Communication method and device

Abstract

A communication method and device can be applied to sidelink positioning, and can enable scheduling information of a positioning reference signal (PRS) and a time domain resource where the PRS is located to be continuous as much as possible, or enable the time domain resource where the PRS resource is located to be continuous with a resource reserved by other terminal equipment of the same system. Therefore, the channel is prevented from being preempted by the terminal equipment of the different system after the scheduling information is sent. The method comprises: a terminal device determining a first candidate PRS resource set, the first candidate PRS resource set comprising P PRS resources, the P PRS resources comprising at least N idle PRS resources within a first duration, N and P being positive integers, and N being less than P. The terminal equipment determines that the available PRS resources are M PRS resources in a second candidate PRS resource set, the second candidate PRS resource set comprises Q PRS resources, Q and M are positive integers, Q is smaller than P, and M is smaller than or equal to Q. The second candidate PRS resource set is the remaining PRS resources in the first candidate PRS resource set after the PRS resources after the first duration are excluded.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The embodiments of the present application relate to the field of communications, and in particular, to communication methods and devices. Background Art

[0002] In the sidelink-unlicensed (SL-U) scenario, the terminal device needs to perform channel idle detection by listening before talking (LBT) before accessing the channel. If the channel is idle, it accesses the channel and transmits signals during the subsequent channel occupancy time (COT).

[0003] In addition, in SL-U positioning, the sidelink-positioning reference signal (SL-PRS) supports time division multiplexing (TDM) within a time slot. Therefore, the time domain resources where the sidelink control information (SCI) sent by a terminal device and the SL-PRS scheduled by the SCI are located may be discontinuous.

[0004] However, in the SL-U scenario, after the terminal device sends the SCI, the channel may be preempted by other terminal devices of different systems, resulting in the terminal device being unable to continue sending the SL-PRS scheduled by the SCI. Summary of the invention

[0005] The present application provides a communication method and apparatus, which can make the scheduling information of PRS and the time domain resources where PRS is located as continuous as possible, or can make the time domain resources where PRS resources are located as continuous as possible with the resources reserved by other terminal devices in the same system, so as to avoid the channel being preempted by terminal devices in different systems after sending scheduling information.

[0006] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal device, or by a component of the terminal device, such as a processor, chip, or chip system of the terminal device, or by a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the terminal device. The method includes: determining a first candidate positioning reference signal PRS resource set, the first candidate PRS resource set includes P PRS resources, the P PRS resources include at least N idle PRS resources within a first duration, N and P are positive integers, and N is less than P. Determine that the available PRS resources are M PRS resources in a second candidate PRS resource set, the second candidate PRS resource set includes Q PRS resources, Q and M are positive integers, Q is less than P, and M is less than or equal to Q. Among them, the second candidate PRS resource set is the PRS resources remaining in the first candidate PRS resource set after excluding the PRS resources after the first duration.

[0007] Based on this solution, when the first candidate PRS resource set includes at least N idle PRS resources within the first duration, the PRS resources in the first candidate PRS resource set that are located after the first duration are excluded, that is, the available PRS resources do not include the PRS resources after the first duration. In other words, the available PRS resources may be located within the first duration. Since the first duration includes at least N idle PRS resources, when N is large, such as N is the total number of PRSs included in the duration, the first duration may be the first duration in the time slot that includes at least N idle PRS resources, or the first duration in which all the included PRS resources are idle.

[0008] That is to say, if there are other durations before the first duration, at least one PRS resource in the other durations should be reserved or selected by other terminal devices in the same system. In this scenario, although the available PRS resources in the first duration are not continuous with the scheduling information of PRS, the PRS resources between the two are reserved or selected by other terminal devices in the same system, and the terminal devices in the same system can send PRS on the PRS resources between the two. Therefore, the terminal devices of different systems will detect that the channel is busy when performing LBT, and thus cannot seize the channel, thereby avoiding the channel being seized by terminal devices of different systems, and improving the success rate of PRS transmission and positioning. Alternatively, if there are no other durations before the first duration, the first duration may be continuous with the time domain resources where the scheduling information of PRS is located. In this scenario, the terminal devices of different systems will also detect that the channel is busy when performing LBT, and thus cannot seize the channel.

[0009] In one possible design, the at least N idle PRS resources in the first duration are part or all of the PRS resources in the first duration.

[0010] In one possible design, the available PRS resources include a first PRS resource; the method also includes: sending first information, where the first information is used to reserve the first PRS resource.

[0011] Based on this possible design, other terminal devices in the same system as the terminal device can learn that the first PRS resource is reserved after receiving the first information, so that the first PRS resource can be excluded when selecting or reserving resources to avoid resource conflicts.

[0012] In one possible design, the available PRS resources include a first PRS resource; and the method further includes sending the PRS on the first PRS resource.

[0013] Based on this possible design, the terminal device can send PRS on the first PRS resource. Other terminal devices in the same system as the terminal device can measure PRS to obtain positioning measurement information. Afterwards, other terminal devices can send the positioning measurement information to the LMF network element so that the LMF network element can perform position calculation; or, the terminal device can perform position calculation based on the positioning measurement information.

[0014] In one possible design, the available PRS resources include a first PRS resource; the method further includes: if the channel is continuously idle or continuously non-idle between the first moment and the second moment, sending PRS on the first PRS resource; or, if the channel is idle in the first time period and the channel is non-idle in the second time period, determining not to send PRS on the first PRS resource, the first time period and the second time period are between the first moment and the second moment, and the first time period is before the second time period. The first moment is the end moment of the scheduling information of the first PRS resource; the second moment is the start moment of the first PRS resource, or the second moment is the start moment of the automatic gain control information corresponding to the first PRS resource.

[0015] Based on this possible design, the time period between the first moment and the second moment can be the time period where the PRS resources reserved or selected by other terminal devices in the same system are located. If the channel is continuously non-idle between the first moment and the second moment, it means that other terminal devices in the same system have sent PRS resources on the reserved or selected PRS resources. Therefore, when performing LBT, the terminal devices of the different systems will detect that the channel is not idle, so that they cannot seize the channel, and then after the second moment, the terminal devices can send PRS on the first PRS resource; if the channel is continuously idle between the first moment and the second moment, it means that other terminal devices in the same system have not used the reserved PRS resources, but because the channel is continuously idle, it also means that the terminal devices of the different systems have not seized the channel, so the terminal devices can also send PRS on the first PRS resource. That is to say, when the channel is continuously idle or continuously non-idle between the first moment and the second moment, the terminal device sends PRS on the first PRS resource to avoid conflicts and improve the success rate of PRS transmission.

[0016] Alternatively, the time period between the first moment and the second moment may be a time period in which PRS resources are reserved or selected by other terminal devices in the same system. If the channel is idle in the first time period, it means that other terminal devices in the same system have not used the reserved PRS resources. If the channel is not idle in the subsequent second time period, it means that a terminal device in a different system has occupied the channel. For example, a terminal device in a different system successfully performs LBT in the first time period and accesses the channel at the third moment. Since it is detected that a terminal device in a different system may have occupied the channel, not sending PRS on the first PRS resource can reduce power consumption waste of the terminal device, while reducing resource conflicts and avoiding impacts on terminal devices in different systems.

[0017] In one possible design, the method also includes: receiving second information from a network device, where the second information indicates N.

[0018] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal device, or by a component of the terminal device, such as a processor, a chip, or a chip system of the terminal device, or can be implemented by a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the functions of the terminal device. The method includes: determining an available positioning reference signal PRS resource, the available PRS resource is an idle PRS resource, the available PRS resource is in a first duration, and the first duration is the first idle duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resource.

[0019] Based on this scheme, since the available PRS resources are located in the first duration, and the first duration is the first idle duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources, the durations after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources and before the available PRS resources are not idle, indicating that other terminal devices in the same system have reserved or selected this part of the duration. The terminal devices in the same system can send PRS on the PRS resources within this part of the duration. Therefore, the terminal devices of the different systems will detect that the channel is busy when performing LBT, and thus cannot seize the channel, thereby avoiding the channel being seized by terminal devices of the different systems, thereby improving the PRS sending success rate and positioning success rate.

[0020] In one possible design, the first idle duration is the first duration after the second duration, and at least one PRS resource is non-idle during the second duration; or, the first idle duration is the first duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources; or, the first idle duration is the idle duration with the highest priority.

[0021] Based on this possible design, the first idle duration is the first duration after the second duration. When at least one PRS resource is non-idle within the second duration, although the available PRS resources within the first duration are discontinuous with the scheduling information of the PRS, the PRS resources between the two (i.e., the PRS resources within the second duration) are reserved or selected by other terminal devices in the same system. The terminal devices in the same system can send PRS on the PRS resources within the second duration. Therefore, the terminal devices in different systems will detect that the channel is busy when performing LBT, and will be unable to preempt the channel, thereby avoiding the channel being preempted by terminal devices in different systems and improving the PRS sending success rate and positioning success rate.

[0022] Alternatively, when the first idle duration is the first duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources, the scheduling information of the available PRS resources may be continuous with the available PRS resources. At this time, the terminal device of the different system will detect that the channel is busy when performing LBT and cannot seize the channel.

[0023] In one possible design, at least one PRS resource is non-idle within the second duration, including: at least L PRS resources are non-idle within the second duration, and / or the proportion of non-idle PRS resources within the second duration in the PRS resource set is greater than or equal to a preset proportion, the PRS resource set includes all PRS resources within the second duration, and L is a positive integer.

[0024] In one possible design, within a time slot, the priority of a time duration with an earlier time domain position is higher than the priority of a time duration with a later time domain position.

[0025] Based on this possible design, when the priority of the duration with an earlier time domain position is higher than the priority of the duration with a later time domain position, the idle duration with the highest priority can be the first idle duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources, so that the terminal device of the different system will detect that the channel is busy and cannot seize the channel when performing LBT, thereby avoiding the channel being seized by the terminal device of the different system and improving the PRS sending success rate and positioning success rate.

