal resource indicated by the first reference signal resource information. Or, if the first information is first TCI state information, a downlink physical channel is received based on the first TCI state information.

[0006] It should be noted that the first communication device can obtain the first vector information by measuring the downlink reference signal resources of the first cell. This downlink reference signal resource can be a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) or a synchronous signal block (SSB), etc. The first communication device can also obtain the first vector information by measuring the uplink reference signal resources of the first cell. This uplink reference signal resource can be a sounding reference signal (SRS), etc.

[0007] Furthermore, it should be noted that the vector information of the first cell may include multiple elements. In practical applications, the association between multiple vector information elements of the first cell and multiple reference signal resource information elements of the second cell, or the association between multiple vector information elements of the first cell and multiple TCI state information elements of the second cell, can be configured according to service requirements. The vector information of the first cell can be configured by a second communication device (e.g., a network device). Additionally, this association may include multiple elements, one of which is the association between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell. When the solution of this application is applied, after the first communication device measures the first cell to obtain the first vector information, it determines the first information through the association between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell. It should be understood that the association between multiple vector information elements and multiple reference signal resource information elements, or the association between multiple vector information elements and multiple TCI state information elements, may be a one-to-one association, a many-to-one association, or a many-to-many association; this application does not limit this.

[0008] Through this association, the first communication device can determine the first information by referring to the vector information of the first cell. The first communication device measures the first cell to obtain the first vector information, which is one or more of the vector information of the first cell in this application. Then, based on the first vector information, the associated first information can be obtained (that is, the first information can be determined by referring to the first vector information).

[0009] In this embodiment, after acquiring the first vector information, the first communication device can determine the first information based on the first vector information and its association with the first information of the second cell, without needing to receive the first information from other communication devices. This reduces signaling interaction. Furthermore, after determining the first information, the first communication device can receive the first reference signal on the first reference signal resource associated with the first vector information, or receive the downlink physical channel based on the first TCI state information associated with the first vector information. This method eliminates the need for other communication devices to instruct the first communication device which reference resources to use to receive the first reference signal, or which TCI state information to use to receive the downlink physical channel, reducing signaling interaction and saving signaling resources. Moreover, while reducing signaling interaction, it also improves the efficiency of beam training.

[0010] In one alternative approach, the frequency of the first cell is lower than that of the second cell.

[0011] It should be noted that, due to the better low-frequency coverage, the first communication device can receive the reference signal (RS) transmitted omnidirectionally or with a wide beam. High-frequency path loss is significant, requiring a large angular range to use narrow-beam scanning to obtain a superior narrow beam for communication. This high-frequency narrow-beam scanning process incurs substantial resource overhead and latency.

[0012] However, through this application, the first communication device can obtain a smaller search range for the high-frequency (second cell) narrow beam based on the vector measurement results of the low-frequency (first cell), which can reduce the resource overhead of high-frequency beam training.

[0013] In one alternative approach, the association is determined by: receiving configuration information from a second communication device; the configuration information indicating the association; or, determining the association based on the channel quality of the first cell measured by the first communication device.

[0014] In one alternative approach, the first vector information is precoding matrix indication (PMI) information, or the first vector information indicates the L column vectors in the R column matrix corresponding to the PMI information, or the first vector information is the identification information of the oversampled discrete Fourier transform (DFT) vector; wherein R and L are positive integers, and R is greater than or equal to L.

[0015] It should be noted that in the prior art, network devices need to be configured with a set of reference signal resources for high-frequency beam scanning, for example, configuring 64 reference signal resources for beam training. However, this application avoids the signaling interaction of reference signal resource reconfiguration by activating the reference signal resources associated with the first vector information, thereby reducing the high-frequency beam training latency.

[0016] In one alternative approach, the first TCI state information is sequentially mapped to the code points of the first word field of the downlink control information (DCI); the first word field is used to indicate the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

[0017] It should be noted that "first TCI state information" can be replaced with "index of TCI state".

[0018] For example, the first TCI state information (TCI state index) of the second cell associated with the first vector information is 0, 3, 5, 7. The first TCI state information is mapped to the code points of the first word field of the DCI in ascending order (assuming that the code point is 2 bits). This can be understood as follows: index 0 is mapped to code point 00, index 3 is mapped to code point 01, index 5 is mapped to code point 10, and index 7 is mapped to code point 11.

[0019] It should be noted that in existing technologies, network devices need to refresh the TCI state list of the physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) or physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) through the medium access control element (MAC CE) based on the measurement results fed back by the terminal device. In this application, however, the first communication device directly activates the TCI state associated with the first vector information, omitting the signaling interaction for TCI state list reconfiguration and reducing beam indication delay.

[0020] In one alternative approach, the first TCI state information is a candidate list of TCI states for the downlink physical channel.

[0021] It should be noted that "the first TCI state information is the TCI state candidate list information of the downlink physical channel" can be understood as the first TCI state information indicating the TCI state candidate list of the downlink physical channel.

[0022] For example, the TCI state candidate list of the downlink physical channel of the second cell associated with the first vector information includes multiple TCI states. In practical applications, the first communication device can select one or more TCI states from the TCI state candidate list of the downlink physical channel of the second cell to receive the downlink physical channel.

[0023] It should be noted that in the prior art, network devices need to refresh the TCI state list of PDSCH or PDCCH through MAC CE based on the measurement results fed back by the terminal device. In this application, the first communication device directly activates the TCI state associated with the first vector information, omitting the signaling interaction for TCI state list reconfiguration and reducing beam indication latency.

[0024] In one alternative approach, the configuration information indicates that the first vector information is quasi-collocation (QCL) information for the first reference signal resource information.

[0025] It should be noted that in the prior art, during beam training, the first communication device directly scans the high-frequency beam, which requires significant resource overhead and latency. However, in this application, the first communication device can perform high-frequency (second cell) beam scanning (i.e., measuring the first reference signal resource) based on the vector measurement results (first vector information) of the low-frequency (first cell), which can reduce the resource overhead and latency of high-frequency beam training.

[0026] In one alternative approach, the first reference signal resource information is reference signal resource information used for beam management.

[0027] Secondly, embodiments of this application provide a beam training method, which can be applied to a second communication device. In specific execution, the second communication device can receive first vector information; determine first information based on the first vector information and the association between the first vector information and first information of the second cell; the first information is first reference signal resource information, or the first information is first TCI state information; if the first information is first reference signal resource information, then a first reference signal is transmitted on the first reference resource indicated by the first reference signal resource information, or if the first information is first TCI state information, then a downlink physical channel is transmitted based on the first TCI state information.

[0028] In this embodiment of the application, after the second communication device obtains the first vector information, it can determine the first information based on the first vector information and the association between the first vector information and the first information, without having to constantly reconfigure the signaling. This method reduces the interaction of signaling.

[0029] In one alternative approach, the frequency of the first cell is lower than that of the second cell.

[0030] In this application, the second communication device can obtain a smaller search range for the high-frequency (second cell) narrow beam based on the vector measurement results of the low-frequency (first cell), which can reduce the resource overhead of high-frequency beam training.

[0031] In one alternative approach, the association is determined by: receiving second information from a first communication device; the second information indicating an association; or, determining the association; the association being carried in configuration information.

[0032] In one alternative approach, the first vector information is PMI information, or the first vector information indicates the L column vector in the R column matrix corresponding to the PMI information, or the first vector information is the identification information of the oversampled DFT vector; wherein R and L are positive integers, and R is greater than or equal to L.

[0033] It should be noted that in the prior art, network devices need to be configured with a set of reference signal resources for high-frequency beam scanning, for example, configuring 64 reference signal resources for beam training. However, this application avoids the signaling interaction of reference signal resource reconfiguration by activating the reference signal resources associated with the first vector information, thereby reducing the high-frequency beam training latency.

[0034] In one alternative approach, the first information is first reference signal resource information; the second communication device activates the first reference signal resource.

[0035] In one alternative approach, the second communication device determines the first TCI state information based on the first reference signal resource and activates the TCI state corresponding to the first TCI state information.

[0036] In one alternative approach, the configuration information indicates that the first vector information is the quasi-co-address QCL information of the first reference signal resource information.

[0037] In one alternative approach, the first reference signal resource information is reference signal resource information used for beam management.

[0038] In one alternative approach, the first information is first TCI state information; the second communication device activates the TCI state corresponding to the first TCI state information.

