Electronic equipment, positioning method and computer readable storage medium

Abstract

The invention provides an electronic device, a positioning method and a computer readable storage medium. The electronic equipment can comprise a processing circuit, and the processing circuit is configured to send a positioning instruction to a plurality of terminal equipment near a positioning target so as to instruct the terminal equipment to send a sensing signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain sensing data; receiving a plurality of perception data from the plurality of terminal devices; and processing the received sensing data to obtain a positioning result of the positioning target.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of wireless communication technology, and more specifically, to an electronic device, a positioning method, and a computer-readable storage medium that facilitate positioning using sensing signals. Background Art

[0002] High-precision positioning technology refers to the use of advanced sensors, algorithms and data processing technologies to accurately locate the target location. This technology can be applied to many fields, such as navigation, driverless cars, aerospace, military, earthquake warning, etc. In high-precision positioning technology, sensors such as the global positioning system (GPS), inertial navigation system (INS), and lidar are usually used to collect information related to the target location, and then use advanced algorithms and data processing technologies to analyze and process this information to obtain more accurate location information.

[0003] In practical applications, existing high-precision positioning technologies may have various problems. For example, due to reasons such as building occlusion, high-precision positioning in indoor environments is difficult to achieve only through solutions such as GPS. In addition, INS can only locate relative positions, which has the problem of cumulative errors. In addition, the cost of high-precision sensors such as lidar is too high, making it difficult to promote them on a large scale in indoor environments.

[0004] In addition, traditional positioning technology based on wireless communication relies on the collaboration of multiple base stations / positioning anchor points to achieve high-precision positioning measurement, and in order to obtain accurate measurement results, a direct path between the positioning terminal and the positioning anchor point is required. In actual application scenarios, the direct path between the positioning terminal and the positioning anchor point may be blocked, which may also lead to reduced positioning accuracy. Summary of the invention

[0005] A brief overview of the disclosure is given below in order to provide a basic understanding of certain aspects of the disclosure. However, it should be understood that this overview is not an exhaustive overview of the disclosure. It is not intended to identify the key or important parts of the disclosure, nor is it intended to limit the scope of the disclosure. Its purpose is simply to give certain concepts of the disclosure in a simplified form as a prelude to a more detailed description given later.

[0006] An object of at least one aspect of the present disclosure is to provide an electronic device, a positioning method, and a computer-readable storage medium, which are capable of utilizing sensing signals of multiple terminal devices for positioning, thereby facilitating high-precision positioning in a relatively low-cost manner, and facilitating application in situations where there are building obstructions, such as indoor environments.

[0007] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, an electronic device is provided, which includes a processing circuit, which is configured to: send a positioning indication to multiple terminal devices near a positioning target to instruct the terminal devices to send a perception signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain perception data; receive multiple perception data from the multiple terminal devices; and process the received perception data to obtain a positioning result for the positioning target.

[0008] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a terminal device is also provided, which includes a processing circuit, and the processing circuit is configured to: receive a positioning indication from an electronic device; based on the positioning indication, send a perception signal to a positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain perception data; send the perception data to the electronic device so that the electronic device can obtain a positioning result for the positioning target by processing multiple perception data from multiple terminal devices.

[0009] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a positioning method is also provided, which includes: sending positioning instructions to multiple terminal devices near a positioning target to instruct the terminal devices to send perception signals to the positioning target and receive echo signals to obtain perception data; receiving multiple perception data from the multiple terminal devices; and processing the received perception data to obtain a positioning result for the positioning target.

[0010] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a positioning method implemented on the terminal device side is also provided, the method comprising: receiving a positioning indication from an electronic device; based on the positioning indication, sending a perception signal to a positioning target and receiving an echo signal to obtain perception data; sending the perception data to the electronic device so that the electronic device can obtain a positioning result for the positioning target by processing multiple perception data from multiple terminal devices.

[0011] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing executable instructions is also provided. When the executable instructions are executed by a processor, the processor executes the above-mentioned positioning method or each function of the above-mentioned electronic device or terminal device.

[0012] According to other aspects of the present disclosure, a computer program code and a computer program product for implementing the above method according to the present disclosure are also provided.

[0013] According to at least one aspect of an embodiment of the present disclosure, positioning is performed using sensing signals of multiple terminal devices near a positioning target, thereby facilitating high-precision positioning at a relatively low cost and facilitating application in situations where there are building obstructions, such as indoor environments.

[0014] Other aspects of the embodiments of the present disclosure are given in the following description, wherein the detailed description is used to fully disclose the preferred embodiments of the embodiments of the present disclosure without imposing limitations thereon. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected embodiments and not all possible implementations, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. In the drawings:

[0016] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram for illustrating collaborative positioning using multiple terminal devices;

[0017] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an electronic device according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0018] Figure 3A and Figure 3B It is a schematic diagram for explaining that the perception vectors constitute or approximately constitute a convex hull set;

[0019] 4A to 4D is an explanatory diagram for explaining an example process of vector fusion;

[0020] Figure 5 and Figure 6 Each is a flow chart illustrating an example signaling interaction between an electronic device and a terminal device according to an embodiment;

[0021] Figure 7 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a terminal device according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0022] Figure 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a process of a positioning method according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0023] Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of a process for implementing a positioning method on a terminal device side according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0024] Fig.10 is a block diagram showing a first example of a schematic configuration of an eNB to which the technology of the present disclosure can be applied;

[0025] Fig.11 is a block diagram showing a second example of a schematic configuration of an eNB to which the technology of the present disclosure can be applied;

[0026] Fig.12 is a block diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a smartphone to which the technology of the present disclosure can be applied;

[0027] Fig.13is a block diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a car navigation device to which the technology of the present disclosure can be applied.

[0028] Although the present disclosure is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown as examples in the drawings and are described in detail herein. It should be understood, however, that the description of specific embodiments herein is not intended to limit the present disclosure to the specific forms disclosed, but rather, the present disclosure is intended to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives that fall within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. It should be noted that throughout the several drawings, corresponding reference numerals indicate corresponding parts. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] Examples of the present disclosure will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings.The following description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the present disclosure, application, or uses.

[0030] Example embodiments are provided so that the disclosure will be exhaustive and its scope will be fully conveyed to those skilled in the art. Numerous specific details such as examples of specific components, devices and methods are set forth to provide a detailed understanding of the embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the example embodiments may be implemented in many different forms without the use of specific details, none of which should be construed as limiting the scope of the present disclosure. In certain example embodiments, well-known processes, well-known structures and well-known techniques are not described in detail.

[0031] The description will be in the following order:

[0032] 1. Overview

[0033] 2. Configuration examples of electronic devices

[0034] 3. Configuration example of terminal equipment

[0035] 4. Method Embodiment

[0036] 5. Application Examples

[0037] <1. Overview>

[0038] As mentioned above, various existing high-precision positioning technologies and traditional positioning technologies based on wireless communication using base stations and / or positioning anchors may all experience a problem of reduced positioning accuracy in situations such as the presence of obstructions in indoor environments.

[0039] In view of the above situation, the inventor proposed an inventive concept of using perception signals of multiple terminal devices near the positioning target for collaborative positioning. Figure 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining collaborative positioning using multiple terminal devices. Figure 1As shown, by controlling an electronic device such as a base station gNB, for a positioning target in an indoor environment (which may be, for example, a terminal device UEX within the coverage of a gNB), multiple terminal devices UEi (i=1, 2, 3, 4) near the positioning target can send a perception signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain perception data, and then obtain a positioning result for the positioning target based on the perception data. In this way, a large number of terminal devices in the indoor environment are advantageously utilized, and the perception data of multiple terminal devices can be used to improve the accuracy of the positioning result.

[0040] Next, we will continue to combine Figure 1 An example of beam management is provided, and an embodiment of a device / method based on the above-mentioned inventive concept and various preferred examples and processes are described. Note that although the inventive concept of the present disclosure is first proposed based on the problems existing in the indoor environment, based on the present disclosure, those skilled in the art can understand that the present disclosure is not limited to the indoor environment and can be appropriately applied to various scenarios, as long as there are multiple terminal devices near the positioning target, which will not be repeated here.

[0041] <2. Configuration Example of Electronic Equipment>

[0042] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an electronic device according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0043] like Figure 2 As shown, the electronic device 200 may include a generating unit 210, a transceiver unit 220, and a perception processing unit 230. Optionally, the electronic device 200 may also include a storage unit (not shown) for storing various data, programs, information, and the like.

[0044] Here, each unit of the electronic device 200 may be included in a processing circuit. It should be noted that the electronic device 200 may include one processing circuit or multiple processing circuits. Further, the processing circuit may include various discrete functional units to perform various functions and / or operations. It should be noted that these functional units may be physical entities or logical entities, and units with different names may be implemented by the same physical entity.

[0045] Preferably, the electronic device 200 may be a network side device such as a base station side device, so as to conveniently control multiple terminal devices near the positioning target to cooperate in sensing positioning; the following embodiments will also be described with the electronic device 200 as a base station side device (such as Figure 1Various detailed descriptions are given by taking the gNB shown in the figure as an example. In addition, in order to simplify the description, some detailed descriptions are combined with an example application scenario in which the positioning target is a terminal device UEX. However, the present disclosure is not limited to this. The electronic device 200 can be a terminal device, and communicates with multiple terminal devices near the positioning target via a method such as a direct link (Sidelink) communication, thereby controlling the latter to collaborate in perceiving positioning; and the positioning target itself can also be other positioning objects other than the terminal device, which will not be described in detail here.

[0046] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the generating unit 210 of the electronic device 200 may be configured to generate positioning instructions for multiple terminal devices near the positioning target. The transceiver unit 220 of the electronic device 200 may be configured to send the positioning instructions generated by the generating unit 210 to multiple terminal devices near the positioning target to instruct the terminal devices to send a perception signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain perception data; and receive multiple perception data from the multiple terminal devices. In addition, the perception processing unit 230 of the electronic device 200 may be configured to process the received perception data to obtain a positioning result for the positioning target.

[0047] In this way, the electronic device 200 can instruct multiple terminal devices near the positioning target to perform collaborative perception positioning, thereby facilitating obtaining a final positioning result for the positioning target based on the perception data of the multiple terminal devices.

[0048] In order to perform collaborative positioning using terminal devices near the positioning target, as a preprocessing, the electronic device 200 can use its transceiver unit 220 and perception processing unit 230 (which can, for example, be additionally configured to perform traditional positioning processing) to obtain information such as the preliminary position of the positioning target and the preliminary position of terminal devices near the positioning target in various appropriate ways, so as to facilitate the subsequent instructing these terminal devices to participate in collaborative positioning and use their perception data to obtain the final positioning result.

[0049] For example, in the electronic device 200, such as Figure 1In the case where the gNB is a base station side device and the positioning target itself is a terminal device UEX, the transceiver unit 220 can send and receive reference signals with the positioning target UEX, and the perception processing unit 230 can perform various existing positioning processes based on the received reference signal to obtain the preliminary positioning of the positioning target as its preliminary position P0. In addition, for example, when the positioning target itself has a GPS positioning function, the electronic device 200 can use the transceiver unit 220 to receive the preliminary position P0 reported by the positioning target from the positioning target. Here, due to reasons such as limited positioning accuracy, additionally or alternatively, the perception processing unit 230 can obtain the position range (rather than a single position) of the positioning target, that is, the target area areaT as its preliminary position P0. The present disclosure does not limit the method of obtaining the preliminary position of the positioning target.

[0050] After obtaining the preliminary position P0 of the positioning target, the generating unit 210 may, for example, take a circular area with P0 as the center and an appropriate radius as a nearby area areaN, and regard the terminal devices in the area as terminal devices UEi near the positioning target. Figure 1 In the case of the base station side device of the gNB, it can use various methods to obtain the terminal devices in its coverage area / near the positioning target (within the nearby area areaN), and can obtain the preliminary positions of these terminal devices in a similar manner to the method of obtaining the preliminary position of the positioning target, which will not be repeated here.