[0026] In one possible design, the method further includes: sending first information, where the first information is used to reserve available PRS resources. Based on this possible design, other terminal devices in the same system as the terminal device can learn that the available PRS resources are reserved after receiving the first information, so that the available PRS resources can be excluded when selecting or reserving resources to avoid resource conflicts.

[0027] In one possible design, the method further includes: sending the PRS on available PRS resources. Based on this possible design, the terminal device may send the PRS on available PRS resources. Other terminal devices in the same system as the terminal device may measure the PRS, obtain positioning measurement information, and send the positioning measurement information to the LMF network element so that the LMF network element performs position calculation.

[0028] In one possible design, the method further includes: if the channel is continuously idle or continuously non-idle between the first moment and the second moment, sending PRS on the available PRS resources; or, if the channel is idle in the first time period and the channel is non-idle in the second time period, determining not to send PRS on the available PRS resources, the first time period and the second time period are between the first moment and the second moment, and the first time period is before the second time period. The first moment is the end moment of the scheduling information of the available PRS resources; the second moment is the start moment of the available PRS resources, or the second moment is the start moment of the automatic gain control information corresponding to the available PRS resources.

[0029] Based on this possible design, the success rate of PRS transmission can be improved, or the power consumption waste of terminal equipment can be reduced, while reducing resource conflicts and avoiding the impact on heterogeneous system terminal equipment. The technical effects brought about by similar designs in the first aspect can be referred to, and will not be repeated here.

[0030] In a third aspect, a communication device is provided for implementing various methods. The communication device may be a terminal device in the first aspect or the second aspect, or a device contained in the terminal device, such as a chip or a chip system. The communication device includes a module, unit, or means corresponding to the implementation method, and the module, unit, or means may be implemented by hardware, software, or by hardware executing the corresponding software implementation. The hardware or software includes one or more modules or units corresponding to the functions.

[0031] In some possible designs, the communication device may include a processing module and a transceiver module. The processing module may be used to implement the processing function in any of the above aspects and any possible implementations thereof. The transceiver module may include a receiving module and a sending module, respectively used to implement the receiving function and the sending function in any of the above aspects and any possible implementations thereof.

[0032] In some possible designs, the transceiver module may be composed of a transceiver circuit, a transceiver, a transceiver or a communication interface.

[0033] In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor and a memory; the memory is used to store computer instructions, and when the processor executes the instructions, the communication device executes the method described in any aspect. The communication device can be the terminal device in the first aspect or the second aspect, or a device included in the terminal device, such as a chip or a chip system.

[0034] In a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor and a communication interface; the communication interface is used to communicate with a module outside the communication device; the processor is used to execute a computer program or instruction so that the communication device executes the method described in any aspect. The communication device can be the terminal device in the first aspect or the second aspect, or a device included in the terminal device, such as a chip or a chip system.

[0035] In a sixth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: at least one processor; the processor is used to execute a computer program or instruction stored in a memory, so that the communication device performs the method described in any aspect. The memory may be coupled to the processor, or may be independent of the processor. The communication device may be a terminal device in the first aspect or the second aspect, or a device included in the terminal device, such as a chip or a chip system.

[0036] In the seventh aspect, a communication device is provided, which may be a terminal device, or a module or unit (for example, a chip, or a chip system, or a circuit) in the terminal device that corresponds one-to-one to the method / operation / step / action described in the first aspect or the second aspect, or a module or unit that can be used in combination with the terminal device.

[0037] In an eighth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, in which a computer program or instruction is stored. When the computer-readable storage medium is run on a communication device, the communication device can execute the method described in any one of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0038] In a ninth aspect, a computer program product comprising instructions is provided, which, when executed on a communication device, enables the communication device to execute the method described in any one of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0039] In a tenth aspect, a communication device (for example, the communication device may be a chip or a chip system) is provided, wherein the communication device includes a processor for implementing the functions involved in any one of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0040] In some possible designs, the communication device includes a memory for storing necessary program instructions and data.

[0041] In some possible designs, when the device is a chip system, it can be composed of a chip or include a chip and other discrete devices.

[0042] In an eleventh aspect, a communication system is provided, the communication system comprising a terminal device and a network device. The terminal device is used to execute the method described in the first aspect and any possible design thereof, and the network device is used to send second information, the second information being used to indicate N in the method described in the first aspect.

[0043] It can be understood that when the communication device provided in any one of the third aspect to the tenth aspect is a chip, the sending action / function of the communication device can be understood as output information, and the receiving action / function of the communication device can be understood as input information.

[0044] Among them, the technical effects brought about by any design method in the third aspect to the tenth aspect can refer to the technical effects brought about by different design methods in the first aspect or the second aspect, and will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0045] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a time slot structure in a TDM SL-PRS scenario provided by this application;

[0046] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the time slot structure in another TDM SL-PRS scenario provided by this application;

[0047] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of a communication system provided for this application;

[0048] Figure 4 A flow chart of a communication method provided by the present application;

[0049] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of a time slot structure in a TDM PRS scenario provided by this application;

[0050] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of a time slot structure in another TDM PRS scenario provided by this application;

[0051] Figure 7 A flowchart of another communication method provided by the present application;

[0052] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a first moment and a second moment provided in this application;

[0053] Fig. 9 A flowchart of another communication method provided by the present application;

[0054] Fig.10 A schematic diagram of a duration priority provided for this application;

[0055] Fig.11 A schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided by the present application;

[0056] Fig.12 A schematic diagram of the structure of another communication device provided by the present application;

[0057] Fig.13 A schematic diagram of the structure of another communication device provided in the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0058] In the description of this application, unless otherwise specified, " / " indicates that the objects associated with each other are in an "or" relationship, for example, A / B can represent A or B; "and / or" in this application is merely a description of the association relationship between associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist, for example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural.

[0059] In the description of this application, unless otherwise specified, "plurality" means two or more than two. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single items or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can mean: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0060] In addition, in order to clearly describe the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, in the embodiments of the present application, words such as "first" and "second" are used to distinguish the same items or similar items with substantially the same functions and effects. Those skilled in the art can understand that words such as "first" and "second" do not limit the quantity and execution order, and words such as "first" and "second" do not necessarily limit the difference.

[0061] In the embodiments of the present application, words such as "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations or descriptions. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" or "for example" in the embodiments of the present application should not be interpreted as being more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or designs. Specifically, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present related concepts in a concrete way for easy understanding.

[0062] It is understood that the "embodiment" mentioned throughout the specification means that the specific features, structures or characteristics related to the embodiment are included in at least one embodiment of the present application. Therefore, the various embodiments in the entire specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. In addition, these specific features, structures or characteristics can be combined in one or more embodiments in any suitable manner. It is understood that in various embodiments of the present application, the size of the sequence number of each process does not mean the order of execution, and the execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiment of the present application.

[0063] It can be understood that in the present application, "when" and "if" both mean that corresponding processing will be carried out under certain objective circumstances, and do not limit the time, nor do they require any judgment action when implementing, nor do they mean the existence of other limitations.

[0064] It can be understood that some optional features in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented independently in certain scenarios without relying on other features, such as the solution on which they are currently based, to solve corresponding technical problems and achieve corresponding effects, or may be combined with other features according to needs in certain scenarios. Accordingly, the devices provided in the embodiments of the present application may also realize these features or functions accordingly, which will not be elaborated here.

[0065] In this application, unless otherwise specified, the same or similar parts between the various embodiments can refer to each other. In the various embodiments in this application, if there is no special description and logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced to each other, and the technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their inherent logical relationships. The following description of the implementation methods of this application does not constitute a limitation on the scope of protection of this application.

[0066] In order to facilitate understanding of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, a brief introduction to the related technologies of the present application is first given as follows.

[0067] 1. Sidelink (SL) positioning:

[0068] In the SL positioning scenario, a dedicated positioning resource pool may be configured. In the dedicated positioning resource pool, the SL-positioning reference signal (PRS) (ie, SL-PRS) supports time division multiplexing (TDM) within a time slot.

[0069] Exemplarily, the time slot structure of the positioning dedicated resource pool can be as follows Figure 1 See Figure 1 , the sidelink control information (SCI) is carried in the first few orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols in the time slot and can be multiplexed by frequency division multiplexing (FDM). For example, Figure 1 The SCI 1 to SCI 4 shown are respectively the SCIs of the terminal devices 1 to 4. The SCI can be used to schedule the SL-PRS.

[0070] In duration 1 and duration 2, SL-PRS can be TDMed. Furthermore, comb multiplexing can be performed on the same OFDM symbol. For example, in duration 1, SL-PRS of terminal device 1 and terminal device 2 are comb multiplexed, and in duration 2, SL-PRS of terminal device 3 and terminal device 4 are comb multiplexed.

[0071] In addition, the time slot may also include an automatic gain control (AGC) symbol and a gap (GAP) symbol. The AGC symbol is generally a copy of the next symbol and is mainly used to adjust the receiving gain. The GAP symbol is usually the last symbol in the time slot and is mainly used for transceiver conversion.

[0072] 2. SL resource allocation:

[0073] The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Release (Rel) 16 defines two resource allocation modes for SL: mode 1 and mode 2. In mode 1, the base station schedules SL resources for the terminal device. In mode 2, the terminal device autonomously determines the SL resources (pre-)configured by the base station / network.

[0074] In mode 2, the terminal device can work in a scenario without network coverage. Mode 2 supports resource reservation, and the resource reservation information is indicated in the SCI.

[0075] In mode 2, SL resource selection is triggered by the higher layer. When SL resource selection is triggered in time slot n, the terminal device determines candidate resources in the resource selection window (RSW) for SL transmission based on the resource reservation information of other terminal devices sensed in the sensing window. For example, assuming that SL resource selection is triggered in time slot n, the specific steps of mode 2 resource allocation are as follows:

[0076] Step 1) Confirm the resource selection window.