[0039] In one alternative approach, the first TCI state information is sequentially mapped onto the code points of the first word field of the DCI; the first word field is used to indicate the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

[0040] In one alternative approach, the first TCI state information is a candidate list of TCI states for the downlink physical channel.

[0041] It should be noted that in existing technologies, network devices need to refresh the active TCI state list of PDSCH via MAC CE based on the measurement feedback results of terminal devices. However, this application directly activates the TCI state associated with the first vector information, omitting the signaling interaction for TCI state list reconfiguration and reducing beam indication latency.

[0042] Thirdly, embodiments of this application provide a beam training device, including:

[0043] A transceiver unit is used to transmit first vector information, which is determined by measuring the first cell;

[0044] The processing unit is configured to determine the first information based on the first vector information and the association relationship between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell; wherein the first information is first reference signal resource information or the first information is first TCI state information; wherein, if the first information is the first reference signal resource information, a first reference signal is received on the first reference signal resource indicated by the first reference signal resource information; or, if the first information is the first TCI state information, a downlink physical channel is received based on the first TCI state information.

[0045] In one alternative approach, the frequency of the first cell is lower than that of the second cell.

[0046] In one alternative approach, the association is determined by: receiving configuration information from a second communication device; the configuration information indicating the association; or, determining the association based on the channel quality of the first cell measured by the first communication device.

[0047] In one alternative approach, the first vector information is PMI information, or the first vector information indicates the L column vectors in the R column matrix corresponding to the PMI information, or the first vector information is the identification information of the oversampled Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) vector; wherein R and L are positive integers, and R is greater than or equal to L.

[0048] In one alternative approach, the first TCI state information is sequentially mapped onto the code points of the first word field of the DCI; the first word field is used to indicate the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

[0049] In one alternative approach, the first TCI state information is a candidate list of TCI states for the downlink physical channel.

[0050] In one alternative approach, the configuration information is used to indicate QCL information for the first vector information as the first reference signal resource information.

[0051] In one alternative approach, the first reference signal resource information is reference signal resource information used for beam management.

[0052] Fourthly, embodiments of this application provide a beam training device, comprising:

[0053] A transceiver unit is configured to receive first vector information; a processing unit is configured to determine the first information based on the first vector information and the association relationship between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell; wherein the first information is first reference signal resource information, or the first information is transmission configuration indication state first TCI state information; wherein, if the first information is the first reference signal resource information, a first reference signal is transmitted on the first reference signal resource indicated by the first reference signal resource information; or, if the first information is the first TCI state information, a downlink physical channel is transmitted based on the first TCI state information.

[0054] In one alternative approach, the frequency of the first cell is lower than that of the second cell.

[0055] In one alternative approach, the association is determined by: receiving second information from a first communication device; the second information indicating the association; or, determining the association; the association being carried in configuration information.

[0056] In one alternative approach, the first vector information is PMI information, or the first vector information indicates the L column vectors in the R column matrix corresponding to the PMI information, or the first vector information is the identification information of the oversampled Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) vector; wherein R and L are positive integers, and R is greater than or equal to L.

[0057] In one alternative approach, the first information is first reference signal resource information; the processing unit is further configured to activate the first reference signal resource.

[0058] In an alternative embodiment, the processing unit is further configured to determine first TCI state information based on the first reference signal resource; and activate the TCI state corresponding to the first TCI state information.

[0059] In one alternative approach, the configuration information is used to indicate QCL information for the first vector information as the first reference signal resource information.

[0060] In one alternative approach, the first reference signal resource information is reference signal resource information used for beam management.

[0061] In one alternative approach, the first information is first TCI state information; the processing unit is further configured to activate the TCI state corresponding to the first TCI state information.

[0062] In one alternative approach, the first TCI state information is sequentially mapped onto the code points of the first word field of the DCI; the first word field is used to indicate the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

[0063] In one alternative approach, the first TCI state information is a candidate list of TCI states for the downlink physical channel.

[0064] Fifthly, this application provides a communication device, including a processor and a memory; the memory is used to store computer execution instructions, and when the device is running, the processor executes the computer execution instructions stored in the memory to cause the device to perform the methods as described in the first aspect or embodiments of the first aspect, or the second aspect or embodiments of the second aspect.

[0065] Sixthly, this application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing computer-readable instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method as described in the first aspect or embodiments of the first aspect, or the method as described in the second aspect or embodiments of the second aspect.

[0066] In a seventh aspect, this application provides a computer program product containing instructions that, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the methods of the first aspect or embodiments thereof, or the second aspect or embodiments thereof.

[0067] Eighthly, embodiments of this application provide a chip system including a processor and potentially a memory, for implementing the methods of the first aspect or embodiments thereof, or the second aspect or embodiments thereof. The chip system may be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices.

[0068] Ninthly, embodiments of this application provide a communication system, the system including a terminal device and a network device, the terminal device being used to perform the methods of the first aspect or embodiments of the first aspect, or the methods of the second aspect or embodiments of the second aspect.

[0069] In a tenth aspect, a computer program product comprising instructions is provided, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the methods of the first aspect or embodiments thereof, or the second aspect or embodiments thereof.

[0070] For the technical effects that can be achieved in the second to tenth aspects mentioned above, please refer to the description of the technical effects that can be achieved by the corresponding possible design schemes in the first aspect mentioned above. This application will not repeat them here. Attached Figure Description

[0071] Figure 1A This application provides a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system.

[0072] Figure 1B This application provides a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system.

[0073] Figure 1C A schematic diagram of a network element structure provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0074] Figure 2 A schematic flowchart of a beam training method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0075] Figure 3 A schematic diagram illustrating an application scenario of a beam training method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0076] Figure 4 A schematic diagram illustrating an application scenario of a beam training method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0077] Figure 5 A schematic diagram illustrating an application scenario of a beam training method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0078] Figure 6 A schematic diagram illustrating an application scenario of a beam training method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0079] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a beam training device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0080] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0081] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this application clearer, the application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The specific operating methods in the method embodiments can also be applied to the device embodiments or system embodiments. In the description of this application, unless otherwise stated, "multiple" means two or more.

[0082] However, in order to meet coverage requirements, a large number of beam scans are required at high frequencies to obtain the beam direction for communication between network devices and terminal devices, which consumes a lot of resources and time.

[0083] To better illustrate the solution of this application, the following is a definition of the terms used in this application:

[0084] The communication equipment can be either a network device or a terminal device. This application does not make a specific limitation here. The transmitting beam and receiving beam between the first communication device and the second communication device can be the transmitting beam of the network device and the receiving beam of the terminal device, or the transmitting beam of the terminal device and the receiving beam of the network device, or the receiving beam and transmitting beam between network devices, or the receiving beam and transmitting beam between terminal devices. This application does not specifically limit the equipment type of the first communication device and the second communication device.

[0085] Network equipment refers to nodes in a radio access network (RAN), also known as base stations or RAN nodes (or devices). Examples of current RAN equipment include: gNB / NR-NB, transmission reception point (TRP), evolved node B (eNB), radio network controller (RNC), node B (NB), base station controller (BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), home base station (e.g., home-evolved NodeB, or home Node B, HNB), base band unit (BBU), wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) access point (AP), network equipment in 5G communication systems, network equipment in future communication systems, or satellites. Network devices can also be other devices with network device functions. For example, a network device can also be a device that functions as a network device in device-to-device (D2D) or machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, such as a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) device. A network device can also be a network device in a future communication system.

[0086] Terminal equipment, also known as UE, mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), etc., is a device that provides voice or data connectivity to users, and can also be an Internet of Things (IoT) device. For example, terminal equipment includes handheld devices with wireless connectivity, vehicle-mounted devices, etc. Currently, terminal devices can include: mobile phones, tablets, laptops, PDAs, mobile internet devices (MIDs), wearable devices (such as smartwatches, smart bracelets, pedometers, etc.), in-vehicle devices (such as cars, bicycles, electric vehicles, airplanes, ships, trains, high-speed trains, etc.), virtual reality (VR) devices, augmented reality (AR) devices, wireless terminals in industrial control, smart home devices (such as refrigerators, televisions, air conditioners, electricity meters, etc.), intelligent robots, workshop equipment, wireless terminals in self-driving, wireless terminals in remote medical surgery, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, or wireless terminals in smart homes, and flying equipment (such as intelligent robots, hot air balloons, drones, airplanes), etc.