[0051] The positioning indication generated by the generation unit 210 for the terminal device near the positioning target may include control information about the time and / or manner in which the terminal device sends a perception signal to the positioning target and / or sends perception data to the electronic device. Here, "control information about the manner in which the perception signal / perception data is sent" covers control information about the specific form or format of the perception signal / perception data.

[0052] For example, the positioning indication may indicate the preliminary position of the positioning target and / or include beam-related information of the perception signal. In addition, the positioning indication may indicate the content or items included in the perception data by indicating the format of the perception data, and these contents or items may include the original data of the perception signal and the echo signal, and may also include the preliminary perception result after the terminal device performs preliminary processing on the original data. Preferably, the positioning indication may indicate the format of the perception data, for example, requiring the perception data to indicate the strength, quality, etc. of the echo signal and the angle (perception angle) and / or distance (perception distance) of the positioning target relative to the terminal device, and / or requiring the perception data to include beam-related information of the perception signal (for example, but not limited to beam width information, etc.). The strength, quality, etc. of the echo signal and the beam width information of the perception signal can characterize the accuracy of the perception data, thereby facilitating the perception processing unit 230 to subsequently select and / or process the corresponding perception data and determine the accuracy of the positioning results using these perception data (to be described in detail later).

[0053] The transceiver unit 220 sends the above positioning indication to the terminal device, so that it can send a perception signal to the positioning target according to the time and / or method indicated by the positioning indication. Preferably, the terminal device can send a perception signal to the positioning target using a directional beam based on the positioning indication (for example, based on the preliminary position indicated by the positioning indication and / or the beam-related information included therein), and can receive an echo signal reflected from the positioning target. In addition, preferably, the terminal device can send the above perception signal based on the time of sending the perception signal indicated by the positioning indication.

[0054] In addition, the terminal device can also obtain perception data that meets the requirements based on the perception signal it sends and the echo signal received from the positioning target according to the format or form of the perception data required by the positioning indication, and send these perception data to the electronic device 200, for example, according to the time of sending the perception data required by the positioning indication.

[0055] Depending on the specific requirements of the positioning indication, in addition to obtaining various raw data of the perception signal and the echo signal, the terminal device may also perform preliminary processing on the raw data to obtain the perception result, and use all or part of the above data and results as the perception data to be provided to the electronic device. Here, the raw data obtained by the terminal device may include but is not limited to: the sending time of the perception signal (perception time), the receiving time of the echo signal, the delay of the echo signal relative to the perception signal, the strength of the echo signal (for example, but not limited to the receiving power of the echo signal, etc.), the quality of the echo signal (for example, but not limited to the signal-to-noise ratio SNR, signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio SINR, etc. of the echo signal), the phase / angle / beam related information of the perception signal and the echo signal, and / or Doppler information, etc. In addition, the perception result obtained by the terminal device through preliminary processing of the above raw data may include but is not limited to the angle and distance (perception angle and perception distance) of the positioning target relative to the terminal device, etc.

[0056] The transceiver unit 220 may receive a perception signal from the terminal device that is sent at the time and in the manner indicated by the positioning indication. Using the control of the unified positioning indication, the perception data obtained by the transceiver unit 220 from each terminal device may be obtained by sensing the positioning terminal in the same or at least similar time period, and may have the same format, thereby facilitating subsequent processing by the perception processing unit 230.

[0057] The perception processing unit 230 can process the multiple perception data received by the transceiver unit 220 from each terminal device, for example, obtain or select the required data from the perception data, and perform corresponding processing to obtain the positioning result of the positioning target. In an example, the perception processing unit 230 can select perception data with high accuracy (for example, the intensity of the echo signal is large or other quality indicators are good, or the beam width is small) from the multiple perception data, and fuse the selected perception data (for example, the perception data can be weighted and fused based on the accuracy of the perception data) to obtain the positioning result of the positioning target.

[0058] The above describes the basic configuration of the electronic device and the processing performed by its various units. Next, further details of the related processing and the information / data involved will be described in conjunction with specific examples.

[0059] (Positioning indication and perception data)

[0060] As mentioned above, the generation unit 210 can generate a positioning indication PINSi to be sent to each terminal device UEi near the positioning target. The positioning indication can have various appropriate forms and be provided to UEi via the transceiver unit 220 to instruct UEi to participate in the collaborative positioning processing accordingly.

[0061] Next, an example of specific information included in the positioning indication PINSi (or its control information) generated by the terminal device UEi will be described. Such information includes, for example, but is not limited to, the position information Pinfo of the preliminary position P0 of the positioning target / the beam-related information BMinfoi of the perception signal of UEi (either one is optional), the sending time TimeS of the perception signal, the sending time TimeD of the perception data / the sending interval Timegap between the perception data and the perception signal (either one is optional), the period T of sending the perception data and the perception signal (optional), the form information Dform about the sending form of the perception data (the content or items of the perception data, the packaging method, etc.), and so on. In addition, optionally, the positioning indication PINSi generated by the generation unit 210 for the terminal device UEi may also include the identity or identification ID of the electronic device 200 itself, such as ID gNB And synchronization information Syncinfo used to achieve synchronization.

[0062] In this example, the positioning indication PINSi may be PINSi=[ID gNB ,Syncinfo,Pinfo / BMinfoi,TimeS,TimeD / Timegap,Dform].

[0063] Positioning indicator PINSi ID gNB The purpose is to make UEi understand that the object sending the sensing data is the electronic device 200 with the ID, and the synchronization information Syncinfo is to ensure the time synchronization between the electronic device 200 and UEi. Figure 1 When the gNB and UEi shown are terminal devices within their coverage and the two maintain time synchronization in a conventional manner, the identification ID can be omitted in the positioning indication PINSi gNB and synchronization information Syncinfo.

[0064] In addition, the position information Pinfo and beam-related information BMinfoi in the positioning indication PINSi are used to enable UEi to effectively send a perception signal to the positioning target, and can be included in the positioning indication PINSi in an alternative manner to explicitly or implicitly indicate the preliminary position P0 of the positioning target to UEi, so that UEi can, for example but not limited to, send a perception signal to the preliminary position using a directional beam.

[0065] In an example, the positioning indication PINSi may include position information Pinfo directly indicating a preliminary position P0 of the positioning target, and the terminal device may send a perception signal to the positioning target based on the position information, for example but not limited to, using a directional beam pointing to the preliminary position.

[0066] In another example, the positioning indication PINSi may include beam-related information BMinfoi of the perception signal of UEi. As an example, the beam-related information BMinfoi may indicate the beam direction and optional beam width of the transmission beam BMi of the perception signal, wherein the beam direction points to the direction where the preliminary position P0 of the positioning target (compared to UEi) is located. Figure 1 In the case of the base station side device of the gNB, the beam-related information BMinfoi can directly indicate the transmitting beam BMi that UEi needs to use for the perception signal, and the beam direction of the transmitting beam points to the preliminary position P0 of the positioning target compared to the direction where UEi is located.

[0067] In addition to the location information Pinfo and beam-related information BMinfoi, other control information in the positioning indication PINSi, such as TimeS, TimeD, Timegap, T, Dform, etc., is intended to control the specific way in which each terminal device UEi obtains and sends perception data, so as to facilitate the perception processing unit 230 to uniformly process the perception data obtained from these terminal devices to obtain the final positioning result.

[0068] For example, the form information Dform in the control information of the positioning indication PINSi may indicate the content / items of the perception data DATAi that UEi needs to provide to the electronic device 200, including the identification (ID) of the terminal device, the original data of the perception signal and the echo signal, and / or the perception result obtained by the terminal device through preliminary processing of the above original data, etc. In addition, the form information Dform may also indicate the arrangement order of the various items of the perception data DATAi.

[0069] In this example, the form information Dform of the positioning indication PINSi may indicate that the perception data DATAi of UEi has the format Form=[ID i ,R i ,θ i ,RP i ,SNR i ,Δθ i ,t i ], where ID i Indicates the identity of UEi, R i Represents the distance of the positioning target relative to UEi (perception distance), θ i Represents the angle (perception angle) of the positioning target relative to UEi, RP i and SNR i They represent the strength and signal-to-noise ratio of the echo signal received by UEi from the positioning target, Δθ i represents the beam width of the sensing signal, t iIn practical applications, one or more of these data, such as RP i 、SNR i , Δθ i ,t i etc. may be optional.

[0070] The terminal device UEi that receives the above-mentioned positioning indication PINSi can, for example, perform time synchronization according to the synchronization information Syncinfo therein, and at the sending time TimeS of the perception signal indicated by the positioning indication PINSi, use a directional beam corresponding to the beam-related information BMinfoi or pointing to the preliminary position indicated by the position information Pinfo to send a perception signal to the positioning target. Here, when the preliminary position indicated by the position information Pinfo is an area (for example, the target area areaT), the terminal device can use the directional perception beam to scan the area for perception according to the indication.

[0071] The terminal device UEi can receive the echo signal of the perception signal reflected by the positioning target to obtain the perception data that meets the requirements of the form information of the positioning indication. For example, the form information Dform of the positioning indication PINSi indicates the format of the perception data Form = [ID i ,R i ,θ i ,RP i ,SNR i ,Δθ i ,t i ], UEi can obtain and provide the perceived distance R according to the indicated format. i , perception angle θ i , the strength of the echo signal RP i and signal-to-noise ratio SNR i , the beam width of the sensing signal Δθ i , the sending time of the perception signal (perception time) t i Perception data DATAi = [ID i ,R i ,θ i ,RP i ,SNR i ,Δθ i ,t i ].

[0072] In addition, the terminal device UEi may send the obtained perception data DATAi in the indicated format to (for example, the identification ID in the positioning indication PINSi) at the sending time TimeD of the perception data or after the sending interval Timegap from the sending time TimeS of the perception signal.gNB (indicated) electronic device 200.

[0073] In a preferred example, the control information of the positioning indication PINSi may also additionally include information indicating the period (T) of the terminal device UEi to send the perception signal and the perception data. gNB ,Syncinfo,Pinfo / BMinfoi,TimeS,TimeD / Timegap,Dform,T], so as to control each terminal device to periodically sense and report the sensing data at a specified period T, so as to obtain a more accurate positioning result.

[0074] Here, when the period T is indicated in the positioning indication PINSi, each UEi can obtain the sensing data DATAi in each period, such as the kth period, according to the period T. k And report (k is a natural number), so that the perception processing unit 230 of the electronic device 200 determines the positioning result PX of the positioning target of the period according to the received perception data in the kth period k (Here and in the following description, superscript k is added to the symbols of relevant data when necessary to indicate the perception data and its related results obtained for the kth time; more often the superscript k is omitted when appropriate for the sake of simplicity, which will not be repeated below).

[0075] In other words, in each cycle, the transceiver unit 220 of the electronic device 200 can receive perception data from multiple terminal devices, the perception processing unit 230 can process the received perception data to obtain a positioning result (the processing details will be described later), and the transceiver unit 220 can indicate the obtained positioning result as the updated position of the positioning target (implicitly or explicitly) to the multiple terminal devices, so that they can send perception signals based on the updated position.

[0076] For example, in a preferred example, in addition to the initial positioning indication PINSi, the transceiver unit 220 may send updated position information Pinfo to the terminal device UEi according to a period T. k (or updated beam related information BMinfoi k ) to indicate the positioning result PX of the positioning target of the kth cycle to the terminal device UEi explicitly (or implicitly) k As the updated position of the positioning target, UEi is based on the updated position information Pinfo in the k+1th cycle k (or updated beam related information BMinfoi k ) is indicated to send a perception signal to the positioning target for perception. In this way, the accuracy of perception can be improved in an iterative manner.