[0077] The time slot range of the selection window is time slot [n+T1, n+T2]. Exemplarily, T1 is determined by the capability of the terminal device, and T2 is determined by the packet delay budget (PDB).

[0078] Step 2) Determine the perception window.

[0079] Among them, the time slot range of the perception window is Exemplarily, T0 is determined by the high-level parameter sl-SensingWindow, Indicates the latency of the terminal device processing the perception results within the perception window.

[0080] Within the perception window, the terminal device continuously listens to each time slot in the resource pool, decodes the SCI in the physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) on each time slot, and measures the reference signal received power (RSRP) of the demodulation reference signal (DMRS) of the PSCCH and / or the physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) scheduled by the PSCCH.

[0081] Step 3) Get the priority P indicated in the SCI i =prio RX , and the priority P of the terminal device for SL transmission configured by the high-level layer j =prio TX , and determine the i and P j The relevant RSRP threshold Th(P i ,P j ).

[0082] Step 4) Determine the initial single-slot candidate resource set S A .

[0083] Among them, the initial single-slot candidate resource set S A Includes all single-slot candidate resources in the SL resource pool that are within the selection window. A single-slot candidate resource R x,y Defined as a time slot The continuous L starting from subchannel x subCH The initial single-slot candidate resource set S A The total number of single-slot candidate resources in is denoted as M total .

[0084] Step 5) For the initial single-slot candidate resource set S A A single-slot candidate resource R in x,y (Assuming that the time slot ), when the following two conditions are met at the same time, the single time slot candidate resource is removed from S A Excluded:

[0085] a) The terminal device is in the time slot There is no channel listening in the time slot (for example, the terminal device is in the transmitting state in this time slot). is the time slot within the perception window.

[0086] b) For any resource reservation interval value P allowed by the higher-level parameter sl-ResourceReservePeriodList rsvp , time slot and There is overlap. Among them, q is the guaranteed time slot A positive integer within the selection window [n+T1,n+T2].

[0087] Step 5a), if after step 5) S A The number of single-slot candidate resources remaining in total , re-execute step 4). After re-executing step 4), you can execute step 6), and the exclusion in step 5) is no longer effective.

[0088] Step 6) For the initial single-slot candidate resource set S A A single-slot candidate resource R in x,y (Assuming that the time slot ), when the following three conditions are met at the same time, the single time slot candidate resource is removed from S A Excluded:

[0089] a) The terminal device is in the time slot The SCI carried by a PSCCH is decoded in the decoder, and the value indicated by the resource reservation period field in the SCI is P rsvp_RX (in milliseconds ms), which is converted into a period in time slots as P' rsvp_RX In addition, the priority field in the SCI indicates the priority of prio RX The sub-channel resources occupied by the PSCCH and the PSSCH scheduled by the PSCCH in the frequency domain are R RX .

[0090] b) The RSRP of the DMRS of the PSCCH, or the RSRP of the DMRS of the PSCCH scheduled by the PSCCH, is higher than the RSRP threshold determined in step 3).

[0091] c) The reserved resource indicated by the SCI is within the resource selection window. Resources on R RX and There is overlap, where q is the guaranteed time slot A positive integer within the selection window [n+T1,n+T2]. Resources on R RX Cycle resources reserved for other terminal devices. Represents a single-slot candidate resource R x,y According to the period P' rsvp_TX The resources after extension, 0≤j≤Cresel -1.

[0092] It is understandable that for a time slot within the perception window For example, the terminal device only needs to perform one of step 5) and step 6). That is, if the terminal device is in the time slot within the sensing window If no channel sensing is performed, execute step 5); if the terminal device is in the time slot within the sensing window Decode the SCI of a certain PSCCH and execute step 6).

[0093] Step 7), if the initial single-slot candidate resource set S A The number of single-slot candidate resources remaining in total , increase the RSRP threshold in step 3) (by 3dB each time), and return to step 4) to continue the process. A The number of single-slot candidate resources remaining in total , S A Report to higher-ups.

[0094] In SL positioning, the terminal device may also select resources from the positioning dedicated resource pool based on the above-mentioned mode 2 for sending SL-PRS.

[0095] 3. Licensed and unlicensed frequency bands:

[0096] In wireless communication systems, frequency bands can be divided into licensed frequency bands and unlicensed frequency bands. Usually, cellular mobile communication systems operate in licensed frequency bands. In licensed frequency bands, terminal devices use spectrum resources based on the scheduling of the central node.

[0097] In the 4th generation (4G) long term evolution (LTE) system, research on unlicensed frequency bands for cellular mobile communications began, giving rise to LTE in Unlicensed spectrum (LTE-U) technology. With the evolution of communication systems, the 5th generation (5G) new radio (NR) system in unlicensed spectrum was also introduced, referred to as NR-U.

[0098] Since there are other communication systems (such as Wi-Fi systems) operating in unlicensed frequency bands, a listen-before-talk (LBT) mechanism is introduced in LTE-U and NR-U, so that LTE-U, NR-U systems and other communication systems operating in unlicensed frequency bands can coexist.

[0099] The LBT mechanism is a channel access rule based on random backoff. Before accessing the channel and starting to send data, the communication device needs to sense whether the channel is idle. If the channel remains idle for a period of time, it can occupy the channel and send data in the channel after the LBT is completed. If the channel is not idle, it is necessary to occupy the channel after the channel is idle again and the LBT is completed. The length of time the channel is occupied is called the channel occupancy time (COT). In addition, COT can also be understood as: after the channel is occupied through LBT to obtain the sending opportunity, the maximum time length corresponding to the sending opportunity that can continuously send information, and this time length is related to the priority of the data to be sent; or, COT can also be understood as: the usage time of the channel accessed through LBT.

[0100] LTE-U and NR-U include sidelink-unlicensed (SL-U). Currently, SL-U supports Type 1 channel access and Type 2 channel access.

[0101] In Type 1 channel access, the waiting time for the channel to be idle is random. The terminal device sets a random number N according to the channel access priority class (CPCA), and then decreases the random number by 1 every time it senses that the channel is idle for a period of time, until N decreases to 0 and then accesses the channel. In Type 2 channel access, the waiting time for the channel to be idle is fixed.

[0102] With the advancement of standardization work, positioning research in SL-U scenarios has been put on the agenda. In SL-U positioning, TDM can also be performed in a time slot to transmit SL-PRS under unlicensed spectrum. Exemplarily, a time slot may include multiple TDM durations (TDM duration), and the time domain position of a SL-PRS resource occupies a TDM duration. Different TDM durations can be used for different terminal devices to send SL-PRS. Among them, a TDM duration can include at least one OFDM symbol, and different TDM durations are of the same size.

[0103] For example, the time slot structure of the dedicated resource pool for SL-U positioning in unlicensed spectrum can be as follows: Figure 2 As shown in (a) or (b) in . Figure 2 Only two TDM durations are taken as an example for illustration. In actual applications, the TDM duration included in one time slot may be greater than two.

[0104] In addition, comb multiplexing is supported on the same OFDM symbol within the TDM duration. Figure 1The related descriptions shown are not repeated here. In addition, the time slot may not include an AGC symbol, that is, the AGC symbol is optional.

[0105] As a possible implementation, when a time slot includes an AGC symbol, the AGC symbol may be located outside the TDM duration, such as Figure 2 As shown in (a) in FIG. 1 , or, the AGC symbol may also be located within the TDM duration, that is, the TDM duration includes the AGC symbol, such as Figure 2 As shown in (b) in .

[0106] Based on the time slot structure in the above SL-U positioning scenario, there may be a situation where the time domain resources where the SCI and the SL-PRS scheduled by the SCI are located are not continuous. Figure 2 In the example shown, the terminal device selects the SL-PRS resource within TDM duration 2. In this case, after the terminal device sends the SCI, the channel may be occupied by other terminal devices of different systems, so that the terminal device cannot continue to send the SL-PRS scheduled by the SCI.

[0107] Based on this, the present application provides a communication method, which can make the time domain resources where the SCI and the SL-PRS scheduled by it are located as continuous as possible, or can make the time domain resources where the SL-PRS resources are located as continuous as possible with the resources reserved by other terminal devices in the same system, thereby avoiding the channel being preempted by terminal devices in other systems after sending the SCI, so that the SL-PRS can be successfully sent and then complete the positioning.

[0108] The technical solution of the embodiment of the present application can be used in various communication systems, such as: vehicle-to-everything (V2X) system, device-to-device (D2D) system, machine-to-machine (M2M) system, Internet of Things (IoT) system, Wi-Fi system, worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) system, and other next-generation communication systems. In addition, the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application can be applied to positioning scenarios in various communication systems.

[0109] Among them, the above-mentioned communication systems and communication scenarios applicable to the present application are only examples, and the communication systems and communication scenarios applicable to the present application are not limited to these. They are uniformly described here and will not be repeated below.

[0110] See also Figure 3, is a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application. The communication system includes multiple terminal devices. Each terminal device can communicate with each other through SL.

[0111] Furthermore, the communication system may also include a network device and / or a location management function (LMF) network element. The terminal device and the network device may communicate via an uplink (UL) and / or a downlink (DL). The LMF network element is used to determine the location of the terminal device based on positioning measurement information (such as arrival angle, arrival time, etc.).

[0112] Optionally, the terminal device in the embodiment of the present application may refer to a device with wireless transceiver function. The terminal device may also be referred to as user equipment (UE), terminal, access terminal, user unit, user station, mobile station (MS), remote station, remote terminal, mobile terminal (MT), user terminal, wireless communication device, user agent or user device, etc. The terminal device may be, for example, a terminal device in IoT, V2X, D2D, M2M, 5G network, or a future evolved public land mobile network (PLMN). The terminal can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; it can also be deployed on the water (such as ships, etc.); it can also be deployed in the air (such as airplanes, balloons and satellites, etc.).