[0087] A beam is a communication resource. A beam can be wide, narrow, or other types. Different beams can be considered different resources. The same or different information can be transmitted through different beams. Optionally, multiple beams with the same or similar communication characteristics can be considered as a single beam. Beams can be divided into transmit and receive beams of network devices and transmit and receive beams of terminal devices. The transmit beam of a network device describes the beamforming information transmitted by the network device, and the receive beam of a network device describes the beamforming information received by the network device. The transmit beam of a terminal device describes the beamforming information transmitted by the terminal device, and the receive beam of a terminal device describes the beamforming information received by the terminal device. In other words, beams are used to describe beamforming information.

[0088] A beam can correspond to time resources, and / or spatial resources, and / or frequency domain resources. Optionally, a beam can also correspond to a reference signal resource (e.g., a beamforming reference signal resource) or beamforming information. Furthermore, a beam can also correspond to information associated with a reference signal resource of a network device, where the reference signal can be CSI-RS, SSB, demodulation reference signal (DMRS), phase tracking reference signal (PTRS), tracking reference signal (TRS), etc. The information associated with the reference signal resource can be a reference signal resource identifier or QCL information (especially type D QCL), etc. The reference signal resource identifier corresponds to a transmit / receive beam pair previously established based on measurements of that reference signal resource; through this reference signal resource index, the terminal device can infer the beam information.

[0089] Beamforming: An operation performed to obtain multiple beam pairs with good communication quality between communication devices, such as: a network device sending a beam and a terminal device receiving the beam; or a terminal device sending a beam and a network device receiving the beam. Network devices and terminal devices can then communicate based on the trained beam pairs.

[0090] It should be noted that during beam training, reference signal resources need to be reconfigured multiple times, wasting signaling resources. Therefore, this application proposes a beam training method to solve the aforementioned technical problems, thereby reducing signaling overhead and improving the efficiency of beam training.

[0091] The following describes a communication system applicable to the beam training method of this application. The first and second communication devices in this system can be network devices or terminal devices; this application does not impose specific limitations in practical applications. Next, through... Figure 1A and Figure 1B This application will be used as an example to illustrate the communication systems that may be applicable to this application.

[0092] Figure 1A A communication system 100 applicable to this application is shown. The communication system 100 is in a single-carrier scenario or a carrier aggregation (CA) scenario. The communication system 100 includes a network device 110 and a terminal device 120, and the network device 110 and the terminal device 120 communicate through a wireless network.

[0093] It should be understood that Figure 1AThe network device 110 may include one or more cells. When the transmission direction of the communication system 100 is uplink transmission, the terminal device 120 is the transmitter and the network device 110 is the receiver. When the transmission direction of the communication system 100 is downlink transmission, the network device 110 is the transmitter and the terminal device 120 is the receiver.

[0094] Figure 1B This application describes a communication system 200 applicable to this invention. The communication system 200 operates in a dual connectivity (DC) or coordinated multipoint transmission / reception (CoMP) scenario. The system includes network device 210, network device 220, and terminal device 230. Network device 210 is the network device used when terminal device 230 initially accesses the system and is responsible for RRC communication with terminal device 230. Network device 220 is added during RRC reconfiguration to provide additional radio resources. Terminal device 230, configured with carrier aggregation (CA), is connected to network devices 210 and 220. The link between network device 210 and terminal device 230 can be referred to as the first link, and the link between network device 220 and terminal device 230 can be referred to as the second link.

[0095] The communication systems described above are merely illustrative examples, and their application is not limited to these. For instance, the number of network devices and terminal devices included in the communication system can be other numbers, or it can employ a single base station, multi-carrier aggregation scenario, dual-link scenario, device-to-device (D2D) communication scenario, or CoMP (Co-MP) multi-point cooperative transmission scenario. CoMP can be one or more of the following: non-coherent joint transmission (NCJT), coherent joint transmission (CJT), and joint transmission (JT).

[0096] The embodiments of this application can also be applied to other communication systems, such as: Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE Frequency Division Duplex (FDD), LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD), Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), future 5th generation (5G) mobile communication systems, or new radio (NR), etc. The 5G mobile communication systems described in this application include non-standalone (NSA) 5G mobile communication systems and / or standalone (SA) 5G mobile communication systems. The technical solutions provided in this application can also be applied to future communication systems, such as 6th generation mobile communication systems. The communication system can also be a PLMN network, a device-to-device (D2D) network, a machine-to-machine (M2M) network, an IoT network, or other networks.

[0097] Figure 1CThe diagram illustrates the network element structure in this application embodiment. Terminal devices can refer to user equipment, access terminals, user units, user stations, mobile stations, mobile stations, remote stations, remote terminals, mobile devices, user terminals, terminals, wireless communication equipment, user agents, or user devices. Terminal devices can also be cellular phones, cordless phones, session initiation protocol (SIP) phones, wireless local loop (WLL) stations, personal digital assistants (PDAs), handheld devices with wireless communication capabilities, computing devices or other processing devices connected to a wireless modem, in-vehicle devices, wearable devices, terminal devices in future 5G networks, or terminal devices in future evolved public land mobile networks (PLMNs), etc. This application embodiment does not limit these possibilities.

[0098] By way of example and not limitation, in this embodiment, the terminal device can also be a wearable device. Wearable devices, also known as wearable smart devices, are a general term for devices that utilize wearable technology to intelligently design and develop everyday wearables, such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing, and shoes. Wearable devices are portable devices that are worn directly on the body or integrated into the user's clothing or accessories. Wearable devices are not merely hardware devices, but also achieve powerful functions through software support, data interaction, and cloud interaction. Broadly speaking, wearable smart devices include those that are feature-rich, large in size, and can achieve complete or partial functions without relying on a smartphone, such as smartwatches or smart glasses, as well as those that focus on a specific type of application function and require the use of other devices such as smartphones, such as various smart bracelets and smart jewelry for vital sign monitoring.

[0099] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the terminal device can also be a terminal device in an Internet of Things (IoT) system. IoT is an important component of future information technology development, and its main technical feature is connecting objects to networks through communication technologies, thereby realizing an intelligent network of human-machine interconnection and machine-to-machine interconnection. In this embodiment, IoT technology can achieve massive connectivity, deep coverage, and low terminal power consumption through technologies such as narrowband (NB) technology.

[0100] In addition, in this embodiment, the terminal device may also include sensors such as smart printers, train detectors, and gas stations. Its main functions include collecting data (for some terminal devices), receiving control information and downlink data from network devices, and sending electromagnetic waves to transmit uplink data to network devices.

[0101] The network device in this application embodiment can be a device for communicating with terminal devices. The network device can be a base station (BTS) in a global system for mobile communications (GSM) or code division multiple access (CDMA) system, a base station (NodeB, NB) in a wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) system, an evolved base station (eNB or eNodeB) in an LTE system, a radio controller in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario, or a relay station, access point, vehicle-mounted device, wearable device, or a network device in a future 5G network or a network device in a future evolved PLMN network, etc. The embodiments of this application are not limited.

[0102] The network device in this application embodiment can be a device in a wireless network, such as a radio access network (RAN) node that connects a terminal to the wireless network. Examples of RAN nodes include: base stations, next-generation base stations (gNBs), transmission reception points (TRPs), evolved Node Bs (eNBs), home base stations, baseband units (BBUs), or access points (APs) in a WiFi system. In a network architecture, the network device may include a centralized unit (CU) node, a distributed unit (DU) node, or a RAN device comprising both CU and DU nodes.

[0103] See Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating a beam training method provided in an embodiment of this application. The diagram only illustrates the data interaction between the first communication device and the second communication device. In actual applications, other network elements may also be involved, which will not be specifically illustrated here.

[0104] This application involves a first cell and a second cell during beam training, and the first and second cells are related. That is, based on the communication situation in the first cell, it can indirectly determine how the second communication device should transmit reference signal resources in the second cell. For example, the second communication device is a network device, located at location A, which can serve both cell A and cell B. Cell A and cell B may have overlapping geographical locations, or they may receive communication services from different network devices, but their communication environments are similar. After determining the communication situation in cell A, the network device can refer to this information to transmit reference signals to cell B.

[0105] When executing the beam training, the following steps can be used as a reference:

[0106] Step 201: The second communication device sends a reference signal of the first cell to the first communication device.