[0077] (Processing of sensory data)

[0078] The perception processing unit 230 can obtain or select the required data from the perception data received by the transceiver unit, and perform corresponding processing to obtain the positioning result of the positioning target. For example, the perception processing unit can perform alignment of the perception data, quality screening, selection based on the convex hull principle, and fusion processing based on the accuracy of the perception data to obtain the positioning result of the positioning target.

[0079] Next, the sensing data DATAi received from each terminal device UEi (i=1, 2, ..., L) in the L terminal devices is used. k With the format [ID i k ,R i k ,θ i k ,RP i k ,SNR i k , t i k ] as an example to describe further details of each processing of the perception processing unit 230.

[0080] Alignment of Perception Data

[0081] The perception processing unit 230 can obtain the perception data DATAi from each terminal device UEi. k Extract the perceived time t i k , and according to the perception time t i k For each perception data DATAi k Sort all the perception data at the same time and classify them as the kth perception / or perception time Timek (Timek is, for example, the same as t i k The same or t of each UEi i k For example, when each terminal device performs perception only once or performs perception at a fixed period, the perception processing unit 230 may omit the above alignment processing.

[0082] Quality screening of perception data

[0083] For example, for each sensing time Timek, or in each cycle, or in the first positioning process, the sensing processing unit 230 can select the echo signal with higher quality, that is, one or more quality indicators of the echo signal (such as SNR i 、SINR i and / or RP i ) are those perception data that are greater than a predetermined threshold. For example, M pieces of perception data DATAi (i=1, 2, ..., M) that meet the requirements can be selected from L pieces of perception data. In the case where the number of terminal devices is small, the perception processing unit 230 can omit this screening process.

[0084] "Convex Hull" Selection of Perceptual Data

[0085] For example, for each perception time Timek, or in each cycle, or in the first positioning process, the perception processing unit 230 can select from the corresponding perception data DATAi based on the convex hull principle to obtain perception data with as few as possible but covering the entire spatial range as much as possible and with high accuracy. Convex hull is a concept in computational geometry (graphics). In a vector space, for a given vector set A, the intersection of all convex sets containing the set A is called the convex hull set of the given vector set A.

[0086] More specifically, the perception processing unit 230 may be configured to obtain the strength RP of the echo signal based on the perception data DATAi of each terminal device UEi among a plurality of (eg, L) terminal devices. i And the angle (perception angle) θ of the positioning target relative to the terminal device i , and select part of the perceptual data from a plurality of (eg, L) perceptual data, so that the perceptual vector v based on the selected (eg, N) perceptual data i Construct or approximately construct a convex hull set Set of multiple perception vectors based on the multiple (for example, L) perception data DATAi, wherein the perception vector based on each perception data is based on the strength RP of the echo signal i and the perception angle θ i And it is certain.

[0087] For ease of explanation, Figure 3A and Figure 3B A schematic diagram is given to illustrate that the perception vectors constitute or approximately constitute a convex hull set. Figure 3A and Figure 3B As shown, for example, any given point can be used as the common starting point v of all perception vectors i , with the perception angle θ i As the perception vector vi direction and based on the strength of the echo signal RP i Determine the perception vector v i length (so that RP i The bigger, v i ), so as to obtain Figure 3A and Figure 3B Shown are L=7 perception vectors v1 to v7. Figure 3A An example of selecting N=5 perception vectors from all perception vectors to form a convex hull set is shown. Figure 3B An example is shown in which N=4 perception vectors are selected from the five perception vectors constituting the convex hull set to approximately constitute the convex hull set.

[0088] Here, the selection of perception vectors that "approximately constitute a convex hull set" can be achieved by selecting two or more perception vectors with the highest intensity and the largest angle difference from the perception vectors that constitute the convex hull set. In this way, a representative subset of the convex hull set is selected, which is conducive to further reducing the processing amount while still maintaining the accuracy of the positioning processing.

[0089] Fusion of sensory data

[0090] For example, for each perception time (or in each cycle), the perception processing unit 230 fuses the selected corresponding N pieces of perception data DATAi (i=1, 2, . . . , N) to obtain a positioning result.

[0091] As an example, the perception processing unit 230 may perform scalar fusion or vector fusion processing based on the accuracy of the perception data.

[0092] First, consider scalar fusion. Scalar fusion means that the perception processing unit 230 obtains multiple preliminary positioning results of the positioning target based on the perception data from multiple terminal devices, and then uses the accuracy indicators of each perception data (such as the strength of the echo signal or other quality indicators, or the beam width of the perception signal, etc.) to perform weighted averaging on these preliminary positioning results, so that the higher the accuracy of the perception data, the higher the weight, so as to obtain a positioning result with higher accuracy after fusion.

[0093] In this example, in order to perform scalar fusion, the perception processing unit 230 can extract (obtain) part of the data [R i ,θ i ,RP i ]. The perception processing unit 230 may be based on the perception distance R i and the perception angle θ i Together with the absolute position P of UEi itself i =(P ix ,P iy) (for example, obtained in various appropriate ways in the preprocessing described above), the absolute position P of the positioning target is obtained through simple calculation targeti =(x i ,y i ), that is, x i =P ix +R i cos(θ i ),y i =P iy +R i sin(θ i ). The perception processing unit 230 can use the strength RP of the echo signal i As the weight of the response accuracy, each absolute position is weighted averaged, that is, the final positioning result PX = (x, y) is obtained by the following formula (1):

[0094]

[0095]

[0096] The scalar fusion scheme has the advantages of simple calculation and easy verification of accuracy. For example, the positioning accuracy of this scheme can be based on the obtained multiple absolute positions P of the positioning target. targeti The degree of deviation between (i=1, 2, ..., N) (for example, the method of calculating the standard deviation) represents the positioning accuracy of the positioning result of scalar fusion.

[0097] In the above scalar fusion process, the single accuracy index of the perception data of each terminal device is used as a scalar weight to perform weighted fusion on each perception data, without considering the direction / dimensional information, which may make it difficult to obtain a high-precision positioning result. To this end, the inventors propose a vector fusion process that can overcome the shortcomings of scalar fusion.

[0098] In the process of vector fusion, the perception processing unit 230 can consider the directionality (perception direction and its vertical direction) or dimension (perception distance and perception angle) of the accuracy index (the strength of the echo signal or other quality index, and the beam width) of the perception data from each terminal device, and construct a perception area where the positioning target is located, which reflects the error range of the perception data in different directions (perception direction and its vertical direction) or different dimensions (perception distance and perception angle), so as to reflect the multi-dimensional weights of the accuracy index of the perception data, and then determine the overlapping area of ​​the perception areas corresponding to each terminal device as the position (area) where the positioning target is located, thereby realizing vector fusion and obtaining a more accurate positioning result.

[0099] For example, in one example, in order to perform vector fusion, the perception processing unit 230 may extract (obtain) part of the data [R i ,θ i ,RP i ], that is, the perceived distance R i and the perception angle θ i And the strength of the echo signal RP i , for constructing a (eg two-dimensional) perception area areai.

[0100] The two-dimensional perception area areai constructed using the perception data DATAi from UEi can have the following form: the center Ci of the area is at a perception angle θ with respect to the absolute position Pi of UEi i The perceptual distance R is in the direction (perceptual direction) of i The position, that is, based on R i ,θ i Together with the absolute position P of UEi itself i The absolute position of the positioning target obtained Ci = P targeti The area has a first size in the sensing direction and a second size in a direction perpendicular to the sensing direction, wherein the first size represents the error in the sensing distance, the better the quality / strength of the echo signal (in this example, the strength RP of the echo signal) i The higher the value, the smaller the size. The second size represents the error in the perception angle, the beam width Δθ of the perception signal. i The smaller the size, the smaller the perception area. The perception area can have various shapes that meet the above center and size requirements. To simplify processing, the shape of the perception area is preferably symmetrical about the perception direction axis, and can be, for example, rectangular, elliptical, etc. The perception area constructed in this way can intuitively reflect the direction / dimension of the error of the perception data, thereby facilitating the achievement of high-precision positioning results.

[0101] Next, we will combine a specific example, refer to 4A to 4D The illustration diagram for explaining an example process of vector fusion is given to describe further details of the vector fusion process, including such as Figure 4A The gridding preprocessing shown (optional) and FIG. 4B to FIG. 4D The construction and fusion processing of the receptive area shown.

[0102] First refer to Figure 4A In order to determine the positioning accuracy during the positioning process, the perception processing unit 230 may pre-process the target area of ​​the positioning target as follows: Figure 4AThe preprocessing of grid division is shown. The size of the grid is determined according to the positioning requirements. The higher the positioning accuracy requirement, the finer the grid division, and the more calculations are required. However, it can be understood that the preprocessing of grid division is optional and can be omitted in practical applications (for example, when the accuracy does not need to be determined or the positioning accuracy is determined in other ways).

[0103] Then, if Figure 4B As shown, the perception processing unit 230 can construct a perception area areai representing the detection result of UEi for the positioning target based on the perception data DATAi of each terminal device UEi and the own position Pi of UEi, with the own position Pi of UEi as the anchor point. The position of the perception area constructed in this way represents the position range of the positioning target in the target area, and the size of the perception area in the first direction and the second direction respectively represents the size of the error of the result of UEi's perception of the target in the perception distance and the perception angle direction (the smaller the perception size, the smaller the perception error).

[0104] In this example, a rectangular perception area areai is constructed, whose center Ci is at a perception angle θ with respect to the absolute position Pi of UEi. i The perceptual distance R is in the direction (perceptual direction) of i The position, that is, based on R i ,θ i Together with the absolute position P of UEi itself i The absolute position of the positioning target obtained Ci = P target , and the axis passing through the center of the rectangle and parallel to one of its sides is at a perceived angle θ i direction (perception direction), the two sides parallel to the perception direction have a first size ΔR i,d , the other two sides have a second dimension ΔR i,a .

[0105] As an example, the first dimension ΔR i,d and the second dimension ΔR i,a The perception distance R can be used i , the strength of the echo signal RP i and the beamwidth Δθ of the sensing signal i , calculated based on the following equation:

[0106]

[0107] ΔR i,a =R i Δθ′ i …(3)

[0108] Note that in order to increase the echo signal strength RP i and beam width Δθ iFor calculating the length together with the perceived distance, the reference intensity RP′ for calculation can be obtained based on appropriate preprocessing i and reference width Δθ′ i For example, RP′ can be obtained by calculating the ratio of the actual data based on the ideal strength RP_ideal of the echo signal that can obtain the ideal perception result and the ideal beam width Δθ_ideal of the perception signal. i =RP i / RP_ideal, Δθ′ i =Δθ i The above conversion method is only used as an example. In practical applications, those skilled in the art can use various appropriate methods to calculate the first and second sizes of the sensing area according to the principle of this embodiment.

[0109] In this way, for example, when UE1, UE2, and UE3, a total of three UEs, participate in cooperative sensing, the sensing processing unit 230 can obtain information such as Figure 4C The corresponding three sensing areas are area1 to area3 as shown. Figure 4D As shown, the perception processing unit 230 can determine the overlapping area of ​​the perception areas area1 to area3 as the area (areaX) where the positioning target is located, and can directly use the area or the center point of the area as the final position (positioning result) of the fused positioning target. Here, the size of the overlapping area (areaX) in the grid area can represent the positioning accuracy. Therefore, when obtaining the positioning result, the accuracy of the result is also advantageously obtained.

[0110] In this way, the perception processing unit 230 can perform vector fusion on the perception results of each terminal device to obtain a target positioning result with higher accuracy.

[0111] The above describes the details of each processing unit of the electronic device. Figure 5 and Figure 6 The flowchart of the example signaling interaction between the electronic device and the terminal device (and optionally with the positioning target) is given, describing the process of the electronic device 220 starting and terminating the collaborative positioning processing and further details about the determination / selection of the terminal device and the example process of the corresponding signaling interaction.