[0113] Exemplarily, the terminal device may be an IoT device (e.g., a sensor, an electric meter, a water meter, etc.), a roadside unit (RSU), a V2X device, a station (STA) in a wireless local area network (WLAN), a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a personal digital assistant (PDA) device, a handheld device with a wireless communication function, a computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, an in-vehicle device, a wearable device (also referred to as a wearable smart device), a tablet computer or a computer with a wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in self driving, a wireless terminal in remote medical, a wireless terminal in a smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in a smart city, a smart home, or a wireless terminal in a smart city. The terminal may be a wireless terminal in a home, a vehicle-mounted terminal, a vehicle with V2V communication capability, an intelligent connected vehicle, a drone with UAV to UAV (U2U) communication capability, etc. The terminal may be mobile or fixed, and this application does not make specific restrictions on this.

[0114] Optionally, the network device may be a network-side device with wireless transceiver functions, or may be a chip or chip system arranged in the device, located in the radio access network (RAN) of the mobile communication system, and used to provide access services for terminal devices. The network device may be an evolutionary Node B (eNB or eNodeB) in an LTE or evolved LTE system (LTE-Advanced, LTE-A), such as a traditional macro base station eNB and a micro base station eNB in ​​a heterogeneous network scenario; or it may be a next generation node B (gNodeB or gNB) in a 5G system; or it may be a transmission reception point (TRP); or it may be a base station in a future evolved PLMN; or it may be a broadband network service gateway (BNG), an aggregation switch or a non-3GPP access device; or it may be a wireless controller in a cloud radio access network (CRAN); or it may be an access point (AP) in a WiFi system; or it may be a wireless relay node or a wireless backhaul node; or it may be a device that implements a base station function in IoT, V2X, D2D, or M2M, and the embodiments of the present application do not specifically limit this. Exemplarily, the base stations in the embodiments of the present application may include various forms of base stations, such as: macro base stations, micro base stations (also called small stations), relay stations, access points, etc., and the embodiments of the present application do not specifically limit this.

[0115] In some scenarios, the network device may also be a module or unit that can implement some or all of the functions of a base station, for example, the network device may be a centralized unit (CU), a distributed unit (DU), CU and DU, CU-control plane (CP), CU-user plane (UP), or a radio unit (RU). The CU and DU may be separately configured, or may be included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). The RU may be included in a radio frequency device or radio frequency unit, such as a remote radio unit (RRU), an active antenna unit (AAU), or a remote radio head (RRH).

[0116] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU or RU may also have different names, but those skilled in the art can understand their meanings. For example, the network device may be a network device or a module of a network device in an open radio access network (open RAN, ORAN) system. In the ORAN system, CU may also be referred to as open (open, O)-CU, DU may also be referred to as O-DU, CU-CP may also be referred to as O-CU-CP, CU-UP may also be referred to as O-CU-UP, and RU may also be referred to as O-RU. Any of the CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU and RU in this application may be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module.

[0117] In some scenarios, the network device may also be referred to as a RAN node or a RAN device or an access network device, or the network device may also have other naming methods, which is not specifically limited in this application.

[0118] Below in conjunction with accompanying drawing, the communication method that embodiment of the present application provides is described.It is understandable that, in embodiment of the present application, network equipment or terminal equipment can perform part or all of the steps in embodiment of the present application, and these steps or operations are only examples, and embodiment of the present application can also perform other operations or the deformation of various operations.In addition, each step can be performed in the different order presented in embodiment of the present application, and it is possible not to perform all the operations in embodiment of the present application.

[0119] It should be noted that the message names between the devices or the names of the parameters in the messages in the following embodiments of the present application are only examples, and other names may be used in the specific implementation, and the embodiments of the present application do not specifically limit this.

[0120] like Figure 4 FIG. 1 is a flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application, and the communication method includes the following steps:

[0121] S401. The terminal device determines a first candidate PRS resource set.

[0122] The first candidate PRS resource set includes P PRS resources, and the P PRS resources include at least N idle PRS resources within a first duration, where N and P are positive integers and N is less than P.

[0123] In a possible implementation, the terminal device may determine a resource selection window, and the first candidate PRS resource set includes all PRS resources in the positioning resource pool that are within the resource selection window. The total number of PRS resources in the first candidate PRS resource set is P. Exemplarily, the time slot range of the resource selection window may be a time slot [n+T1, n+T2]. Wherein, time slot n may be a current time slot, or a time slot that triggers resource selection, and T1 and T2 may be configured by a network device, or may be determined by the terminal device itself, such as T1 is determined by the capability of the terminal device, and T2 is determined by the PDB, without limitation.

[0124] In a possible implementation, TDM can be performed in each time slot of the positioning resource pool to transmit PRS. Exemplarily, a time slot may include multiple durations, also known as TDM durations (TDM durations). The time domain position of a PRS resource occupies a duration, and different durations can be used for different terminal devices to send PRS. Among them, a duration may include at least one OFDM symbol, and the sizes of different durations are the same or different. In addition, comb multiplexing is supported on the same OFDM symbol within the duration. Please refer to the above Figure 1 and Figure 2 The relevant instructions shown are not repeated here.

[0125] Optionally, each time slot in the positioning resource pool may also include an AGC symbol, or may not include an AGC symbol. In the case where an AGC symbol is included, the AGC symbol may be located outside the duration or within the duration. Figure 2 The related description shown is not repeated here. In the following embodiments of the present application, the AGC symbol is described as being outside the duration.

[0126] Optionally, the at least N idle PRS resources in the first duration may be part or all of the PRS resources in the first duration, that is, part of the PRS resources in the first duration may be idle, or all of the PRS resources in the first duration may be idle.

[0127] Optionally, the first duration may be a first duration including at least N idle PRS resources, or a first duration in which all the included PRS resources are idle, among multiple durations in a time slot in the resource selection window.

[0128] Optionally, whether the PRS resources are idle can be determined based on the perception of the terminal device. Exemplarily, the terminal device can determine the perception window, continuously listen to each time slot within the perception window, and decode the SCI on each time slot (SCI sent by other terminal devices in the same system). Afterwards, the PRS resources in the resource selection window reserved by other terminal devices in the same system are determined according to the SCI, and the PRS resources reserved by other terminal devices in the same system are determined as non-idle PRS resources, and the PRS resources not reserved by other terminal devices in the same system are determined as idle PRS resources; or, the signal quality of the SCI and / or the PRS scheduled by the SCI is measured, and when the signal quality is greater than or equal to a certain threshold, the PRS resources where the PRS scheduled by the SCI is located are periodically extended, and the PRS resources located in the resource selection window after the period extension are determined as non-idle PRS resources. Please refer to the relevant implementation in the aforementioned SL resource allocation mode 2, which will not be repeated here.

[0129] Exemplarily, the signal quality may be represented by RSRP, reference signal received quality (RSRQ), signal to noise ratio (SNR), signal interference noise ratio (SINR), etc., without limitation.

[0130] For example, Figure 5 As shown, taking a time slot including two durations as an example, assuming that duration 1 includes at least N idle PRS resources, or all PRS resources in duration 1 are idle, such as duration 1 includes at least N PRS resources that have not been reserved by other terminal devices in the same system, or none of the PRS resources in duration 1 have been reserved by other terminal devices in the same system, then duration 1 is the first duration.

[0131] Or, for example, Figure 6 As shown, taking a time slot including two durations as an example, assuming that N is equal to 2, duration 1 and duration 2 respectively include 2 PRS resources, PRS resource 1 in duration 1 is not idle (such as reserved by other terminal devices in the same system), PRS resource 2 is idle, and both PRS resources in duration 2 are idle, then the first duration is duration 2.

[0132] It can be understood that, when the time slot includes an AGC symbol, the AGC symbol can be located within the duration or outside the duration. Figure 5 and Figure 6 The example where the AGC symbol is outside the duration is used for explanation.

[0133] In a possible implementation manner, the first candidate PRS resource set may also be referred to as an initial candidate PRS resource set, and the two may replace each other.

[0134] S402: The terminal device determines that the available PRS resources are M PRS resources in the second candidate PRS resource set. That is, the total number of available PRS resources is M, and M is a positive integer.

[0135] The second candidate PRS resource set includes Q PRS resources, where Q is a positive integer and is smaller than P. That is, the total number of PRS resources in the second candidate PRS resource set is smaller than the total number of PRS resources in the first candidate PRS resource set.

[0136] The second candidate PRS resource set is the PRS resource remaining after excluding the PRS resource after the first duration in the first candidate PRS resource set. That is, the PRS resource after the first duration can be excluded from the first candidate PRS resource set to obtain the second candidate PRS resource set. Figure 5 In the example shown, the PRS resources located after duration 1, that is, the PRS resources within duration 2, can be excluded from the first candidate PRS resource set to obtain the second candidate PRS resource set.

[0137] Wherein, M is less than or equal to Q. That is, the total number of available PRS resources is less than or equal to the total number of PRS resources in the second candidate PRS resource set.

[0138] Optionally, after excluding the PRS resources located after the first duration from the first candidate PRS resource set, the terminal device may continue to exclude the PRS resources in the first candidate PRS resource set according to a preset rule. In this scenario, M may be less than Q. Alternatively, the terminal device may first exclude the PRS resources in the first candidate PRS resource set according to a preset rule, and then exclude the PRS resources located after the first duration from the first candidate PRS resource set. The present application does not specifically limit the order of these two exclusion methods. Exemplarily, the preset rule may be to exclude non-idle PRS resources in the first candidate PRS resource set, for example, based on Figure 6 In the example shown, after excluding the PRS resources after duration 2, the non-idle PRS resources within duration 1 (ie, PRS resource 1) may continue to be excluded; or the preset rule may be the condition described in step 5) or step 6) in the above resource allocation mode 2, without limitation.