[0107] Step 202: The first communication device measures the reference signal of the first cell and obtains the first vector information.

[0108] It should be noted that the first communication device can obtain the first vector information by measuring the downlink reference signal resources of the first cell, which can be CSI-RS or SSB, etc. The first communication device can also obtain the first vector information by measuring the uplink reference signal resources of the first cell, which can be SRS, etc.

[0109] Step 203: The first communication device reports the first vector information to the second communication device.

[0110] Step 204a: The first communication device determines the first information based on the first vector information and the association between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell.

[0111] It should be noted that the vector information of the first cell may include multiple vectors. In practical applications, the association relationship between multiple vectors in the vector information of the first cell and multiple reference signal resource information of the second cell, or the association relationship between multiple vectors in the vector information of the first cell and multiple TCI state information of the second cell, can be configured according to service requirements. The vector information of the first cell can be configured by a second communication device (e.g., a network device). Furthermore, this association relationship may include multiple relationships, one of which is the association relationship between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell. When the solution of this application is applied, after the first communication device measures the first cell to obtain the first vector information, it determines the first information through the association relationship between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell. It should be understood that the association relationship between multiple vectors and multiple reference signal resource information, or the association relationship between multiple vectors and multiple TCI state information, may be one-to-one, many-to-one, or many-to-many; this application does not limit this.

[0112] Table 1 below shows the association between the vector information of the first cell and the reference signal resource information of the second cell. Table 1 is for illustrative purposes only; in actual applications, only a portion of the rows in the table may be used, and this application does not impose specific limitations here. The reference signal resource information refers to beam management (BM) RS set #1, BM RS set #2, and different BM RS sets corresponding to the vector information of different first cells. Table 1 is for illustrative purposes only; in actual applications, only a portion of the rows in the table may be used, and this application does not impose specific limitations here. The reference signal resource information associated with vector #00 shown in Table 1 is BM RS set #1; the reference signal resource information associated with vector #01 is BM RS set #2. Furthermore, other vector information of the first cell may also be associated with other BM RS sets, which will not be described in detail here. If the first vector information is vector #01, then according to Table 1, the reference signal resource information associated with the first vector information is BM RS set #2 (that is, the first reference signal resource information is BM RS set #2).

[0113] Table 1

[0114] Vector #00 BM RS Collection #1 Vector #01 BM RS Collection #2 … …

[0115] It should also be noted that when the first information is the TCI state information of the second cell, there may be multiple corresponding TCI state information, as shown in Table 2 below. Table 2 is only for illustrative purposes; in actual applications, only some rows in Table 2 may be used, and this application does not make specific limitations here. The TCI state information associated with vector #00 shown in Table 2 is TCI state #1; the TCI state information associated with vector #01 is TCI state #2. In addition, other vector information of the first cell may also be associated with other TCI state information, which will not be described one by one here. If the first vector information is vector #00, then according to Table 2, the TCI state information associated with the first vector information is TCI state #1 (that is, the first TCI state information is TCI state #1).

[0116] Table 2

[0117] Vector #00 TCI state#1 Vector #01 TCI state#2 … …

[0118] The first information can be determined by referring to the vector information of the first cell through this association relationship. The first communication device measures the first cell to obtain the first vector information, which is one or more of the vector information of the first cell in this application. Then, the associated first information can be obtained based on the first vector information (that is, the first information can be determined by referring to the first vector information).

[0119] Specifically, in practical applications, the execution order of steps 203 and 204a is not limited. Step 203 can be executed first, or step 204a can be executed first. If the processing capability of the first communication device is strong, steps 203 and 204a can be executed simultaneously.

[0120] Step 204b: The second communication device determines the first information based on the first vector information and the association between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell.

[0121] It should be noted that in steps 204a and 204b, the first information is the first reference signal resource information of the second cell, or the first TCI state information of the second cell.

[0122] Step 205a: The second communication device sends a first reference signal on the first reference resource indicated by the first reference resource information.

[0123] Step 205b: The first communication device receives the first reference signal on the first reference signal resource indicated by the first reference resource information.

[0124] Step 206a: The second communication device sends downlink physical channels according to the first TCI state information.

[0125] Step 206b: The first communication device receives the downlink physical channel according to the first TCI state information.

[0126] Specifically, when the first information is the first reference signal resource information of the second cell, steps 205a and 205b are executed; when the first information is the first TCI state information, steps 206a and 206b are executed. In practical applications, the execution order of steps 205a-205b and steps 206a-206b is not limited.

[0127] In this application, both the first and second communication devices can determine the first information associated with the first vector based on the first vector information and the correlation between the vector information of the first cell and the first information, instead of the second communication device determining the first information and then sending it to the first communication device. After determining the first information, both the first and second communication devices can perform data processing in a predetermined manner, such as: the second communication device sending a first reference signal on the first reference resource, and the first communication device receiving the first reference signal on the first reference signal resource; or, the second communication device sending a downlink physical channel based on the first TCI state information, and the first communication device receiving the downlink physical channel based on the first TCI state information. This method of beam training reduces signaling interaction and further conserves signaling resources.

[0128] In one alternative implementation, the frequency of the first cell is lower than that of the second cell, and the reference signal resources of the first cell are low-frequency reference signal resources.

[0129] It should be noted that low-frequency beams have a wider coverage range than high-frequency beams. For example, to determine the optimal communication beam within the range of -180 degrees to 180 degrees, a low-frequency beam (covering a range of -30 degrees to 30 degrees) and a high-frequency beam (covering a range of -15 degrees to 15 degrees) would require the network device to send 6 (180 / 30 = 6) low-frequency beams to the terminal device. However, determining the optimal communication beam using a high-frequency beam would require the network device to send 12 (180 / 15 = 12) high-frequency beams. Each beam consumes time and frequency domain resources, so directly determining the optimal communication beam through high-frequency beam scanning clearly requires more beams, resulting in significant resource overhead.

[0130] It should be noted that, due to the better low-frequency coverage, the first communication device can receive RS transmitted omnidirectionally or with a wide beam. High-frequency path loss is significant, requiring a large angular range to use narrow-beam scanning to obtain a superior narrow beam for communication. This high-frequency narrow-beam scanning process incurs substantial resource overhead and latency.

[0131] However, through this application, the first communication device can obtain a smaller search range for the high-frequency (second cell) narrow beam based on the vector measurement results of the low-frequency (first cell), which can reduce the resource overhead of high-frequency beam training.

[0132] In one optional implementation, the first vector information is PMI information, or the first vector information indicates the L column vector in the R column matrix corresponding to the PMI information, or the first vector information is the identification information of the oversampled DFT vector; wherein R and L are positive integers, and R is greater than or equal to L.

[0133] It should be noted that the PMI information can indicate a codebook in either type I or type II of the 38.214 protocol.

[0134] It should be noted that the first vector information is the identification information of the oversampled DFT vector. For example, an N-dimensional DFT vector. There are N orthogonal N-dimensional DFT vectors {b1, b2, ..., bN}, where m = 1, 2, ..., N. When the sampling factor is 0, the above DFT vectors are oversampled to form an oversampled DFT vector. k = 1, 2, ..., O·N, the oversampled N-dimensional DFT vector has O·N elements {b′1, b′2, ..., b′} ON}

[0135] For ease of description, the identification information of the oversampled DFT vector can also be called PMI information.

[0136] It should be noted that, in another possible implementation, the first vector information in the embodiments of this application can be replaced with "second reference signal resource information". The second reference signal resource information is the reference signal resource information of the first cell.

[0137] It should also be noted that, in the various embodiments of this application, the reference signal resource information may be a reference signal resource index or a reference signal resource identifier, etc., and this application does not limit it in this way.

[0138] The PMI information indicates the beam direction of the low-frequency reference signal. The first communication device reports the PMI information to the second communication device, which then knows which beam directions the terminal device can receive during beam scanning. The following explanation uses the vector information of the first cell as the PMI information.

[0139] It should be noted that the first communication device measures the reference signal of the first cell to obtain PMI information and feeds the PMI information back to the second communication device. This allows the second communication device to activate the reference signal resources associated with the first vector information, avoiding signaling interaction for reference signal resource reconfiguration and reducing high-frequency beam training latency. Since low-frequency and high-frequency signals have angular domain correlation, narrowing the high-frequency beam search range using low-frequency PMI information measurement results can effectively reduce the overhead of high-frequency beam training.