[0112] (Starting and terminating collaborative positioning and example process)

[0113] The electronic device 200 may initiate the collaborative positioning process based on various trigger conditions, and may terminate the collaborative positioning process based on various termination conditions. Figure 5The flowchart describes the relevant processing and example signaling interactions between the electronic device 200 (implemented as a base station side device gNB in ​​this example) and the positioning target UEX and the terminal device UEi.

[0114] For example, the electronic device 200 can start collaborative positioning processing using these terminal devices based on various trigger conditions by using the generation unit 210 to generate and using the transceiver unit 220 to send the above-described positioning indication PINSi to the terminal device UEi near the positioning target.

[0115] For example, the transceiver unit 220 can be configured to send the above-mentioned positioning indication PINSi when a positioning request is received from the positioning target UEX and / or the positioning accuracy of the positioning target UEX (for example, the accuracy of the preliminary positioning result of the positioning target obtained by the electronic device 200 itself using the transceiver unit 220 and the perception processing unit 230 via a traditional wireless communication positioning method) is lower than the first accuracy threshold.

[0116] The terminal device UEi that receives the above positioning indication PINSi can send a perception signal to the positioning target UEX and receive an echo signal to obtain perception data DATAi according to the indication, and report the obtained perception data DATAi to the electronic device 200.

[0117] The electronic device 200 can perform corresponding processing based on the perception data received from each terminal device, such as but not limited to the time alignment, quality screening, selection based on the convex hull principle, etc. described previously, and fuse the selected perception data to obtain the positioning result PX of the positioning target.

[0118] Optionally, when the positioning indication PINSi includes period information (T), the electronic device 200 may use its communication unit 210 to transmit the positioning result PX of each period, such as the kth period, to the positioning result PX of the kth period. k The updated location information is provided to the terminal device UEi to repeat the processing of perception data and positioning.

[0119] Thereafter, when the cooperation termination condition is met, the electronic device 200 may terminate the cooperative positioning process.

[0120] For example, the perception processing unit 230 of the electronic device 200 may determine to terminate the collaborative positioning process when the transceiver unit 220 receives a termination request from the positioning target and / or the positioning accuracy of the positioning target obtained by the perception processing unit 230 via the collaborative positioning process is higher than the second accuracy threshold. Preferably, the second accuracy threshold used as the termination condition of the collaborative positioning may be slightly higher than the first accuracy threshold used as the start condition of the collaborative positioning to avoid frequent start and termination of the collaborative positioning.

[0121] When the sensing processing unit 230 determines to terminate the collaborative positioning process, the electronic device 200 can generate a positioning termination indication using its generation unit 210 and send the positioning termination indication to each terminal device UEi of the collaborative positioning process using the transceiver unit 220. The terminal device UEi that receives the indication can stop the relevant processing and feedback a confirmation message to it.

[0122] In this way, the electronic device 200 may achieve initiation, (optionally periodic) execution, and termination of collaborative positioning via a series of interactions.

[0123] In such Figure 5 In the example shown, when the triggering conditions for starting collaborative positioning are met, the electronic device 200 can generate and send a positioning indication PINSi to all terminal devices UEi near the positioning target to request them to join the collaborative positioning process. In this example, there may be a situation where some terminal devices are unable to perceive or provide high-quality perception data. However, since the perception processing unit 230 can use the various processes described in the previous "Processing of Perception Data" section to select and / or filter the obtained perception data, it can still ensure that the perception data used to obtain the positioning result meets the relevant requirements, which will not be repeated here.

[0124] (Terminal equipment selection and example process)

[0125] As such Figure 5 As shown in the alternative implementation method of requiring all terminal devices UEi near the positioning target to join the collaborative positioning, when the triggering condition for starting the collaborative positioning is met, the electronic device 200 can perform some pre-selection and / or selection based on the convex hull principle on the terminal devices, and only send the formal positioning indication PINS to the selected terminal devices. Figure 6 The example flow chart of describes the related processing and the example signaling interaction between the electronic device 200 (implemented as the base station side device gNB in ​​this example) and the positioning target UEX and the terminal device UEi; needless to say, Figure 6 The example can be compared with Figure 5 The examples are appropriately combined and will not be described in detail here.

[0126] In such Figure 6In the example shown, when the triggering conditions for starting collaborative positioning are met, optionally, the electronic device 200 can use its transceiver unit 220 and perception processing unit 230 to obtain information about the preliminary position of the positioning target and terminal devices near the positioning target in various appropriate ways, use the generation unit 210 to generate a positioning request Prequest for all terminal devices UEi near the positioning target, and use the transceiver unit 220 to send (e.g., broadcast) the positioning request Prequest to all terminal devices UEi (candidate terminal devices) near the positioning target, so as to request these selected terminal devices to return perception capability information CINFOi.

[0127] The positioning request Prequest generated by the generating unit 210 may have [ID gNB ,Cform] to indicate the identification ID of the electronic device 200 and the form of the perception capability information CINFOi that the terminal device needs to report. The perception capability information indicated by Cform can be in the form of a bit sequence {bit1, bit2} with a length of 2, which can indicate in turn whether the terminal device UEi's own wireless resources are sufficient and whether the other services are busy. For example, the bit sequence {0,0} can indicate that UEi's own wireless resources are sufficient and the other services are not busy. The terminal device that receives the above-mentioned positioning request Prequest reports its perception capability information CINFOi to the electronic device 200 in the form of the bit sequence {bit1, bit2} indicated by Cform.

[0128] The electronic device 200 can use its perception processing unit 230 to select terminal devices participating in subsequent processing from these candidate terminal devices at least partially based on the received perception capability information CINFOi. For example, the perception processing unit 230 can select those terminal devices UEi whose bit sequence of CINFOi is {0,0} to participate in subsequent processing.

[0129] In addition, for example, after the above-mentioned optional preliminary selection processing, the electronic device 200 can use the generation unit 210 to generate a preliminary positioning indication PINS0 for all (or preliminarily selected) terminal devices UEi (hereinafter referred to as candidate terminal devices) near the positioning target, and use the transceiver unit 220 to send (for example, broadcast) the preliminary positioning indication PINS0 to these terminal devices UEi to require them to perform preliminary perception processing and provide preliminary perception data DATAi, so that the perception processing unit 230 can select some terminal devices to join the subsequent collaborative positioning processing based on the obtained preliminary perception data DATAi according to the convex hull principle described previously.

[0130] As an example, the preliminary positioning indication PINS0 generated by the generating unit 210 may have a form similar to the positioning indication PINSi but simpler.

[0131] For example, the preliminary positioning indication PINS0 may be PINS0=[ID gNB ,Pinfo,Dform0] to indicate the identification ID of the electronic device 200, the preliminary position P0 of the positioning target, and the form of the preliminary perception data DATA0i that the cooperative terminal needs to report. Here, since the preliminary perception processing is only used for the preliminary screening of the terminal device and does not need to be performed periodically and can be performed instantly, for example, the information about time or period is omitted in the preliminary positioning indication PINS0. In addition, since the preliminary perception data is used for selection based on the convex hull principle, the form of the preliminary perception data indicated by Dform0 can be a simplified version of the perception data, such as Form0=[ID i ,θ i ,RP i ], that is, only the identification of UEi and the perception angle θ are retained i , the strength RP of the UEi echo signal i , so as to use the selection based on the convex hull principle. Optionally, Dform0 can also indicate that Form0 has more items in Form, which will not be repeated here.

[0132] Each terminal device UEi that receives the preliminary positioning indication PINS0 can send a perception signal to the positioning target according to its indication, for example but not limited to using a directional beam pointing to the preliminary position P0 of the positioning target, and obtain preliminary perception data DATA0i in the form of Dform0 to report to the electronic device 200. Here, if the electronic device 200 has not previously performed a preliminary selection of terminal devices based on the perception capability information, each terminal device UEi can determine whether it can participate in the collaborative positioning based on factors such as whether its own wireless resources are sufficient and / or whether other services are busy, and perform the above-mentioned preliminary perception processing only when its wireless resources are sufficient and / or other services are not busy.

[0133] The transceiver unit 220 can receive the preliminary sensing data DATA0i ([ID i ,θ i ,RP i ]). The sensing processing unit 230 can obtain the strength RP of the echo signal according to the preliminary sensing data DATA0i received by the transceiver unit 220. i And the angle θ of the positioning target relative to the terminal device i , and select multiple terminal devices from the candidate terminal devices, so that multiple preliminary perception vectors v based on the preliminary perception data of the selected multiple terminal devices 0iThe convex hull set Set0 of all preliminary perception vectors based on the preliminary perception data of all candidate terminal devices is formed or approximately formed. Here, the preliminary perception vector based on the preliminary perception data is determined according to the intensity and perception angle of the echo signal obtained based on the preliminary perception data.

[0134] In the above preliminary selection process, the perception processing unit 230 may determine the perception vector v based on the perception data DATAi, for example, as described previously. i In a similar way, the preliminary perception vector v is determined based on the preliminary perception data. 0i , and the preliminary perception vector can be constructed / approximated in a manner similar to the convex hull set Set of the perception vector described previously. i The convex hull set Set0 is not described here.

[0135] Thereafter, the electronic device 200 may enable these terminal devices to join the previously described collaborative positioning process (officially start the collaborative positioning process) by sending a formal positioning indication PINSi to these terminal devices selected based on the convex hull principle.

[0136] By utilizing the above-mentioned pre-selection based on the convex hull principle, terminal devices that can provide representative perception data can be pre-selected from all terminal devices near the positioning target to join the collaborative positioning processing, thereby helping to reduce the processing volume and maintain positioning accuracy.

[0137] The electronic device 200 (eg, Figure 1 , Figure 5 , Figure 6 The electronic device 200 can use the sensing signals of multiple terminal devices near the positioning target for positioning, thereby facilitating high-precision positioning in a relatively low-cost manner, and is conducive to application in situations where there are building obstructions, such as indoor environments.

[0138] In the above description, in addition to the electronic device 200 for controlling cooperative positioning, a terminal device (eg, Figure 1 UEi). In other words, according to the present disclosure, in addition to proposing an electronic device for controlling collaborative positioning (first embodiment), the inventor also proposed a terminal device participating in collaborative positioning (second embodiment). The following will provide a description of a terminal device participating in collaborative positioning according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure, based on the description of the electronic device for controlling collaborative positioning according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure, and omit unnecessary details thereof.

[0139] [3. Configuration example of terminal equipment]

[0140] Figure 7 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a terminal device according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0141] like Figure 7 As shown, the terminal device 700 may include a transceiver unit 710 and a sensing unit 720. In addition, although not shown in the figure, the terminal device 700 may also include a storage unit.

[0142] Here, each unit of the terminal device 700 may be included in a processing circuit. It should be noted that the terminal device 700 may include one processing circuit or multiple processing circuits. Further, the processing circuit may include various discrete functional units to perform various functions and / or operations. It should be noted that these functional units may be physical entities or logical entities, and units with different names may be implemented by the same physical entity.

[0143] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the transceiver unit 710 of the terminal device 700 may be configured to receive a positioning indication from an electronic device, and send a perception signal to a positioning target and receive an echo signal based on the positioning indication, so that the perception unit 720 can obtain perception data. The perception unit 720 may be configured to obtain perception data according to the perception signal and the echo signal based on the positioning indication. The transceiver unit 710 may be configured to send the perception data obtained by the perception unit 720 to the electronic device, so that the electronic device can obtain a positioning result for the positioning target by processing multiple perception data from multiple terminal devices.

[0144] Here, the electronic device that sends the positioning indication to the terminal device 700 may be, for example, Figure 2 The electronic device 200 described (such as Figure 1 gNB in ​​the example shown), and the terminal device 700 may be a terminal device near the positioning target (such as Figure 1 UEi in the example).