[0139] In a possible implementation manner, the M available PRS resources include at least N idle PRS resources in the first duration, that is, the idle PRS resources in the first duration can be used as available PRS resources.

[0140] In a possible implementation manner, the M available PRS resources may constitute an available PRS resource set, that is, the available PRS resource set includes the M available PRS resources described in S402.

[0141] Based on the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application, when the first candidate PRS resource set includes at least N idle PRS resources within the first duration, the PRS resources in the first candidate PRS resource set that are located after the first duration are excluded, that is, the available PRS resources do not include the PRS resources after the first duration. In other words, the available PRS resources may be located within the first duration. Since the first duration includes at least N idle PRS resources, when N is large, such as N is the total number of PRSs included in the duration, the first duration may be the first duration in the time slot that includes at least N idle PRS resources, or the first duration in which all the included PRS resources are idle.

[0142] That is to say, if there are other durations before the first duration, at least one PRS resource in the other durations should be reserved or selected by other terminal devices in the same system. In this scenario, although the available PRS resources in the first duration are not continuous with the scheduling information of PRS, the PRS resources between the two are reserved or selected by other terminal devices in the same system, and the terminal devices in the same system can send PRS on the PRS resources between the two. Therefore, the terminal devices of different systems will detect that the channel is busy when performing LBT, and thus cannot seize the channel, thereby avoiding the channel being seized by terminal devices of different systems, and improving the success rate of PRS transmission and positioning. Alternatively, if there are no other durations before the first duration, the first duration may be continuous with the time domain resources where the scheduling information of PRS is located. In this scenario, the terminal devices of different systems will also detect that the channel is busy when performing LBT, and thus cannot seize the channel.

[0143] In a possible implementation scenario, the above steps S401 and S402 may be performed by a physical layer entity of the terminal device. In this scenario, after step S402, Figure 7 As shown, the communication method may further include the following steps:

[0144] S403: The physical layer entity of the terminal device sends information about available PRS resources to the higher layer entity. Correspondingly, the higher layer entity of the terminal device receives information about available PRS resources from the physical layer entity.

[0145] Exemplarily, the high-layer entity may be an entity located above the physical layer entity, such as a media access control (MAC) layer entity, a radio resource control (RRC) layer entity, etc., without limitation.

[0146] Exemplarily, after receiving the information about available PRS resources, the high-level entity may select one or more PRS resources from the available PRS resources, and subsequently send the PRS on the one or more PRS resources.

[0147] In a possible implementation scenario, after the above step S402, as Figure 7 As shown, the communication method may further include the following step S404:

[0148] S404: The terminal device sends first information, wherein the first information is used to reserve a first PRS resource, and the first PRS resource is one of the available PRS resources.

[0149] Optionally, the first PRS resource may be one or more PRS resources selected by the terminal device from M available PRS resources.

[0150] Optionally, the terminal device sends the first information on the SL. After receiving the first information, other terminal devices in the same system as the terminal device can learn that the first PRS resource is reserved, so that the first PRS resource can be excluded when selecting or reserving resources to avoid resource conflicts.

[0151] In a possible implementation scenario, after the above step S402, as Figure 7 As shown, the communication method may further include the following step S405:

[0152] S405: The terminal device sends a PRS on a first PRS resource. The first PRS resource can refer to the relevant description in the above step S404, which will not be repeated here.

[0153] Among them, the PRS resource in the embodiment of the present application can be an SL-PRS resource, so the terminal device can send PRS on SL. Other terminal devices in the same system as the terminal device can measure PRS, obtain positioning measurement information, and send the positioning measurement information to the LMF network element so that the LMF network element can perform position calculation; or, other terminal devices can perform position calculation based on the positioning measurement information.

[0154] In a possible implementation scenario, when the terminal device selects a first PRS resource from M available PRS resources to send a PRS, if the first PRS resource and the resource where the scheduling information of the first PRS resource is located are not continuous in the time domain, the communication method may further include the following step a) or step b):

[0155] a) If the channel is continuously idle or continuously non-idle between the first time instant and the second time instant, the PRS is sent on the first PRS resource.

[0156] Among them, the first moment is the end moment of the scheduling information of the first PRS resource, or the end moment of the time domain position where the scheduling information of the first PRS resource is located; the second moment is the start moment of the first PRS resource, or the second moment is the start moment of the ACG information corresponding to the first PRS resource.

[0157] For example, the time slot structure in the positioning resource pool is as follows: Figure 5 As shown, see Figure 8 In (a), if the first PRS resource is within duration 2, the first time may be the end time of the scheduling information of the first PRS resource (i.e., time t1), and the second time may be the start time of the AGC information corresponding to the first PRS resource (i.e., time t2). Alternatively, taking the example that the time slot does not include the AGC information corresponding to the PRS resource, Figure 8 As shown in (b), if the first PRS resource is within duration 2, the first time is time t1, and the second time is the starting time of the first PRS resource (ie, time t3).

[0158] Optionally, the channel being non-idle can be understood as: a signal being sent on the channel is detected, or the signal quality detected on the channel is greater than or equal to a certain threshold. The continuous non-idleness of the channel between the first moment and the second moment can be understood as: a signal is always sent on the channel between the first moment and the second moment, or a signal is always sent on the channel, and the signal quality is greater than or equal to a certain threshold. Correspondingly, the channel being idle can be understood as: no signal is detected to be sent on the channel, or the signal quality detected on the channel is less than or equal to a threshold.

[0159] Exemplarily, a non-idle channel may also be referred to as a busy channel or a busy channel, etc., which may be interchangeable, and the present application does not make any specific limitation to this.

[0160] The time period between the first moment and the second moment can be the time period in which the PRS resources reserved or selected by other terminal devices in the same system are located. If the channel is continuously non-idle between the first moment and the second moment, it means that other terminal devices in the same system have sent PRS resources on the reserved or selected PRS resources. Therefore, when performing LBT, the terminal devices of the other system will detect that the channel is not idle, and thus cannot seize the channel. Then, after the second moment, the terminal devices can send PRS on the first PRS resource; if the channel is continuously idle between the first moment and the second moment, it means that other terminal devices in the same system have not used the reserved PRS resources, but since the channel is continuously idle, it also means that the terminal devices of the other system have not seized the channel, so the terminal devices can also send PRS on the first PRS resource.

[0161] That is to say, when the channel is continuously idle or continuously non-idle between the first moment and the second moment, the terminal device can avoid conflicts by sending the PRS on the first PRS resource, thereby improving the success rate of sending the PRS.

[0162] b) If the channel is (continuously) idle in the first time period and the channel is (continuously) non-idle in the second time period, determine not to send the PRS on the first PRS resource.

[0163] The first time period and the second time period are between the first moment and the second moment, and the first time period is before the second time period. The first moment, the second moment, the channel idle, and the channel non-idle can refer to the above description and will not be repeated here.

[0164] Exemplarily, the start time and the end time of the first time period may be the first time and the third time respectively, and the start time and the end time of the second time period may be the third time and the second time respectively.

[0165] The time period between the first moment and the second moment may be the time period in which the PRS resources reserved or selected by other terminal devices in the same system are located. If the channel is idle in the first time period, it means that other terminal devices in the same system have not used the reserved PRS resources. If the channel is not idle in the subsequent second time period, it means that a terminal device of a different system has occupied the channel. For example, a terminal device of a different system successfully performs LBT in the first time period and accesses the channel at the third moment. Since it is detected that a terminal device of a different system may have occupied the channel, PRS is not sent on the first PRS resource, which can reduce the power consumption waste of the terminal device, reduce resource conflicts, and avoid the impact on terminal devices of different systems.

[0166] In a possible implementation scenario, before the above step S401, as Figure 7 As shown, the communication method may further include the following step S400:

[0167] S400: The network device sends second information to the terminal device. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the second information from the network device, wherein the second information indicates the aforementioned N.

[0168] As a possible implementation, the second information may include a value of N. Alternatively, the second information may include a first ratio, the product of the first ratio and the total number of PRS resources in a duration is equal to N, and when the first ratio is 100%, it indicates that the PRS resources in the first duration are all idle. Alternatively, the second information may include a second ratio, and the total number of PRS resources in a duration minus the product of the second ratio and the total number of PRS resources in a duration is equal to N. Alternatively, the network device may pre-configure multiple values ​​of N to the terminal device, or the protocol may pre-define N multiple values, each value corresponding to an index, in which case the second information may include the index of a certain value.

[0169] like Fig. 9 FIG. 1 is a flow chart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application, wherein the communication method comprises the following steps:

[0170] S901. The terminal device determines available PRS resources.

[0171] The available PRS resources are idle PRS resources. Exemplarily, the terminal device may determine one or more available PRS resources. The available PRS resources in the following embodiments of the present application may refer to any one PRS resource, that is, the methods described in the following embodiments are applicable to all available PRS resources.

[0172] Optionally, whether the PRS resource is idle can be determined based on perception of the terminal device. Please refer to the relevant description in the above step S401, which will not be repeated here.

[0173] In a possible implementation, TDM may be performed in each time slot of the positioning resource pool to transmit PRS. Exemplarily, a time slot may include multiple durations, also referred to as TDM durations (TDM duration). The time domain position of a PRS resource occupies a duration, and different durations may be used for different terminal devices to send PRS. Among them, a duration may include at least one OFDM symbol, and the sizes of different durations may be the same or different. In addition, comb multiplexing is supported on the same OFDM symbol within the duration. The structure of the time slot in the positioning resource pool may refer to the relevant description in the above step S401, which will not be repeated here.

[0174] The available PRS resources are located in a first duration, and the first duration is the first idle duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources.

[0175] Exemplarily, the PRS resources within the idle duration are not reserved / selected / occupied or are idle, or the proportion of PRS resources reserved / selected / occupied within the idle duration is less than or equal to the first threshold, or the proportion of idle PRS resources is greater than or equal to the second threshold. The first threshold or the second threshold may be configured by the network device, may be defined by the protocol, or may be determined by the terminal device itself, and this application does not specifically limit this.