[0140] In an optional implementation, when the first information is the first reference signal resource information of the second cell, the second communication device may activate the first reference signal resource information associated with the first vector information before the above step 205a (the second communication device sends the first reference signal on the first reference resource) is executed.

[0141] Optionally, the first reference signal resource information can be reference signal resource information used for beam management. In practical applications, the first reference signal resource information can also be other information, and this application does not make specific limitations here. The following description takes BM RS as the first reference signal resource information.

[0142] For example, if a terminal device reports K PMI information entries, then the BS RS set associated with those K PMI entries is activated, and other BS RS sets are activated in turn. However, in practical applications, network devices can also activate some BS RS sets associated with PMI information entries. In practical applications, taking the first communication device as the terminal device and the second communication device as the network device as an example, the following two methods are mainly included:

[0143] Method 1: The terminal device reports PMI information, which indicates a precoding matrix including R columns (the precoding matrix in R columns corresponds to the precoding vector in R columns), and the network device activates the BM RS set associated with the precoding vector in R columns.

[0144] Method 2: The terminal device reports PMI information, which indicates the BM RS set associated with the L columns (or the top L columns) of precoding vectors with the best signal quality among the R columns of precoding vectors activated by the network device. Here, L can be configured by the network device or predefined by the protocol; for example, L=1. This application does not specifically limit the value of L.

[0145] In another optional implementation, when the first information is the first TCI state information, the second communication device may also activate the first TCI state information before executing step 206a (the second communication device sends the downlink physical channel according to the first TCI state information). Taking the first communication device as a terminal device and the second communication device as a network device as an example, the following two methods are mainly included:

[0146] Method 1: The terminal device reports PMI information, which indicates a precoding matrix including R columns (the precoding matrix in R columns corresponds to the precoding vector in R columns), and the network device activates the first TCI state information associated with the precoding vector in R columns.

[0147] Method 2: The terminal device reports PMI information, which indicates the first TCI state information associated with the L columns (or the top L columns) of precoding vectors in the R columns of precoding matrices (each column corresponds to an R column of precoding vectors), which are the best in terms of signal quality, activated by the network device. Here, L can be configured by the network device or predefined by the protocol; this application does not specifically limit the value of L.

[0148] In existing technologies, network devices need to configure a set of reference signal resources for high-frequency beam scanning during beam training. For example, 64 reference signal resources may be configured for beam training. However, this application performs beam training by directly activating the reference signal resources associated with the PMI information reported by the terminal device, omitting the reference signal resource reconfiguration process, reducing signaling interaction, and lowering beam training latency.

[0149] It should also be noted that the association between the first vector information and the first information can be carried through configuration information (radio resource control (RRC) signaling, MAC CE signaling, DCI signaling) (i.e., the second communication device carries the association on the configuration information and sends it to the first communication device, and the first communication device can obtain the association through the configuration information), or it can be determined autonomously by the first communication device (i.e., the first communication device measures the channel quality of the first cell to determine the second information, sends the second information to the second communication device, and the second communication device can obtain the association through the second information). This application does not make specific limitations here. Any method that can determine the association between PMI information and high-frequency reference signals is applicable to this application. The association includes: the association between PMI information and BM RS, and the association between PMI information and TCI state (or TCI state identifier). This method can reduce signaling interaction between network devices and terminal devices during beam training. In addition, the configuration information can also indicate that the first vector information is the QCL information of the first reference signal resource information.

[0150] The following methods illustrate how the association between PMI information and BM RS is configured, using the example of the first communication device as the terminal device and the second communication device as the network device:

[0151] Method 1: Configure the association between PMI information and BM RS on network devices.

[0152] Network devices know the angle information (transmit beam direction) of the BM RS and the angle information of the feature vector indicated by the PMI information. Therefore, network devices can configure the association between PMI information and BM RS based on the angle correlation between PMI information and BM RS.

[0153] Method 2: The correlation between PMI information reported by terminal devices and BM RS.

[0154] The terminal device determines the correlation between PMI information and BM RS based on channel measurement results. For example, the terminal device uses the same receiving beam to measure the channel quality corresponding to the PMI information and the channel quality of the BM RS. If the absolute value of the difference between these two channel quality values ​​is less than a preset threshold, then the PMI information and BM RS are determined to be correlated.

[0155] Method 3: After the terminal device reports the association between PMI information and BM RS, the network device reconfigures the association between PMI information and BM RS based on the PMI information of the low-frequency reference signal reported by the terminal device.

[0156] It should be noted that after the terminal device reports the association between PMI information and BM RS, the network device may choose to directly adopt the association, or it may adjust the association between the PMI information reported by the terminal device and BM RS based on the PMI information reported by the terminal device, thereby determining the association between PMI information and BM RS. This application does not specifically limit the adjustment method here.

[0157] Method 4: The network device configures the association between the PMI information and the BM RS transmitter based on the association between the transmitter's PMI information and the BM RS transmitter. After receiving the association between the PMI information and the BM RS transmitter from the network device, the terminal device determines whether an association between the PMI information and the BM RS exists at the terminal device's receiving end based on channel measurement results. If it exists, the terminal device can report the association between the PMI information and the BM RS receiver to the network device, and the network device can adjust the association between the PMI information and the BM RS receiver based on the association.

[0158] In addition, the relationship between PMI information and BM RS determined by the above four methods can be that one PMI information is associated with one set of BM RS, a vector composed of PMI information is associated with one set of BM RS, PMI information is used as QCL information of BM RS, or the RS used to measure PMI information is used as QCL source RS for BM RS.

[0159] The following methods will illustrate how the association between PMI information and TCI state is configured, using the example of the first communication device being the terminal device and the second communication device being the network device:

[0160] Method 1: Configure the association between PMI information and TCI state (or TCI state identifier) ​​on network devices.

[0161] Method 2: The association between PMI information reported by the terminal device and TCI state (or TCI state identifier).

[0162] Network devices can refer to the correlation between PMI information and first information to determine the high-frequency reference signal to be transmitted. In this way, during beam training, signaling interaction between network devices and terminal devices can be reduced, high-frequency beam training latency and overhead can be reduced, and beam indication latency can be reduced.

[0163] In addition, it should be noted that, optionally, in actual implementation, the analog receiving beam of the BM RS terminal equipment can be obtained in the following ways:

[0164] Method 1: Receive reference signals sent by network equipment via analog beamforming.

[0165] If the terminal device uses an analog beam to receive the low-frequency reference signal sent by the network device, then the first communication device can configure the CSI-RS as a QCL type D source reference signal resource (source RS) of the high-frequency CSI-RS by acquiring at least one of the following CSI-RS: CSI-RS resource identifier (channel state information reference signal resource indicator, CRI), rank indication (RI), PMI, and channel quality indicator (CQI).

[0166] Method 2: Receive reference signals transmitted by the second communication device via digital beamforming.

[0167] If the terminal device uses digital beamforming to receive low-frequency reference signals, then when receiving BM RS, the terminal device can map the low-frequency digital beam to a high-frequency analog beam. The mapping relationship between the low-frequency digital beam and the high-frequency analog beam may be one digital beam corresponding to N analog beams. In this case, the terminal device needs to have the ability to report N, so that the network device can configure reference signal resources according to the value of N for the terminal device's selection of the high-frequency analog beam.

[0168] It should be noted that high-frequency path loss is significant, requiring a large angular range for high-frequency narrow-beam scanning to obtain a superior high-frequency narrow beam before communication. This high-frequency narrow-beam scanning process incurs substantial resource overhead and latency. Considering the better low-frequency coverage, this application allows the first communication device to receive RS transmitted omnidirectionally or with a wide beam. The first communication device can then obtain a smaller search range for the high-frequency narrow beam based on the low-frequency PMI information measurement results, reducing the overhead of high-frequency beam training. Furthermore, after determining the correlation between the PMI information and the first information, the second communication device can send associated high-frequency reference signals based on the PMI information reported by the first communication device. This eliminates the need for the second communication device to continuously send switching reference signal resources to the first communication device, reducing signaling interaction and improving beam training efficiency.

[0169] It should also be noted that in the embodiments of this application, the first vector information is determined by measuring the first cell, and can be understood as the first vector information determined by measuring the reference signal resources of the first cell.