[0145] In order to cooperate with the electronic device controlling the collaborative positioning to determine the terminal device near the positioning target, optionally, the terminal device 700 can use its transceiver unit 710 to perform necessary interactions with the electronic device so that the electronic device can understand the location information of the terminal device 700 and then determine that the terminal device 700 is near the positioning target. For example, when the electronic device controlling the collaborative positioning is a base station side device and the terminal device 700 is within its coverage range, the transceiver unit 710 can send and receive reference signals with the electronic device so that the latter can perform various existing positioning processes to obtain the location of the terminal device 700, which will not be repeated here. In addition, for example, when the terminal device 700 has a GPS positioning function, it can use the transceiver unit 710 to directly report its location to the electronic device.

[0146] The positioning indication received by the transceiver unit 710 of the terminal device 700 from the electronic device that controls the collaborative positioning may include control information about the time and / or manner in which the terminal device sends a perception signal to the positioning target and / or sends perception data to the electronic device. Preferably, the positioning indication may indicate the preliminary position of the positioning target and / or include beam-related information of the perception signal. In addition, preferably, the positioning indication may indicate the format of the perception data, such as requiring the perception data to indicate the strength and quality of the echo signal and the angle (perception angle) and / or distance (perception distance) of the positioning target relative to the terminal device, and / or requiring the perception data to include beam-related information of the perception signal (such as but not limited to beam width information, etc.).

[0147] Accordingly, the transceiver unit 710 may send a perception signal to the positioning target according to the time and / or manner indicated by the control information in the positioning indication. Preferably, the transceiver unit 710 may send the perception signal to the positioning target using a directional beam based on the positioning indication (e.g., based on the preliminary position indicated by the positioning indication and / or the beam-related information included therein), and may receive an echo signal reflected from the positioning target.

[0148] In addition, the perception unit 720 can be configured to obtain perception data, for example, based on a positioning indication from an electronic device (for example, the format or form of the perception data required by the positioning indication) according to the perception signal sent by the transceiver unit 710 to the positioning target and the echo signal received from the positioning target.

[0149] Depending on the requirements of the positioning indication, in addition to obtaining various raw data of the perception signal and the echo signal, the perception unit 720 can also preliminarily process the raw data to obtain the perception results, and use all or part of these data and results as the perception data to be provided to the electronic device.

[0150] For example, the raw data of the perception signal and the echo signal obtained by the perception unit 720 may include but are not limited to: the sending time of the perception signal (perception time), the receiving time of the echo signal, the delay of the echo signal relative to the perception signal, the strength of the echo signal (for example, but not limited to the receiving power of the echo signal, etc.), the signal quality of the echo signal (for example, but not limited to the SNR, SINR, etc. of the echo signal), the phase / angle / beam related information of the perception signal and the echo signal, and / or Doppler information, etc.

[0151] In addition, the perception results obtained by the perception unit 230 through preliminary processing of the above raw data may include but are not limited to the angle and distance (perception angle and perception distance) of the positioning target relative to the terminal device, etc.

[0152] The perception unit 230 can obtain the above-mentioned raw data and perception results through various appropriate processing (such as various existing processing). For example, the perception unit 230 can obtain the required strength and signal quality by measuring the strength of the received echo signal (such as but not limited to the received power of the echo signal, etc.) and the signal quality (SNR, SINR). In addition, the perception unit 230 can detect the echo signal in various directions, and determine the orientation or angle (perception angle) of the positioning target relative to the terminal device based on the detection result (such as the orientation of the detected echo signal). In addition, the perception unit 230 can determine the distance (perception distance) of the positioning target relative to the terminal device based on the phase difference between the echo signal and the perception signal. The present disclosure does not limit the manner in which the perception unit 230 obtains perception data.

[0153] Preferably, the perception data obtained by the perception unit 230 and provided to the transceiver unit 210 can indicate the strength of the echo signal and the quality of the echo signal, the perception angle and / or the perception distance, etc. (for example, such information can be directly included or related raw data can be included for the electronic device to process itself). In addition, preferably, the perception unit 230 can include beam-related information (such as but not limited to beam width information, etc.) of the perception signal in the provided perception data.

[0154] The transceiver unit 710 may be configured to send the sensing data obtained by the sensing unit 720 to the electronic device at the time and in the manner indicated by the positioning indication. In this way, for example, when the electronic device sends a unified or similar positioning indication to each terminal device, the sensing data provided by each terminal device including the terminal device 700 to the electronic device may be obtained by sensing the positioning terminal in the same or at least similar time period, and may have the same format, thereby facilitating unified processing by the electronic device.

[0155] The above describes the basic configuration of the terminal device and the processing performed by its various units. Next, further details of the related processing and the information / data involved will be described in conjunction with specific examples.

[0156] First, further details of the processing performed by the transceiver unit 710 and the sensing unit 720 will be specifically described in conjunction with an example of a positioning indication PINS (or PINSi) received by the transceiver unit 710.

[0157] As previously described in the embodiment of the electronic device controlling collaborative positioning, the positioning indication PINSi (or its control information) generated by the electronic device controlling collaborative positioning may include various specific information, such as but not limited to the position information Pinfo of the preliminary position P0 of the positioning target / beam-related information BMinfoi of the perception signal of the terminal device (either one is optional), the sending time TimeS of the perception signal, the sending time TimeD of the perception data / the sending interval Timegap between the perception data and the perception signal (either one is optional), the period T of sending the perception data and the perception signal (optional), the form information Dform about the sending form of the perception data (content or items of the perception data, packaging method, etc.), etc. In addition, optionally, the positioning indication PINS may also include the identity or identification ID of the electronic device controlling collaborative positioning itself, such as ID gNB And synchronization information Syncinfo used to achieve synchronization.

[0158] In an example, the positioning indication received by the transceiver unit 710 of the terminal device 700 may be PINSi=[ID gNB ,Syncinfo,Pinfo / BMinfoi,TimeS,TimeD / Timegap,Dform].

[0159] After receiving the positioning instruction, the transceiver unit 710 can communicate with the ID according to the instruction of the synchronization information Syncinfo. gNB The electronic device represented by the device is synchronized. Figure 1 When the gNB and the terminal device 700 shown are UEi within their coverage and the two maintain time synchronization in a conventional manner, the identification ID may be omitted in the positioning indication PINS received by the transceiver unit 710 gNB and synchronization information Syncinfo, and the related synchronization processing can be omitted.

[0160] The terminal device 700 that receives the above-mentioned positioning indication PINSi can (for example, after time synchronization according to the synchronization information Syncinfo therein) use its transceiver unit 710 to send a perception signal to the positioning target at the sending time TimeS of the perception signal indicated by the positioning indication PINSi, using a directional beam corresponding to the beam-related information BMinfoi or pointing to the preliminary position indicated by the position information Pinfo. Here, when the preliminary position indicated by the position information Pinfo is an area (for example, the target area areaT), the transceiver unit 710 can use a directional perception beam to scan the area for perception according to the indication.

[0161] The transceiver unit 710 may receive an echo signal of a perception signal reflected by a positioning target. The perception unit 720 may obtain perception data that meets the requirements of the form information of the positioning indication through appropriate processing based on the original data of the perception signal and the echo information. For example, the form information Dform of the positioning indication PINSi indicates the format of the perception data Form = [ID i ,R i ,θ i ,RP i ,SNR i ,Δθ i ,t i ] In the case of the perception unit 720, the perception distance R may be obtained according to the indicated format. i , perception angle θ i , the strength of the echo signal RP i and signal-to-noise ratio SNR i , the beam width of the sensing signal Δθ i , the sending time of the perception signal (perception time) t i The perception data and the data are combined with the ID of the i and, as an option, the beamwidth Δθ of the sensing signal i Together in the indicated format, DATAi = [ID i ,R i ,θ i ,RP i ,SNR i,Δ θ i ,t i ] is sent to the electronic device used to control collaborative positioning.

[0162] In addition, the transceiver unit 710 of the terminal device 700 may send the acquired perception data DATAi in the indicated format (for example, the identification ID in the positioning indication PINSi) at the transmission time TimeD of the perception data or after the transmission interval Timegap has passed since the transmission time TimeS of the perception signal.gNB electronic device as indicated.

[0163] In a preferred example, the control information of the positioning indication PINSi may also additionally include information indicating the period (T) of the terminal device to send the perception signal and the perception data. gNB ,Syncinfo,Pinfo / BMinfoi,TimeS,TimeD / Timegap,Dform,T], thereby controlling the terminal device 700 to periodically perform perception and report perception data at a specified period T, so as to obtain a more accurate positioning result.

[0164] For example, when the positioning indication PINSi indicates a period T, in each period, such as the kth period, the transceiver unit 710 may send a sensing signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal, and the sensing unit 720 may obtain the sensing data DATAi k , and the transceiver unit 710 can send the acquired sensing data DATAi to the electronic device k The electronic device determines the positioning result PX of the positioning target in the cycle according to the sensing data received from each terminal device. k .

[0165] Thereafter, in the k+1th cycle, the transceiver unit 710 may receive updated location information Pinfo from the electronic device 200. k (or updated beam related information BMinfoi k ), thereby explicitly (or implicitly) indicating the positioning result PX of the positioning target of the kth cycle as the updated position of the positioning target k The transceiver unit 710 may update the position information Pinfo in the k+1th cycle based on the updated position information Pinfo. k (or updated beam related information BMinfoi k ), sends a sensing signal to the positioning target for sensing, and the sensing unit 720 can obtain the corresponding sensing result for the transceiver unit 710 to report it as the sensing data of the k+1th period to the electronic device for determining the positioning result of the k+1th period. In this way, the accuracy of sensing can be improved in an iterative manner.

[0166] The above describes the basic configuration of the terminal device 700 and the basic processing of its processing unit and some examples.

[0167] In addition to the above basic processing, the terminal device 700 can use its various units to perform various example processing performed by the terminal device UEi in the embodiment of the electronic device 200 for controlling cooperative positioning, which will not be repeated here, but only briefly described in the previous reference Figure 5 and Figure 6 Related processing in the described example flow.

[0168] In such Figure 5 In the example shown, the electronic device (gNB) for controlling cooperative positioning can generate and send a positioning indication PINSi to a terminal device 700 such as a terminal device marked as UEi near the positioning target based on various trigger conditions to directly start the cooperative positioning process using the terminal device. In addition, when the positioning termination condition is met, the electronic device for controlling cooperative positioning can terminate the cooperative positioning process and send a positioning termination indication to the terminal device 700. The terminal device 700 that receives the indication can stop the relevant processing of the transceiver unit 710 and the perception unit 720, and generate a confirmation message using the perception unit 720 and provide the message to the electronic device using the transceiver unit 710.

[0169] In addition, in Figure 6 In the example shown, the electronic device (gNB) for controlling cooperative positioning may generate a positioning request Prequest to request a terminal device 700 such as a terminal device marked as UEi near the positioning target to provide positioning capability information, and / or generate a preliminary positioning indication PINS0 to request the terminal device 700 to perform preliminary sensing processing. Accordingly, the terminal device 700 may use its transceiver unit 710 and sensing unit 720 to generate corresponding positioning capability information CINFOi and / or obtain corresponding preliminary sensing data DATA0i according to the requirements of the positioning request Prequest and / or the preliminary positioning indication PINS0, and use the transceiver unit 710 to provide information and / or data to the electronic device.

[0170] As an example, the positioning request Prequest received by the terminal device 700 may have [ID gNB ,Cform] to indicate the identification ID of the electronic device used to control collaborative positioning and the perception capability information CINFOi that the terminal device needs to report. The perception capability information indicated by Cform can be in the form of a bit sequence {bit1, bit2} of length 2, which respectively indicates whether the terminal device's own wireless resources are sufficient and whether the other services are busy. When its own wireless resources are sufficient and the other services are not busy, the terminal device 700 can use its perception unit 720 to generate a bit sequence {0,0} as perception capability information, and use the transceiver unit 710 to send it to the electronic device that controls collaborative positioning, so that the electronic device can use at least part of the received perception capability information to determine whether to select the terminal device to participate in subsequent processing.