[0176] Based on this scheme, since the available PRS resources are located in the first duration, and the first duration is the first idle duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources, the durations after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources and before the available PRS resources are not idle, indicating that other terminal devices in the same system have reserved or selected this part of the duration. The terminal devices in the same system can send PRS on the PRS resources within this part of the duration. Therefore, the terminal devices of the different systems will detect that the channel is busy when performing LBT, and thus cannot seize the channel, thereby avoiding the channel being seized by terminal devices of the different systems, thereby improving the PRS sending success rate and positioning success rate.

[0177] In a possible implementation manner, the first idle duration (i.e., the first duration) after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources may have the following three situations:

[0178] Case 1: the first idle duration (ie, the first duration) is the first duration after the second duration, and at least one PRS resource is non-idle during the second duration.

[0179] That is, a certain idle PRS resource can be determined as an available PRS resource on the premise that: before the duration in which the idle PRS resource is located, there is a duration including at least one non-idle PRS resource.

[0180] Optionally, at least one PRS resource is non-idle within the second duration, which may include: at least L PRS resources are non-idle within the second duration, and / or, the proportion of non-idle PRS resources within the second duration in the PRS resource set is greater than or equal to a preset proportion, and the PRS resource set includes all PRS resources within the second duration, and L is a positive integer. For the description of the PRS resource being non-idle, reference may be made to the relevant description in the above step S401, which will not be repeated here.

[0181] Optionally, L or the preset ratio may be configured by the network device, may be defined by the protocol, or may be determined by the terminal device itself, and this application does not make any specific limitation on this.

[0182] For example, based on Figure 6In the example shown, it is assumed that duration 1 and duration 2 include 2 PRS resources respectively, PRS resource 1 in duration 1 is not idle (such as reserved by other terminal devices in the same system), PRS resource 2 is idle, and both PRS resources in duration 2 are idle, then the first duration is duration 2, and the second duration is duration 1.

[0183] Based on the first situation, although the available PRS resources within the first duration are not continuous with the scheduling information of PRS, the PRS resources between the two (i.e., the PRS resources within the second duration) are reserved or selected by other terminal devices in the same system. The terminal devices in the same system can send PRS on the PRS resources within the second duration. Therefore, the terminal devices in the different systems will detect that the channel is busy when performing LBT, and thus cannot preempt the channel, thereby avoiding the channel being preempted by terminal devices in the different systems and improving the PRS sending success rate and positioning success rate.

[0184] Case 2: the first idle duration (ie, the first duration) is the first duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources.

[0185] That is to say, there is no other duration between the scheduling information of the available PRS resources and the first duration. That is, when there is no AGC information corresponding to the PRS, the time domain resources where the scheduling information of the available PRS resources is located are continuous with the available PRS resources; when there is AGC information corresponding to the PRS, the time domain resources where the scheduling information of the available PRS resources is located are continuous with the time domain resources where the AGC information is located.

[0186] For example, based on Figure 5 In the example shown, assuming that duration 1 includes at least N idle PRS resources, or all PRS resources in duration 1 are idle, then the first duration is duration 1.

[0187] Case 3: the first idle duration (ie, the first duration) is the idle duration with the highest priority.

[0188] Optionally, within a time slot, the priority of a time duration with an earlier time domain position may be higher than the priority of a time duration with a later time domain position.

[0189] For example, the time slot structure is as follows: Fig.10 As shown in the example, duration 1 is before duration 2, and the priority of duration 1 is higher than the priority of duration 2, that is, priority 1 is higher than priority 2.

[0190] If both duration 1 and duration 2 are idle durations, the first duration is the duration with the highest priority between duration 1 and duration 2, that is, duration 1.

[0191] Based on the third situation, when the priority of the duration with an earlier time domain position is higher than the priority of the duration with a later time domain position, the idle duration with the highest priority can be the first idle duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources, so that the terminal device of the other system will detect that the channel is busy and cannot seize the channel when performing LBT, thereby avoiding the channel being seized by the terminal device of the other system and improving the PRS sending success rate and positioning success rate.

[0192] In a possible implementation scenario, the above step S901 may be performed by the physical layer of the terminal device. In this scenario, after step S801, the physical layer entity of the terminal device may send information about available PRS resources to a higher-level entity. After the higher-level entity receives the information about available PRS resources, if there are multiple available PRS resources, it may select one PRS resource from the multiple available PRS resources, and subsequently send PRS on the PRS resource.

[0193] In a possible implementation scenario, after the above step S901, as Fig. 9 As shown, the communication method may further include the following step S902:

[0194] S902: The terminal device sends first information, wherein the first information is used to reserve available PRS resources.

[0195] The available PRS resource may be a PRS resource selected by the terminal device from a plurality of available PRS resources. Exemplarily, the terminal device sends the first information on the SL. Please refer to the relevant description in the above step S404, which will not be repeated here.

[0196] In a possible implementation scenario, after the above step S901, as Fig. 9 As shown, the communication method may further include the following step S903:

[0197] S903: The terminal device sends a PRS on available PRS resources.

[0198] The available PRS resource may be a PRS resource selected by the terminal device from a plurality of available PRS resources. Exemplarily, the PRS resource may be a SL-PRS resource, and therefore, the terminal device may send PRS on the SL. Please refer to the relevant description in the above step S405, which will not be repeated here.

[0199] In a possible implementation scenario, when a terminal device selects an available PRS resource from multiple available PRS resources to send a PRS, if the available PRS resource and the resource where its scheduling information is located are not continuous in the time domain, the communication method may further include the following step c) or step d):

[0200] c) If the channel is continuously idle or continuously non-idle between the first time instant and the second time instant, send the PRS on the available PRS resource.

[0201] The first moment is the end moment of the scheduling information of the available PRS resource, or the end moment of the time domain position where the scheduling information of the available PRS resource is located; the second moment is the start moment of the available PRS resource, or the second moment is the start moment of the ACG information corresponding to the available PRS resource. The implementation of step c) can refer to Figure 4 The relevant description of step a) in the method shown is not repeated here.

[0202] d) If the channel is (continuously) idle in the first time period and the channel is (continuously) non-idle in the second time period, determine not to send the PRS on the available PRS resource.

[0203] The first time period and the second time period are located between the first moment and the second moment, and the first time period is located before the second time period. The implementation of step d) can refer to Figure 4 The relevant description of step b) in the method shown is not repeated here.

[0204] The above mainly uses the solution provided by the present application in the SL positioning scenario, and the PRS is SL-PRS as an example for explanation. In addition, the communication method provided by the present application can also be used in the uplink or downlink positioning scenario of the cellular network. At this time, the PRS can be an uplink sounding reference signal (SRS) or a downlink PRS.

[0205] It is understandable that in the above embodiments, the methods and / or steps implemented by the terminal device may also be implemented by components (such as processors, chips, chip systems, circuits, logic modules, or software) that can be used in the terminal device; the methods and / or steps implemented by the network device may also be implemented by components (such as processors, chips, chip systems, circuits, logic modules, or software) that can be used in the network device. Among them, the chip system may be composed of chips, or the chip system may include chips and other discrete devices.

[0206] It is understandable that, in order to realize the above functions, the communication device includes hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function. Those skilled in the art should easily realize that, in combination with the units and algorithm steps of each example described in the embodiments disclosed herein, the present application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in the form of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered to be beyond the scope of this application.

[0207] The embodiment of the present application can divide the functional modules of the communication device according to the above method embodiment. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated module can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiment of the present application is schematic and is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation.

[0208] communication device Fig.11 A schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device 110 is shown. The communication device 110 includes a processing module 1101 and a transceiver module 1102. The communication device 110 can be used to implement the functions of the above-mentioned terminal device or network device.

[0209] In some embodiments, the communication device 110 may further include a storage module ( Fig.11 ), for storing program instructions and data.

[0210] In some embodiments, the transceiver module 1102 may also be referred to as a transceiver unit for implementing a sending and / or receiving function. The transceiver module 1102 may be composed of a transceiver circuit, a transceiver, a transceiver or a communication interface.

[0211] In some embodiments, the transceiver module 1102 may include a receiving module and a sending module, which are respectively used to execute the receiving and sending steps performed by the terminal device or the network device in the above-mentioned method embodiment, and / or used to support other processes of the technology described in this document; the processing module 1101 may be used to execute the processing steps (such as determination, etc.) performed by the terminal device or the network device in the above-mentioned method embodiment, and / or used to support other processes of the technology described in this document.

[0212] When the communication device 110 is used to implement the functions of the terminal device, in a possible implementation manner:

[0213] The processing module 1101 is used to determine a first candidate positioning reference signal PRS resource set, the first candidate PRS resource set includes P PRS resources, the P PRS resources include at least N idle PRS resources within a first duration, N and P are positive integers, and N is less than P; the processing module 1101 is also used to determine that the available PRS resources are M PRS resources in a second candidate PRS resource set, the second candidate PRS resource set includes Q PRS resources, Q and M are positive integers, Q is less than P, and M is less than or equal to Q; the second candidate PRS resource set is the PRS resources remaining in the first candidate PRS resource set after excluding the PRS resources after the first duration.

[0214] Optionally, the available PRS resources include a first PRS resource; the transceiver module 1102 is configured to send first information, where the first information is used to reserve the first PRS resource.

[0215] Optionally, the available PRS resources include a first PRS resource; the transceiver module 1102 is configured to send a PRS on the first PRS resource.

[0216] Optionally, the available PRS resources include a first PRS resource; if the channel is continuously idle or continuously non-idle between the first moment and the second moment, the transceiver module 1102 is used to send PRS on the first PRS resource; or, if the channel is idle in the first time period and the channel is non-idle in the second time period, the processing module 1101 is used to determine not to send PRS on the first PRS resource, the first time period and the second time period are between the first moment and the second moment, and the first time period is before the second time period. The first moment is the end moment of the scheduling information of the first PRS resource; the second moment is the start moment of the first PRS resource, or the second moment is the start moment of the automatic gain control information corresponding to the first PRS resource.