[0170] The following are detailed descriptions of the solutions proposed in this application through several implementation methods:

[0171] Implementation Method 1: The first information is BMRS

[0172] For reference Figure 3 To implement the scheme in implementation method 1, Figure 3 The diagram illustrates the first communication device as the UE and the second communication device as the gNB. Phase 1: Both the UE and gNB acquire the association relationship between PMI information and BMRS. In this phase, the association relationship between PMI information and BMRS can be configured in the ways described above, such as gNB configuration and UE reporting. These details are not elaborated here. It should be noted that both the UE and gNB are aware of this association relationship.

[0173] Phase 2: The gNB transmits a low-frequency reference signal on a low-frequency reference signal resource, which can be CSI-RS resource information. It should be noted that the CSI-RS resource information mainly refers to the CSI-RS resource index. Correspondingly, the UE receives this low-frequency reference signal.

[0174] Phase 3: The UE feeds back PMI information (e.g., the first PMI information) and channel quality to the gNB. Optionally, channel quality can be indicated by reference signal received power (RSRP), signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR), or channel quality indicator (CQI). The first PMI information is the PMI information corresponding to the better-quality channel feature vector obtained by the UE based on the channel quality measurement results. This PMI information is obtained through low-frequency reference signal resource measurement in Phase 2.

[0175] Phase 4: The gNB determines the high-frequency BMRS associated with the first PMI information based on the association between the PMI information and the high-frequency BMRS, and sends the high-frequency BMRS to the UE. Correspondingly, the UE receives the high-frequency BMRS. Optionally, the UE can determine the analog beam required to receive the BMRS based on the reception weight or reception beam determined when receiving the first PMI information of the low-frequency reference signal, and receive the BMRS through the analog beam.

[0176] Implementation Method 2: The first information is BM RS

[0177] For reference Figure 4 To implement the scheme in implementation method 2, Figure 4The diagram illustrates the relationship between the UE (User Equipment) and gNB (Garden NodeB). In Phase 1, both the UE and gNB acquire the association between PMI (Power Management Information) and the high-frequency BM RS (Bulk Base System). This association can be configured in the manner described above, such as gNB configuration or UE reporting. Details are omitted here, but it's important to note that both the UE and gNB are aware of this association.

[0178] Phase 2: The gNB transmits a low-frequency reference signal on a low-frequency reference signal resource, which can be CSI-RS resource information. It should be noted that the CSI-RS resource information mainly refers to the CSI-RS resource index. Correspondingly, the UE receives this low-frequency reference signal.

[0179] Phase 3: The UE feeds back PMI information (e.g., first PMI information) and channel quality to the gNB. Channel quality can be indicated through RSRP, SINR, CQI, etc. The first PMI information is the PMI information corresponding to the better-quality channel feature vector obtained by the UE based on the channel quality measurement results. This PMI information is obtained through the low-frequency reference signal resource measurement in Phase 2.

[0180] Phase 4: After the UE reports the PMI information, the gNB activates the TCIstate (or TCI state identifier) ​​associated with the BM RS for beam indication.

[0181] Compared to existing technologies where network equipment refreshes the PDSCH TCI state list via MAC CE based on measurement results from terminal devices, this method can reduce control signaling interactions and decrease the latency required for beam indication.

[0182] The TCI state information (such as the first TCI state information) can be updated in the following ways:

[0183] Method 1: The first TCI state information is sequentially mapped to the code points of the first word field of the DCI; the first word field is used to indicate the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

[0184] For example, based on the measurement results of the first PMI information, the indexes of the TCI states corresponding to the BM RS associated with the PMI information are mapped sequentially to the code points of the TCI field in the DCI in ascending order (or descending order, or other predefined order, which is not specifically limited here). That is, the TCI state list configured by the MAC CE for the data channel (such as PDSCH) or control channel (such as physical downlink control channel, PDCCH) is refreshed through the PMI information.

[0185] For example, the TCI state information (TCI state index) of the second cell is 0, 3, 5, 7. The TCI state information is mapped to the code points of the first word field of the DCI in ascending order (assuming that the code point is 2 bits). This can be understood as follows: index 0 is mapped to code point 00, index 3 is mapped to code point 01, index 5 is mapped to code point 10, and index 7 is mapped to code point 11.

[0186] Method 2: Use the first TCI state information as the TCI state candidate list information for the downlink physical channel.

[0187] For example, based on the measurement results of the first PMI information, the TCI state corresponding to the BM RS associated with that PMI information is used as the candidate TCI state list for the PDCCH. That is, through PMI information refresh, the RRC configures the TCI state list for the control channel (such as PDCCH).

[0188] For example, the TCI state candidate list of the downlink physical channel of the second cell includes multiple TCI states. In practical applications, the first communication device can select one or more TCI states from the TCI state candidate list of the downlink physical channel of the second cell to receive the downlink physical channel.

[0189] Implementation Method 3: The first information is BM RS

[0190] For reference Figure 5 To implement the scheme in implementation method 3, Figure 5 The first communication device is the UE and the second communication device is the gNB. In stage 1, the gNB transmits a low-frequency reference signal on the low-frequency reference signal resource. The low-frequency reference signal resource can be CSI-RS resource information. It should also be noted that the CSI-RS resource information mainly refers to the CSI-RS resource index.

[0191] Phase 2: The UE feeds back PMI information (e.g., first PMI information) and channel quality to the gNB. Channel quality can be indicated by RSRP, SINR, CQI, etc., and the first PMI information is the PMI information corresponding to the better-quality channel feature vector obtained by the UE based on the channel quality measurement results.

[0192] Phase 3: gNB configures the QCL information of BM RS, which includes the first PMI information.

[0193] Phase 4: The gNB sends the BM RS to the UE. Accordingly, the UE receives the high-frequency BM RS. Optionally, the UE may determine the analog beam (or receive beam) required to receive the BM RS based on the receive weight or receive beam determined when receiving the first PMI information of the low-frequency reference signal, and receive the BM RS through the analog beam (or receive beam).

[0194] Implementation Method 4: The first information is the TCI state corresponding to the first TCI state information.

[0195] For reference Figure 6 To implement the scheme in implementation method 4, Figure 6 The diagram illustrates the relationship between the UE (User Equipment) and gNB (Garden NodeB). Phase 1: Both the UE and gNB acquire the association between PMI (Program Management Information) and TCI (Tracking Control Point) state. In this phase, the association between PMI and TCI state can be configured in the ways described above, such as gNB configuration or UE reporting. These details are not elaborated here. It should be noted that both the UE and gNB are aware of this association.

[0196] Phase 2: The gNB transmits a low-frequency reference signal on a low-frequency reference signal resource, which can be CSI-RS resource information. It should also be noted that the CSI-RS resource information mainly refers to the CSI-RS resource index.

[0197] Phase 3: The UE feeds back PMI information (e.g., first PMI information) and channel quality to the gNB. Channel quality can be indicated by RSRP, SINR, CQI, etc., and the first PMI information is the PMI information corresponding to the channel feature vector with better quality obtained by the UE based on the channel quality measurement results.

[0198] Phase 4: The gNB activates the TCI state list (the TCI state list of the downlink physical channel configured by the RRC) used for transmitting the downlink physical channel (PDSCH or PDCCH). The TCI states in this TCI state list are mapped to code points in the TCI field of the DCI in ascending order of their indices.

[0199] Phase 5: The gNB sends a DCI with the TCI field having a code point value of L. Correspondingly, the UE receives a DCI with the TCI field having a code point value of L.

[0200] Phase 6: The gNB transmits the downlink physical channel based on a TCI state x in the updated TCI state list indicated by the TCI field in the DCI (that is, a TCI state in the updated TCI state list in Phase 4, where the code point value L of the TCI field indicates TCI state x). Correspondingly, the UE receives the PDSCH based on a TCI state x in the updated TCI state list indicated by the TCI field in the DCI.

[0201] The TCI state information (such as the first TCI state information) can be updated in the following ways:

[0202] Method 1: The first TCI state information is sequentially mapped to the code points of the first word field of the DCI; the first word field is used to indicate the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

[0203] For example, based on the measurement results of the first PMI information, the indices of the TCI states associated with the PMI information are mapped sequentially to the code points of the TCI field of the DCI in ascending order (or descending order, or other predefined order, which is not specifically limited here). That is, the TCI state list configured by the MAC CE for the data channel (such as PDSCH) or control channel (such as PDCCH) is refreshed through the PMI information.