[0171] In addition, as an example, the preliminary positioning indication PINS0 received by the terminal device 700 may be PINS0=[ID gNB ,Pinfo,Dform0] to indicate the identification ID of the electronic device used to control the cooperative positioning, the preliminary position P0 of the positioning target, and the form of the preliminary perception data DATA0i that the cooperative terminal needs to report.

[0172] When receiving the preliminary positioning indication PINS0, the terminal device 700 can use the transceiver unit 710 to sense the signal and receive the echo signal according to the indication, and the sensing unit 720 can sense the signal according to the form of the preliminary sensing data indicated by Dform0, such as Form0=[ID i ,θ i ,RP i ] and the identification of UEi and the perception angle θ i , UEi echo signal strength RP i The data are provided as preliminary perception data DATA0i to the electronic device for selection based on the convex hull principle.

[0173] The terminal device 700 (eg, Figure 1 , Figure 5 , Figure 6 The terminal device 700 can be used as one of multiple terminal devices near the positioning target in, for example, the electronic device 200 (for example, the electronic device 200 according to the first embodiment) Figure 1 , Figure 5 , Figure 6 It participates in collaborative positioning under the control of gNB in ​​the network, which is conducive to electronic devices to achieve high-precision positioning in a relatively low-cost manner, and is conducive to application in situations where there are building obstructions, such as indoor environments.

[0174] <4. Method Example>

[0175] Corresponding to the above-mentioned device embodiments, the present disclosure provides the following method embodiments.

[0176] Figure 8 is a flowchart showing a process example of the positioning method according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0177] like Figure 8 As shown, in step S801, a positioning indication may be sent to multiple terminal devices near a positioning target to instruct the terminal devices to send a perception signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain perception data.

[0178] Next, in step S802, multiple perception data may be received from the multiple terminal devices.

[0179] In step S803, the received sensing data may be processed to obtain a positioning result for the positioning target.

[0180] As an example, the positioning indication sent in step S801 may include control information about the time and / or manner in which the terminal device sends the perception signal and / or the perception data.

[0181] For example, the positioning indication may include and / or indicate a preliminary position of the positioning target. In addition, the positioning indication may include beam-related information of the sensing signal.

[0182] As an example, the perception data received in step S802 may be provided by the terminal device according to the time and / or manner indicated by the control information of the positioning indication.

[0183] For example, the sensing data may include beam-related information of the sensing signal. In addition, the sensing data may be able to indicate the strength of the echo signal and the angle of the positioning target relative to the terminal device.

[0184] In addition, in an optional example, the control information of the positioning indication may also indicate a period for the terminal device to send the perception signal and the perception data.

[0185] In this example, the processing of step S802 and step S803 can be performed in each cycle, that is, multiple sensing data are received and the received sensing data are processed to obtain a positioning result in each cycle. In addition, although not shown in the figure, in this example, an additional step may be included to send the obtained positioning result as the updated position of the positioning target to the multiple terminal devices in each cycle.

[0186] In addition, as an example, in step S803, perception data with high quality of the echo signal may be selected from the plurality of perception data, and the selected perception data may be fused to obtain the positioning data.

[0187] In addition, in step S803, alternatively or additionally, the perception data may be selected for processing based on the convex hull principle and the positioning result may be obtained by the following processing. For example, part of the perception data may be selected from the plurality of perception data so that the perception vector based on the selected perception data constitutes or approximately constitutes a convex hull set of a plurality of perception vectors based on the plurality of perception data, wherein the perception vector based on the perception data is determined according to the intensity and the angle. The selected perception data may be processed to obtain the positioning result.

[0188] Furthermore, although not shown in the figure, in an alternative example, the convex hull principle may be applied in advance to select the terminal device, for example, before step S801.

[0189] For example, before sending the positioning indication in step S801, the following processing may be additionally included: sending a preliminary positioning indication to an alternative terminal device near the positioning target to instruct the alternative terminal device to send a perception signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain preliminary perception data; receiving the preliminary perception data from the alternative terminal device, and obtaining the intensity of the echo signal and the angle of the positioning target relative to the terminal device based on the preliminary perception data; and selecting the multiple terminal devices from the alternative terminal devices so that the multiple preliminary perception vectors based on the preliminary perception data of the multiple terminal devices constitute or approximately constitute a convex hull set of all preliminary perception vectors based on the preliminary perception data of all alternative terminal devices, wherein the preliminary perception vector based on the preliminary perception data is determined based on the intensity and the angle obtained based on the preliminary perception data.

[0190] In addition, although not shown in the figure, the exemplary method can be initiated based on various conditions. For example, the positioning indication can be sent when a positioning request from the positioning target is received and / or the positioning accuracy of the positioning target is lower than an accuracy threshold.

[0191] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the subject that executes the above method may be an electronic device 200 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, and therefore all the embodiments regarding the electronic device 200 in the foregoing text are applicable hereto.

[0192] Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing a process example of a positioning method according to the second embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0193] like Fig. 9 As shown, in step S901, a positioning indication may be received from an electronic device.

[0194] Next, in the processing of step S902, based on the positioning indication, a perception signal may be sent to the positioning target and an echo signal may be received to obtain perception data.

[0195] In step S903, based on the positioning indication, a perception signal may be sent to the positioning target and an echo signal may be received to obtain perception data.

[0196] As an example, the positioning indication sent in step S901 may include control information about the time and / or manner in which the terminal device sends the perception signal and / or the perception data.

[0197] For example, the positioning indication may include and / or indicate a preliminary position of the positioning target. In addition, the positioning indication may include beam-related information of the sensing signal.

[0198] As an example, in the processing of steps S902 and S903, the perception signal and / or the perception data may be sent according to the time and / or manner indicated by the control information of the positioning indication. For example, in the processing of step S902, the perception signal may be sent to the positioning target using a directional beam. In addition, in the processing of step S902, the perception data may be obtained according to the manner indicated by the control information. In addition, in the processing of step S903, the obtained perception data may be sent to the electronic device according to the time and / or manner indicated by the control information.

[0199] In addition, in an optional example, the control information of the positioning indication may also indicate the period in which the terminal device sends the perception signal and the perception data. In this example, the processing of step S902 and step S903 may be performed in each cycle, that is, in each cycle, a perception signal is sent to the position of the positioning target and an echo signal is received to obtain perception data, and the obtained perception data is sent to the electronic device. In addition, although not shown in the figure, in this example, an additional step may be included to receive the positioning result from the electronic device in each cycle as an updated position of the positioning target (for example, to be used in the next cycle).

[0200] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the subject that executes the above method may be an electronic device 700 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, and therefore all the embodiments of the electronic device 200 described above are applicable hereto.

[0201] <5. Application Examples>

[0202] The technology of the present disclosure can be applied to various products.

[0203] For example, the electronic device of the first embodiment can be implemented on the base station side, which can be implemented as any type of base station device, such as a macro eNB and a small eNB, and can also be implemented as any type of gNB (a base station in a 5G system). The small eNB can be an eNB that covers a cell smaller than a macro cell, such as a pico eNB, a micro eNB, and a home (femto) eNB. Alternatively, the base station can be implemented as any other type of base station, such as a NodeB and a base transceiver station (BTS). The base station may include: a main body (also referred to as a base station device) configured to control wireless communications; and one or more remote radio heads (RRHs) arranged at a location different from the main body.

[0204] In addition, the electronic device of the first embodiment can also be implemented as any type of TRP. The TRP can have sending and receiving functions, for example, it can receive information from the user equipment and the base station equipment, and can also send information to the user equipment and the base station equipment. In a typical example, the TRP can provide services for the user equipment and is controlled by the base station equipment. Furthermore, the TRP can have a structure similar to that of the base station equipment, or it can only have a structure related to sending and receiving information in the base station equipment.

[0205] In addition, the terminal device of the second embodiment can be various user devices, which can be implemented as terminal devices (such as smart phones, tablet personal computers (PCs), notebook PCs, portable game terminals, portable / dongle-type mobile routers, and digital camera devices) or vehicle-mounted terminals (such as car navigation devices). The user device can also be implemented as a terminal that performs machine-to-machine (M2M) communication (also known as a machine type communication (MTC) terminal). In addition, the user device can be a wireless communication module (such as an integrated circuit module including a single chip) installed on each user device in the above-mentioned user devices.

[0206] [Application examples for base stations]

[0207] (First application example)

[0208] Fig.10 18 is a block diagram showing a first example of a schematic configuration of an eNB to which the technology of the present disclosure can be applied. The eNB 1800 includes one or more antennas 1810 and a base station device 1820. The base station device 1820 and each antenna 1810 may be connected to each other via an RF cable.

[0209] Each of the antennas 1810 includes a single or multiple antenna elements (such as multiple antenna elements included in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna) and is used for the base station device 1820 to transmit and receive wireless signals. Fig.10 As shown, the eNB 1800 may include multiple antennas 1810. For example, the multiple antennas 1810 may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the eNB 1800. Fig.10 An example is shown in which the eNB 1800 includes a plurality of antennas 1810 , but the eNB 1800 may also include a single antenna 1810 .

[0210] The base station device 1820 includes a controller 1821 , a memory 1822 , a network interface 1823 , and a wireless communication interface 1825 .

[0211] The controller 1821 may be, for example, a CPU or a DSP, and operates various functions of the higher layers of the base station device 1820. For example, the controller 1821 generates a data packet based on the data in the signal processed by the wireless communication interface 1825, and transmits the generated packet via the network interface 1823. The controller 1821 may bundle data from a plurality of baseband processors to generate a bundled packet, and transmit the generated bundled packet. The controller 1821 may have a logical function to perform the following control: the control may be such as radio resource control, radio bearer control, mobility management, admission control, and scheduling. The control may be performed in conjunction with a nearby eNB or core network node. The memory 1822 includes a RAM and a ROM, and stores programs executed by the controller 1821 and various types of control data (such as a terminal list, transmission power data, and scheduling data).

[0212] The network interface 1823 is a communication interface for connecting the base station device 1820 to the core network 1824. The controller 1821 can communicate with the core network node or another eNB via the network interface 1823. In this case, the eNB 1800 and the core network node or other eNBs can be connected to each other through a logical interface (such as an S1 interface and an X2 interface). The network interface 1823 can also be a wired communication interface or a wireless communication interface for a wireless backhaul line. If the network interface 1823 is a wireless communication interface, the network interface 1823 can use a higher frequency band for wireless communication compared to the frequency band used by the wireless communication interface 1825.

[0213] The wireless communication interface 1825 supports any cellular communication scheme (such as long term evolution (LTE) and LTE-Advanced), and provides a wireless connection to a terminal located in a cell of the eNB 1800 via an antenna 1810. The wireless communication interface 1825 may generally include, for example, a baseband (BB) processor 1826 and an RF circuit 1827. The BB processor 1826 may perform, for example, encoding / decoding, modulation / demodulation, and multiplexing / demultiplexing, and perform various types of signal processing of layers (e.g., L1, medium access control (MAC), radio link control (RLC), and packet data convergence protocol (PDCP)). Instead of the controller 1821, the BB processor 1826 may have a part or all of the above-mentioned logical functions. The BB processor 1826 may be a memory storing a communication control program, or a module including a processor configured to execute a program and related circuits. Updating the program may change the function of the BB processor 1826. The module may be a card or a blade inserted into a slot of the base station device 1820. Alternatively, the module may also be a chip mounted on a card or a blade. Meanwhile, the RF circuit 1827 may include, for example, a mixer, a filter, and an amplifier, and transmits and receives wireless signals via the antenna 1810 .

[0214] like Fig.10 As shown, the wireless communication interface 1825 may include multiple BB processors 1826. For example, the multiple BB processors 1826 may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the eNB 1800. Fig.10 As shown, the wireless communication interface 1825 may include multiple RF circuits 1827. For example, the multiple RF circuits 1827 may be compatible with multiple antenna elements. Fig.10 An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 1825 includes a plurality of BB processors 1826 and a plurality of RF circuits 1827 , but the wireless communication interface 1825 may also include a single BB processor 1826 or a single RF circuit 1827 .