[0217] Optionally, the transceiver module 1102 is further used to receive second information from the network device, where the second information indicates N.

[0218] When the communication device 110 is used to implement the function of the terminal device, in another possible implementation manner:

[0219] The processing module 1101 is used to determine available positioning reference signal PRS resources, where the available PRS resources are idle PRS resources, and the available PRS resources are located in a first duration, where the first duration is the first idle duration after scheduling information of the available PRS resources.

[0220] Optionally, the first idle duration is the first duration after the second duration, and at least one PRS resource is non-idle during the second duration; or, the first idle duration is the first duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources; or, the first idle duration is the idle duration with the highest priority.

[0221] Optionally, at least one PRS resource is non-idle within the second duration, including: at least L PRS resources are non-idle within the second duration, and / or the proportion of non-idle PRS resources within the second duration in the PRS resource set is greater than or equal to a preset proportion, the PRS resource set includes all PRS resources within the second duration, and L is a positive integer.

[0222] Optionally, the priority of the duration with an earlier time domain position is higher than the priority of the duration with a later time domain position.

[0223] Optionally, the transceiver module 1102 is used to send first information, where the first information is used to reserve available PRS resources.

[0224] Optionally, the transceiver module 1102 is configured to send a PRS on available PRS resources.

[0225] Optionally, if the channel is continuously idle or continuously non-idle between the first moment and the second moment, the transceiver module 1102 is used to send PRS on the available PRS resources; or, if the channel is idle in the first time period and the channel is non-idle in the second time period, the processing module 1101 is used to determine not to send PRS on the available PRS resources, the first time period and the second time period are between the first moment and the second moment, and the first time period is before the second time period. The first moment is the end moment of the scheduling information of the available PRS resources; the second moment is the start moment of the available PRS resources, or the second moment is the start moment of the automatic gain control information corresponding to the available PRS resources.

[0226] Among them, all relevant contents of each step involved in the above method embodiment can be referred to the functional description of the corresponding functional module, and will not be repeated here.

[0227] In the present application, the communication device 110 may be presented in the form of dividing various functional modules in an integrated manner. The "module" here may refer to a specific application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a circuit, a processor and a memory that executes one or more software or firmware programs, an integrated logic circuit, and / or other devices that can provide the above functions.

[0228] In some embodiments, when Fig.11When the communication device 110 is a chip or a chip system, the function / implementation process of the transceiver module 1102 can be implemented through the input and output interface (or communication interface) of the chip or the chip system, and the function / implementation process of the processing module 1101 can be implemented through the processor (or processing circuit) of the chip or the chip system.

[0229] Since the communication device 110 provided in this embodiment can execute the above method, the technical effects that can be obtained can refer to the above method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0230] As a possible product form, the terminal device or network device described in the embodiments of the present application can also be implemented using the following: one or more field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), programmable logic devices (PLD), controllers, state machines, gate logic, discrete hardware components, any other suitable circuits, or any combination of circuits that can perform the various functions described throughout the present application.

[0231] As another possible product form, the terminal device or network device described in the embodiment of the present application can be implemented by a general bus architecture. Fig.12 , Fig.12 1 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device 1200 provided in an embodiment of the present application, and the communication device 1200 includes a processor 1201 and a transceiver 1202. The communication device 1200 may be a terminal device, or a chip or chip system therein; or, the communication device 1200 may be a network device, or a chip or module therein. Fig.12 Only the main components of the communication device 1200 are shown. In addition to the processor 1201 and the transceiver 1202, the communication device may further include a memory 1203 and an input and output device (not shown in the figure).

[0232] Optionally, the processor 1201 is mainly used to process the communication protocol and communication data, and to control the entire communication device, execute the software program, and process the data of the software program, so as to implement the method provided in the above method embodiment. The memory 1203 is mainly used to store software programs and data. The transceiver 1202 may include a radio frequency circuit and an antenna. The radio frequency circuit is mainly used for converting baseband signals and radio frequency signals and processing radio frequency signals. The antenna is mainly used to transmit and receive radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves. Input and output devices, such as touch screens, display screens, keyboards, etc., are mainly used to receive data input by users and output data to users.

[0233] Optionally, the processor 1201, the transceiver 1202, and the memory 1203 may be connected via a communication bus.

[0234] When the communication device is turned on, the processor 1201 can read the software program in the memory 1203, interpret and execute the instructions of the software program, and process the data of the software program. When data needs to be sent wirelessly, the processor 1201 performs baseband processing on the data to be sent, and outputs the baseband signal to the radio frequency circuit. The radio frequency circuit performs radio frequency processing on the baseband signal and then sends the radio frequency signal outward in the form of electromagnetic waves through the antenna. When data is sent to the communication device, the radio frequency circuit receives the radio frequency signal through the antenna, converts the radio frequency signal into a baseband signal, and outputs the baseband signal to the processor 1201. The processor 1201 converts the baseband signal into data and processes the data.

[0235] In another implementation, the RF circuit and antenna may be arranged independently of the processor performing baseband processing. For example, in a distributed scenario, the RF circuit and antenna may be arranged remotely from the communication device.

[0236] In some embodiments, in terms of hardware implementation, those skilled in the art may imagine that the communication device 110 may be implemented as Fig.12 The form of the communication device 1200 is shown.

[0237] As an example, Fig.11 The function / implementation process of the processing module 1101 in Fig.12 The processor 1201 in the communication device 1200 shown calls the computer execution instructions stored in the memory 1203 to implement. Fig.11 The function / implementation process of the transceiver module 1102 can be Fig.12 The transceiver 1202 in the communication device 1200 is shown to be implemented.

[0238] As another possible product form, the terminal device or network device in this application can adopt Fig.13 The structure shown, or including Fig.13 Parts shown. Fig.13 A schematic diagram of the composition of a communication device 1300 provided in the present application, wherein the communication device 1300 may be a terminal device or a chip or a system on chip in a terminal device; or, it may be a network device or a module or a chip or a system on chip in a network device.

[0239] like Fig.13 As shown, the communication device 1300 includes at least one processor 1301 and at least one communication interface ( Fig.13The communication device 1300 is merely illustrative and is described by taking a communication interface 1304 and a processor 1301 as an example. Optionally, the communication device 1300 may further include a communication bus 1302 and a memory 1303.

[0240] The processor 1301 may be a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), a general-purpose processor, a network processor (NP), a digital signal processor (DSP), a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a PLD, or any combination thereof. The processor 1301 may also be other devices with processing functions, such as circuits, devices, or software modules, without limitation.

[0241] The communication bus 1302 is used to connect different components in the communication device 1300 so that the different components can communicate. The communication bus 1302 can be a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus or an extended industry standard architecture (EISA) bus. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For ease of representation, Fig.13 Only one thick line is used in the diagram, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or only one type of bus.

[0242] The communication interface 1304 is used to communicate with other devices or communication networks. Exemplarily, the communication interface 1304 can be a module, a circuit, a transceiver, or any device capable of implementing communication. Optionally, the communication interface 1304 can also be an input / output interface located in the processor 1301 to implement signal input and signal output of the processor.

[0243] The memory 1303 may be a device with a storage function, used to store instructions and / or data, wherein the instructions may be computer programs.

[0244] Exemplarily, the memory 1303 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and / or instructions, or a random access memory (RAM) or other types of dynamic storage devices that can store information and / or instructions, or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compressed optical discs, laser discs, optical discs, digital versatile discs, Blu-ray discs, etc.), magnetic disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, etc., without limitation.

[0245] It should be noted that the memory 1303 may exist independently of the processor 1301, or may be integrated with the processor 1301. The memory 1303 may be located in the communication device 1300, or may be located outside the communication device 1300, without limitation. The processor 1301 may be used to execute instructions stored in the memory 1303 to implement the method provided in the embodiment of the present application.

[0246] As an optional implementation, the communication device 1300 may also include an output device 1305 and an input device 1306. The output device 1305 communicates with the processor 1301 and can display information in a variety of ways. For example, the output device 1305 may be a liquid crystal display (LCD), a light emitting diode (LED) display device, a cathode ray tube (CRT) display device, or a projector. The input device 1306 communicates with the processor 1301 and can receive user input in a variety of ways. For example, the input device 1306 may be a mouse, a keyboard, a touch screen device, or a sensor device.

[0247] In some embodiments, in terms of hardware implementation, those skilled in the art may think of the above Fig.11 The communication device 110 shown may be implemented using Fig.13 The form of the communication device 1300 is shown.

[0248] As an example, Fig.11 The function / implementation process of the processing module 1101 in Fig.13 The processor 1301 in the communication device 1300 shown calls the computer execution instructions stored in the memory 1303 to implement. Fig.11 The function / implementation process of the transceiver module 1102 can be Fig.13 The communication interface 1304 in the communication device 1300 is shown to be implemented.

[0249] It should be noted that Fig.13 The structure shown does not constitute a specific limitation on the terminal device or network device. For example, in other embodiments of the present application, the terminal device or network device may include more or fewer components than shown in the figure, or combine some components, or split some components, or arrange the components differently. The components shown in the figure may be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of software and hardware.

[0250] In some embodiments, an embodiment of the present application further provides a communication device, which includes a processor for implementing a method in any of the above method embodiments.

[0251] As a possible implementation, the communication device further includes a memory. The memory is used to store necessary computer programs and data. The computer program may include instructions, and the processor may call the instructions in the computer program stored in the memory to instruct the communication device to execute the method in any of the above method embodiments. Of course, the memory may not be in the communication device.

[0252] As another possible implementation, the communication device also includes an interface circuit, which is a code / data read / write interface circuit, which is used to receive computer execution instructions (computer execution instructions are stored in a memory, may be read directly from the memory, or may pass through other devices) and transmit them to the processor.