[0204] For example, the TCI state information (TCI state index) of the second cell associated with the first vector information is 0, 3, 5, 7. The TCI state information is mapped to the code points of the first word field of the DCI in ascending order (assuming that the code point is 2 bits). This can be understood as follows: index 0 is mapped to code point 00, index 3 is mapped to code point 01, index 5 is mapped to code point 10, and index 7 is mapped to code point 11.

[0205] Method 2: Use the first TCI state information as the candidate list of TCI states for the downlink physical channel.

[0206] For example, based on the measurement results of the first PMI information, the TCI state associated with that PMI information is used as a candidate TCI state list for the PDCCH. That is, through PMI information refresh, the RRC configures a list of TCI states for the control channel (such as the PDCCH).

[0207] For example, the TCI state candidate list of the downlink physical channel of the second cell associated with the first vector information includes multiple TCI states. In practical applications, the first communication device can select one or more TCI states from the TCI state candidate list of the downlink physical channel of the second cell to receive the downlink physical channel.

[0208] It should be noted that, in the embodiments of this application, the UE can report whether it supports performing the above operations through terminal capability parameters, such as the ability to report the association between PMI information and BM RS; the ability to report the association between PMI information and TCI state information; and the ability to determine QCL information related to BM RS based on PMI information (that is, the ability of PMI information as QCL information), etc.

[0209] This application takes into account the better low-frequency coverage. The first communication device can receive RS transmitted omnidirectionally or with a wide beam. Then, based on the low-frequency PMI measurement results, the first communication device can obtain a smaller search range for the high-frequency narrow beam, reducing the overhead of high-frequency beam training. Furthermore, after determining the correlation between the PMI and the first information, the second communication device can send the associated high-frequency reference signal based on the PMI reported by the first communication device. This eliminates the need for the second communication device to continuously send switching reference signal resources to the first communication device, thereby reducing signaling interaction and improving beam training efficiency.

[0210] Based on the same concept, such as Figure 7 As shown in the figure, this application provides a beam training device, including a transceiver unit 71 and a processing unit 72.

[0211] If the beam training device is a first communication device, then the processing unit 71 of the first communication device can be used to send first vector information, which is determined by measuring the first cell; the processing unit 72 can be used to determine first information based on the first vector information and the association relationship between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell; wherein, the first information is first reference signal resource information, or the first information is first TCI state information; and, if the first information is first reference signal resource information, then a first reference signal is received on the first reference signal resource indicated by the first reference signal resource information; or, if the first information is first TCI state information, then a downlink physical channel is received based on the first TCI state information.

[0212] In one alternative approach, the frequency of the first cell is lower than that of the second cell.

[0213] In one alternative approach, the association is determined by: receiving configuration information from a second communication device; the configuration information indicating the association; or, determining the association based on the channel quality of the first cell measured by the first communication device.

[0214] In one alternative approach, the first vector information is PMI information, or the first vector information indicates the L column vectors in the R column matrix corresponding to the PMI information, or the first vector information is the identification information of the oversampled Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) vector; wherein R and L are positive integers, and R is greater than or equal to L.

[0215] In one alternative approach, the first TCI state information is sequentially mapped onto the code points of the first word field of the DCI; the first word field is used to indicate the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

[0216] In one alternative approach, the first TCI state information is a candidate list of TCI states for the downlink physical channel.

[0217] In one alternative approach, the configuration information is used to indicate QCL information for the first vector information as the first reference signal resource information.

[0218] In one alternative approach, the first reference signal resource information is reference signal resource information used for beam management.

[0219] If the beam training device is a second communication device, the transceiver unit 71 of the second communication device can be used to receive first vector information; the processing unit 72 can be used to determine the first information based on the first vector information and the association relationship between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell; wherein the first information is first reference signal resource information, or the first information is first TCI state information; and if the first information is the first reference signal resource information, then a first reference signal is transmitted on the first reference signal resource indicated by the first reference signal resource information; or, if the first information is the first TCI state information, then a downlink physical channel is transmitted based on the first TCI state information.

[0220] In one alternative approach, the frequency of the first cell is lower than that of the second cell.

[0221] In one alternative approach, the association is determined by: receiving second information from a first communication device; the second information indicating the association; or, determining the association; the association being carried in configuration information.

[0222] In one alternative approach, the first vector information is PMI information, or the first vector information indicates the L column vectors in the R column matrix corresponding to the PMI information, or the first vector information is the identification information of the oversampled Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) vector; wherein R and L are positive integers, and R is greater than or equal to L.

[0223] In one alternative approach, the first information is first reference signal resource information; the processing unit 72 is also used to activate the first reference signal resource.

[0224] In an alternative embodiment, the processing unit 72 is further configured to determine first TCI state information based on the first reference signal resource and activate the TCI state corresponding to the first TCI state information.

[0225] In one alternative approach, the configuration information is used to indicate QCL information for the first vector information as the first reference signal resource information.

[0226] In one alternative approach, the first reference signal resource information is reference signal resource information used for beam management.

[0227] In one alternative approach, the first information is first TCI state information; the processing unit is further configured to activate the TCI state corresponding to the first TCI state information.

[0228] In one alternative approach, the first TCI state information is sequentially mapped onto the code points of the first word field of the DCI; the first word field is used to indicate the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

[0229] In one alternative approach, the first TCI state information is a candidate list of TCI states for the downlink physical channel.

[0230] Based on the same concept, such as Figure 8 The image shows a communication device 800 provided in this application. Exemplarily, the communication device 800 may be a chip or a chip system. Optionally, in the embodiments of this application, the chip system may be composed of chips, or may include chips and other discrete devices.

[0231] The communication device 800 may include at least one processor 810, and may also include at least one memory 820 for storing computer programs, program instructions, and / or data. The memory 820 and the processor 810 are coupled. The coupling in this embodiment is an indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units, or modules, and may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms, used for information exchange between devices, units, or modules. The processor 810 may operate in conjunction with the memory 820. The processor 810 may execute the computer program stored in the memory 820. Optionally, the at least one memory 820 may be integrated into the processor 810.

[0232] It should be noted that the processor can be one of the above-mentioned... Figure 7 The processing unit in the process, the transceiver, can be one of the above-mentioned... Figure 7 The processing unit in the process.

[0233] The communication device 800 may also include a transceiver unit 830, through which the communication device 800 can exchange information with other devices. The transceiver unit 830 may be a circuit, a bus, a transceiver unit, or any other device that can be used for information exchange.

[0234] In one possible implementation, the communication device 800 can be applied to the aforementioned network device. Specifically, the communication device 800 can be the aforementioned network device itself, or it can be an apparatus capable of supporting the aforementioned network device in implementing any of the above embodiments. The memory 820 stores the necessary computer programs, program instructions, and / or data for implementing the functions of the network device in any of the above embodiments. The processor 810 can execute the computer program stored in the memory 820 to complete the method in any of the above embodiments.

[0235] This application embodiment does not limit the specific connection medium between the transceiver unit 830, the processor 810, and the memory 820. This application embodiment... Figure 8 The memory 820, processor 810, and transceiver unit 830 are connected via a bus. Additionally, the transceiver unit can be connected to the antenna 840. Figure 8 The connections between other components are shown in bold and are for illustrative purposes only, not as limiting information. The bus can be divided into address bus, data bus, control bus, etc. For ease of illustration, Figure 8 The bus is represented by a single thick line, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0236] In the embodiments of this application, the processor may be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, or discrete hardware components, and may implement or execute the methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of this application. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor. The steps of the methods disclosed in the embodiments of this application can be directly manifested as being executed by a hardware processor, or executed by a combination of hardware and software modules within the processor.

[0237] In the embodiments of this application, the memory can be non-volatile memory, such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid-state drive (SSD), or it can be volatile memory, such as random-access memory (RAM). The memory can also be any other medium capable of carrying or storing desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures, and accessible by a computer, but is not limited thereto. The memory in the embodiments of this application can also be a circuit or any other device capable of implementing storage functions, used to store computer programs, program instructions, and / or data.