[0215] exist Fig.10 In the eNB 1800 shown, previously referred to Figure 2 The transceiver unit of the electronic device 200 described may be implemented through the wireless communication interface 1825 and the optional antenna 1810. At least part of the functions of the generation unit and the perception processing unit in the electronic device 200 may be implemented through the controller 1821. For example, the controller 1821 may implement at least part of the functions of the generation unit and / or the perception processing unit by executing instructions stored in the memory 1822. The functions of the storage unit in the electronic device 200 may be implemented through the memory 1822.

[0216] (Second application example)

[0217] Fig.11 1 is a block diagram showing a second example of a schematic configuration of an eNB to which the technology of the present disclosure can be applied. The eNB 1930 includes one or more antennas 1940, a base station device 1950, and an RRH 1960. The RRH 1960 and each antenna 1940 can be connected to each other via an RF cable. The base station device 1950 and the RRH 1960 can be connected to each other via a high-speed line such as an optical fiber cable.

[0218] Each of the antennas 1940 includes a single or multiple antenna elements (such as multiple antenna elements included in a MIMO antenna) and is used for the RRH 1960 to transmit and receive wireless signals. Fig.11 As shown, the eNB 1930 may include multiple antennas 1940. For example, the multiple antennas 1940 may be compatible with the multiple frequency bands used by the eNB 1930. Fig.11 An example is shown in which the eNB 1930 includes a plurality of antennas 1940 , but the eNB 1930 may also include a single antenna 1940 .

[0219] The base station device 1950 includes a controller 1951, a memory 1952, a network interface 1953, a wireless communication interface 1955, and a connection interface 1957. The controller 1951, the memory 1952, and the network interface 1953 are similar to the reference Fig.10 The controller 1821, memory 1822 and network interface 1823 described are the same.

[0220] The wireless communication interface 1955 supports any cellular communication scheme (such as LTE and LTE-Advanced), and provides wireless communication to a terminal located in a sector corresponding to the RRH 1960 via the RRH 1960 and the antenna 1940. The wireless communication interface 1955 may generally include, for example, a BB processor 1956. In addition to the BB processor 1956 being connected to the RF circuit 1964 of the RRH 1960 via the connection interface 1957, the BB processor 1956 is connected to the reference RF circuit 1964 of the RRH 1960. Fig.10 The same as the BB processor 1826 described above. Fig.11 As shown, the wireless communication interface 1955 may include multiple BB processors 1956. For example, the multiple BB processors 1956 may be compatible with multiple frequency bands used by the eNB 1930. Fig.11 An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 1955 includes a plurality of BB processors 1956 , but the wireless communication interface 1955 may also include a single BB processor 1956 .

[0221] The connection interface 1957 is an interface for connecting the base station device 1950 (wireless communication interface 1955) to the RRH 1960. The connection interface 1957 may also be a communication module for connecting the base station device 1950 (wireless communication interface 1955) to the RRH 1960 for communication in the above-mentioned high-speed line.

[0222] The RRH 1960 includes a connection interface 1961 and a wireless communication interface 1963 .

[0223] The connection interface 1961 is an interface for connecting the RRH 1960 (wireless communication interface 1963) to the base station device 1950. The connection interface 1961 may also be a communication module for communication in the above-mentioned high-speed line.

[0224] The wireless communication interface 1963 transmits and receives wireless signals via the antenna 1940. The wireless communication interface 1963 may generally include, for example, an RF circuit 1964. The RF circuit 1964 may include, for example, a mixer, a filter, and an amplifier, and transmits and receives wireless signals via the antenna 1940. Fig.11 As shown, the wireless communication interface 1963 may include multiple RF circuits 1964. For example, the multiple RF circuits 1964 may support multiple antenna elements. Fig.11 An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 1963 includes a plurality of RF circuits 1964 , but the wireless communication interface 1963 may also include a single RF circuit 1964 .

[0225] exist Fig.11 In the eNB 1930 shown, previously referred to Figure 2 The transceiver unit of the electronic device 200 described may be implemented, for example, by a wireless communication interface 1963 and an optional antenna 1940. At least part of the functions of the generation unit and / or the perception processing unit in the electronic device 200 may be implemented by the controller 1951. For example, the controller 1951 may implement at least part of the functions of the generation unit and the perception processing unit by executing instructions stored in the memory 1952. The functions of the storage unit in the electronic device 200 may be implemented by the memory 1952.

[0226] [Application examples on user devices]

[0227] (First application example)

[0228] Fig.12 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a smartphone 2000 to which the technology of the present disclosure can be applied. The smartphone 2000 includes a processor 2001, a memory 2002, a storage device 2003, an external connection interface 2004, a camera 2006, a sensor 2007, a microphone 2008, an input device 2009, a display device 2010, a speaker 2011, a wireless communication interface 2012, one or more antenna switches 2015, one or more antennas 2016, a bus 2017, a battery 2018, and an auxiliary controller 2019.

[0229] The processor 2001 may be, for example, a CPU or a system on chip (SoC), and controls the functions of the application layer and other layers of the smartphone 2000. The memory 2002 includes a RAM and a ROM, and stores data and programs executed by the processor 2001. The storage device 2003 may include a storage medium such as a semiconductor memory and a hard disk. The external connection interface 2004 is an interface for connecting an external device (such as a memory card and a universal serial bus (USB) device) to the smartphone 2000.

[0230] The camera device 2006 includes an image sensor such as a charge coupled device (CCD) and a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS), and generates a captured image. The sensor 2007 may include a group of sensors such as a measurement sensor, a gyro sensor, a geomagnetic sensor, and an acceleration sensor. The microphone 2008 converts the sound input to the smart phone 2000 into an audio signal. The input device 2009 includes, for example, a touch sensor, a keypad, a keyboard, a button, or a switch configured to detect a touch on the screen of the display device 2010, and receives an operation or information input from a user. The display device 2010 includes a screen such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) and an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display, and displays an output image of the smart phone 2000. The speaker 2011 converts the audio signal output from the smart phone 2000 into sound.

[0231] The wireless communication interface 2012 supports any cellular communication scheme (such as LTE and LTE-Advanced), and performs wireless communication. The wireless communication interface 2012 may generally include, for example, a BB processor 2013 and an RF circuit 2014. The BB processor 2013 may perform, for example, encoding / decoding, modulation / demodulation, and multiplexing / demultiplexing, and perform various types of signal processing for wireless communication. Meanwhile, the RF circuit 2014 may include, for example, a mixer, a filter, and an amplifier, and transmit and receive wireless signals via an antenna 2016. The wireless communication interface 2012 may be a chip module on which the BB processor 2013 and the RF circuit 2014 are integrated. Fig.12 As shown, the wireless communication interface 2012 may include multiple BB processors 2013 and multiple RF circuits 2014. Fig.12 An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 2012 includes a plurality of BB processors 2013 and a plurality of RF circuits 2014 , but the wireless communication interface 2012 may also include a single BB processor 2013 or a single RF circuit 2014 .

[0232] In addition, in addition to the cellular communication scheme, the wireless communication interface 2012 can support other types of wireless communication schemes, such as short-range wireless communication schemes, near field communication schemes, and wireless local area network (LAN) schemes. In this case, the wireless communication interface 2012 can include a BB processor 2013 and an RF circuit 2014 for each wireless communication scheme.

[0233] Each of the antenna switches 2015 switches the connection destination of the antenna 916 between a plurality of circuits (eg, circuits for different wireless communication schemes) included in the wireless communication interface 2012 .

[0234] Each of the antennas 2016 includes a single or multiple antenna elements (such as multiple antenna elements included in a MIMO antenna) and is used for the wireless communication interface 2012 to transmit and receive wireless signals. Fig.12 As shown, the smart phone 2000 may include multiple antennas 2016. Fig.12 An example is shown in which the smartphone 2000 includes a plurality of antennas 2016 , but the smartphone 2000 may also include a single antenna 2016 .

[0235] In addition, the smartphone 2000 may include an antenna 2016 for each wireless communication scheme. In this case, the antenna switch 2015 may be omitted from the configuration of the smartphone 2000.

[0236] The bus 2017 connects the processor 2001, the memory 2002, the storage device 2003, the external connection interface 2004, the camera 2006, the sensor 2007, the microphone 2008, the input device 2009, the display device 2010, the speaker 2011, the wireless communication interface 2012, and the auxiliary controller 2019 to each other. The battery 2018 is fed to the Fig.12 The various blocks of the smartphone 2000 shown are supplied with power, with feed lines partially shown as dashed lines in the figure. The auxiliary controller 2019 operates the minimum necessary functions of the smartphone 2000, for example in a sleep mode.

[0237] exist Fig.12 In the smart phone 2000 shown in FIG. Figure 7 The communication unit in the terminal device 700 described above can be implemented through the wireless communication interface 2012 and the optional antenna 2016. At least part of the functions of the sensing unit in the terminal device 700 can be implemented by the processor 2001 or the auxiliary controller 2019. For example, the processor 2001 or the auxiliary controller 2019 can implement at least part of the functions of the sensing unit by executing instructions stored in the memory 2002 or the storage device 2003. The functions of the storage unit in the terminal device 700 can be implemented by the memory 2002 or the storage device 2003.

[0238] (Second application example)

[0239] Fig.132 is a block diagram showing an example of a schematic configuration of a car navigation device 2120 to which the technology of the present disclosure can be applied. The car navigation device 2120 includes a processor 2121, a memory 2122, a global positioning system (GPS) module 2124, a sensor 2125, a data interface 2126, a content player 2127, a storage medium interface 2128, an input device 2129, a display device 2130, a speaker 2131, a wireless communication interface 2133, one or more antenna switches 2136, one or more antennas 2137, and a battery 2138.

[0240] The processor 2121 may be, for example, a CPU or a SoC, and controls a navigation function and other functions of the car navigation device 2120. The memory 2122 includes a RAM and a ROM, and stores data and a program executed by the processor 2121.

[0241] The GPS module 2124 measures the position (such as latitude, longitude and altitude) of the car navigation device 2120 using GPS signals received from GPS satellites. The sensor 2125 may include a group of sensors such as a gyro sensor, a geomagnetic sensor and an air pressure sensor. The data interface 2126 is connected to, for example, the vehicle network 2141 via an unshown terminal and acquires data (such as vehicle speed data) generated by the vehicle.

[0242] The content player 2127 reproduces content stored in a storage medium such as a CD and a DVD, which is inserted into the storage medium interface 2128. The input device 2129 includes, for example, a touch sensor, a button, or a switch configured to detect a touch on the screen of the display device 2130, and receives an operation or information input from a user. The display device 2130 includes a screen such as an LCD or an OLED display, and displays an image of a navigation function or reproduced content. The speaker 2131 outputs a sound of a navigation function or reproduced content.

[0243] The wireless communication interface 2133 supports any cellular communication scheme (such as LTE and LTE-Advanced) and performs wireless communication. The wireless communication interface 2133 may generally include, for example, a BB processor 2134 and an RF circuit 2135. The BB processor 2134 may perform, for example, encoding / decoding, modulation / demodulation, and multiplexing / demultiplexing, and perform various types of signal processing for wireless communication. Meanwhile, the RF circuit 2135 may include, for example, a mixer, a filter, and an amplifier, and transmit and receive wireless signals via an antenna 2137. The wireless communication interface 2133 may also be a chip module on which the BB processor 2134 and the RF circuit 2135 are integrated. Fig.13 As shown, the wireless communication interface 2133 may include multiple BB processors 2134 and multiple RF circuits 2135. Fig.13 An example is shown in which the wireless communication interface 2133 includes a plurality of BB processors 2134 and a plurality of RF circuits 2135 , but the wireless communication interface 2133 may also include a single BB processor 2134 or a single RF circuit 2135 .