[0253] As another possible implementation manner, the communication device further includes a communication interface, and the communication interface is used to communicate with a module outside the communication device.

[0254] It can be understood that the communication device can be a chip or a chip system. When the communication device is a chip system, it can be composed of chips, or it can include chips and other discrete devices. The embodiments of the present application do not specifically limit this.

[0255] The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium on which a computer program or instruction is stored. When the computer program or instruction is executed by a computer, the functions of any of the above method embodiments are implemented.

[0256] The present application also provides a computer program product, which implements the functions of any of the above method embodiments when executed by a computer.

[0257] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that, for the sake of convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the systems, devices and units described above may refer to the corresponding processes in the aforementioned method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0258] It is understood that the systems, devices and methods described in the present application can also be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only schematic. For example, the division of the units is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0259] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, i.e., they may be located in one place, or they may be distributed over multiple network units. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

[0260] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

[0261] In the above embodiments, it can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented using a software program, it can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the process or function described in the embodiment of the present application is generated in whole or in part. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium, for example, the computer instructions may be transmitted from a website site, computer, server or data center by wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (digital subscriber line, DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) mode to another website site, computer, server or data center. The computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium that a computer can access or may contain one or more servers, data centers and other data storage devices that can be integrated with the medium. The available medium may be a magnetic medium (eg, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (eg, a DVD), or a semiconductor medium (eg, a solid state drive (SSD)), etc. In the embodiment of the present application, the computer may include the aforementioned device.

[0262] Although the present application is described herein in conjunction with various embodiments, in the process of implementing the claimed application, those skilled in the art may understand and implement other variations of the disclosed embodiments by viewing the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other components or steps, and "one" or "an" does not exclude multiple situations. A single processor or other unit may implement several functions listed in a claim. Certain measures are recorded in different dependent claims, but this does not mean that these measures cannot be combined to produce good results.

[0263] Although the present application has been described in conjunction with specific features and embodiments thereof, it is obvious that various modifications and combinations may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Accordingly, this specification and the drawings are merely exemplary illustrations of the present application as defined by the appended claims, and are deemed to have covered any and all modifications, variations, combinations or equivalents within the scope of the present application. Obviously, those skilled in the art may make various modifications and variations to the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Thus, if these modifications and variations of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents, the present application is also intended to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: Determine a first candidate positioning reference signal PRS resource set, where the first candidate PRS resource set includes P PRS resources, where the P PRS resources include at least N idle PRS resources within a first duration, where N and P are positive integers, and N is less than P; Determine that the available PRS resources are M PRS resources in a second candidate PRS resource set, where the second candidate PRS resource set includes Q PRS resources, where Q and M are positive integers, Q is less than P, and M is less than or equal to Q; the second candidate PRS resource set is the PRS resources remaining in the first candidate PRS resource set after excluding the PRS resources after the first duration.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The at least N idle PRS resources are part or all of the PRS resources in the first duration.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The available PRS resource includes a first PRS resource; the method further includes: sending first information, where the first information is used to reserve the first PRS resource.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The available PRS resources include a first PRS resource; and the method further includes: sending a PRS on the first PRS resource.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The available PRS resource includes a first PRS resource; and the method further includes: If the channel is continuously idle or continuously non-idle between the first time instant and the second time instant, sending the PRS on the first PRS resource; or, If the channel is idle in a first time period and the channel is not idle in a second time period, determine not to send the PRS on the first PRS resource, the first time period and the second time period are between a first moment and a second moment, and the first time period is before the second time period; The first moment is the end moment of the scheduling information of the first PRS resource; the second moment is the start moment of the first PRS resource, or the second moment is the start moment of the automatic gain control information corresponding to the first PRS resource.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The method further includes receiving second information from a network device, wherein the second information indicates the N.

7. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: An available positioning reference signal PRS resource is determined, where the available PRS resource is an idle PRS resource, and the available PRS resource is located in a first duration, where the first duration is a first idle duration after scheduling information of the available PRS resource.

8. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that The first idle duration is a first duration after the second duration, and at least one PRS resource is non-idle during the second duration; or, The first idle duration is the first duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources; or, The first idle duration is the idle duration with the highest priority.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that At least one PRS resource is not idle during the second duration, including: At least L PRS resources are non-idle during the second duration, and / or the proportion of non-idle PRS resources during the second duration in a PRS resource set is greater than or equal to a preset proportion, and the PRS resource set includes all PRS resources during the second duration, and L is a positive integer.

10. The method according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that: In a time slot, the priority of the duration with an earlier time domain position is higher than the priority of the duration with a later time domain position.

11. The method according to any one of claims 7 to 10, characterized in that: The method further includes: sending first information, where the first information is used to reserve the available PRS resources.

12. The method according to any one of claims 7 to 11, characterized in that: The method further includes sending a PRS on the available PRS resources.

13. The method according to any one of claims 7 to 11, characterized in that: The method further comprises: If the channel is continuously idle or continuously non-idle between the first time instant and the second time instant, sending the PRS on the available PRS resource; or, If the channel is idle in a first time period and the channel is not idle in a second time period, determine not to send the PRS on the available PRS resource, the first time period and the second time period are between a first moment and a second moment, and the first time period is before the second time period; The first moment is the end moment of the scheduling information of the available PRS resource; the second moment is the start moment of the available PRS resource, or the second moment is the start moment of the automatic gain control information corresponding to the available PRS resource.

14. A communication device, characterized in that: The device comprises: a processing module; The processing module is configured to determine a first candidate positioning reference signal PRS resource set, where the first candidate PRS resource set includes P PRS resources, where the P PRS resources include at least N idle PRS resources within a first duration, where N and P are positive integers, and N is less than P; The processing module is further used to determine that the available PRS resources are M PRS resources in a second candidate PRS resource set, where the second candidate PRS resource set includes Q PRS resources, where Q and M are positive integers, Q is less than P, and M is less than or equal to Q; and the second candidate PRS resource set is the PRS resources remaining in the first candidate PRS resource set after excluding the PRS resources after the first duration.

15. The device according to claim 14, characterized in that The at least N idle PRS resources are part or all of the PRS resources in the first duration.

16. The device according to claim 14 or 15, characterized in that The available PRS resource includes a first PRS resource; the device further includes: a transceiver module; The transceiver module is used to send first information, where the first information is used to reserve the first PRS resource.

17. The device according to any one of claims 14 to 16, characterized in that: The available PRS resource includes a first PRS resource; the device further includes a transceiver module; the transceiver module is configured to send a PRS on the first PRS resource.

18. The device according to any one of claims 14 to 17, characterized in that: The available PRS resource includes a first PRS resource; the device also includes a transceiver module; If the channel is continuously idle or continuously non-idle between the first moment and the second moment, the transceiver module is configured to send the PRS on the first PRS resource; or, If the channel is idle in a first time period and the channel is not idle in a second time period, the processing module is used to determine not to send the PRS on the first PRS resource, the first time period and the second time period are between a first moment and a second moment, and the first time period is before the second time period; The first moment is the end moment of the scheduling information of the first PRS resource; the second moment is the start moment of the first PRS resource, or the second moment is the start moment of the automatic gain control information corresponding to the first PRS resource.

19. The device according to any one of claims 14 to 18, characterized in that: The device also includes a transceiver module; the transceiver module is used to receive second information from a network device, where the second information indicates the N.

20. A communication device, characterized in that: The device comprises: a processing module; The processing module is used to determine an available positioning reference signal PRS resource, where the available PRS resource is an idle PRS resource, and the available PRS resource is located in a first duration, where the first duration is the first idle duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resource.

21. The device according to claim 20, characterized in that The first idle duration is a first duration after the second duration, and at least one PRS resource is non-idle during the second duration; or, The first idle duration is the first duration after the scheduling information of the available PRS resources; or, The first idle duration is the idle duration with the highest priority.

22. The device according to claim 21, characterized in that At least one PRS resource is not idle during the second duration, including: At least L PRS resources are non-idle during the second duration, and / or the proportion of non-idle PRS resources during the second duration in a PRS resource set is greater than or equal to a preset proportion, and the PRS resource set includes all PRS resources during the second duration, and L is a positive integer.

23. The device according to claim 21 or 22, characterized in that In a time slot, the priority of the duration with an earlier time domain position is higher than the priority of the duration with a later time domain position.

24. The device according to any one of claims 20 to 23, characterized in that The device further includes a transceiver module; the transceiver module is used to send first information, where the first information is used to reserve the available PRS resources.

25. The device according to any one of claims 20 to 24, characterized in that The device further includes a transceiver module; the transceiver module is configured to send a PRS on the available PRS resource.

26. The device according to any one of claims 20 to 24, characterized in that The device also includes: a transceiver module; If the channel is continuously idle or continuously non-idle between the first moment and the second moment, the transceiver module is configured to send the PRS on the available PRS resource; or, If the channel is idle in a first time period and the channel is not idle in a second time period, the processing module is used to determine not to send the PRS on the available PRS resource, the first time period and the second time period are between a first moment and a second moment, and the first time period is before the second time period; The first moment is the end moment of the scheduling information of the available PRS resource; the second moment is the start moment of the available PRS resource, or the second moment is the start moment of the automatic gain control information corresponding to the available PRS resource.

27. A communication system, characterized in that: The communication system includes terminal equipment and network equipment; The terminal device is used to execute the method as described in any one of claims 1-6, and the network device is used to send second information, and the second information indicates N as described in any one of claims 1-6.

28. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device comprises a processor; the processor is configured to run a computer program or instruction so that the communication device executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13.

29. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions or programs. When the computer instructions or programs are executed on a computer, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13 is executed.

30. A computer program product, characterized in that The computer program product includes computer instructions; when part or all of the computer instructions are run on a computer, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13 is executed.

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