[0238] In this embodiment, the communication device includes a hardware layer, an operating system layer running on top of the hardware layer, and an application layer running on top of the operating system layer. The hardware layer includes hardware such as a central processing unit (CPU), a memory management unit (MMU), and memory (also called main memory). The operating system can be any one or more computer operating systems that implement business processing through processes, such as Linux, Unix, Android, iOS, or Windows. The application layer includes applications such as browsers, address books, word processing software, and instant messaging software. Furthermore, this embodiment does not specifically limit the specific structure of the execution entity of the method provided in this embodiment. As long as communication can be performed according to the method provided in this embodiment by running a program that records the code of the method provided in this embodiment, for example, the execution entity of the method provided in this embodiment can be a terminal device or a network device, or a functional module in the terminal device or network device that can call and execute a program.

[0239] Based on the above embodiments, this application also provides a readable storage medium storing instructions that, when executed, cause the method performed by the security detection device in any of the above embodiments to be implemented. The readable storage medium may include various media capable of storing program code, such as a USB flash drive, portable hard drive, read-only memory, random access memory, magnetic disk, or optical disk.

[0240] Those skilled in the art will understand that embodiments of this application can be provided as methods, systems, or computer program products. Therefore, this application can take the form of a completely hardware embodiment, a completely software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects. Furthermore, this application can take the form of a computer program product embodied on one or more computer-usable storage media (including but not limited to disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0241] This application is described with reference to flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to this application. It should be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, embedded processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions specified in one or more flowchart illustrations and / or one or more block diagrams.

[0242] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable storage medium produce an article of manufacture including instruction means that implement the functions specified in one or more flowcharts and / or one or more block diagrams.

[0243] These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer-implemented process, such that the instructions, which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus, provide steps for implementing the functions specified in one or more flowcharts and / or one or more block diagrams.

Claims

1. A beam training method, applied to the terminal device side, characterized in that, include: Send first vector information, which is determined by measurement of the first cell; the first vector information is a precoding matrix indicating PMI information, or the first vector information indicates L column vectors in the R column matrix corresponding to the PMI information, or the first vector information is the identification information of the oversampled Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) vector; wherein R and L are positive integers, and R is greater than or equal to L. The first information is determined based on the first vector information and the association between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell; wherein the first information is first reference signal resource information, or the first information is first transmission configuration indication state (TCI) state information; the frequency of the first cell is lower than the frequency of the second cell; If the first information is the first reference signal resource information, then the first reference signal is received on the first reference signal resource indicated by the first reference signal resource information; or, If the first information is the first TCI state information, then the downlink physical channel is received according to the first TCI state information.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The association is determined in the following way: Receive configuration information from a network device; the configuration information indicates the association relationship. or, The correlation is determined based on the channel quality of the first cell measured by the terminal device.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first TCI state information is sequentially mapped to the code points of the first word field of the downlink control information (DCI); the first word field is used to indicate the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

4. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first TCI state information is the candidate list information of the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

5. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The configuration information indicates that the first vector information is the quasi-co-address QCL information of the first reference signal resource information.

6. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first reference signal resource information is reference signal resource information used for beam management.

7. A beam training method, applied to the network device side, characterized in that, include: The system receives first vector information, which is determined by the terminal device through measurement of the first cell. The first vector information is either a precoding matrix indicating PMI information, or the first vector information indicates L column vectors in the R column matrix corresponding to the PMI information, or the first vector information is the identification information of an oversampled Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) vector; wherein R and L are positive integers, and R is greater than or equal to L. The first information is determined based on the first vector information and the association between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell; wherein the first information is first reference signal resource information, or the first information is first transmission configuration indication state (TCI) state information. If the first information is the first reference signal resource information, then the first reference signal is transmitted on the first reference signal resource indicated by the first reference signal resource information; the frequency of the first cell is lower than the frequency of the second cell; or, If the first information is the first TCI state information, then the downlink physical channel is sent according to the first TCI state information.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that, The association is determined in the following way: Receive second information from the terminal device; the second information indicates the association relationship. or, The association is determined; the association is contained in the configuration information.

9. The method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that, The first information is first reference signal resource information; the method further includes: Activate the first reference signal resource.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The method further includes: The first TCI state information is determined based on the first reference signal resource; Activate the TCI state corresponding to the first TCI state information.

11. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The configuration information indicates that the first vector information is the quasi-co-address QCL information of the first reference signal resource information.

12. The method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that, The first reference signal resource information is reference signal resource information used for beam management.

13. The method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that, The first information is the first TCI state information; the method further includes: Activate the TCI state corresponding to the first TCI state information.

14. The method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that, The first TCI state information is sequentially mapped to the code points of the first word field of the downlink control information (DCI); the first word field is used to indicate the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

15. The method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that, The first TCI state information is the candidate list information of the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

16. A beam training device, characterized in that, include: A transceiver unit is used to transmit first vector information, which is determined by measuring the first cell; The first vector information is a precoding matrix indicating PMI information, or the first vector information indicates the L column vectors in the R column matrix corresponding to the PMI information, or the first vector information is the identification information of the oversampled Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) vector; wherein R and L are positive integers, and R is greater than or equal to L; The processing unit is configured to determine the first information based on the first vector information and the association relationship between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell; wherein the first information is first reference signal resource information, or the first information is first transmission configuration indication state (TCI) state information; and the frequency of the first cell is lower than the frequency of the second cell. Wherein, if the first information is the first reference signal resource information, then the first reference signal is received on the first reference signal resource indicated by the first reference signal resource information; or, if the first information is the first TCI state information, then the downlink physical channel is received according to the first TCI state information.

17. The apparatus according to claim 16, characterized in that, The association is determined in the following way: Receive configuration information from a network device; the configuration information indicates the association relationship. or, The correlation is determined based on the channel quality of the first cell measured by the beam training device.

18. The apparatus according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that, The first TCI state information is sequentially mapped to the code points of the first word field of the downlink control information (DCI); the first word field is used to indicate the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

19. The apparatus according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that, The first TCI state information is the candidate list information of the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

20. The apparatus according to claim 17, characterized in that, The configuration information indicates that the first vector information is the quasi-co-address QCL information of the first reference signal resource information.

21. The apparatus according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that, The first reference signal resource information is reference signal resource information used for beam management.

22. A beam training device, characterized in that, include: The transceiver unit is used to receive first vector information, which is determined by the terminal device through measurement of the first cell. The first vector information is precoding matrix indicating PMI information, or the first vector information indicating PMI information is an L-column vector in an R-column matrix, or the first vector information is the identification information of an oversampled Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) vector; wherein R and L are positive integers, and R is greater than or equal to L. The processing unit is configured to determine the first information based on the first vector information and the association relationship between the first vector information and the first information of the second cell; wherein the first information is first reference signal resource information, or the first information is first transmission configuration indication state (TCI) state information; and the frequency of the first cell is lower than the frequency of the second cell. Wherein, if the first information is the first reference signal resource information, then a first reference signal is transmitted on the first reference signal resource indicated by the first reference signal resource information; or, if the first information is the first TCI state information, then a downlink physical channel is transmitted according to the first TCI state information.

23. The apparatus according to claim 22, characterized in that, The association is determined in the following way: Receive second information from the terminal device; the second information indicates the association relationship. or, The association is determined; the association is contained in the configuration information.

24. The apparatus according to claim 22 or 23, characterized in that, The first information is first reference signal resource information; the processing unit is further configured to: Activate the first reference signal resource.

25. The apparatus according to claim 24, characterized in that, The processing unit is also used for: The first TCI state information is determined based on the first reference signal resource; Activate the TCI state corresponding to the first TCI state information.

26. The apparatus according to claim 23, characterized in that, The configuration information indicates that the first vector information is the quasi-co-address QCL information of the first reference signal resource information.

27. The apparatus according to claim 22 or 23, characterized in that, The first reference signal resource information is reference signal resource information used for beam management.

28. The apparatus according to claim 22 or 23, characterized in that, The first information is the first TCI state information; the processing unit is further configured to: Activate the TCI state corresponding to the first TCI state information.

29. The apparatus according to claim 22 or 23, characterized in that, The first TCI state information is sequentially mapped to the code points of the first word field of the downlink control information (DCI); the first word field is used to indicate the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

30. The apparatus according to claim 22 or 23, characterized in that, The first TCI state information is the candidate list information of the TCI state of the downlink physical channel.

31. A communication device, characterized in that, include: Processor and memory; The memory is used to store computer programs; The processor is configured to execute a computer program stored in the memory, causing the communication device to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1-6 or 7-15.

32. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause a computer to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1-6 or 7-15.

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