[0244] In addition, in addition to the cellular communication scheme, the wireless communication interface 2133 can support other types of wireless communication schemes, such as short-range wireless communication schemes, near field communication schemes, and wireless LAN schemes. In this case, for each wireless communication scheme, the wireless communication interface 2133 can include a BB processor 2134 and an RF circuit 2135.

[0245] Each of the antenna switches 2136 switches a connection destination of the antenna 2137 between a plurality of circuits included in the wireless communication interface 2133 , such as circuits for different wireless communication schemes.

[0246] Each of the antennas 2137 includes a single or multiple antenna elements (such as multiple antenna elements included in a MIMO antenna) and is used for the wireless communication interface 2133 to transmit and receive wireless signals. Fig.13 As shown, the car navigation device 2120 may include multiple antennas 2137. Fig.13 An example is shown in which the car navigation device 2120 includes a plurality of antennas 2137 , but the car navigation device 2120 may also include a single antenna 2137 .

[0247] In addition, the car navigation device 2120 may include an antenna 2137 for each wireless communication scheme. In this case, the antenna switch 2136 may be omitted from the configuration of the car navigation device 2120.

[0248] Battery 2138 is fed via a feeder Fig.13 The respective blocks of the illustrated car navigation device 2120 are supplied with electric power, and feed lines are partially illustrated as dotted lines in the figure. The battery 2138 accumulates electric power supplied from the vehicle.

[0249] exist Fig.13 In the car navigation device 2120 shown, previously referred to Figure 7 The transceiver unit in the terminal device 700 described above may be implemented through the wireless communication interface 2133 and the optional antenna 2137. At least part of the functions of the sensing unit in the terminal device 700 may be implemented by the processor 2121. For example, the processor 2121 may implement at least part of the functions of the sensing unit by executing instructions stored in the memory 2122. The functions of the storage unit in the terminal device 700 may be implemented by the memory 2122.

[0250] The technology of the present disclosure may also be implemented as an in-vehicle system (or vehicle) 2140 including a car navigation device 2120, an in-vehicle network 2141, and one or more blocks in a vehicle module 2142. The vehicle module 2142 generates vehicle data (such as vehicle speed, engine speed, and fault information), and outputs the generated data to the in-vehicle network 2141.

[0251] The preferred embodiments of the present disclosure are described above with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present disclosure is certainly not limited to the above examples. Those skilled in the art may obtain various changes and modifications within the scope of the appended claims, and it should be understood that these changes and modifications will naturally fall within the technical scope of the present disclosure.

[0252] For example, the units shown in dashed boxes in the functional block diagrams shown in the accompanying drawings all indicate that the functional units are optional in the corresponding device, and the various optional functional units can be combined in an appropriate manner to achieve the required functions.

[0253] For example, a plurality of functions included in one unit in the above embodiments may be implemented by separate devices. Alternatively, a plurality of functions implemented by a plurality of units in the above embodiments may be implemented by separate devices, respectively. In addition, one of the above functions may be implemented by a plurality of units. Needless to say, such a configuration is included in the technical scope of the present disclosure.

[0254] In this specification, the steps described in the flowchart include not only the processing performed in time series in the order described, but also the processing performed in parallel or individually rather than necessarily in time series. In addition, even in the steps processed in time series, it goes without saying that the order can be appropriately changed.

[0255] Furthermore, the present disclosure may have configurations as described below.

[0256] 1. An electronic device, comprising:

[0257] The processing circuit is configured to:

[0258] Sending a positioning instruction to a plurality of terminal devices near a positioning target to instruct the terminal devices to send a sensing signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain sensing data;

[0259] receiving a plurality of sensing data from the plurality of terminal devices; and

[0260] The received sensing data is processed to obtain a positioning result for the positioning target.

[0261] 2. The electronic device according to configuration 1, wherein:

[0262] The positioning indication is used to indicate the preliminary position of the positioning target.

[0263] 3. An electronic device according to configuration 1, wherein the positioning indication and / or the perception data includes beam-related information of the perception signal.

[0264] 4. The electronic device according to configuration 1, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to:

[0265] The strength of the echo signal and the angle of the positioning target relative to the terminal device are obtained based on the perception data.

[0266] 5. The electronic device according to configuration 4, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to:

[0267] Selecting part of the perception data from the plurality of perception data so that the perception vectors based on the selected perception data constitute or approximately constitute a convex hull set of a plurality of perception vectors based on the plurality of perception data, wherein the perception vectors based on the perception data are determined according to the intensity and the angle; and

[0268] The selected sensing data is processed to obtain the positioning result.

[0269] 6. The electronic device according to configuration 4, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to: before sending the positioning indication:

[0270] Sending a preliminary positioning instruction to a candidate terminal device near the positioning target to instruct the candidate terminal device to send a perception signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain preliminary perception data;

[0271] receiving the preliminary sensing data from the candidate terminal device, and obtaining the strength of the echo signal and the angle of the positioning target relative to the terminal device according to the preliminary sensing data; and

[0272] The plurality of terminal devices are selected from the candidate terminal devices so that a plurality of preliminary perception vectors based on the preliminary perception data of the plurality of terminal devices constitute or approximately constitute a convex hull set of all preliminary perception vectors based on the preliminary perception data of all candidate terminal devices,

[0273] The preliminary perception vector based on the preliminary perception data is determined according to the intensity and the angle obtained based on the preliminary perception data.

[0274] 7. An electronic device according to configuration 1, wherein the positioning indication includes control information about the time and / or manner in which the terminal device sends the perception signal and / or the perception data.

[0275] 8. The electronic device according to configuration 7, wherein the control information indicates a period for the terminal device to send the perception signal and the perception data, and the processing circuit is further configured to:

[0276] In each of the cycles, a plurality of sensing data are received, the received sensing data are processed to obtain positioning results, and the obtained positioning results are sent to the plurality of terminal devices as updated positions of the positioning targets.

[0277] 9. The electronic device according to configuration 1, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to:

[0278] Selecting perception data having high quality of the echo signal from among the plurality of perception data; and

[0279] The selected sensing data are fused to obtain the positioning data.

[0280] 10. The electronic device according to configuration 1, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to:

[0281] The positioning indication is sent when a positioning request is received from the positioning target and / or the positioning accuracy of the positioning target is lower than an accuracy threshold.

[0282] 11. A terminal device, comprising:

[0283] The processing circuit is configured to:

[0284] receiving a location indication from an electronic device;

[0285] Based on the positioning indication, sending a sensing signal to the positioning target and receiving an echo signal to obtain sensing data;

[0286] The sensing data is sent to the electronic device, so that the electronic device obtains a positioning result for the positioning target by processing a plurality of sensing data from a plurality of terminal devices.

[0287] 12. The terminal device according to configuration 11, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to:

[0288] The sensing signal is sent to the positioning target using a directional beam.

[0289] 13. A terminal device according to configuration 11, wherein the positioning indication is used to indicate a preliminary position of the positioning target.

[0290] 14. A terminal device according to configuration 11, wherein the positioning indication and / or the perception data includes beam-related information of the perception signal.

[0291] 15. The terminal device according to configuration 11, wherein:

[0292] The sensing data can indicate the strength of the echo signal and the angle of the positioning target relative to the terminal device.

[0293] 16. A terminal device according to configuration 11, wherein the positioning indication includes control information about the time and / or manner in which the terminal device sends the perception signal and / or the perception data.

[0294] 17. The electronic device according to configuration 16, wherein the processing circuit is further configured to:

[0295] The perception signal and / or the perception data are sent according to the time and / or manner indicated by the control information.

[0296] 18. The terminal device according to configuration 16, wherein the control information indicates a period for the terminal device to send the perception signal and the perception data, and the processing circuit is further configured to:

[0297] In each of the cycles, a perception signal is sent to the position of the positioning target and an echo signal is received to obtain perception data, the obtained perception data is sent to the electronic device, and a positioning result is received from the electronic device as an updated position of the positioning target.

[0298] 19. A positioning method, comprising:

[0299] Sending a positioning instruction to a plurality of terminal devices near a positioning target to instruct the terminal devices to send a sensing signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain sensing data;

[0300] receiving a plurality of sensing data from the plurality of terminal devices; and

[0301] The received sensing data is processed to obtain a positioning result for the positioning target.

[0302] 20. A positioning method implemented on a terminal device side, comprising:

[0303] receiving a location indication from an electronic device;

[0304] Based on the positioning indication, sending a sensing signal to the positioning target and receiving an echo signal to obtain sensing data;

[0305] The sensing data is sent to the electronic device, so that the electronic device obtains a positioning result for the positioning target by processing a plurality of sensing data from a plurality of terminal devices.

[0306] 21. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing executable instructions, wherein when the executable instructions are executed by a processor, the processor performs the positioning method as described in configuration 20 or 21.

[0307] Although the embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, it should be understood that the embodiments described above are only used to illustrate the present disclosure and do not constitute a limitation of the present disclosure. For those skilled in the art, various modifications and changes can be made to the above embodiments without departing from the essence and scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the scope of the present disclosure is limited only by the attached claims and their equivalent meanings.

Claims

1. An electronic device, comprising: The processing circuit is configured to: Sending a positioning instruction to a plurality of terminal devices near a positioning target to instruct the terminal devices to send a sensing signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain sensing data; receiving a plurality of sensing data from the plurality of terminal devices; as well as The received sensing data is processed to obtain a positioning result for the positioning target.

2. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein: The positioning indication is used to indicate the preliminary position of the positioning target.

3. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein: The positioning indication and / or the sensing data include beam-related information of the sensing signal.

4. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein: The processing circuit is further configured to: The strength of the echo signal and the angle of the positioning target relative to the terminal device are obtained based on the perception data.

5. The electronic device according to claim 4, wherein: The processing circuit is further configured to: Selecting part of the perception data from the plurality of perception data so that the perception vectors based on the selected perception data constitute or approximately constitute a convex hull set of a plurality of perception vectors based on the plurality of perception data, wherein the perception vectors based on the perception data are determined according to the intensity and the angle; and The selected sensing data is processed to obtain the positioning result.

6. The electronic device according to claim 4, wherein: The processing circuit is further configured to, before sending the positioning indication: Sending a preliminary positioning instruction to a candidate terminal device near the positioning target to instruct the candidate terminal device to send a perception signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain preliminary perception data; receiving the preliminary sensing data from the candidate terminal device, and obtaining the strength of the echo signal and the angle of the positioning target relative to the terminal device according to the preliminary sensing data; as well as The plurality of terminal devices are selected from the candidate terminal devices so that a plurality of preliminary perception vectors based on the preliminary perception data of the plurality of terminal devices constitute or approximately constitute a convex hull set of all preliminary perception vectors based on the preliminary perception data of all candidate terminal devices, The preliminary perception vector based on the preliminary perception data is determined according to the intensity and the angle obtained based on the preliminary perception data.

7. A terminal device, comprising: The processing circuit is configured to: receiving a location indication from an electronic device; Based on the positioning indication, sending a sensing signal to the positioning target and receiving an echo signal to obtain sensing data; The sensing data is sent to the electronic device, so that the electronic device obtains a positioning result for the positioning target by processing a plurality of sensing data from a plurality of terminal devices.

8. A positioning method, comprising: Sending a positioning instruction to a plurality of terminal devices near a positioning target to instruct the terminal devices to send a sensing signal to the positioning target and receive an echo signal to obtain sensing data; receiving a plurality of sensing data from the plurality of terminal devices; as well as The received sensing data is processed to obtain a positioning result for the positioning target.

9. A positioning method implemented on a terminal device side, comprising: receiving a location indication from an electronic device; Based on the positioning indication, sending a sensing signal to the positioning target and receiving an echo signal to obtain sensing data; The sensing data is sent to the electronic device, so that the electronic device obtains a positioning result for the positioning target by processing a plurality of sensing data from a plurality of terminal devices. 10 . A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing executable instructions, wherein when the executable instructions are executed by a processor, the processor performs the positioning method according to claim 20 or 21 .

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